For Immediate Release
December 10, 2007
Contact: Corey Cronin 781/259-3628
Winter @ DeCordova:
Exhibitions and Events
Exhibitions
Trainscape: Installation Art for Model Railroads
Joyce and Edward Linde Gallery
through – Jan 13, 2008
For this show, twelve New England artists/artist teams have been invited to create new works of installation art—miniature worlds that will be traversed and connected by a fully operational O-scale model railroad! These installations will be imaginary, inventive, and fanciful—the products of unbridled creativity—because the purpose of Trainscape is to generate new and compelling landscapes, not to re-create reality at a miniature scale as in traditional model railroading.
In addition to providing fun and spectacle, Trainscape addresses several important issues in contemporary art. Over the past decade, many artists have been actively engaged in the creation of imaginary worlds, not only with sculpture and installations, but also with painting, drawing, and photography. This impulse reflects philosophical ruminations about alternate realities, escape from the current world situation, and the use of place—or aspects of place—as an emotionally expressive device. Major themes within this exploration of parallel universes are an increased attention to the idea of the miniature, and a wide expansion of the idea of landscape sculpture (as opposed to the far more familiar “landscape painting”).
The participating artists/artist teams were selected from proposals submitted by 75 invited competitors, and include Ahmed Abdalla, Sandor Bodo, Doug Bosch, Chris Frost, George Greenamyer, Ralph Helmick, Robin Mandel and Gideon Webster, Mike Newby, Stuart Schechter, Ellen Wetmore and Jeff “Jeffu” Warmouth, Edythe F. Wright, and Joy Wulke. Trainscape is organized by Curator Nick Capasso, Koch Curatorial Fellows Kate Dempsey and Lisa Sutcliffe, and Preparator Brad Gonyer. This exhibition has been funded by the Lois and Richard England Family Foundation.
Ricardo Barros: Facing Sculpture
Arcade Gallery
through – Jan 13, 2008
This exhibition features 20 black-and-white photographs from Ricardo Barros’s series, Facing Sculpture, for which the artist photographed contemporary sculptors in their homes and studios, often with their artworks. Barros’s portraits have no particular “style” or “look,” but are individualized images that reveal an open and honest regard for sculptors, and a desire to construct visual poetry by drawing forth aspects of the sculptors’ personalities that most closely inform their work, and the psychological space between sculptor and sculpture.
His subjects include both internationally renowned sculptors (Marisol Escobar, George Segal) and artists who live and work in the New England region (Arthur Ganson, Pat Keck). Many of the sculptors have been included in DeCordova exhibitions, and others have shown work in our Sculpture Park . This exhibition is accompanied by the book Facing Sculpture, a Portfolio of Portraits, Sculpture, and Related Ideas, with an introduction by DeCordova Curator Nick Capasso, who organized this show.
New Arrivals: Gifts to the Permanent Collection
James and Audrey Foster Galleries, Fourth Floor Hallway Gallery
through – Jan 13, 2008
The DeCordova Museum ’s collection has grown substantially since its opening in 1950, in large part due to the generosity of collectors and artists who have donated artworks to the Museum. DeCordova’s collecting mission is to acquire modern and contemporary American art, with an emphasis on the work of New England artists. New Arrivals is the most current in a series of periodic exhibitions featuring artwork acquired by the Museum within the last few years. The exhibition, organized by Director of Curatorial Affairs Rachel Rosenfield Lafo, focuses entirely on gifts to the collection, and includes 43 paintings, drawings, prints, sculpture, photographs, and digital images by 33 artists.
Artists included are: James Aponovich, Ken Beck, Samantha Crawford, Pat de Groot, Ron Ehrlich, Susan Erony, Paul Cary Goldberg, Peter Haines, Suzanne Hodes, Chuck Holtzman, Jon Imber, Philip Jameson, Penelope Jencks, Elizabeth Johansson, Jaclyn Kain, Judith Scott Larsen, Julie Levesque, Sarah Malakoff, Matt McClune, Joyce McDaniel, Todd McKie, Mark Milloff, Arno Rafael Minkkinen, Dean Nimmer, Nicholas Nixon, John Raimondi, Sally Reed, Richard Rosenblum, Michael Russo, John Walker, William Wainwright, Cary Wolinsky, and Shelley Zatsky.
