Dorsky Museum will open three new exhibitions with public reception on Sept. 7

August 12, 2019 Andrew Bruso

The Samuel Dorsky Museum of Art at SUNY New Paltz invites community members to a public reception on Saturday, Sept. 7, from 5 – 7 p.m., to celebrate the opening of three new exhibitions:

“Tonalism: Pathway from the Hudson River School to Modern Art” showcases more than 60 paintings, prints and photographs that reposition the Tonalist movement as an outgrowth of the Hudson River School of the 19^th century, which helped lay the foundation for Modernism.
“Paper Media: Boetti, Calzolari, Kounellis” is the first exhibition in the United States focusing on works on paper by artists related to the Arte Povera movement.
“The Ukiyo-e Movement: Gems from the Dorsky Museum Collection of Japanese Woodblock Prints” features Ukiyo-e (“pictures of the floating world”) prints produced in Japan during the Edo period (1600–1868.)

Also on view will be “Madness in Vegetables,” the 2019 installment of the annual Hudson Valley Artists juried exhibition, which is on view through Nov. 10.

Together, these exhibitions promise visitors unparalleled exposure to historical undercurrents and modern trends in regional, national and international art.

*Birge Harrison, “Lawrence River Sunset,” n.d., oil on canvas, New York State Museum, Historic Woodstock Art Colony: Arthur A. Anderson Collection*

Tonalism: Pathway from the Hudson River School to Modern Art
Aug. 28 – Dec. 8, 2019
Morgan Anderson Gallery and Howard Greenberg Family Gallery

Tonalism, the late-19^th century painting movement with deep ties to the Mid-Hudson region, relied less on faithfulness to visual reality than on creating an evocative mood and encouraging contemplation. It has long been considered a conservative approach to painting, but recent scholarship has begun to reassess the Tonalist movement as innovative in both its concept and realization.

This exhibition repositions Tonalism in this new context: as both an outgrowth of the Hudson River School (among other influences), and as an important foundation helping to lay the groundwork for Modernism.

Many of the works included in this exhibition are on loan from private collectors, offering viewers the chance to see works that are not in the public domain.

“Tonalism” is guest-curated by Karen Quinn, senior historian and curator of art and culture at the New York State Museum, and organized by the Samuel Dorsky Museum of Art and the New York State Museum.

*Jannis Kounellis, Segnali [Signals], 1960, ink on paper, courtesy the Olnick Spanu Collection, New York*

Paper Media: Boetti, Calzolari, Kounellis
Aug. 28 – Dec, 8, 2019
Sara Bedrick Gallery

This exhibition convenes rarely seen works on paper from the Olnick Spanu Collection by three masters – Alighiero Boetti, Pier Paolo Calzolari and Jannis Kounellis – and considers the significance of drawing and print within each artist’s practice, as well as in Italian art and culture in the 1960s and 1970s more broadly.

“Paper Media” is curated by Francesco Guzzetti, scholar-in-residence at Magazzino Italian Art Foundation, Cold Spring, New York, which co-organized the exhibition with the Dorsky Museum.

Magazzino was founded by Nancy Olnick and Giorgio Spanu in 2017 and is devoted to Italian postwar and contemporary art.

*Kitagawa Utamaro, Untitled (from the series “Twelve Types of Women’s Handicraft”), 1798–1799, woodcut, Samuel Dorsky Museum of Art, gift of Hugo Munsterberg, 1966.009*

The Ukiyo-e Movement: Gems from the Dorsky Museum Collection of Japanese Woodblock Prints
Aug. 28 – Dec, 8, 2019
Seminar Room

Ukiyo-e, translated as “pictures of the floating world,” comprise a constantly evolving body of works that could only have been produced in the unique context of Edo Japan (1600–1868), with its mingling of newly confident artisans, leisured samurai and a growing urban audience.

This exhibition, presented in conjunction with this year’s New York Conference on Asian Studies, includes a range of ukiyo-e woodblock prints produced primarily during the later stages of this movement, when the shifting function of the prints brought about an increasing variety in type and subject matter.

“The Ukiyo-e Movement” is guest-curated by Elizabeth Brotherton, associate professor of Art History at SUNY New Paltz, featuring works drawn from the Dorsky Museum collection.

Please join the Dorsky Museum in celebrating these exciting exhibitions at the opening reception, Sept. 7 from 5 – 7 p.m.

The Dorsky will offer a number of exhibition-related programs, events and education to the public throughout the fall. More information about public programs at the Dorsky Museum can be accessed online.

Funding for The Dorsky’s exhibitions and programs is provided by the Friends of the Samuel Dorsky Museum of Art and SUNY New Paltz.

About The Dorsky Museum
Through its collections, exhibitions and public programs, the Samuel Dorsky Museum of Art supports and enriches the academic programs at the College and serves as a center for Hudson Valley arts and culture. With more than 9,000 square feet of exhibition space distributed over six galleries, The Dorsky Museum is one of the largest museums in the SUNY system. Since its official dedication in 2001, The Dorsky has presented more than 100 exhibitions, including commissions, collection-based projects, and in-depth studies of contemporary artists including Robert Morris, Alice Neel, Judy Pfaff, Carolee Schneemann, and Ushio Shinohara.

Museum Hours: Wednesday – Sunday, 11 a.m. – 5 p.m.
Closed Mondays, Tuesdays and holidays

For more information about The Dorsky Museum and its programs, visit http://www.newpaltz.edu/museum or call 845-257-3844.