FALL 2017
News and Perspectives for Friends of the Arts
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Order Out of Chaos: Celebrating the Power of Art to Transform Communities
A RT S
P R O G R A M
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The Camera as His Voice: Photographer William Anderson
U N I V E R S IT Y
O F
M A RYL A N D
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Arts Program Out and About: Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
U N I V E R S IT Y
C O L L E G E
GREETINGS From the President Dear Art Patrons, On behalf of University of Maryland University College (UMUC) and the 85,000 students we serve each year, thank you for your support of the arts and our Arts Program. As we celebrate our 70th anniversary as an institution this year, I am proud that, from the first, we have been guided by a unifying mission—to bring affordable, quality education within reach for women and men everywhere. For almost 40 years, our Arts Program has represented a unique and vital component of that mission, supporting the work of emerging and established Maryland artists, showcasing the work of international talent, reaching out to our local and regional communities, and introducing the world of art and the diverse worldviews of artists to new audiences. As I have often said, art sharpens our vision; broadens our experience and perception; and fires the creativity that drives us to innovate, learn, and grow. These artistic objectives are wholly consistent with the goals of higher education—and critical to our growth as individuals and as a society as a whole. Thank you again for your ongoing support of the UMUC Arts Program and your continued belief in the importance of seeing the world in new and creative ways. Sincerely,
Javier Miyares, President University of Maryland University College
From the Chair Dear Art Lovers, It’s hard to believe the Arts Program and the Art Advisory Board are beginning another fiscal year of exhibitions and educational programs. We will begin with the exhibition titled Journey: The Artistry of Curlee Raven Holton. At the exhibition’s opening reception, the Arts Program will present a conversation with Holton and Wendy Wilson-Fall, PhD, associate professor and chair of Africana Studies at Lafayette College in Easton, Pennsylvania. The conversation will shine a light on the creative tools that Holton uses in the process of making art and examine how he communicates his views on issues in our society through his painting, prints, and watercolors.
UMUC ARTS PROGRAM
MISSION STATEMENT With a regional and national focus, the Arts Program is dedicated to the acquisition, preservation, study, exhibition, and interpretation of works of art of the highest quality in a variety of media that represent its constituents and to continuing its historic dedication to Maryland and Asian art.
Last year, the Arts Program curated five visual art exhibitions and artist talks, which were well attended and thoroughly enjoyed by attendees. All the exhibitions were designed to support artists, particularly Maryland artists, while opening the door for a broader educational discussion about community, the world, and the creative process in making art. For example, Joseph Sheppard’s Horrors of War, which is still on view, showcases Sheppard’s views on war and its devastating impact on a community and its people. Sheppard’s realistic painting style provides viewers with a sober look at war’s effects. In supporting the Arts Program at UMUC, the Art Advisory Board continues to work hand in hand with the staff to deliver an appealing, energizing visual arts program for the students, faculty, and staff at UMUC and the community at large. The upcoming exhibition season continues our tradition of supporting the arts and inviting educational discussion. If you are not yet a member of the Arts Program, I encourage you to get involved—details are in the back of this publication. As a member, you will be included on our mailing list for notifications of all Arts Program activities and exhibitions. I look forward to seeing you at the next event. Thank you!
Anne V. Maher, Esq., Chair, Art Advisory Board University of Maryland University College
CONTENTS
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Order Out of Chaos: Celebrating the Power of Art to Transform Communities
The Camera as His Voice: Photographer William Anderson
ON THE COVER
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Order Out of Chaos UMUC recently exhibited the works of resident artists from Artists’ Housing Incorporated in Baltimore, Maryland. Find out more about the exhibition on p. 4.
Greg Fletcher, Spring Street Snow— Birthplace of the Artist, 1986 oil on panel, 13 x 17 inches
Arts Program Out and About: Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
In Every Issue GREETINGS FROM THE PRESIDENT AND THE CHAIR 2 COLLECTION SPOTLIGHT 3 DID YOU KNOW? 22 NEWS AND EVENTS 24 BECOME A FRIEND OF THE ARTS AT UMUC
CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT: Artists’ Housing Incorporated,
Baltimore, Maryland; Ghetto Baby by photographer William Anderson; The Frick Museum, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
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CHARLES JARBOE / BY JON WEST-BEY FALL 2017 Managing Editor Eric Key Editors Sandy Bernstein Beth Butler Barbara Reed Director, Institutional Marketing Cynthia Friedman Graphic Designer Jennifer Norris Project Manager Laurie Bushkoff Arts Program Staff Tawanna Manago Rene Sanjines Jon West-Bey
The UMUC Arts Program is pleased to accept a generous donation from longtime supporter Carolyn Ayoma. The donation includes two beautiful oil-on-panel paintings from famed Baltimore-based painter Charles Jarboe. Born in 1956, Jarboe is considered one of the foremost painters in the American realist tradition. He was educated at the Le Millet Private Art School and is primarily known for painting landscapes of rural and urban America. Jarboe’s work explores light and color, and many of his paintings incorporate the artist’s unique experiences with the spaces that he depicts. He has exhibited extensively at numerous galleries and museums throughout the United States, and his paintings are in many public and private collections. The first of the two Jarboe pieces in this donation is titled Strolling the Promenade, painted between 2007 and 2010. The painting, measuring 32 by 37 inches, is a night view of the Baltimore Harbor and is in excellent condition. The second piece, also painted between 2007 and 2010, is titled Autumn Mix. The painting depicts a stunning autumn landscape of
UMUC Art Advisory Board Javier Miyares, UMUC President Anne V. Maher, Esq., Chair Eva J. Allen, PhD, Honorary Member Myrtis Bedolla, Vice Chair Joan Bevelaqua Schroeder Cherry, EdD I-Ling Chow, Honorary Member Nina C. Dwyer Karin Goldstein, Honorary Member Juanita Boyd Hardy, Honorary Member Sharon Smith Holston, Honorary Member Pamela G. Holt Eric Key Thomas Li, Honorary Member David Maril, Honorary Member Terrie S. Rouse Christopher Shields Barbara Stephanic, PhD, Honorary Member Dianne A. Whitfield-Locke, DDS Sharon Wolpoff Elizabeth Zoltan, PhD University of Maryland University College is a constituent institution of the University System of Maryland. Art@UMUC is published twice a year by UMUC’s Art Advisory Board. Please send comments to arts@umuc.edu or mail to Magazine Editor Arts Program University of Maryland University College 3501 University Boulevard East Adelphi, MD 20783-8007 Phone 301-985-7937 • Fax 301-985-7865
a forest, with sunlight peering through the changing leaves over a flowing stream. The piece is in excellent condition and measures 12 by 16 inches. We are excited to continue growing our collection with the addition of such beautiful realist artworks.
