Adelaide Endora Smith (later Mrs. Frederick E. Boothby), 1852
Oil on canvas, 38 x 28 3/4". Gift of Mr. and Mrs. George Putnam
Masterpieces of American Folk Art
June 29, 2008 - October 19, 2008
DE FERRARI GALLERY,GLADYS BROOKS FOUNDATION GALLERY,GOURLEY GALLERY,HEWLETT GALLERY,SAGE GALLERY
The occasion of the Maine Folk Art Trail—a statewide institutional collaboration exploring the treasure troves of traditional American folk art in Maine—provides an opportunity for the Colby College Museum of Art to present more than 50 objects from its remarkable collection of works done in the American vernacular tradition. The exhibition presents works in a variety of media that touch on the full range of folk subjects, including landscape, seascape, ship paintings and still life. An entire gallery of the exhibition will be devoted to the display of primitive portraits, many of which are drawn from the American Heritage Collection, given to Colby College by Edith and Ellerton M. Jetté.
Mixed media on paper, 12 x 9". Gift of the Alex Katz Foundation. Image courtesy of Tibor de Nagy Gallery, New York, and Siglio Press, Los Angeles
Joe Brainard: If Nancy Was
June 22, 2008 - August 17, 2008
UPPER JETTÉ GALLERIES
A visual artist and writer closely associated with the New York School of the 1960s and '70s, Joe Brainard invented variations on commercial images and artifacts that have become icons of Pop art. This exhibition presents 20 mixed-media works from Brainard's provocative If Nancy Was series, a recent gift of the Alex Katz Foundation. Taking the popular comic-book character Nancy as his muse, Brainard cast this loveable and enigmatic little girl in a variety of surprising roles, among them Nancy as a face on Mount Rushmore, as an old Kleenex, as a de Kooning “Woman” painting, and as a building in New York City.
James McNeill Whistler
Old Hungerford Bridge, 1861
Etching on paper, 5 9/16 x 8 3/8". The Lunder Collection
Whistler's Waterscapes: River, Sea, and Canal Views from the Lunder Collection
June 19, 2008 - October 26, 2008
THEATER GALLERY
Curated by David P. Becker
In its myriad forms, water has symbolized many things throughout history, from the endlessly flowing cycles of life to the hidden depths of the unconscious. Since ancient times, artists have been drawn to portray its atmospheric effects and elemental forces, as well as its cultural significance. This selection from the Lunder Collection of works by James McNeill Whistler (1834-1903) highlights a restlessly innovative artist's response to the theme of water. The prints range across his career, from London's Thames River and the English seacoast to the canals of Venice and Amsterdam.
Alex Katz
Ann Lauterbach, from Face of the Poet, 1978
Aquatint, 14 1/2 x 19". Gift of the artist
Face of the Poet: Alex Katz’s Poetry Collaborations, 1969–1978
June 13, 2008 - July 13, 2008
GALLERY
Taking its title from Alex Katz’s Face of the Poet (1978), a group of aquatint portraits of fourteen poets—including Ann Lauterbach, Kenneth Koch, and Peter Schjeldahl—this exhibition is a focused look at Katz’s early poetry collaborations, an ongoing aspect of his work. In addition to the Face of the Poet group, other works presented include Fragment, a book of poems by John Ashbery illustrated by Katz, a monumental painting of Allen Ginsberg, and various other print portraits and poetry books. Displayed in the museum’s Paul J. Schupf Wing, this exhibition has been organized in collaboration with the University of Maine, Orono, host of the National Poetry Foundation conference “The Poetry of the 1970s” from June 11–15.
Olafur Eliasson
Umschreibung (Rewriting) (detail), 2006
Photogravure prints on paper. Gift of Agnes Gund in honor of Gabriella De Ferrari
Together Anew: Recent Contemporary Acquisitions in Context
June 1, 2008 - August 17, 2008
DAVIS GALLERY,UPPER JETTÉ GALLERIES
Together Anew presents a selection of contemporary paintings, drawings, and prints recently acquired by the Colby College Museum of Art through the generosity of donors, alongside other selections from the collection. Stylistically diverse, the works in the exhibition epitomize the plurality of recent art production while suggesting a range of art historical alliances.
