Museum, Mission, and Meaning: Selected work from the Collections

NEW PALTZ — Acquiring works of art for a museum’s collection is a continuing exploration, as each object collected reveals intimate facets of a museums identity, as well as the uniqueness of a region. For the Hudson Valley area, the Samuel Dorsky Museum of Art at the State University of New York at New Paltz, is steadily obtaining – either through purchase, donation, or long-term loan – objects of art which are the sum and substance of the museum and the character of the region.

Museum, Mission, and Meaning: Selected work from the Collections, opening at the Samuel Dorsky Museum of Art on July 1 with a reception from 5-7 p.m. is a remarkable three-part exhibition reflecting the steady growth of SDMA?s holdings. The exhibition continues through December 10, 2006.

The collections at SUNY New Paltz were started more than 65 years ago by a dedicated committee of faculty members who believed strongly in the importance of original works of art and their direct relationship with a liberal arts education. Over the past six decades, the collections at the college have grown steadily and now number more than 5,000 works of art. Museum, Mission & Meaning is the first long-term collection-based exhibition to be presented. It is organized into three sections that boldly and proudly articulate and proclaim the identity of the SDMA.

On view in the Morgan Anderson Gallery, is a survey of 19th and 20th century American prints, drawings, paintings and sculpture from the collection. Major figures George Inness, Milton Avery, Jasper Cropsy, George Bellows, Bolton Coit Brown, Ilya Bolotowsky, Doris Lee, Lilly Ente, Eugene Speicher, Charles Rosen, Austin Mecklem, Theodore Roszak, and Richard Segalman are some of the artists represented. The artwork in this gallery presents a visual cornucopia of the vast cultural legacy of the region and an accurate “snapshot” of our regional holdings. This exhibition speaks for the special commitment the museum has to collecting important works of art created by artists whose careers are linked to the Hudson Valley and Catskill regions as many of the artists featured in this gallery are associated with the historic Woodstock Art Colony.

Made in New York: Recent acquisitions from the photography collection, will be on view in the Howard Greenberg Family Gallery. First dedicated in 2005, this gallery focuses on the SDMA?s extensive photography holdings, which include both the museum?s own permanent collection and the collections of the Center for Photography at Woodstock and the Floating Foundation of Photography, both housed at the SDMA. The collections span a broad cross-section of the history of photography from 20th century images by Larry Fink, Mark Goodman, Joel Meyerowitz, Allen Ginsberg, Edward Steichen, James Van Der Zee and Weegee to work by celebrated 19th ? century photographer Seneca Ray Stoddard. Of particular interest is a major recent acquisition of two rare issues of Alfred Stieglitz?s magazine Camera Work.

Of special significance, is the museum?s rarely seen World Collection. Selections from the World Collections, on view in the Corridor Gallery, demonstrates the commitment of the SDMA to support the teaching mission of the college by collecting objects from diverse cultures. This exhibition will present art and artifacts spanning a period of almost 4,000 years, including objects from Africa, Asia, Oceania and the Americas as well as ancient Egyptian, Greek and Roman art, Outstanding examples from this collection include Pre-Columbian art and artifacts, Chinese and Japanese woodblock prints and Australian bark paintings.

Museum Information
(845) 257-3844
www.newpaltz.edu/museum

Hours: Wed.-Fri. 11am ? 5pm, Sat. & Sun. 1-5pm
Admission if free of charge
SDMA is wheelchair accessible.
The museum is closed August 14 ? 29. It reopens for fall semester on August 30, 2006.