UMaine Museum of Art Announces Fall Exhibitions
Contact: Kathryn Jovanelli (207) 561-3350
High resolution digital images available upon request
BANGOR — Three new exhibitions will open at the University of Maine Museum of Art in downtown Bangor on Friday Oct. 8.
Pablo Picasso: The Passionate Print, Selections from the Museum Collection
October 8 – December 30, 2010
Picasso’s virtuosity as a printmaker is reflected in this exhibition of works from UMMA’s permanent collection. Picasso, known to be one of the greatest artistic masters of the twentieth century, produced over 2,000 original prints throughout his prolific career. For many artists printmaking may be a secondary interest, but Picasso’s involvement in the graphic arts spanned his entire career. His remarkable ability to move seamlessly from one printmaking technique to another is reflected in the etchings, aquatints, linocuts and lithographs included in the exhibition. In the important work “Faun Unveiling a Woman,” 1936, part of a series produced for the famous art dealer and critic Ambroise Vollard, Picasso demonstrates an early fascination with and mastery of etching and aquatint. “Jacqueline in a Straw Hat,” 1962, a colorful abstract portrait of the artist’s second wife Jacqueline Roque, attests to the artist’s ability to utilize the linoleum-cut technique to express his bold artistic vision. Six works of art on display recently received conservation treatment at the Williamstown Art Conservation Center, underscoring the Museum’s commitment to preserving significant works from the collection.
String Too Short to Use: Recent Works by Todd Watts
October 8 – December 30, 2010
Todd Watts’ new series of large-scale color photographs was created especially for this UMMA exhibition. The artist’s creative process combines traditional photography with the dynamic act of drawing. Utilizing an array of photographs taken with an 8 x 10 camera, Watts painstakingly constructs new compositions using digital software and other means. The artist layers, stretches, inverts and manipulates the images. By merging the familiar with the ambiguous, he creates environments that challenge the viewer’s visual perception. Additionally, Watts’ skill as a colorist is reflected in a vibrant palette that also extends onto his custom-painted and constructed frames. A number of these new works convey the artist’s awareness of environmental issues and the alteration of our natural resources.
Watts was born in New York City and graduated from the School of Visual Arts, NYC. He moved to Maine in 1999. His works are included in many prestigious museum collections including: Albertina in Vienna, The Art Institute of Chicago, Brooklyn Museum, The Metropolitan Museum of Art and Yale University Art Gallery.
A Pointed View: Photographs by Ilya Askinazi
October 8 – December 30, 2010
Russian-born photographer Ilya Askinazi and his mother emigrated from Moscow, Russia in 1980 for the possibility of a new life in New York City. Askinazi’s passion for photography was ingrained in him at an early age through his studies with Russian photographer Israel Goldberg. In 1984 he moved to Maine, where he continues to find inspiration for his photography. The selection of works in A Pointed View represents a small portion of the thousands of images he has created in recent years. These black and white photographs were taken using a Deardorff 8 x 10 view camera and are contact prints from the large negatives. The exhibition features images from the artist’s recent trip to Israel as well as New York City and locations throughout Maine. Subjects include the figure, landscapes and the urban environment. Askinazi possesses an innate ability to hone in on the most unique aspects of his chosen subjects — seeing beautiful abstract moments in nature and depicting the seductive qualities of light. Images of interior spaces are imbued with a psychological intensity; street scenes and store fronts convey a range of shifting moods, and landscapes reflect the ever-changing atmospheric conditions of the natural world.
The media sponsor for all three exhibitions is the Bangor Daily News Admission to the Museum is FREE in 2010 thanks to Machias Savings Bank in honor of Ted Leonard.
University of Maine Museum of Art
40 Harlow Street, Bangor, ME 04401
www.umma.umaine.edu