Sol LeWitt
Arcs from 4 Corners, 1986
Woodcut on paper, 21 1/2 x 23". Gift of Hugh J. Gourley III in honor of Gabriella De Ferrari, Commencement 2008
An Eye for the Here and Now: Selections from the Collection in Honor of Gabriella De Ferrari
May 23, 2008 - August 31, 2008
TEACHING GALLERY
Gabriella De Ferrari, a distinguished curator, art historian, and writer, served as the founding chair of the Colby College Museum of Art’s Board of Governors. She has also been instrumental in developing the museum’s contemporary collection, helping to establish a thriving program for the support and study of new art. In recognition of the honorary Doctor of Letters bestowed by Colby College upon Gabriella De Ferrari on May 25, 2008, this exhibition presents a selection of works that became part of the collection through her vision, guidance, and generosity.
Chuck Close
Self-Portrait/Scribble/Etching Portfolio, 2000
Soft-ground etching, 18 1/4 x 15 1/4”. Final, signed, progressive proof. Printed by Pace Editions Ink. Published by Pace Editions, Inc., New York. Collection of Paul J. Schupf, Hamilton, New York
Chuck Close has been making self-portraits since the late 1960s. These efforts are invariably based on photographs that he makes of himself and famously translates into paintings, drawings, prints, and other media—typically a methodical, labor-intensive process. His investment in such processes forms the subject of his Self-Portrait/Scribble/Etching Portfolio, 2000, a set of twenty-five prints that illustrates the steps required to produce a single, twelve-color etching. It is also the focus of this exhibition, which uses that portfolio as a lens through which to examine the intersections and parallels that structure Close’s artistic ideas. Accompanied by a full-color catalogue featuring a new interview with the artist. Organized in conjunction with the Picker Art Gallery, Colgate University and The Mead Art Museum, Amherst College.
John La Farge, American (1835-1910)
Agathon to Erosanthe (Votive Wreath), 1861
Oil on canvas, 23 x 13" The Lunder Collection
Permanent Collection and Highlights from the Lunder Collection
Through May 31, 2009
LUNDER WING
On an ongoing basis, the Colby Museum presents selections from the full range of its holdings in American art alongside highlights from the Lunder Collection. Concentrated in the gracious galleries of the Lunder Wing are early American portraits, 19th century master works in landscape, still life, and sculpture, as well as superb examples of genre scenes and folk art, and exemplary paintings and sculptures from early twentieth century American modernism. Arranged chronologically and by subject, the Colby Museum’s permanent collection galleries offer a comprehensive introduction to American art with an emphasis on regional themes characteristic of Maine and New England. Prominently featured is the James McNeill Whistler Collection, part of the Lunder gift. Permanent collection and Lunder Collection works from the mid-20th century to the present, many of which are large in scale, appear in the Jetté Galleries. The Colville Collection of Early Chinese Art, another component of the Lunder gift, is also on view.
Alex Katz, American (b. 1927)
Twilight, 1977
Oil on canvas, 126 x 96" Gift of the artist
Alex Katz Collection
Ongoing
PAUL J. SCHUPF WING
The Paul J. Schupf Wing for the Works of Alex Katz presents rotating selections from the Colby Museum’s comprehensive holdings of paintings, painted sculptures, and works on paper by this renowned American artist. On view are numerous examples of Katz’s iconic figurative works, including the monumental painting Pas de Deux from 1983, a gift from Paul J. Schupf in honor of Hugh J. Gourley III, director emeritus of the museum. Also featured are Katz’s expansive landscapes and cityscapes, paintings that capture qualities of light and aspects of the seasons with astounding economy and assuredness. Other highlights of the Katz Collection on view include the artist’s cut-out metal portraits and standing figures, painted front and back for a playful display of flatness in three dimensions.
John Marin, American (1870 - 1953)
Stonington, Maine, 1923
Watercolor and charcoal on paper, 21 3/4 x 26 1/4" Gift of John Marin, Jr. and Norma B. Marin
John Marin Collection
Ongoing
OSHER GALLERY,SOUTHEAST GALLERY
The John Marin Collection at the Colby College Museum of Art displays a retrospective collection of paintings, watercolors, drawings, etchings, and photographs by this important American modernist. Twenty-four works spanning the artist’s career from 1888 to 1953 were given to the museum in 1973 by John Marin Jr. and Norma B. Marin. An additional work was given in 1992, and in 1998 Norma Marin made a promised gift of 29 etchings by Marin and seven vintage photographs of Marin, including a platinum print by Alfred Stieglitz. The complete collection of Marin works is presented on an ongoing basis in two dedicated galleries of the Lunder Wing.
