Candice, Author at Delaware Art Museum

Sonya Clark possesses the ability to deftly assemble works of art both beautiful in creation and weighted with content. While the materials she uses are seemingly delicate—beads, fibers, human hair, and combs—the history and associations within these manufactured and natural objects spur affecting responses and reflection.

Black Cross Worn Thin II is part of the artist’s Comb Series, in which she relates hair type to race politics. The broken teeth of the woven combs represent a struggle and create, as the artist explains, “the music of a new order.” The formal alignment of the combs recalls the warp and weft of fabric, the length and crosswise yarns that construct a weave. Currently on view in There is a Woman in Every Color: Black Women in Art, the work invites us to consider the many expectations for displaying this intimate part of the human body.

Whitewashed, 2017. Sonya Clark (born 1967). White house paint, 43 1/4 x 82 inches. Delaware Art Museum, F. V. du Pont Acquisition Fund in honor of David Pollack, 2023. © Sonya Clark.

Recently installed in the Lynn Herrick Gallery for contemporary art, Clark’s Whitewashed is painted directly onto the gallery wall. Visually subtle, the work engages the viewer’s recollections of the United States flag. Whitewashed is made using three Sherwin-Williams house paint colors—Incredible White, Storyteller, and Natural Choice. The shades of white replace the red, white, and blue of the American symbol. Clark has worked with the American flag, the Confederate flag, and the Confederate Flag of Truce throughout her career. In doing so, she addresses the physical makeup of these objects and the histories, experiences, and access these symbols uncover or veil.

On Thursday, April 25, we welcome the public and university students to experience DelArt’s spring exhibitions and a keynote lecture by exhibiting artist Sonya Clark, organized in partnership with the University of Delaware. Please register online and join us for this special University Night.

Sonya Clark is Professor of Art and Winifred L. Arms Professor in the Arts and Humanities at Amherst College in Amherst, Massachusetts. Previously, she was a Distinguished Research Fellow in the School of the Arts and Commonwealth Professor at Virginia Commonwealth University where she served as chair of the Craft/Material Studies Department from 2006 until 2017. Clark has received awards from many organizations including United States Artists, Pollock-Krasner, Art Prize, and Anonymous Was a Woman. Her work has been exhibited in over 500 venues worldwide. Her first major museum survey was presented at the National Museum of Women in the Arts in DC in 2021. Sonya Clark: We Are Each Other, her current solo exhibition, opened at the Cranbrook Art Museum in June 2023, travelled to the High Museum of Art in Atlanta in October 2023, and is on view at the Museum of Arts and Design in NYC through September 22, 2024.

This event is part of a collaboration between the Delaware Art Museum and the University of Delaware to celebrate James E. Newton’s legacy as an artist, UD professor, and leader in the Delaware community. Exhibitions are on view at the Delaware Art Museum, UD’s Mechanical Hall Gallery, and UD’s Morris Library.

Margaret Winslow
Head Curator and Curator of Contemporary Art

Top: Black Cross Worn Thin II, 2012. Sonya Clark (born 1967). Plastic combs, thread, 30 x 30 inches. Delaware Art Museum, Acquisition Fund, 2012. © Sonya Clark.

Visiting artwork in collections storage is crucial to curatorial work and one of my favorite aspects of exhibition development. I was unfamiliar with the extent of the Delaware Art Museum’s contemporary collection, so when the Museum invited me to guest curate an expanded version of There Is a Woman in Every Color: Black Women in Art, I wondered what might align with the exhibition’s narrative. Several visits to Del Art’s collections storage helped me discover new and unexpected stories to feature in the upcoming show.

Heather Campbell Coyle, Curator of American Art, facilitated my search and walked me through storage to see potential choices. Walking through collections storage allows art to resonate differently than simply reviewing reproduction images. It is helpful to browse the collection’s database to find potential pieces for the exhibition. As a guest curator, it helped immensely to see artworks in person to supplement browsing the Museum’s online collections search. The collections storage visits gave me a better sense of color, composition, framing, and size—essential for determining gallery layout, potential wall colors, formal analyses, and interpretation.