ABOVE: Charles Jarboe, Strolling the Promenade, 2007–2010, oil on panel, 32 x 37 inches, UMUC Permanent Collection, Maryland Artist Collection, Gift of Carolyn Ayoma
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PHOTOGRAPHY CREDITS: Cover John Woo; Inside cover:
Katherine Lambert, Tracey Brown; p. 1 (clockwise from top left) Jon West-Bey, John Woo, Jon West-Bey, John Woo; pp. 2–3 John Woo; p. 4 Raphael Middleman; pp. 6–12 John Woo; p. 13 Greg Fletcher; p. 15–18 John Woo; p. 19 (top) John Woo, (bottom) Jerry Siegel; p. 20–21 Jon West-Bey; p. 22 (top) Tracey Brown; (bottom, clockwise from top left): Tracey Brown, John Woo, Tracey Brown, Tracey Brown, John Woo; p. 23 (clockwise from top left) Tracey Brown, John Woo, John Woo, Steven Halperson
DID YOU KNOW? LITTLE-KNOWN FACTS ABOUT ARTISTS AND ARTWORKS IN THE UMUC PERMANENT COLLECTION
By Eric Key
Did you know . . . Jacob Kainen was associated
Kevin Cole has been
Jane Frank (née Schenthal)
Donald Vincent Coale was
with the Washington Color School
commissioned to create a
studied with Hans Hofmann,
one of seven area artists who
painters and inspired Paul Reed,
mural project for the Hartsfield-
a renowned abstract
represented the eastern United
who was a good friend?
Jackson Atlanta International
expressionist painter?
States in the 1933 exhibition
Airport in Georgia and is the
Painting and Sculpture from
recipient of the 2017 Chancellor’s
16 American Cities at the
Award from the University of
Museum of Modern Art?
Arkansas at Pine Bluff?
ARTWORK DETAILS ABOVE (left to right): Jacob Kainen, Hesperus #3, 1989, oil on paper,
Maryland Artist Collection; Kevin Cole, Turning, Faith, and Hope, 1993, mixed media on paper, Maryland Artist Collection; Jane Frank, Untitled, circa 1958, oil on board, Maryland Artist Collection; Donald Vincent Coale, The Bull Ring, 1972, oil on canvas, Doris Patz Collection of Maryland Artists
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as any society throughout history
ORDER
really loved and appreciated its artists?
OUT OF
CHAOS Celebrating the power of art to transform communities By Ruth Channing Middleman Guest Curator
From Plato onward, there has been an element of skepticism and mistrust toward visual representation. Thinking people want to know what is real and what isn’t. Many religions forbid the graven image and the imitation of nature, and without religion we cling to science, which has no place for the intuitive and the fanciful. Where does the artist—shabby, shiftless, iconoclastic—fit into this scheme of things? Why should a society embrace someone who makes no money, does nothing for the economy, and also wishes to expose the soft underbelly and corruption of the very society of which the artist is taking economic advantage? Yet when one peers back through the obscurity of former centuries, the names that emerge out of the darkness are often those of artists. Real artwork is appreciated late—it takes time, sometimes many lifetimes, to be genuinely understood.
James “Buzz” Cusack, who was a co-owner of the construction company that renovated the buildings for AHI in 1986, says, “The idea of economical housing for artists was a new idea at the time. The architect, Walter Schamu, created a simple, clean design” for the artists’ housing.
Architectural rendering by Beverly Eisenburg
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What should we do in the meantime? Well, give art the benefit
Out of this challenging locale comes an amazing variety, a kind
of the doubt, at least! Give it room to grow and the circum-
of cornucopia, of artwork. The artists seem to be affected by
stances that it needs to be created.
the external chaos in various ways.
