For Immediate Release
April 6, 2007
Contact:
Corey Cronin 781/259-3628, ccronin@decordova.org
Spring/Summer @ DeCordova:
Exhibitions and Events
Exhibitions
Big Bang! Abstract Painting for the 21st Century
Joyce and Edward Linde Gallery, James and Audrey Foster Galleries, Phyllis and Jerome Lyle Rappaport Media Space Gallery, Grand Staircase, Fourth Floor Hallway Gallery, First and Third Floor Lobbies
through – April 22, 2007
By the end of the last millennium, the art of abstract painting had been almost universally dismissed as irrelevant at best, and expired at worst. But now, at the beginning of the twenty-first century, abstract painting is back with a bang – a Big Bang! This term, cosmologically speaking, refers to the moment approximately 13.7 billion years ago that our universe explosively emerged from an unimaginably hot and dense point. Used here metaphorically, Big Bang! describes the current aesthetic explosion in which a new generation of artists is reinvigorating abstraction with paintings formally and conceptually relevant to many of the great intellectual concerns of this new century.
DeCordova Museum’s exhibition Big Bang! Abstract Painting for the 21st Century, heralds the revitalization of non-objective painting for a new century. This thematic group exhibition features works by artists whose imagery is informed by contemporary issues such as computer technology, cosmology, quantum physics, information theory, genetics, complexity theory, remote sensing, and other sets of current scientific visual languages. The paintings in Big Bang! surge with energy, explode with color, and immerse viewers in parallel universes of stunning visual experience and sheer imagination. And despite the insistent references to science and the digital world, each artwork is completely painted by hand, bringing together cutting-edge and age-old visual technologies.
Big Bang! brings together fifteen artists who reside mostly in New England. They have created post-Postmodern paintings, visually complex and compelling, grounded in ideas that transcend art making and the art world to encompass everything: the universe, the mind, the sciences, the imagination, and the structures that connect them all.
Organized by DeCordova Curator Nick Capasso and Lisa Sutcliffe, Mary Levin and William Koch Curatorial Fellow. Big Bang! is accompanied by a full-color exhibition catalogue, and features work by: Peter Barrett, Thaddeus Beal, Steven Bogart, Sean Foley, Reese Inman, Clint Jukkala, Julie Miller, Meg Brown Payson, Jon Petro, Cristi Rinklin, Terry Rose, Sarah Slavick, Laurel Sparks, Barbara Takenaga, and Sarah Walker.
DeCordova Museum is proud to be a part of the 2007 Boston Cyberarts Festival with Big Bang: Abstract Painting for the 21st Century. The Festival runs April 20 - May 6, 2007. Please visit www.bostoncyberarts.org for more information.
Stephen DiRado: JUMP
Arcade Gallery
through – April 22, 2007
Over the course of several summers, Worcester photographer Stephen DiRado has photographed vacationers and residents as they jump off the American Legion Memorial Bridge in Martha’s Vineyard. This 18-foot descent into the waters of a tidal inlet has been a rite of passage for generations of youth. DiRado’s black-and-white prints capture the anticipation, desire, anxiety, and release associated with the moment of letting go, as terra firma is abandoned and the void embraced. Organized by Mary Levin and William Koch Curatorial Fellow Lisa Sutcliffe.
Approaches to Narrative
Dewey Family Gallery
through – September 16, 2007
Stories can be found in just about every aspect of our lives in the form of personal histories, childhood fairytales, or a favorite film. In the visual arts, the narrative impulse is as old as the oldest paintings and, in the past 30 years, has re-emerged in contemporary art as a mode for artists to convey personal, social, and political issues. Approaches to Narrative highlights artworks from DeCordova’s Permanent Collection that use imagery to “tell” stories. The paintings, prints, photographs, drawings, and digital images on display ask viewers to consider how artists use basic storytelling components, such as character, plot, and setting, to create visual narratives. Narrative approaches represented include documentary photography, expressionist figuration, realism, surrealism, collage, and illustration. Fifty-eight works by 29 New England artists will be on view. Organized by Curatorial Fellow Dina Deitsch with input from the DeCordova Education Department.
