The Register Citizen (Torrington, CT)
Five shows opening in Sept.
Contributed story
WATERBURY — The Mattatuck Museum is opening five new exhibitions in September, each offering a unique view of the world, with free public receptions and opportunities to meet the artists, hear gallery talks and observe the work. A reception for all five exhibits is scheduled for Sunday, Sept. 16, from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m.
Daniel Greene: A Retrospective Opening, will be on view Sept. 9 through Nov. 18.
Organized by The Butler Institute of American Art, this retrospective showcases the realist art of Daniel Greene. It will include a range of work, from paintings created in the 1970s to his more recent pieces. Greene’s art demonstrates both skill and imagination and carries on the great American tradition of narrative painting. This exhibition features more than thirty works that trace the evolution of his style over the course of his six-decade career, featuring color-drenched oil and pastels. It includes figures, still lifes and paintings from his renowned subway and auction house series. Greene explores the energy and patterns of life in these paintings that are fascinating in their composition, technical execution, and clarity.
Saved from Silence: William Kent, opens Sept. 16 and continues through Nov. 25.
A Yale-trained musician and composer, William Kent (1919-2012) began experimenting with sculpture, working in stone, plaster, clay, wood and marble. Once he moved into a barn studio in Durham, CT in 1965, he progressed to carving images into 200-pound slabs of slate. From these giant slates, he produced elegant prints filled with daring and humor, compassion and critique. This exhibition presents Kent’s slate prints, carved slates and wood sculpture. The works are drawn from the collection of the William Kent Charitable Foundation. This exhibition is supported in part through a gift from Raymond Learsy to underwrite exhibitions in The Lab.
The Many Faces of Baseball opens Sept. 16 and continues through February 2018.
Among the many souvenirs of Francis “Fay” Vincent, Jr.’s tenure as Commissioner of Major League Baseball (1989-1992) is his collection of signed photographs and baseballs. The photos and baseballs are signed by many different players, umpires, team owners, sports writers, and presidents and their families. They tell a story all by themselves and stand as a record of Vincent’s time in office, of his numerous constituencies, the special events of each season, and the friendships he forged with the greats of the game. A gift to the Mattatuck Museum, Vincent’s collection will be on public display for the first time.
Body / Parts: Works from the Collection of Raymond J. Learsy, opens Sept. 16 and continues through Nov. 25.
The human body has long been an object of fascination for artists, traditionally functioning as a vehicle to express allegorical ideas about beauty, sexuality, and philosophy. But in the 20th century, there was a significant shift in how the human form was used as a subject; artists now refer to the body as a mutable entity, one whose surface expresses the self beneath. Whether highly representational or abstracted, these works blur the distinction between the observer and the observed, asking us to consider what roles we impose on ourselves and others.
This exhibition of over 20 works, organized by Guest Curator Camille Roccanova, Collection Manager, Raymond Learsy Collection, includes works by Laylah Ali, Jenny Saville, Ana Mendieta, Tseng Kwong Chi, and Natalie Frank. This exhibition is supported in part through a gift from Brass Axe Capital to underwrite exhibitions in the Munger Room.
Evolution of The American Flag also opens Sept. 16 and continues through Nov. 25.
Every flag tells a story. Trace the history of our country through a collection of flags representing critical milestones in our evolution as a nation. Collector Bill Demaida shares flags from the Kings colors through the Revolutionary War, culminating with the stars and stripes we are all familiar with today.
Located in the heart of downtown Waterbury’s architectural district, the Mattatuck Museum is a vibrant destination, known locally and regionally as a community-centered institution of American art and history.
For more information on all programs, events, and exhibits visit the website at mattmuseum.org or call 203-753-0381.