Moving Through New England
Dewey Family Gallery
through – Oct 14, 2008
This exhibition comes entirely from DeCordova Museum ’s Permanent Collection and includes paintings, photographs, prints, pastels, and watercolors, and showcases both old favorites and recent acquisitions. Pairing idyllic New England alongside the less beautiful but in some ways more real aspects of the region, and works from the mid-twentieth century to the present day, Moving Through New England showcases the many interpretations artists have of our region. Participating artists include Jules Aarons, Laura Anderson, Frank Gohlke, Philip Jameson, Nicholas Nixon, Barbara Norfleet, Scott Prior, and Sarah Supplee.
Collection Highlight: Harriet Casdin-Silver
Phyllis and Jerome Lyle Rappaport Media Space
through – Jan 13, 2008
Collection Highlight: Randall Thurston’s Kingdom
Grand Staircase
through – Apr 27, 2008
Museum Closed
The Museum and The Café will be closed from Jan 14 – Feb 1, 2008 for the installation of Presumed Innocence: Photographic Perspectives of Children. The Sculpture Park, Museum School, and The Store will remain open during these times.
Winter Exhibitions Open on February 2
Presumed Innocence: Photographic Perspectives of Children
Joyce and Edward Linde Gallery, James and Audrey Foster Galleries, Phyllis and Jerome Lyle Rappaport Media Space, Fourth Floor Hallway Gallery
Feb 2 – Apr 27, 2008 (opening reception: Saturday, Feb 9 from 3 – 5 pm
Presumed Innocence: Photographic Perspectives of Children is drawn entirely from collection of Anthony and Beth Terrana and includes photographs dating from the early twentieth century to the present day by an international roster of artists. The collection represents the Terranas’s responses to the dramatic impact and timeless quality of the photographs, and their interest in making comparisons among different artists’ pictures. The wide-ranging show includes well-known black-and-white images by masters of photography as well as very recent color work by an international roster of photographers. Among the 85 photographers included are: Ansel Adams, Shelby Lee Adams, Diane Arbus, Julie Blackmon, Manuel Alvarez Bravo, Henri Cartier-Bresson, Bruce Davidson, Rineke Dijkstra, Elliot Erwitt, Lalla Essaydi, Robert Frank, Lewis Hine, Pieter Hugo, Dorothea Lange, Gillian Laub, Jocelyn Lee, Helen Levitt, Loretta Lux, Sally Mann, Mary Ellen Mark, Laura McPhee, Tina Modotti, Abelardo Morell, Nicholas Prior, Angela Strassheim, and Doris Ulmann.
The 113 photographs and one video selected for this exhibition fall loosely into the following thematic and often overlapping categories: the child alone, family relationships, children and animals, the child observed, the child at play, the child at risk, rites of passage, and constructed narratives. The collection is rich in documentary and socially concerned photography, and also includes images created with newer digital technologies, enabling the photographer to create partially or wholly fictitious images.
The stories that are told in these photographs are spun by both the photographer and the viewer. Is the photographer capturing a found moment, or are the children very deliberately posed, or entirely staged, even in terms of what they wear and hold? Has the photographer altered the image through cropping or other manipulations to emphasize a particular reading of the photograph, or digitally constructed the scene out of disparate elements to create a totally fictive picture? How much do our personal, religious, and political beliefs affect our reading of the photograph?
The children in these photographs are sweet and tough, innocent and wise, cherished and victimized, joyous and sorrowful, carefree and desperate. Although most of these pictures have been taken in a particular place at a specific time, they are timeless because they speak to conditions that children have experienced from time immemorial. And even totally invented images add to the dialogue about changing conceptions of childhood. In the end, it is the stories that we invent about the children in these photographs that hold our interest.
