First Friday Poetry Reading is June 7
Enjoy a night of art and poetry with Warren Cooper, Grant Clauser, Theodora Ziolkowski and Lee Upton at the Hunterdon Art Museum Friday, June 7.
"First Fridays" begin at the Museum at 6 p.m. and are free and open to all. The event will also feature an open microphone for anyone interested in sharing their poetry, Refreshments will be served. For more information call the Museum at (908) 735-8415.
Future "First Fridays" poetry readings will include: Scott McVay (July 5); an evening of poetry on visual art with Anne Kaier, MM Whittle and John Smith (Aug. 2); Diane Sahms-Guarnieri and G. Emil Reutter (Sept. 6); and Liz Abrams-Morley and Jim Mancinelli (Oct. 4).
About the Poets
Warren Cooper is a reporter for the Hunterdon County Democrat. He is an adjunct professor at Raritan Valley Community College where he teaches film
appreciation. He's also the mayor of Frenchtown.
Grant Clauser is the author The Trouble with Rivers and his poems have appeared in The Literary Review, Painted Bride Quarterly, Cortland Review and elsewhere. In 2010 he was Montgomery County Poet Laureate.
Theodora Ziolkowski's poems have appeared in Prairie Schooner, Gargoyle Magazine, Harpur Palate and in an anthology of Vermont writers. She has a series of lyric poems forthcoming in an anthology of work inspired by the Demeter and Persephone myth.
Lee Upton is the author of 13 books including her most recent collection of essays, Swallowing the Sea: On Writing & Ambition Boredom Purity &
Secrecy. She is the author of a novella, The Guide to the Flying Island, five books of poetry and four books of literary criticism. She has received the Lyric Poetry Award and The Writer/Emily Dickinson Award from the Poetry Society of America; the Pushcart Prize; the National Poetry Series Award, the Miami University Novella Award; and the BOA Short Fiction Award.
Art on Tap
We'd like to thank all the visitors and volunteers who made "Art on Tap" such a huge success. We'd also like to thank the following businesses for making the afternoon so special:
Hunterdon Brewing Co.
Metropolitan Seafood
Bex Kitchen
A la Carte
Brasserie 513
The Garden Gourmet
El Segundo
Pru Thai
Janina Bistro
The Clinton House
Dora Restaurant
Ye Olde Sub Base
The Fine Diner
Riverview Restaurant
We'd also like to thank Jonathan Andrew for lending his musical talents to "Art on Tap."
Calling All Artists! 2013 Members Exhibition
The Museum is now accepting entries for its annual Members Exhibition. All members of the Museum are invited to submit up to three images of work completed in the last five years, and not previously exhibited at the Museum.
This year's juror is Dr. Ferris Olin, curator, scholar, arts administrator, entrepreneur and librarian. She is a Distinguished Professor Emerita at Rutgers University.
Entries must be received by June 28, 2013. One artist will be selected for a solo exhibition in 2014.
For more information, and to submit your entries, please visit the Online Juried Shows website at: http://www.onlinejuriedshows.com/Default.aspx?OJSID=154
Ronald McDonald House Charities New York Tri-State Area Donates $6,000 to HAM
Parents who imagine seeing their child's art hanging on a museum wall can have their dream come true with the Hunterdon Art Museum's "Young Artists Showcase 2013."
The Young Artists Showcase, sponsored in part by Ronald McDonald House Charities New York Tri-State Area (RMHC NYTSA), highlights the talents of students from Hunterdon County and beyond. Teachers from participating schools select the art which appears for two weeks at the Museum. The Young Artist Showcase, which has traditionally focused on children from elementary and middle school, now features a new wrinkle: Hunterdon Central High School students displayed their artwork in this year's showcase.
"We display everything the school sends," said Jennifer Brazel, director of education for the museum. "Our goal is to have each school equally represented during their showcase. Each school has its artwork displayed for two weeks. There's an opening reception for students, parents and teachers the first Saturday the work is exhibited. The reactions typically range from proud to excited as students admire their own work and the work of their peers," Brazel said.