Beauty and Decay: Photographs of Flowers
Photography Study Space
through – March 2008
Flowers have long been a favorite subject for artists because of their transient beauty, formal qualities, and allegorical message. Flowers also serve as symbols, which add meaning to a narrative through visual language. For example, when the Angel Gabriel announces that the Virgin Mary will give birth to the Son of God, he often presents her with a white lily to symbolize purity. The lotus signifies birth and rebirth in Asian art, because of its cycle of opening and closing. In addition, flowers mark rites of passage, and are used to celebrate milestones and memorialize deaths. This selection of photographs from the Permanent Collection offers a glimpse at the divergent ways in which contemporary American photographers interpret flowers.
The 2007 DeCordova Annual Exhibition
Joyce and Edward Linde Gallery, James and Audrey Foster Galleries, Phyllis and Jerome Lyle Rappaport Media Space, Grand Staircase, Window Gallery, Arcade Gallery, and Fourth Floor Hallway
May 5 – Aug 12 2007 (opening reception, Thursday, May 10 from 6 – 9 pm)
This year The 2007 DeCordova Annual Exhibition will transform the Museum’s galleries: frilly layered curtains overtake the Window Gallery, surreal graphic figures explode off the walls, and potatoes blast into space. Imaginary worlds of fictional creatures and toy-like landscape photos provide narrative. Artists also explore scientific issues such as global warming, the natural world, and kinetic and humorous sculpture.
DeCordova’s curators have selected ten artists—who work in a variety of media including drawing, photography, installation, sculpture, and printmaking—for The 2007 DeCordova Annual Exhibition: Robert Taplin (Connecticut); Elke Morris (Maine); Sandra Allen, Ria Brodell, Samantha Fields, Anne Lilly, Nathalie Miebach, Jeff “Jeffu” Warmouth (Massachusetts); Jungil Hong (Rhode Island); and Sarah Amos (Vermont).
Originally titled the Artists/Visions series, the DeCordova Annual has showcased the works of emerging, mid-career, and established artists since 1989. This exhibition highlights the work of a limited number of contemporary artists from the six New England states and emphasizes the quality and variety of works rather than any single or overarching theme. Each year the DeCordova Annual seeks to feature some of the best, most innovative, and gifted artists working in the region.
The exhibition is organized by Director of Curatorial Affairs Rachel Rosenfield Lafo, Curator Nick Capasso, and Mary Levin and William Koch Curatorial Fellow Lisa Sutcliffe. The 2007 DeCordova Annual Exhibition is funded by the Deborah A. Hawkins Charitable Trust.
Events and Programs
22nd Annual Art in the Park Festival and Art Sale
Sunday, June 10, 2007, 10 am – 5pm
Rain or Shine! No pets, please!
DeCordova’s 22nd Annual Art in the Park Festival and Art Sale is almost here! Plan now to attend. Paintings, ceramics, photographs, sculptures, prints, jewelry, glassworks, and more will be available for you to purchase from over 100 New England artists. After you shop, enjoy entertainment by Jaded Mandolin; SteveSongs; Bonaparte, Boston’s Hottest Magician; Eddie Kirkland; Elisa Korenne; Inca Son, and TEN31 Productions, Inc. Then, participate in art activities for all ages, including: t-shirt painting, create-a-card with the Gropius House, dream catchers, mosaics, clothespin creations, and a community landscape/seascape. Bring your own picnic or enjoy the food court. Venture to the Museum to view The 2007 DeCordova Annual Exhibition, and converse about the artwork with DeCordova’s Museum Guides. There is so much to see, hear, and do at Art in the Park, plan to spend the entire day!
The Store @ DeCordova, and The Café @ DeCordova will be open, and Museum Guides will also be available to engage in conversation in the Museum building. There truly is “something for everyone” at Art in the Park!
Art in the Park is free for DeCordova Members and Corporate Members, and volunteers at the event. To volunteer at Art in the Park, contact vguarna@decordova.org. Prices for Non-Members are $12 for adults and children ages 15 and up; $10 for seniors and children ages 2 – 14. No passes, discounts, or coupons unless otherwise noted. Reserve your tickets by May 15 by emailing kcrane@decordova.org or calling 781/259-3631, or get your tickets at the door the day of the event.