Presumed Innocence: Photographic Perspectives of Children is organized by Director of Curatorial Affairs Rachel Rosenfield Lafo, along with Koch Curatorial Fellows Lisa Sutcliffe and Kate Dempsey.
The exhibition is accompanied by a 160-page full-color catalogue. The catalogue will include two essays, one by Director of Curatorial Affairs Rachel Rosenfield Lafo, curator of the exhibition, discussing the range of photographic work in the Terrana collection and how it relates to the history of photography, and the second by Anne Higonnet, Professor of Art History at Barnard College , about the changing concept of childhood in visual imagery. The catalogue will also include full page reproductions of each photograph, brief biographies of the artists, and a checklist for the exhibition. Designed by Wilcox Design and published by DeCordova Museum , the catalogue will be 12 x 9 inches in an edition of 2500.
Photographs of Children from the DeCordova Permanent Collection
Arcade Gallery, Photography Study Space
Feb 2 – Apr 27, 2008
This exhibition highlights photographs from DeCordova’s Permanent Collection that relate thematically to Presumed Innocence: Photographic Perspectives of Children . Among the artists included are: Jules Aa ron s, Paul D’Amato, Hansi Durlach, Harold Edgerton, Larry Fink, Charles “Teenie” Harris, Peter Kayafas, Mary Lang, Rania Matar, Nicholas Nixon, Hakim Raquib, Eugene Richards, She ron Rupp, Dana Salvo, Edward Steichen, and Matthew Swarts.
Events and Programs
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. Join these Presumed Innocence artists as they discuss their artwork, along with a special talk with the exhibit’s Curator and Collector:
Feb 16: Meet Director of Curatorial Affairs Rachel Rosenfield Lafo and Presumed Innocence Collector Anthony Terrana
Feb 23: Julee Holcombe
Mar 1: Laura McPhee
Mar 15: Anne Hall
Eye Wonder Family Program
Third Floor Lobby
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 on DeCordova’s exhibitions:
Jan 13: Narrating Through Photography
Feb 10: Create Your Own Landscape
Mar 9: Young Photographers with Guest Artist Segal Patel
Apr 13: Narrating Through Landscape with Guest Artist Scott Prior
Snowshoe Tours
Sculpture Park
Saturdays at 10 am and 1 pm
Feb 2 and 16
Mar 1 and 15
DeCordova Members $15/Member children (ages 8 – 14) $10/Non-Members $24, per person
Winter is a beautiful time to enjoy the outdoor sculpture collection and grounds at DeCordova. And a Snowshoe Tour is a truly unique way to experience in DeCordova’s picturesque Sculpture Park . Bundle up and trek with Eastern Mountain Sports (EMS) and DeCordova Museum Guides. EMS provides the snowshoes and gear and accompany you on the adventure as Museum Guides inform and educate. In its entirety, the program lasts almost two hours, so dress in layers that are warm and waterproof, and wear your snow boots. Beginners welcome! After your tour, relax inside the Museum, visit The Café, and The Store.
Each session is: DeCordova Members $15/Member children (ages 8 – 14) $10/Non-Members $24, per person. Space is limited. Reservations required. RSVP to membership@decordova.org or 781/259-3629. Refunds will be issued only if weather conditions are not conducive to snowshoeing. BYO water, snack, and sunglasses for the journey.
Film Screening: Polis Is This: Charles Olson and the Persistence of Place
Dewey Family Gallery
Thursday, Feb 28 at 7 pm
DeCordova Members $12/YMOD Members $10/Non-Members $15, per person
Join Gloucester-based documentary filmmaker Henry Ferrini as he shares his inspiration for and a screening of Polis Is This: Charles Olson and the Persistence of Place. A visually stunning film highlighting the poetry of renowned writer Charles Olson, Polis Is This was the winner of The Berkeley Video and Film Festival’s 2007Grand Festival-Special Recognition-Documentary Award. The screening will be followed by a question and answer session with Ferrini and the film’s writer, Ken Riaf. A perfect compliment to the current exhibition Moving Through New England, don’t miss this unique opportunity!
