Six New Exhibitions Open at The Aldrich in March
February, 2007
Six new exhibitions will open at The Aldrich Contemporary Art Museum in Ridgefield, Connecticut, with a free reception from 3 to 5 pm on Sunday, March 11, 2007. The Aldrich curatorial team will present an entirely fresh view, with new work in all the galleries. The opening is sponsored by WSHU Public Radio.
The Aldrich will host a special behind-the-scenes preview on Friday, March 9, from 6:30 to 8 pm, where members are invited to join Museum staff and artists while they finalize the exhibitions. At this event members are afforded a first look at the sometimes still-wet works of art, and an opportunity to immerse themselves in show-change excitement while enjoying drinks and hors d’oeuvres. Please call 203.438.4519 to join or renew; memberships will be available at the door.
The exhibitions that are otherwise under cover until March 11 are: Photograph as Canvas; David Abir: Tekrar; Elana Herzog & Michael Schumacher: W(E)AVE; Kysa Johnson: Blow ups—Spores, Pollen, and Pollutants; Arturo Herrera: Castles, Dwarfs, and Happychaps; David Robleto: Chrysanthemum Anthems.
The public is invited to the free celebration of this massive exhibition change with artists and curators on March 11. There will be a 2 pm Panel Discussion, Hearing Art: Three Perspectives on Art and Sound, moderated by Aldrich exhibitions director Richard Klein, with artists David Abir, Elana Herzog, and Michael Schumacher. Guided tours will be available and refreshments will be served. Round-trip transportation from New York City is available; please call the Museum at 203.438.4519 for reservations.
Exhibition Summaries:
Arturo Herrera: Castles, Dwarfs, and Happychaps (March 11 to September 2, 2007)
Herrera’s work borrows imagery from children's books and other popular culture sources to create hybrid works of art that are both familiar and foreign. For this exhibition, Herrera will build upon the specific motifs of castles, dwarfs, and what he refers to as “happychaps.” The exhibition will include works on paper from 2003 through the present, along with a 22 foot, floor to ceiling pounced drawing done in powdered pigment directly on the gallery wall. At first glance Herrera’s work appears abstract, but upon closer examination hidden figures are revealed.
The Photograph as Canvas (March 11 to June 10, 2007)
In recent years, there has been a proliferation of artists making images on the surface of photographs. Historically, this phenomenon started in the 1960s with artists such as Gerhard Richter and Ellsworth Kelly. Brooklyn-based writer, artist, and curator Stephen Maine has written about this trend with particular focus on emerging artists. Maine has organized this exhibition especially for The Aldrich in order to further examine the various ways that contemporary artists are exploring this process. He has chosen an international collection of contemporary works by John Beech, Kim Jones, Robert Fischer, Judith Page, Saul Leiter, Sebastiaan Bremer, the Zurich-based team Andres Lutz and Anders Guggisberg, Jim Dingilian, Eugenie Tung, and James Hyde to illustrate the phenomenon.
David Abir: Tekrar (March 11 to August 12, 2007)
David Abir will present a sound installation intended to develop an emotional and physical experience from a piece of music. The music will resound in an idiosyncratic architectural space, which emulates the anatomical structure of the human ear. The exhibition's title, Tekrar, means repetition in Farsi.
Elana Herzog and Michael Schumacher: W(E)AVE (March 11 to August 12, 2007)
Elana Herzog's recent projects have increasingly focused on creating architectural environments with wall surfaces that are altered by the aggressive application of metal staples and shredded textiles. In this work she will collaborate with sound artist Michael Schumacher to explore how her work functions in relation to sound.
Kysa Johnson: Blow ups—Spores, Pollen, and Pollutants (March 11 to June 10, 2007)
Kysa Johnson's site-specific work takes advantage of the glass walls at either end of The Aldrich's entryway, which open the space up to the outside and impart a sense of continuity and communion with nature. She will exhibit a chalk-on-blackboard drawing of spores that are native to Connecticut, namely white oak, pine, American elm, and red maple.
Dario Robleto: Chrysanthemum Anthems (March 11 to June 17, 2007)
This solo exhibition of sculpture by San Antonio-based artist Dario Robleto will focus on symbols of grief and mourning connected to U.S. soldiers of war. The works in the exhibition inventively integrate the ephemeral by-products of past wars—excavated shrapnel and bullet lead, soldiers' uniforms, telegrams and love letters home—and harken back to the aesthetics of material culture in antebellum America. Robleto deliberately sought out museums in areas where Revolutionary and Civil War battles were fought, making The Aldrich an ideal venue. This exhibition has been organized by the Weatherspoon Art Museum.
The Aldrich Contemporary Art Museum is renowned as a national leader for its presentation of outstanding new art, cultivation of emerging artists, and innovation in museum education. Regular Museum hours are Tuesday through Sunday, 12:00 noon to 5:00 pm. For more information please call 203.438.4519 or visit www.aldrichart.org.