Artists’ Housing Incorporated (AHI) of Baltimore was, and is,
Some are visually inspired by the Washington Hill neighborhood
a valiant attempt to provide affordable studio and living space
and the surrounding city of Baltimore.
for artists. The units are small, but they have the necessities, and each artist has done something different with his or her space. Some thrive on clutter and even collect it expressly for their work; others have an everything-in-its-place approach remi-
Greg Fletcher, for instance, grew up in Washington Hill. What buildings remain there are often in the process of being torn down (or simply falling down), and they furnish the subject mat-
niscent of a ship’s cabin (which the units resemble, in a way).
ter for Greg’s luminous paintings. He lovingly renders the play
Some artists thrive on order, then, and some on chaos. But
look at abandoned buildings the same way after seeing Greg’s
this exhibition’s title, Order Out of Chaos, refers to the city
paintings—he shows you their beauty.
surrounding AHI. Situated in the Washington Hill area of Baltimore, AHI is entirely surrounded by “the projects.” Gentrification passed it by. It’s not an obvious destination for folks with the means to buy art. Anyone living and working in this part of town has to be extremely dedicated. These artists are not in it for the money. Sales are made (there are some very intrepid collectors), but retail is not the primary concern here.
of light and atmosphere on the decaying surfaces. You don’t
Ashley Milburn responds to the city, too, but with anger at its inequities. He is an activist-artist well known for his protest sculpture. In his latest series of drawings, he uses the image of the horse—Baltimore still has many of them. With a strong, fluid drawing style, he abstracts the qualities of power and gentleness embodied by the horse. Milburn’s work normally
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LEFT: Ashley Milburn, Partnership 2016, acrylic on paper, 36 x 30 inches BELOW: Maria-Theresa Fernandes, Community 2016, mixed media, 14 x 20 inches
centers around race relations. In these drawings, he references
The figure is serene yet imposing, and the intense blue of
the story of the tragic death of black groom Jocko Graves and
this piece evokes a deep spirituality. Joseph’s work stresses
relates it to the dignity and beauty of the horses he died caring
symmetry and seems to be a call to restore balance.
for. Although these drawings are aesthetically beautiful, they are a response to injustice.
Christina McCleary makes ceramic sculpture utilizing the female
Maria-Theresa Fernandes is a former AHI resident whose work
figure and with her medium, is such that she can use it to ex-
is also a reply to injustice, specifically to the recent violent
press whatever she wishes. Thus McCleary can work intuitively.
deaths of young men in cities, especially Baltimore, and the
Her insights and reflections on gender and race are embodied
ensuing riots. She tells their stories in large fabric constructions
in her work. They spring from her own experience and are insep-
she calls books, some of which are taller than a person. For the
arable from the form.
books in this exhibition, she uses an industrial sewing machine to stitch in the poetry of Stephen Pohl, her collaborator on the project. Then she adds a combination of felting and photographs of the city, which she prints onto the cloth. Although constructed of fabric, these pieces don’t present a soft repre-
form as a means of self-expression. Her expertise, both with the
Janice Crum’s figures are also constructed from ceramic. They are doll-like, with articulated limbs and pretty faces, like intelligent Barbies. Crum deconstructs her creations, then rebuilds them into sculptural pieces reminiscent of the reliquaries and
sentation. They evoke a grim reality.
statues of saints one encounters in old Catholic churches. Balti-
“Paper sculpture” might sound like an oxymoron. But paper
few artists in the show whose work refers overtly to religion.
fibers, fragile by themselves, change when they cohere, becoming durable and resilient. Dirk Joseph pressed paper pulp into a mold to create his wall sculpture Kiini Ujuzi, which means “knowing from the heart” in Kiswahili (also known as Swahili).
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more is, or was, a Catholic city; interestingly, Crum is one of the
Lauren Case responds to the city by prowling around it, bringing home objects others have discarded. Retrieved from alleys and dumpsters of Washington Hill, these forlorn items are transformed into totemic sculpture in Case’s hands.
Dirk Joseph, Kiini Ujuzi, 2014, cast paper, 14 x 10 inches
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Noelle Zeltzman, Ruth, 1997, oil on canvas, 41 x 41 inches
Like Greg Fletcher, Noelle Zeltzman paints directly from obser-
Many other AHI artists, however, look inward for their inspi-
vation; perhaps not coincidentally, she also grew up nearby.
ration. They seem to block out their surroundings, seeking to
She uses her family and friends for models and poses them in
create another reality.
the angular, high-ceilinged rooms of her townhouse in Butchers’ Hill (one of her connections with AHI is as a longtime member of the life drawing group). Zeltzman’s style is painterly realism. She employs an unusual pre-Raphaelite glazing technique to
Bill Hoke works in a basement unit that evokes visions of Dostoevsky. It’s dramatically spartan—you really feel that he’s given up the world for his art. In this space, Hoke crafts his large
make her colors exceptionally luminous.
wood panels with infinite care. Their preparation is an essential
LuAnn Zubak’s large mixed-media drawings invoke history
layer upon layer of paint. In these paintings, each layer in a given
in their way. In a powerful, freehand style, she draws wistful
painting is the same color, and the superposition gradually re-
and mysterious infants in the christening dresses of long ago.
veals subtle variations. Desert, worked in yellow, immerses you
They’re drawn on collages of old wallpaper, wrapping paper,
in a crucible of light and heat. In Fogbank, Hoke tries something
and fabrics that Zubak collects. These antiquated and faded
even more extreme, limiting the palette to layers of white—a
materials add to the feeling of uneasy nostalgia that the pictures
color that arrests the eye—to create the baffling, disorienting
convey. At the same time, the interplay of textures, patterns, and
effect of fog.
assured drawing is gorgeous.