The film features John Malkovich with Peter Anastas, Amiri Baraka, Charles Boer, Robert Creeley, Diane Di Prima, Vincent Ferrini, Gerrit Lansing, Ed Sanders, John Sinclair, John Stilgoe, Anne Waldman, and Jonathan Williams; music by Willie Alexander, Pete Seeger, and Stephan Wolpe.
Tickets are: DeCordova Members $12/YMOD Members $10/Non-Members $15, per person. Seating is limited. RSVP by Feb 22 to jneas@decordova.org or 781/259-3629.
The 2008 Paul J. Cronin Memorial Lecture: The Power of Children in Images
Dewey Family Gallery
Wednesday, Mar 5, 7:30 pm
DeCordova Members $10/ Free for YMOD Members/Non-Members $12 /$8 Students per person
This panel discussion will feature photographers Angela Strassheim and Nicholas Prior, whose work is included in P resumed Innocence: Photographic Perspectives of Children, as well as Vince Aletti, photography critic, writer, and independent curator. The panel will be moderated by exhibition curator and DeCordova’s Director of Curatorial Affairs Rachel Rosenfield Lafo. The Paul J. Cronin memorial lectures were established in 1981 to consider topics that are broadly focused upon changing attitudes towards twentieth and twenty-first century art. They are made possible by a generous grant from the Grover Cronin Memorial Foundation. Tickets are: DeCordova Members $10/ Free for YMOD Members/Non-Members $12 /$8 Students, per person. Please call 781/259-3629 or email jneas@decordova.org for tickets.
Artist of the Month
The Store @ DeCordova
The Store will host its series of monthly events celebrating (and selling!) the wonderful work of local artists and artisans.
Join us in March to see the singular work of multi-material artist Judith Hoyt. Hoyt uses metals, pigments, and found objects to create one-of-a-kind paintings masquerading as brooches. These magnificent small works should never be consigned to a drawer—leave them out to delight and challenge you on a daily basis. Reception: Sunday, Mar 2, 2 – 4 pm.
April celebrates the work of Maine potter George Pearlman. Pearlman’s stunning skill and highly-developed sense of whimsy make his pieces like functional sculpture. “Usually I know it is a good piece if it makes me laugh.” Reception: Sunday, Apr 6, from 2 – 4 pm.
Saturday Film Series
Wengren Room
Selected Saturdays, 3 pm
The Saturday Film Series features short films about some of the photographers in the exhibition Presumed Innocence: Photographic Perspectives of Children.Each viewing is free with Campus admission and takes place in the Wengren Room. Content is appropriate for adults.
March 8
Tierney Gearon: The Mother Project by Jack Youngelson and Peter Sutherland (2006) 70 minutesPhotographer Tierney Gearon is recognized for her intimate portraits of her children and family life. This documentary is a look at Gearon’s transitions as a photographer, public figure, and parent.
April 5
Mary Ellen Mark: Twins by Martin Bell (2002) 15 minutes
This film was made when Bell ’s wife, Mary Ellen Mark, was photographing twins at The Twins Day Festival in Twinsburg , OH . After poising each set of twins were asked twenty questions; the film is constructed from their answers.April 5
The Amazing Plastic Lady by Martin Bell (1993) 29 minutes
Pratap Singh, a dedicated trainer, and his troupe of child acrobats in the Indian Circus are this film’s focus. The film captures the great charm of the circus and the powerful master-student relationship. Mary Ellen Mark, Bell ’s wife, photographed the circuses and prostitutes of India for over 20 years.April 12
Sally Mann: What Remains by Steven Cantor (2005) 80 minutes
Sally Mann creates artwork that challenges viewers’ values and moral attitudes. This film follows the creation of Mann’s photo series revolving around various aspects of death and decay.
For images or more information, contact Corey Cronin at 781/259-3628.
General Information: DeCordova 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. Guided public tours of the Museum’s main galleries take place every Thursday at 1 and Sunday at 2 pm. Tours of the Sculpture Park are given on Saturday and Sunday at 1 pm from May to Oct. All guided public tours are free with Campus admission. Visit www.decordova.org or call 781/259-8355 for further information.
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