"As an expressive medium, art is beneficial to the development of children as it enhances their ability to express themselves," said Christopher Perry, Ronald McDonald House Charities New York Tri-State Area's Executive Director. "In keeping with our organization's Mission of supporting programs that directly improve the well-being of children, we are proud to support the Young Artists Showcase." RMHC NYTSA donated $6,000 to the Museum's Young Artists Showcase.
"It's important to show how well the students are doing at a young age," Brazel said. "The quality of work we get is outstanding, and shows what art teachers are doing as art funding continues to get cut. Teachers work with kids on high levels, creating thoughtful and skillful work in their classrooms."
The exhibition, which runs annually from January to June, has been an annual event at the Museum for at least 20 years.
"The Young Artists Showcase is one of the longest-running programs we offer," Brazel said. "It fits in perfectly with the original mission of our founders to make this an art center for craftsmen and students."
Any student whose art appeared in this exhibition received a discount voucher from their teacher for any Young Artists Showcase Workshop. The workshops offer students the opportunity to enhance their drawing, painting, clay or printmaking skills.
Schools participating in the "Young Artists Showcase 2013" are: Lebanon Borough School, Delaware Township School, J.P. Case Middle School, Kingwood Township School, Frenchtown Elementary School, Hunterdon Central Regional High School, Readington Middle School, Immaculate Conception School, Bonnie Brae School, Clinton Township Middle School, Round Valley School, Spruce Run School, Patrick McGaheran Elementary School, Thomas B. Conley Elementary School, Clinton Public School, Copper Hill School, Reading-Fleming Intermediate School, Ethel Hoppock Middle School and Hampton Public School.
HAM's Program for Independent Curators
The HAM Program for Independent Curators is a dynamic project that opens the way for an array of ideas and viewpoints on contemporary art, craft, and design to be presented in the Hunterdon Art Museum's exhibitions program.
The Hunterdon Art Museum, a center for contemporary art, craft and design, focuses on new and innovative work. The Museum exhibits work in all forms and mediums with the goal of creating dialogue, generating ideas, and sparking creativity. HAM has a particular interest in work that explores the intersection of art, craft and design and work that displays the qualities of craftsmanship while pushing the limits of the materials in innovative ways.
Founded in 1952 in rural New Jersey, the Museum is housed in a former mill dating back to 1836, that is on the National Historic Register. The Museum's nineteenth century stone building is a perfect setting for twenty-first century art. Visitors view the art in a unique space that enhances their experience. The Museum presents more than a dozen exhibitions and offers more than 200 studio courses annually.
Curatorial Proposal Submission Guidelines
The Museum seeks proposals that focus on innovative work by artists of outstanding potential and established artists who have international, national or regional reputations. Proposals may be for thematic or solo shows. Curators should have a track record of creating exhibitions in the fields of contemporary art, craft, and design; however, the Museum will also accept for review proposals from emerging curators developing their careers. Curators may not include their own work in the proposed exhibition. Additionally, the exhibition should not have been on view within 50 miles of the Museum's location.
Ideally, proposals should be submitted one to two years in advance of the proposed exhibition; however, shorter lead times will be considered and in some cases desired. Please do not send original art or documents, as materials will not be returned. The Museum will contact curators of interest for an in-person discussion with the Museum's Exhibitions Committee to determine whether the proposal is feasible.
We are particularly interested in hearing from curators in the New Jersey/New York/Pennsylvania area. (Curators, please note that the Museum is 55 miles from New York City and 60 miles from Philadelphia. Public transportation is available from New York City from Port Authority. There is no direct public transportation from Philadelphia to Clinton. By car, the Museum is easily accessible from Route 78.)