All parking is free and at Reservoir Place (Rte. 128 and Trapelo Road in Waltham—exit 28). Parking is limited, so please carpool. Continuous free shuttle service runs from 9:30 am – 5:30 pm. For more information visit www.decordova.org and click on Art in the Park.
Gallery Talks: Meet the Artists
Third Floor Lobby
Selected Saturdays at 3 pm
Free with Campus admission
The act of creating artwork can be just as exciting as looking at the final product. Meet New England and regional artists to discuss their work on view in The 2007 DeCordova Annual Exhibition.
May 5: Nathalie Miebach
May 12: Samantha Fields
May 19: Sandra Allen
June 2: Sarah Amos June 16: Jeff “Jeffu” Warmouth
June 23: Elke Morris
June 30: Ria Brodell
July 14: Anne Lilly
Eye Wonder Family Program
Museum Galleries
Selected Sundays, drop-in from 1 – 3 pm
Free with Campus admission
Come to DeCordova with friends and family to discover an ever-changing world of art! Eye Wonder focuses on “seeing” and “doing” in art museums and combines careful looking with creative art projects centered on DeCordova’s changing exhibitions. Eye Wonder celebrates the uniqueness of contemporary artists and their processes with family-friendly guided tours and hands-on art activities. This drop-in program is perfect for families with children ages 6 and up. The upcoming programs will be centered The 2007 DeCordova Annual Exhibition. The following artists will host:
May 20: Samantha Fields
June 24: Anne Lilly
July 22: Jeff “Jeffu” Warmouth
August 12: Ria Brodell
New! STAY TUNED! @ DeCordova
Thursdays, August 2, 9, 16, 23
The Store @ DeCordova/Museum School Gallery
Sculpture Park Tour, 6:30 – 7:30 pm
Box Dinner, 7:30 – 8 pm
Concert, 8 – 9:30 pm
In August, come to DeCordova on Thursday nights for a unique summer experience. Arrive at 6:30 pm for a Twilight Tour of the Sculpture Park—a magical place at dusk and watch amazing sunsets over Flint’s Pond. After your tour, refresh yourself with a box dinner provided by The Café before you spend the rest of the evening listening to music (see performance schedule below). This evening package, which is hosted by The Store @ DeCordova, costs $25 per person for Members and $35 for Non-Members. Reservations are required and space is limited, contact 781/259-8692 or email dduddy@decordova.org to reserve your space. All programs are subject to change.
August 2 This wonderful new music program begins with the Matt Richard/Jim Robitaille Duo. Their dynamic and lyrical jazz duets on piano and guitar will fill the Museum School Gallery with their innovative brand of this truly American music form.
August 9 Trained at the Boston Conservatory, classical musician Javier Caballero performs on that most moving of symphonic instruments—the cello. A sound that speaks like the human voice and speaks directly to the human heart will soar through the summer evening in this solo performance.
August 16 Known to local Boston audiences as The Farewells, the husband-and-wife team of Peter and Samantha Linnane brings a thought-provoking program of their original acoustic music to our new venue. Witty, dark, plaintive, and moving – their songs will endow the evening with a haunting tenderness.
August 23 Singer/songwriter Becky Williams brings her very personal and inspired vision to each of her songs. In words that reflect on the deep workings of the heart and the journey we all take together through each day, her voice will echo in the mind long after the evening has ended.
Artist of the Month
The Store @ DeCordova
The Store continues to host a series of monthly events celebrating (and selling!) the wonderful work of local artists and artisans.
April honors RISD-trained jewelry artist Amie Louise Plante, who will bring some of her exquisitely crafted works to The Store—and add some pieces designed just for this event. Reception: Sunday, April 1, 2 – 4 pm.
May features local artist Jayne Redman whose abstract floral-inspired forms in sterling and gold form a “bouquet” of splendid jewelry. Reception: Sunday May 6, 2 – 4 pm.
June examines the work of artist Carol Stein who gives new meaning to beaded jewelry—she makes beads out of smaller beads and creates magnificent strands of – yes – beads!
Reception: Sunday, June 3, 2 – 4 pm.July celebrates the work of potter Marty Fielding who uses a blend of wheel-thrown and slab techniques to fashion work that is a perfect blend of aesthetics and form.
Reception: Sunday, July 1, 2 – 4 pm.