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part of the paintings, which are then patiently constructed from
Fidel Carey-Realmo’s paintings are also non-objective but turn inner feelings outward. His paintings expose deep emotions about his subjects. Carey-Realmo utilizes carefully controlled chaos in his technique of pouring and dripping the paint. In Something Out of Nothing, hot, visceral colors are poured over contrasting cool ones, creating deep space and a sense of emotional conflict. Ben Hoke’s Someday breathes new life into the abstract-
“OUT OF THIS CHALLENGING LOCALE COMES AN AMAZING VARIETY, A KIND OF CORNUCOPIA,
expressionist idiom. He is a painter’s painter—his willingness
OF ARTWORK. THE ARTISTS SEEM
to take risks is inspiring. Undaunted by the huge size of his
TO BE AFFECTED BY THE EXTERNAL
canvas, he leaps in with a dizzying variety of marks that set the pictorial space spinning and pull the viewer into its vortex.
CHAOS IN VARIOUS WAYS.”
Leslie Schwing’s biomorphic abstractions are drawn in ink on
Ruth Channing Middleman
quantities of four-by-four-inch panels. In spite of its small size, each panel suggests a world. Seen together, the panels imply a universe, probably before the Big Bang, where pods, sacs, pupae, and fluids are still forming and dissolving. Schwing has a seemingly inexhaustible variety of marks at her disposal, endlessly entertaining to the eye, suggesting awe at the infinite variety of the natural world.
Fidel Carey-Realmo, Something Out of Nothing 2016, acrylic on canvas, 36 x 48 inches
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Ben Hoke, Someday, 2014, mixed media on canvas, 96 x 72 inches
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ABOVE: Dan Brown, Fabric Lens
2007, acrylic on canvas, 72 x 48 inches LEFT: Kini Collins, Stations of the Cross
2013, oil on canvas, 55 x 30 inches
Kini Collins is another former resident, a nonfigurative painter
the whole female figure, but she is behind a transparent veil
who nevertheless sometimes uses a figure, an object, or a bird
that actually enhances her nudity. In his other works, such as
in an iconic way to express states of being. Her paintings are
his needlepoints, he focuses tightly on one part or another
wonderfully tactile. In Empty Bowl 1 and Stations of the Cross,
of the female anatomy: the eyes, the lips, often the belly and
she almost flays the canvas, scraping deeply into paint so thick
crotch. These works are a cheerful celebration of lust and an
that the work leans toward the sculptural. They’re monochro-
appreciative homage to the feminine. The needlepoints are
matic, yet rich. Empty Bowl 1 refers to a Zen idea of the open
rich in color and texture, adding dimension and giving these
mind, Stations of the Cross to an acute awareness of one’s
small-format works additional erotic power.
body, referencing the artist’s own experience with spinal pain.
The supreme example of order being made from the chaos
Joseph Germershausen presides over weekly life drawing
of Baltimore City might be the work of Ruri Yi. She paints the
sessions at AHI. His work reflects his familiarity with the human
most rigorous of minimalist abstractions, creating a world of
form. In the charcoal drawings shown in this exhibition, he
absolute serenity—abstract art at its most pure.
cheerfully deconstructs, rebuilds, combines, and compresses the figure into a celebration of the body.
Still another response to the chaotic environment is a kind
Dan Brown paints the female nude in a frankly erotic way.
and sculpture.
of magical realism, evidenced particularly by printmaking
In his beautifully executed oil painting Fabric Lens, he shows
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Suzan Rouse’s monotypes and etchings deal with the theme
For instance, rather than painting cityscapes, Beverly Eisen-
of the restaurant kitchen. Cooks and waiters interact in a
berg skillfully creates Cloisterscape III and Palaisscape. They
Chagall-like ballet, untethered from gravity. Her ceramics carry
are hyper-real visions—personal worlds—with elements of old
this approach into three dimensions. Like Rouse’s graphic work,
European places, real and imagined. These photographs are
her plates, bowls, and cups are made in a style that is childlike
beautiful yet disorienting, like old Grimms’ fairy tales.
and sophisticated at the same time; her ceramic forms and glazes derive from the deceptively simple work of Japanese
Laura Vernon Russell’s photographs are complex abstractions
potter-farmers. Rouse handles the difficult etching and other
of nature. They delight the eye as much as they horrify it. In
print techniques equally well. She rejects the mundane with a
particular, the pictures of the storm-wracked North Point Beach
magical and whimsical response to the everyday.
of Baltimore that she photographed after Hurricane Irene find beauty in the aftermath of chaos itself.
Valerie Potrzuski puts magic into a box, lights it, and hangs it on the wall. Rumi’s Guest House Is Serving Jungian Tea is
In the midst of the city, there are animals. Mostly they are
actually a tiny house where a two-inch-high demon in polka dots
teeming behind the scenes—whether in the zoo or behind a cup-
is having tea with the lady of the house. The attached poem ad-
board or in a city park at night. For some artists at AHI, there
vises us to let our demons in, confront them, and even welcome
are times when animal forms serve their purposes best.
them as providing helpful self-knowledge. Interchangeable talk balloons allow the viewer to interact with this piece. The interior is fully decorated, its walls hung with miniature versions of the artist’s own paintings.