Proposals may be sent to:
Exhibitions Coordinator
Hunterdon Art Museum
7 Lower Center Street
Clinton, New Jersey 08809
Or emailed to:
rosemary@hunterdonartmuseum.org
(Please use Independent Curator Submission as the subject.)
To fill out an application, please go here.
"HAM" in the Schools
"HAM in the Schools", a new education initiative, partially funded by the Horizon Foundation, gets some coverage in the Hunterdon Democrat. read more
New Jersey Star-Ledger reviews Nathan Skiles: The Clockmaker's Apprentice
Read what Dan Bischoff from the New Jersey Star-Ledger had to say about Nathan Skiles: The Clockmaker's Apprentice:
60th Anniversary Celebration Photos
See photos from our 60th Anniversary Celebration, courtesy of the Lehigh Valley Express-Times.
And more coverage from our birthday party from the Hunterdon County Democrat!
By Invitation Only : The New York Times
Click here to read the New York Times' review of Up and Coming: New Printmakers Make Their Mark
Strange Sculptures Are a Surrealist Mystery : The New York Times
Click here to read the New York Times' review of Marion Held: Material Traces.
Jersey ceramics, from 6 different angles
By: Dan Bischoff, The Star-Ledger, April 9, 2008.
Spotlight on Cuba.
By: Benjamin Genocchio, The New York Times, February 10, 2008.
Embracing the imagery of childhood
By: Benjamin Genocchio
The New York Times
12/23/07
Down to earth
Courier News
11/16/07
By: Ralph J. Bellantoni
"Shellie Jacobson's ceramic pieces tell a story.
'I consider them my daily journal writing,' says Jacobson who has worked in ceramics for more than three decadees. 'They are spontaneous markings--a stream of consciousness, like talking to yourself. I start with my immediate reactions and it grows as I work.'
The Skillman potter's exhibit 'Shellie Jacobson: Clay and Paper,' which features 25 of her ceramic forms, figures, books and other objects, opens Sunday at the Hunterdon Museum of Art with a reception from 2 to 4 p.m. and an artist's talk at 3 p.m.
Jacobson frequently creates works in series, organizing related pieces into narrative sequences. She furthers the storytelling nature of her oeuvre in her ceramic books, which she issues through her own RockBookPress, and has developed a personal script that she incises onto the clay pages of her books. Based somewhat on her studies of ancient Semitic languages, she terms it 'graffiti.'
Jacobson says she enjoys working with clay slabs, which she tears, cuts, pins, crimps and pieces together when forming sculptures and vessels. Through muted glazes and slips she imparts a worn, archaeological appearance to her pieces.
The surfaces of Shellie's work often have an aged, eroded quality with darkening of seams and apertures, as if they had been long buried,' says co-curator Hildreth York.
Along with her ceramics, wall installations and clay books, the exhibit also includes some of the artist's works on paper, plus a most unusual garment. The article of clothing is a vest comprised entirely of used tea bags. The cozy connotations of a companionable tea-time becomes provoked by the addition of graffiti texts printed on each tea bag. Jacobson collected the texts from walls in Israel during her visits there, and they range in tone from humorous to violent to heartbreaking.
Jacobson is very active teaching and exhibiting at home and abroad. She recently presented her work in Seoul, Korea, with the East/West Ceramics Artists Association, and gave a workshop and slide presentation at the Seoul National University of Technology. Closer to home, Jacobson will present an interactive workshop at the museum from 2 to 4 p.m. on Dec. 2, where she will demonstrate her ceramic techniques, particularly her signature monoprinting on clay. Pre-registration is required."
Childish things: Hunterdon exhibit remembers innocence
The Sunday Star-Ledger
10/14/07
By: Dan Bischoff
"Not all poison toys come from China. Through the holiday season the Hunterdon Musem of Art in Clinton is hosting an exhibition devoted to artists' memories of childhood, 'Inner Child: Good and Evil in the Garden of Memories,' a subject so fraught it has been carefully broken into two parts, 'Innocence' and 'Innocence Lost.'
