Painting on Clay Exhibit Set to Open at Suzanne H. Arnold Art Gallery

The new exhibition opening at the Suzanne H. Arnold Art Gallery at Lebanon Valley College pairs the work of some of the most important abstract artists painting in the early post World War II era with the work of Toshiko Takaezu, an American ceramic artist and painter. It explores one of the most exciting, game-changing moments in American art. 

Painting on Clay: Toshiko Takaezu and the Abstract Expressionist Movement will be on exhibit at the Gallery from Sept. 1–Oct. 15. The exhibit is co-curated with the College’s Artist-in-Residence G. Daniel Massad who studied under Takaezu at Princeton University. This exhibition marks the second time Takaezu’s work will be on display at the Gallery. A few years after the exhibition, she gave five of her works to the LVC Fine Art Collection for a show in 1995.

This exhibit will feature some of the most important abstract artists painting in the early post WWII era, including Motherwell, Kline, Frankenthaler, Rothko, and Vicente, among others. It was a period in which the “pour,” the drip, the splash, and the spontaneous gestural mark took center stage.

Also on display will be donations of Takaezu’s art from Alice Brumbaugh, a former assistant professor of sociology at LVC during the 1960s. The works were donated to the collection in memory of her brother, Thomas Brendle Brumbaugh, Ph.D., who was an art historian.

The opening reception for Painting on Clay, scheduled for Thursday, Sept. 7 from 5–7 p.m., is free and open to the public.

Additional events related to the exhibit include:

Workshop: “Monoprinting on Clay”
Sep. 23, 9–11 a.m., Ceramics studio, Fencil building
Ceramic workshop for children: Age 7+, limit 10 children.
Karen Beall, LVC instructor in sculpture and ceramics 
Register by emailing gallery@lvc.edu.

 

Lecture: Toshiko Takaezu and Abstract Expressionism
Sept. 28, 5 p.m., Zimmerman Recital Hall
Dr. David Brigham, president and CEO of the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, and the founding director of the Suzanne H. Arnold Art Gallery

 

The Gallery is open Wednesday from 5–8 p.m., Thursday and Friday from 1–4:30 p.m., and Saturday and Sunday from 11 a.m.–5 p.m. Schools and other organizations are encouraged to contact the Gallery for a guided visit. Additional information is available at www.lvc.edu/gallery, gallery@lvc.edu, or 717-867-6445. Keep up with the latest Gallery news on Facebook.

 

Photo credit: Toshiko Takaezu, Early closed forms, Lebanon Valley College Fine Art Collection, Gift of Alice M. Brumbaugh in memory of her brother Thomas Brendle Brumbaugh, Ph.D.