Carole Nadeau has spent countless hours over the years drawing animals from life. Nadeau paints the human figure, but she generally uses animals for her sculpture. Giraffe, while only 24 inches high, nevertheless conveys perfectly the outlandish yet
The photography in this show isn’t what you might expect, given
dignified tallness of this creature. Nadeau’s work has a trace
the theme. Far from reporting on a disadvantaged urban envi-
of whimsy, just enough to endow the animals with spirit.
ronment, these photographers take the long view, one informed by architectural and cultural history.
Carole Nadeau, Giraffe 2015, papier mâché 24 x 13 x 8 inches
Valerie Potrzuski Rumi’s Guest House Is Serving Jungian Tea 2015, mixed media on cigar box, 20 x 16 x 3½ inches
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CLOCKWISE FROM ABOVE:
Local art enthusiasts gather outside AHI for a community art event; Printmaker Suzan Rouse in her studio working on her Immigrant series; A community arts day at AHI; Resident artists Leslie Schwing (left) and Laura Vernon Russell (right) paint en plein air in the AHI gardens; AHI artist Christine McCleary creating pottery
Ronald R. Russell, too, draws his creatures with a touch of charm. Known best for his rather surreal sports pictures, he brings the same lively energy to his animals, who are shown flying. Russell draws with caulk in a satisfying impasto technique. Donna Rose makes ceramic portraits of some less-seen animals. She calls these pieces Habitants, a title with connotations of both habitat and haunting. And indeed, these pieces carry a subtle menace. You ignore us at your peril, they seem to say. Her works are convincingly accurate portrayals of these beasts, but with distinctly surreal overtones. They are animals as the Other. Behind AHI is a beautiful garden that runs the length of the housing. What used to be an alley has been transformed by
“WE TAKE COMFORT IN THE PEOPLE WHO STAY THROUGH IT ALL, WHO NEVER STOP BELIEVING IN THEMSELVES OR THEIR CITY.” Dan Rodericks Columnist, Baltimore Sun
AHI residents, led by Greg Fletcher, into a pleasing maze of flowers and flowering trees. There’s no gate—anyone can stroll through. Benches have been placed here and there, affording different views and a surprising amount of privacy. It’s a place for resident artists to meet or to sit alone and reflect. To me, the garden embodies the AHI spirit of making something out of chaos—not necessarily order, but something better than order: the infinite possibilities that art provides to express the glorious disorder of the human spirit.
Article excerpted from the UMUC exhibition catalog Order Out of Chaos: Celebrating the Power of Art to Transform Communities
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e
camera as his
voice PHOTOGRAPHER WILLIAM ANDERSON BY ERIC KEY
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Boy Sleeping, 1968, silver gelatin print, 13 x 16 inches
W
illiam Anderson Jr. began his artistic career as a
skillful sculptor, but since then he has spent most
As Anderson documented the struggles and conditions within poor rural communities of the South, he saw something more
of his life as a professional photographer, with
than just how poor people lived. Through the camera lens, he
a camera strap around his neck. Anderson was
saw pride, dignity, beauty, strength, and courage. He says, “I
born in Selma, Alabama, during the Great Depression, and
feel a close kinship with the people I portray in my art. I believe
the South served as an incubator for what was to come in his
that my work will have a profound meaning to the common
photographic career.
people as well as the affluent.”
From the 1940s through the 1960s, Selma was a racially divided
Debra Wolf stated in her 2007 review article “Powerful Docu-
and segregated city, with separate schools, public facilities, and
mentary Blends with Finely Tuned Art” for the exhibition Thresh-
communities. Anderson grew up there, surrounded by the rural
olds: The Photographs of William Anderson, “The inherent
South. His parents, the late Minnie and William Anderson Sr.,
beauty that Anderson captures in his subjects is essential
worked in health care, and Anderson witnessed the poor hous-
to the power in his work, even as the photographer refuses to
ing and living conditions of the black communities, which would
shy away from grim political, economic, and social realities.”
become the subject of his photography. This experience led Anderson to document the inequalities and racism around him,
This is evident in Boy Sleeping, a photograph taken in Savan-
much as Van Gogh used his environment to document life on
nah, Georgia, in 1968 in which a young African American boy
the European continent.
is sleeping with his head on what appears to be a school desk or a stack of crates. At first glance, one sees simply a boy
Anderson discovered photography by chance while enrolled in
sleeping, but on further examination, the viewer recognizes the
graduate school to study sculpture. In school, he often solicited
result of the hard-working life of a child who often has chores
the help of other students to take pictures of his sculptures. Not
early in the morning before he goes to school. The boy sleeps
happy with the quality of their work, he decided to take his own
peacefully, as if to escape the conditions of his environment
photographs. As a result, he discovered a love of and natural
and community. Anderson’s skillful image production creates
talent for photography. This medium would become his voice
an unclear background, which looks like row houses.
for the next 50 years.
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i feel a close kinship with the people i portray in my art. i believe that my work will have a profound meaning to the common people as well as the affluent.