Organized by Kristen Accola, a longtime curator at the Hunterdon who assembled this exhibit as her last show before leaving the staff, 'Inner Child' had a vast body of artwork to troll through. Cartoons, toys, candy and children's book illustrations seem to inspire an increasingly large proportion orf contemporary art, just as they seem to occupy a larger and larger portion of the planet's commercial space. Why, exactly?
There's no one reason, of course. We're not talking about art by children, the sort that inspired Pablo Picasso and his fellows after World War II (along with art by indigenous peoples and madmen locked up in asylums), with its freedom from learned forms of representation and liberated, illogical color. Nor do we mean adult portraits of children, like John Singer Sargent's sentimentally lovely 'Lily, Lily, Carnation, Rose.'
Rather, most of the artists in the Hunterdon show, which sprawls over two floors, consciously evoke a childish point of view, whether ironically or not, as if they have somehow managed to occupy a child's mind and made images of what a child loves and sees.
So that can range from Savako's 'Portico Popilyn No. 1,' a shiny red Jetsonian creature with three anime eyes made from fiberglass, to Ray Caesar's giclee print of girl, titled 'Sanctuary,' dressed as a lamb with a lascivious expression (the costume slips off one shoulder, revealing a bra strap and at least one supposition about the look on her face). Well, you get the picture.
In a way, much of this show is really about marketing, since so many of the artists have simply lifted graphic forms from toy packaging and cartoons. Laurina Paperina's little 5-inch wood cut-outs (like 'Superfake') come straight from the Cartoon Network ('Superfake' looks a lot like Bloo, the star of 'Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends'). Crazy spirals for eyes and a zigzag pumpkin mouth are part of the universal symbology of cartoons, which have carefully refined the common conventions of childish drawing to make them part of the standard kit of contemporary ad design, like primary colors.
The ubiquity of childhood here in the world's consumer paradise probably has to do with the cultural infantilization promoted by a life of shopping, but artists are wielding childishness in a much more sharply defined way than that. The division into 'Innocence' and 'Innocence Lost' seems almost inevitable, in part because much of what artists do with childish imagery is mock the sanctimonious veil of 'innocence' adults try to cover it with. Artists are young enough, or at least sensitive enough, to remember just how red in tooth and claw childhood is, and they hate the polite fiction.
Accola points out in her essay, published in a clever'n'cute spiral-bound catalogue, that for the past 20 years society has been obsessed with childhood as both the ideal escape and as the point of our greatest psychic vulnerability, lending the visual language of children 'an unexpected potency precisely because of our now loaded relationship to our childhoods.'
But it's also true that our society has gone to great lengths to ensure that childhood never ends. We're not just talking about guys in their 40s playing baseball, but our whole collective consciousness fooling around all day long with video games, fantasy sports, superhero dreams, and an almost desperate longing for never-ending immediate gratification. You gotta make yourself into a kid to even accept this stuff for a moment, just like the way you make yourself regress in order to enjoy a big-budget spandex flick like 'X-Men' or 'Spiderman.'
The tsunami of toyness swamping us all is the subject of Megan Marlatt's paintings, the largest of which is 'Under the Watchful Eye of the Elephant,' painted in a mixture of acrylics and oils, Juicily done, in a rainbow of hues and filled with marvelous detal, it makes its point every well: Toys'R'Us.
There are two other shows at Hunterdon now, counting the 2007 Members' Show, which boasts some wonderful pieces by Agnes Lafaille, Valerie Von Betyen and the redoubtable beader/weaver Donna Lish. The modulated modernism of Anne Cooper's portraits is definitely worth your time.
In the smaller second floor gallery, curated by Heidi York, is 'Kerr Grabowski: Art to Wear,' a collection of silk-printed and hand-painted fabrics by the artist who devised her own inks, brushes and techniques to create hand-fashioned designs of gestural fluidity. Very Japanese in feel."