Viewing objects up close also helps curators appreciate artists’ care and attention to creating their work. Reviewing a list of potential artworks, I initially brushed past Eldzier Cortor’s Environment No. V (1969). Paintings and prints by artists like Lois Mailou Jones, Faith Ringgold, and Emma Amos captured my attention first due to their vibrant and contrasting colors that seemed to jump off the page. However, my assessment of Environment No. V changed when I viewed the work in person. What I initially interpreted as subdued colors were rich and nuanced. Looking closely allowed me to appreciate Cortor’s use of several printmaking techniques to develop shading and texture that resembled realistic illuminated brown skin. I especially enjoyed the bronze-colored halo behind the rightmost figure that recalled halos signifying saints in Byzantine art. Spending time up close with Cortor’s print revealed new details not visible from the checklist’s images.

The selected artworks from the Delaware Art Museum command attention and require ample wall space. Seeing the size of the contemporary pieces required me to rethink how the temporary exhibition would incorporate these new works and fit into the gallery. Viewing selections by Hank Willis Thomas and Lorna Simpson made me consider how they would pair next to smaller pieces in the traveling exhibition. In-person trips to the Delaware Art Museum’s storage prompted me to reconsider the exhibition’s layout and integrate Del Art’s holdings with those from the Bowdoin College Museum of Art. This integration lends to thematic connections in both permanent collections, stressing the importance of representing Black women’s histories in all museum institutions.

I appreciate visiting the Delaware Art Museum’s collection and determining how these remarkable works would fit alongside the existing traveling exhibition. I look forward to presenting Eldzier Cortor’s Environment No. V and the temporary exhibition to visitors when the show opens to the public on March 16, 2024. I hope you can come and see it in person.

Elizabeth S. Humphrey
Doctoral Candidate, Art History, University of Delaware
Guest Curator

Caption: Parade de Paysans (Peasants on Parade), 1961. Loïs Mailou Jones (1905–1998). Oil on canvas, 39 ¼ x 19 inches. Delaware Art Museum, Acquisition Fund, 2018.

There Is a Woman in Every Color Exhibition Arrives March 16, Final Stop of National Tour

The Delaware Art Museum presents “There Is a Woman in Every Color: Black Women in Art,” opening on Saturday, March 16, 2024, and running through Sunday, May 26, 2024. Admission for the exhibition, featured in the Fusco Gallery, is included in Museum admission.

“There is a Woman in Every Color” examines the representation of Black women in the United States over the past two centuries and makes visible the presence of Black women in American art history.

This major traveling exhibition features more than 40 works of art from the collection of the Bowdoin College Museum of Art (BMCA), to which the Delaware Art Museum has added objects from its collection. Curated by Elizabeth S. Humphrey (Ph.D. candidate at the University of Delaware and Bowdoin Class of 2014), “There Is a Woman in Every Color” opened at the BCMA in 2021 and is touring with support from the Art Bridges Foundation, which is dedicated to expanding access to American art across the country.

The traveling exhibition includes works by important 20th– and 21st-century artists Emma Amos, Elizabeth Catlett (whose 1975 work inspired the exhibition’s name), Alma Thomas, Carrie Mae Weems, Betye Saar, Faith Ringgold, Barbara Chase-Riboud, Kara Walker, Mickalene Thomas, LaToya Ruby Frazier, and Nyeema Morgan. These recent works are joined by a selection of 19th-century works of art—including a photograph of Sojourner Truth and a marble bust by Edmonia Lewis—that highlight the continuity of experiences of Black women in America.

Humphrey says, “I hope that this exhibition will encourage audiences to engage with artists often overlooked in the canon of American art, providing space for their works to stand on the equal footing they so deserve.”

In Delaware, the works from Bowdoin will be shown alongside paintings, sculptures, prints, photographs, and a quilt from DelArt’s collection, featuring artists such as Joyce Scott, Sonya Clark, Edward Loper Sr., and Deborah Willis. The added objects, dating from the 1940s through 2021, bring the total object count to 60.

DelArt’s Curator of American Art, Heather Campbell Coyle explains, “It’s thrilling to see works from our collection juxtaposed with Bowdoin’s wonderful examples. Elizabeth Humphrey has brought a fresh perspective to the interpretation of the Museum’s collection.”