Another photograph in the approximately 39 images that Anderson has donated to the International Art Collection at UMUC details a woman looking out a window without curtains. Her head is wrapped, her left hand is on her hip, and she is leaning with her right hand on the window edge. The black-and-white image shows a round table covered with a tablecloth and various period items. One drawer of the kitchen cupboard is open behind her, as if to indicate that she is taking a break from her kitchen duties. But more importantly, the image suggests that the woman is not merely looking out the window but looking over her community and her life. The 1998 photograph is titled Joanna by the Window. Traveling throughout the South to record events through photography was a way of life for Anderson. In 1975, he went to
WILLIAM ANDERSON
Selma to photograph the reenactment of the civil rights march on its tenth anniversary. His famous picture The Struggle Goes On showcases widow Coretta Scott King, wearing a white coat and sunglasses, beside Congressman John Lewis along with other march participants. Judging by the commercial buildings in the background, Anderson’s picture appears to have been taken before the group crossed the Edmund Pettus Bridge.
LEFT: Joanna by the Window, 1998, silver gelatin print, 17 x 11½ inches BELOW: The Struggle Goes On, 1975, silver gelatin print, 11 x 17 inches
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Anderson uses his ability to will the camera to make a social statement. These statements are in the photographs themselves but are also evident in his titles, such as Ghetto Baby, Dream, One Minute to Rest, Lest We Forget, Harvest Time, Yesterday, Cakewalk #1, The Family, and Twenty-Third Psalm. For example, Twenty-Third Psalm is a photograph in Atlanta, Georgia, of a row of makeshift shelters for the homeless under a bridge. Anderson’s titular reference to the psalm, which begins, “The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want. He makes me to lie down in green pastures,” underscores his visual statement about the conditions of the homeless in America. Today, Anderson is a well-respected master photographer whose works stand alongside those of other noted photographers, such as Gordon Parks, James Van Der Zee, P. H. Polk, Ansel Adams, and Annie Leibowitz. Currently Anderson spends his retirement listening to jazz from his impressive collection, planning his next photo shoot, and getting into the dark room to produce more photographs. The Arts Program is grateful to Anderson for his donation of approximately 39 images to the growing International Art Collection, thus setting the stage for a new generation of art visitors to understand what he saw through his photography.
LEFT: One Minute to Rest, 1968, silver gelatin print, 15½ x 10½ inches BELOW: Twenty-Third Psalm, n.d., silver gelatin print, 9½ x 13½ inches, private collection
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Gonna Walk All Over, 1975, silver gelatin print, 14 x 20 inches
SELECTED PUBLIC COLLECTIONS Clark Atlanta University Art Museum, Atlanta, Georgia David C. Driskell Center, University of Maryland, College Park, Maryland Hampton University Museum, Hampton, Virginia High Museum of Art, Atlanta, Georgia J. Paul Getty Museum, Los Angeles, California National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
William Anderson
Ruth Chandler Williamson Gallery, Scripps College, Claremont, California Yale University Art Gallery, New Haven, Connecticut
EDUCATION MFA, Instituto Allende,
SELECTED PRIVATE COLLECTIONS
San Miguel de Allende, Mexico, 1968
Kerry and C. Betty Davis Collection
SELECTED AWARDS
Paul R. Jones Collection of American Art
Henry Bellamann Foundation Grant, 1966
Larry and Brenda Thompson Collection of African American Art
Shuston-Gimbel Award, 1961–1962
Dianne Whitfield-Locke and Carnell Locke Collection
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BY JON WEST-BEY
Pittsburg, Pennsylvania The UMUC Arts Program sponsored its annual bus trip to experience the arts in other communities on June 10. On this year’s trip, 45 art enthusiasts, including collectors, artists, students, and patrons of the arts, joined the Arts Program staff on a daylong trip to various art venues in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Pittsburgh is a vibrant art city known for its local crafts and world-class art institutions, such as the Carnegie Museum of Art, the Frick Pittsburgh, the Andy Warhol Museum, and the Mattress Factory. Our first stop included a visit to the Frick Art Museum, which houses the private collection of Helen Clay Frick. Daughter of industrialist Henry Clay Frick, Helen amassed an impressive collection that features French 18th-century paintings and decorative arts and early Italian Renaissance paintings. We also visited Henry Clay Frick’s personal automotive collection as
Cow wallpaper by Andy Warhol displayed at the Andy Warhol Museum in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
well as the garden and greenhouse of Clayton, the Frick family home, which housed a temporary exhibition of works by nationally recognized contemporary artist Elise Adibi. Our next stop was to Ease Café for a delightful lunch. Ease is a charming restaurant with modern comfort cuisine. After lunch, we took a guided tour of the Andy Warhol Museum and viewed artwork and artifacts from the iconic artist. The exhibition spanned five decades of Warhol’s work, his influences, and his impact on the art world. We then visited Contemporary Craft, an art space that features craftwork and art by artists from Pittsburgh and beyond. While
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there, we enjoyed the exhibition Oaths and Epithets: Works by Sonya Clark. A native of Washington, D.C., Clark is a nationally acclaimed artist whose work addresses racial and cultural issues using hair and hair combs. For the remainder of the afternoon, we visited the Three Rivers Arts Festival, which showcased the work of dozens of artists and craftsmen and also featured music and food. We returned back to UMUC a little past midnight, energized and inspired by all the wonderful artwork and experiences that Pittsburgh has to offer.
