Terrors and Wonders:
Monsters in Contemporary Art
September 15, 2001 – January 6, 2002
Opening Reception: Friday, September 14, 2001, 6 – 8 pm
Cristina Vergano, In the Nature of Things (Simia Pelagi) (detail), 2001
Joseph Wheelwright, Seated Angel #1 (detail), 1987
Exhibition Organized by Curator Nick Capasso and Curatorial Fellow Jennifer Uhrhane.
Read essays about Monsters in Contemporary Art by Nick Capasso and Jennifer Uhrhane.
MONSTERS
have appeared in all world cultures,
and are found throughout the history of religion,
mythology, literature, art, and entertainment.
Since the dawn of human consciousness,
artists have used monsters as metaphors for anxiety about:
spiritual issues
creation, the human vs. the divine,
life and death, good and evil,
the saved and the damned, apocalypse
philosophical issues
the known and the unknown, nature and culture, the mind and the body, the self
and the other
extreme states of emotion
dreams and altered states of consciousness
reason vs. irrationality
alienation
metamorphosis and transformation
desire
ambivalence and confusion
The 33 artists featured in Terrors and Wonders are listed below.
Click on the artists' names to see images of their work and read their artist statements.
- Cynthia Atwood
- Aziz + Cucher
- Karl Baden
- Romas Jouzas Banaitas
- John Casey
- Lisa Clague
- Bryan Crockett
- Amy Cutler
- Sally Fine
- Arthur Gonzalez
- Laurie Hogin
- Howard Johnson
- Luisa Kazanas
- Pat Keck
- Aida Laleian
- Nina Levy
- Michael Philip Manheim
- Megumi Naitoh
- Elizabeth Olbert
- Lisa Osborn
- William E. Parker
- Rosamond Purcell
- Richard Rosenblum
- Jo Sandman
- Stacy Latt Savage
- Christopher Sharp
- Ayae Takahashi
- Randal Thurston
- Harold Tovish
- Ryo Toyonaga
- Kukuli Velarde
- Cristina Vergano
- Joseph Wheelwright
Programming in Conjunction with this Exhibition
Gallery Talks: Meet the Artists
Third Floor Main Lobby
Saturdays, 3 pm
Meet some of New England's most interesting and vital contemporary artists as they discuss featured artwork in informal gallery presentations. Free with Museum admission.
September 15 Laurie Hogin (Rescheduled to November 3rd)
September 29 Rosamond Purcell
October 13 Aida Laleian
November 3 William E. Parker
November 17 Joseph Wheelwright
Symposium
The Wonder of Terror: An Evening with David Skal
Annual Paul J. Cronin Memorial Lecture
Dewey Family Gallery
Thursday, October 18, 6:30 pm
Join David Skal, the world's leading historian of horror and monsters in film and popular culture. In his fascinating, funny, and far-reaching multi-media lecture, Skal cracks the codes of modern horror to reveal how our favorite horror icons mirror the great social crises of the twentieth century. Admission is $5 for Members, and $7 for Non-Members. Reservations are requested. Call 781/259-0505.