Humphrey designed this exhibition to present dialogues between generations of Black women: “Curating ’There Is a Woman in Every Color’ provided an opportunity to place art by Black women in conversation with one another and showcase their exploration of personhood, issues of identity, and resistance to certain modes of representation or classiﬁcation. Presenting this exhibition at the Delaware Art Museum and including works from its collection allowed me to revisit and reimagine the show. Placing two museum collections in conversation with one another revealed exciting connections and narratives that were not as prominent before. Delaware viewers will view artworks familiar to them alongside those from the BCMA, and I look forward to seeing what connections and stories resonate.”

“There Is a Woman in Every Color” is organized thematically. The exhibition opens with representations of individual Black women, including portraits and nudes produced by photographers and printmakers, such as Elizabeth Catlett, William Witt and Mickalene Thomas. The second section focuses on issues of labor and resources, including powerful photographs of Black women in service to white families, as well as famous figures like Black activist Fannie Lou Hamer. Other sections focus on documentary photography, meditations on femininity, and contemporary artists intervening in historical narratives. The final section engages with Black women pushing the boundaries of artistic expression and the expectations of the art world.

Related Commission by Artist Shakira Hunt

Programming in support of the exhibition includes a commissioned installation by multimedia artist and Delaware native, Shakira Hunt, who will also coordinate a series of art events.

A direct response to the themes of the exhibition, Hunt’s art will be installed in the Orientation Hallway this spring and will continue past the exhibition’s closing. It will be an extension of her “Give Me My Flowers” and “Soft Petals” series, which explore themes of gender and femininity, particularly mother-daughter relationships and the intergenerational wounds (“mother wounds”) that pass between women.

Recognizing others, like herself, who haven’t historically felt seen or accepted in fine art institutions, Hunt says, “I always want access to be given to the folks that don’t really get to see themselves in spaces like this, who have not been exposed to institutions like this, who have never felt empowered.”

University Night Lecture with Artist Sonya Clark

The April 25 University Night, in partnership with the University of Delaware, will feature a talk by artist Sonya Clark, whose work is included in the exhibition, gallery tours, and other activities. She will discuss the themes of the exhibition and her own artwork. DelArt aims to engage students in art, museum studies, art history, and Africana studies from University of Delaware, Delaware State University and other regional schools, as well as interested community members.

The University Night Lecture will be preceded on April 25 by Evening for Educators. This event invites primary and secondary school teachers and administrators from nearby districts to browse the Museum galleries and discover upcoming programs to enhance their classroom teaching. This annual program is an opportunity for the educators to talk with Museum staff and learn what it might be like to bring students to the Museum.

For more information on the exhibition and supporting programming, visit our website.

There Is a Woman in Every Color: Black Women in Art is organized by Bowdoin College Museum of Art with generous support provided by Art Bridges. This exhibition is supported in Delaware by the Krahmer American Art Exhibition Fund, the TD Charitable Foundation and PNC Arts Alive. The Delaware Art Museum is supported, in part, by a grant from the Delaware Division of the Arts, a state agency, in partnership with the National Endowment for the Arts. The Division promotes Delaware arts events on www.DelawareScene.com.

About the Delaware Art Museum

For over 100 years, the Museum has served as a primary arts and cultural institution in Delaware. It is alive with experiences, discoveries, and activities to connect people with art and with each other. Originally created in 1912 to honor the renowned illustrator and Wilmington-native, Howard Pyle, the Museum’s collection has grown to over 12,000 works of art in our building and sculpture garden. Also recognized for British Pre-Raphaelite art, the Museum is home to the most comprehensive Pre-Raphaelite collection on display outside of the United Kingdom, and a growing collection of significant contemporary art.

Under the leadership of our Board of Trustees, the Delaware Art Museum is implementing a comprehensive approach to community and civic engagement. This exciting new strategic direction requires that we increase our value and relevance to all audiences. Visit delart.org for the latest exhibitions, programs, and performances or connect with us via social media.