“The greenhouse with the art display was truly breathtaking. . . . The flowers were so vibrant with reds, purples, yellows, and greens, and the paintings surrounding them were inviting. The tranquil ambiance could have caused me to miss the bus.” LaTanya Eggleston, UMUC Adjunct Associate Professor of Communications
CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT: 1939 Bantam Roadster on display at the Frick Museum;
Frick family greenhouse featuring an exhibition of works by contemporary artist Elise Adibi; entrance to early works in the Frick Art Museum; Sonya Clark’s web of pocket combs titled Seven Layer Triangle; Keith Haring’s Elephant at the Andy Warhol Museum
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NEWS AND EVENTS alas, / reciben flores o balas / sobre el mismo
people and places. He experiments with sculp-
corazón” (“Cuba and Puerto Rico are / as two
ture made from found objects, carvings that are
Two Same Wings Bird
wings of the same bird, / They receive flowers
influenced by the work of Puerto Rican saints
or bullets / into the same heart.)”
carvers, and painting. Batista’s primary media
This exhibition, held at the U.S. District
Miranda is a visual artist, poet, and teacher who
Courthouse in Greenbelt, explores the shared
uses his craft to highlight the value of everyday
of the
Reception Highlights
are oil and acrylic on canvas with diversions Two Wings of the Same Bird is a celebration
into sculpture. He embodies impressionist,
of the commonalities of culture and a visually
cubist, surrealist, African, religious, folk, and
vibrant and contextually rich collection of work.
traditional styles. Since its inception in 1996, the Art at the U.S.
roots of two dynamic Washington, D.C.–based
District Courthouse program has contributed
artists, Samuel Miranda, who is of Puerto Rican
greatly to our region’s cultural enrichment. The
heritage, and Lazaro Batista, who is of Cuban
original purpose of the program was to feature
heritage. Some of the new works in the exhibi-
works by Maryland artists, but over the years it
tion were inspired by the artists’ fall 2016 trip to
has expanded to include international art. With
Havana, Cuba. Many of the works are collabo-
exhibitions in quilting, photography, sculpture,
rative pieces exploring the history and culture
and painting, the Art at the U.S. District Court-
of their shared heritage. The exhibition takes
house program continues to call attention to
its title from an 1893 poem by Lola Rodríguez
the diverse interests and creative talents of
de Tió titled “A Cuba.” In the poem, she says,
artists and the importance of their contributions to society.
“Cuba y Puerto Rico son / de un pájaro las dos Artists Lazaro Batista (left) and Samuel Miranda (right)
“Cuba and Puerto Rico are as two wings of the same bird, They receive flowers or bullets into the same heart” Lola Rodríguez de Tió CLOCKWISE FROM FAR LEFT: Artwork adorns the
walls of the U.S. District Courthouse; Tomeguin que conoce libertad no acepta jaula by Samuel Miranda; Batista discusses his artwork with Judge Peter Messitte; a reception attendee views Miranda’s portrait paintings; Guajiro by Lazaro Batista
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NEWS AND EVENTS
ORDER OUT OF
CHAOS
Upcoming Events JOURNEY: THE ARTISTRY OF CURLEE RAVEN HOLTON UMUC Arts Program Gallery, Lower Level August 13–November 26, 2017 Opening Reception Sunday, August 27, 2017, 3–5 p.m.
Ceramic sculptures by Christina McCleary; Affectation (left), Providence (right)
Curlee Raven Holton is a painter and master printmaker whose works ask viewers to carefully examine their humanity. His art explores his creative journey and reflects the diversity of his cultural influences and aesthetics. A master of visual narrative, Holton draws people to his work through his presentation of issues such as race, spirituality, and social justice in modern American society. His dramatic use of color, symbolism, and figurative representations invite viewers to explore the complexities in his works.
A Starry-Eyed Negro, Born on April 4, 1968, the Day Martin Luther King Was Assassinated
On Sunday, May 7, 2017, the Arts Program held an opening reception for Order Out of Chaos, an exhibition of works by 24 artists associated with Artists’ Housing Incorporated (AHI), a supportive housing complex in Baltimore, Maryland. The participating artists live and work at AHI, which enables them to produce works collaboratively or independently in an environment that inspires them. They critique each other’s work, explore new techniques, experiment with materials, and use their community as a backdrop for developing a wide range of subjects.
CUTTING INTO ART: THE ART OF MIKE McCONNELL UMUC Arts Program Gallery, Lower Level November 19, 2017–February 18, 2018 Opening Reception Sunday, November 19, 2017, 3–5 p.m.
Mike McConnell is the 2016 President’s Best of Show award winner of the third Biennial Maryland Regional Juried Bear Carver Art Exhibition (BMRE), which entitles him to a one-person exhibition in the off year of the BMRE. According to the three BMRE jurors who selected McConnell’s winning painting Bear Carver, his work is creative, imaginative, and of the highest quality. This solo exhibition of McConnell’s work will give viewers an opportunity to examine his technique and the content of his work.
At the reception, Ruth Channing Middleman, Baltimore artist and guest curator of the exhibition, and James “Buzz” Cusack, co-owner of the construction company that renovated the buildings for AHI, provided background information on AHI and moderated an insightful discussion with 16 of the participating artists. The artists talked about their work in detail and highlighted the need for and benefits of the artists’ collective. Sharing stories, techniques, and ideas they bounced off one another, the artists engaged the audience and heightened anticipation to view the exhibition. Attendees then moved to the UMUC Arts Program gallery to examine the culturally and creatively diverse works.