Art for Lunch
Museum Galleries
Selected Thursdays, 11:30 am - 1:30 pm
Meet DeCordova experts in an informal setting that provides an intimate, behind-the-scenes view of the exhibitions. Bring your curiosity and questions about art, artists, exhibitions, and the Museum. Participants meet at 11:30 am for a walk-through tour of one of the current exhibitions followed by a discussion over lunch. Program runs about 1 1/2 - 2 hours. Cost is $15 for DeCordova Members; $20 for Non-Members. Fee includes lunch from The Cafe @ DeCordova. Space is limited, call 781/259-3632 or email sdiachisin@decordova.org for reservations.
May 24 Why Materials Matter, Led by Head of Gallery Learning Susan Diachisin
June 14 How Nature Plays into Sculptural History, Led by Head of Adult Programs Emily Silet
July 12 Inspired by Art (for teachers), Led by Director of Education and Gallery Learning Lisa Silagyi
August 9 Developing Your Personal Eye, Led by Corporate Program Director Jennifer Roff
DeCordova Museum’s 2007 Annual Artists Share with Students
Selected Tuesdays, May 1, 8, 15, and 29 from 6:30 – 8:30 pm
Museum’s Galleries
During the month of May, the Museum School will offer a four-part artists’ series on sculpture. Sculptors Ria Brodell, Anne Lilly, Robert Taplin, and Jeff “Jeffu” Warmouth will share their inspiration, techniques, and personal perspectives. This special opportunity encourages students to get up close and personal with artists, ask questions, and learn about the issues that inform their work. Each artist is truly unique, in terms of their work and personality!
This series is sure to please students interested in learning more about the sculptor’s work from the source! $85 for Members; $95 for Non-Members; limit 20. Register by calling 781/259-0505.
Pictures Come to Life
Saturday, May 12
1 pm and 3 pm
Come and join engaging storyteller/illustrator Jeff Hopkins as he leads you through an interactive story that you will never forget. Working on wall sized pieces of paper, Jeff Hopkins simultaneously tells and illustrates stories as they come to life before your eyes! Using themes that can be found in DeCordova’s Approaches to Narrative exhibition, he encourages audience participation to help him tell a unique story, complete with sounds and movement. Members get in free! Non-Members $8
Bring Your Mom(s) or Dad(s) to DeCordova for Free
Sunday, May 13 and Sunday, June 17
10 am – 5 pm
Celebrate Mother’s Day and Father’s Day at DeCordova this year! Children (of any age) bring a parent and your Mom(s) or Dad(s) get in free; the children and other guests will be charged DeCordova’s regular admission rates. DeCordova is a unique experience for the entire family. Explore the 35-acre Sculpture Park and The 2007 DeCordova Annual Exhibition, dine in The Café, and bring home a souvenir from your visit from The Store. Your family dog can even come with you to the Sculpture Park!
Museum Closed
The Museum will be closed from April 23 – May 4 for the installation of The 2007 DeCordova Annual Exhibition and from August 13 – 31 for the installation of Trainscape: Landscape Sculpture Meets Model Trains exhibition. The Sculpture Park and The Store will remain open during these times.
For a complete listing of DeCordova’s programs and activities, visit www.decordova.org.
For images or more information, contact Corey Cronin at 781/259-3628 or ccronin@decordova.org.
General Information: DeCordova Museum is open Tuesday through Sunday, 10 am to 5 pm and on selected Monday holidays. General admission during Museum hours is $9 for adults, $6 for senior citizens, students, and youth ages 6–12. Children age 5 and under, Lincoln residents, and Active Duty Military Personnel and their dependents are admitted free. The Sculpture Park is open year round during daylight hours. The Store @ DeCordova and the School Gallery are open Monday through Thursday, 9:30 am to 7:30 pm, Friday through Saturday, 9:30 am to 5:30 pm, and Sunday 10:30 am to 5:30 pm. The Café @ DeCordova is open Tuesday from noon to 3 pm, and Wednesday through Sunday from 11 am to 4 pm. Free guided public tours of the Museum's main galleries take place every Thursday at 1 and Sunday at 2 pm. Free tours of the Sculpture Park are given on Saturday and Sunday at 1 pm from May to October. Visit www.decordova.org or call 781/259-8355 for further information. This press release is available electronically on DeCordova’s Web site.