IF YOU GO

WHAT: “There Is a Woman in Every Color: Black Women in Art” Exhibition
WHEN: Saturday, March 16, 2024, and running through Sunday, May 26, 2024
WHERE: Delaware Art Museum, 2301 Kentmere Parkway, Wilmington, DE 19806
COST: Included with Museum admission
INFO: delart.org

IF YOU GO

WHAT: Evening for Educators and University Night Lecture with Artist Sonya Clark
WHEN: Thursday, April 25, 2024
WHERE: Delaware Art Museum, 2301 Kentmere Parkway, Wilmington, DE 19806
COST: Free; registration required
INFO: delart.org

Image: The Sunflower Quilting Bee at Arles, 1996, lithograph by Faith Ringgold. Gift of Julie L. McGee, Class of 1982, Bowdoin College Museum of Art. © 2021 Faith Ringgold / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York, Courtesy ACA Galleries, New York.

“My art serves as a reflection, in poetic images, of a total experience. There is something in it of tears, laughter, courage, awareness, and a zestful vigor which moves more definitely into the future than the promise of a new day.”¹

Individuality and Community

James E. Newton firmly believed that an artist’s personal experiences shape their artistic production. The power of Newton’s individual and subjective experience is clear in his expressive, and often enigmatic compositions. Whimsical titles such as The Love Machine, Piggly Wiggly, and Miki-Mous Thyme suggest a sense of humor and playfulness that is echoed in some of his later character drawings. In works such as They Came Before Columbus VI and American Sixties II, Newton mobilized his artistic practice and distinct perspective to comment on wider social and cultural issues. Newton merges abstraction and articulated imagery to produce works that both convey the artist’s lived experience and allow for viewers’ unique interpretations.

Left: American Sixties II, c. 1970. James E. Newton (1941–2022). Mixed media assemblage, 49 5/8 x 34 5/8 x 4 1/2 inches. Private Collection. © Estate of James E. Newton. Right: They Came Before Columbus VI, 2007. James E. Newton (1941–2022). Ink and acrylic on board, 12 × 16 inches. Private Collection. © Estate of James E. Newton.

This productive tension between the individual experience and community perception can be seen in three of Newton’s early pieces: Hunchback of Notre Dame, The Mausoleum of Lazarus, and Don Quixote. All three works originated during Newton’s time as a graduate student at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and were included in his MFA thesis in 1968. They represent Newton’s early experimentation with figuration. In Hunchback of Notre Dame, a medley of shapes in ochre, crimson, white, and pale yellow jostle against one another. Thick, black lines both serve to delineate and connect the precarious ovals, blocks, and rectangles. A face and limbs emerging from the sketchy jumble. Each work is a collage, a compilation of disparate elements to create a whole picture. The figures pictured in each relate to storied characters—Victor Hugo’s Quasimodo, the biblical Lazarus, and Miguel de Cervantes’s Don Quixote—who were in some way marginalized by society or considered outcasts. Using bold shapes and thick, gestural strokes of color, Newton not only gives form to the external appearance of these figures, but also conveys inner feelings and experiences. His distorted, graphic style conveys that these characters are both seen and unseen. They are distinguished by their differences, and consequently ignored or excluded from society because of them. Newton’s works outwardly express “private matter[s] of intuition and subconscious.”² In doing so, they urge viewers to look beyond superficial appearances and empathize with the figures’ inner struggle.

Left: Hunchback of Notre Dame, 1966. James E. Newton (1941–2022). Mixed media on canvas, 40 × 36 1/4 inches. Private Collection. © Estate of James E. Newton. Middle: Mausoleum of Lazarus, 1967. James E. Newton (1941–2022). Mixed media on board, 31 3/4 × 24 inches. Private Collection. © Estate of James E. Newton. Right: Don Quixote, 1966. James E. Newton (1941–2022). Mixed media on canvas, 23 × 15 inches. Private Collection. © Estate of James E. Newton.

Resilience and Resourcefulness

In reflecting on his childhood, James Newton humorously recounted his early realizations of racial difference as the sole Black student in his kindergarten classroom: “I was shocked that all these people had white legs, and I went home to my mother, and I said, ‘Mom, they got a white leg disease’.”³

As a young, Black man growing up in the late 1950s and 1960s, James Newton witnessed and experienced different treatment because of race. While serving as a military policeman, Newton spoke out about Black colleagues’ ineligibility for promotion. In 1966, he integrated the Fine Arts program at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill becoming the first African American graduate student in the department “before any Black basketball players were there.”⁴ While coming home from his work study position, he was arrested by the Chapel Hill police for impersonating a student. Newton also recalled a similar environment of racial hostility when he began teaching at the University of Delaware in the early 1970s.