JOSEPH SHEPPARD FROM THE UMUC PERMANENT COLLECTION The Leroy Merritt Center for the Art of Joseph Sheppard October 29, 2017–October 28, 2018 Opening Reception Sunday, October 29, 2017, 3–5 p.m. UMUC Arts Program Gallery, Lower Level Since the Arts Program at UMUC opened the Leroy Merritt Potbelly Stove Center for the Art of Joseph Sheppard six years ago to bring attention to Sheppard’s art in diverse media, many of Sheppard’s works have been donated to UMUC. This exhibition will serve two purposes: to showcase those works that have not been seen by the general public since they were originally acquired by private collectors and to reunite Sheppard with his paintings. The works in this exhibition showcase Sheppard’s realism, use of vibrant color, and attention to detail. The selected works also display the evolution of his style.
On behalf of the Arts Program and its Advisory Board members, I want to thank everyone for being a part of this exciting exploration of art and artists. —Eric Key
Get the latest updates on the UMUC Arts Program. Visit umuc.edu/art/newsonline
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art@UMUC
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Make an Annual Contribution to the Arts Program Art enthusiasts in the UMUC community help make the university’s visual arts exhibitions, educational lectures, book signings, symposiums, and meet-the-artist receptions possible. Through the Friends of the Arts program, our biggest supporters enjoy a variety of benefits as a thank-you for helping UMUC’s Arts Program become one of the most recognized in Maryland. Simply commit to making an annual contribution at one of the following levels and you can join our growing list of friends.
Associate ($35) Name recognition in the arts newsletter, invitation to exhibition openings
Friend ($50) Above benefits, plus 10 percent discount on specialty items produced by the Arts Program, 10 percent discount on tickets to nonfundraising events, Arts Program lapel pin
Bronze-Level Friend ($100) Above benefits, plus autographed poster from the Arts Program collection
Silver-Level Friend ($250)
FRIENDS OF THE ARTS (JANUARY 1, 2016–JULY 1, 2017) Sapphire-Level Friends
Michael J. Batza Jr. Henry A. Rosenberg Jr. Wolpoff Family Foundation
Platinum-Level Friends
Michael Abrams Joan Burke Bevelaqua Jere and Bonnie N. Broh-Kahn Robert L. Caret and Elizabeth Zoltan Gwendolyn B. Clark Leo A. Daly III Nina Dwyer Michèle E. Jacobs and Joseph V. Bowen Jr. Eric Key Anne V. Maher and Peter V.R. Franchot Ragan Royal Christopher A. Shields Stephen Stein Michael S. Tenner
Gold-Level Friends
Above benefits, plus name recognition on the donors' wall in the Arts Program Gallery
Lisa Anne Jackson Joan W. Lee
Gold-Level Friend ($500)
Silver-Level Friends
Above benefits, plus full-color art catalog from a major UMUC art exhibition
Platinum-Level Friend ($1,000) Above benefits, plus VIP invitation to dinner with the guest artist and the university president, 10 percent discount at The Common (the restaurant at the College Park Marriott Hotel & Conference Center at UMUC)
Elmer A. Mendez William T. Mitchell Terrie S. Rouse
Bronze-Level Friends
Citrine-Level Friend ($2,500)
James T. Brady Tracey Brown Harriette E. Chiavacci LaTanya Eggleston Blair and Alice Hayes
Above benefits, plus corporate name and logo listing on UMUC Arts Program webpage, name and logo listing on all printed materials for exhibitions and public relations materials for the season
Gift-in-Kind Donors
Sapphire-Level Friend ($5,000) Above benefits, plus a corporate art exhibition by a local artist coordinated by UMUC (Special requirements apply; see umuc.edu/art for details.)
Visit umuc.edu/art and click on “Friends of the Arts Program” or call 301-985-7937. Interested in being added to our e-magazine list? Send your e-mail address to arts@umuc.edu.
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Michael Abrams James A. Adkins Nicholas H. and Eva J. Allen Kwabena Ampofo-Anti Stephen and Carolyn Aoyama John and Doris Babcock Karin Batten Gwendolyn B. Clark Kevin E. Cole Loring Cornish Sandra Cryder David C. Driskell David R. Durfee Sr. Nina Dwyer Graham Holding Company William A. Harris Winston Kain Harris Curlee Horton Margo Humphrey Sherry Jackson
Theresa M. Lesko Denise Melvin John L. Milton Vannesia D. Morgan-Smith Bettye J. Robertson William C. Robinson Lynn Sylvester Lydia Christina Waddler Joan O. Weiss Denise Welch Lesliee S. Whitfield Starlene Williams Sharon A. Wolpoff
Friends
Floyd Coleman Galerie Myrtis Beverly A. Gray Anthony Lee Yoshiko Oishi Weick
Associates
Gregory Branch Vrinda D. Buchwald Elizabeth B. Duncan John S. Fortt Sergio N. Fresco James Harrigan Eric C. Helfers Kevin G. Herndon John E. Hodges Philip F. Koch John and Jill A. Lion Flavia M. Moskaitis Charlotte E. Pointer Jacqueline K. Randolph Michael Aaron Richmond Elliott Stubbs Marilyn B. Wassmann Joseph M. Williams
Cynthia F. Johnson Julian S. Jones Eric Key Matthew Klos Philip F. Koch Ulysses Marshall Wanda Spence McDow Anne McLaughlin Trace Miller Tunde Odunlade Kathryn O’Grady Katja Oxman Constance Pitcher Preston W. Sampson Lucy Schoenfeld Joseph Sheppard Stephen Stein Noi Volkov Sharon A. Wolpoff Helen Zughaib