Piggly Wiggly, 1967. James E. Newton (1941–2022). Mixed media, 42 × 41 1/4 × 7 inches, support: 57 1/2 × 56 1/2 × 7 inches. Private Collection. © Estate of James E. Newton.

Through his artistic practice, Newton grappled with these patterns of harassment and marginalization and found a creative outlet for his lived experience. He recalled that during his MFA period, he could not afford new paints or tools so he “became a scavenger,” retrieving discarded paint tubes and collecting castoff materials to incorporate into his art pieces.⁵ Newton created Trio using such materials. The thin washes of pigment created a layered colorscape and reflect Newton’s ingenuity. This kind of resourcefulness and resilience characterizes his body of work. In Piggly Wiggly, for example, biomorphic shapes of cut Masonite, colored paper, plastic cubes, sheets rock, and pieces of mat board create an elegant and dynamic composition that spirals outward towards the viewer. Untitled #1, one of Newton’s collagraphs, transforms carefully selected three-dimensional objects through the printing process while maintaining their unique textures and outlines.

“My concern as artist and individual is to be able to spark involvement and stimulate reaction. Because of an intense desire to communicate through plastic means, I have invented my own language, peculiar to itself. In doing so I turn away from obvious aspects of the external world and seek by various media to create my own world, one in which I may feel free to establish form and order as I choose.”⁶

Rachel Ciampoli
2023 Alfred Appel, Jr. Curatorial Fellow, Delaware Art Museum
PhD candidate, Art History Department, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Join Rachel Ciampoli, PhD candidate in art history at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and DelArt’s 2023 Alfred Appel, Jr. Curatorial Fellow, for a special gallery talk. Rachel will discuss the works of art on view in The Artistic Legacy of James E. Newton: Poetic Roots, surveying the artist’s earliest experimentations, themes, and inspirations.

1. James E. Newton, “Development and Variations in Creative Aim and Means,” (master’s thesis, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, 1968), v.
2. Newton, “Development and Variations,” 2.
3. Newton, “MSS 0989: Oral history interview with James Newton, Part 1,” by Roger Horowitz, HIST 268 Oral History Interviews: African Americans and the University of Delaware Collection, University of Delaware Library, Newark, DE, October 11, 2021.
4. Newton, “MSS 0989: Oral history interview.”
5. James Newton: A Life Story in Art, directed by Sharon K. Baker (2016, Teleduction), vimeo.com/179488047.
6. Newton, “Development and Variations,” 1.

Top: The Love Machine, c. 1960. James E. Newton (1941–2022). Acrylic on canvas, 48 × 40 inches. Private Collection. © Estate of James E. Newton.

DelArt supporters Sheridan and Stephen Kingsberry spoke with us about their passion for art and sharing it with others.

Stephen: I studied art in college, and I landed on the difficult medium of copper. I worked in mass transit for 35 years, but I really love art. I had an exhibition of my copper works at the Redding Gallery in Wilmington last year.

Sheridan: We have always loved art. I came from a working-class farming family in Grenada, but growing up we had original art in our home, which included works from local artists. I love art and I love visiting museums.

We first visited the Delaware Art Museum when I moved to Delaware in 2000. It was a chilly environment for me then. I’ve been watching the changes at this Museum ever since. We both really started becoming involved when Sam Sweet arrived [DelArt’s former Executive Director]. He invited us in, and I don’t think we’d been invited before. We haven’t left since— we feel comfortable here now.

Stephen: Today, the Museum has a welcoming environment, and the subject matter of the exhibits has varied widely. I remember when DelArt presented the exhibitions exploring 1968 and race. It was rewarding to see the history presented within the art on view.

Sheridan: And the programming! It’s great to see the Native American community holding a Powwow here, the cultural programs hosted by Hispanic, Asian, and African American community members. I love the jazz series on Thursday evenings, which brings in varied artists. And I look forward to coming and relaxing at the Thursday night Happy Hours during the summer.

I’ve seen the Museum put significant financial resources on the table to support these programs, exhibitions, and acquisitions. It’s not just that they say they value these things, they put money behind them. That’s very impressive to me.

We believe in endowments. Sustainability is critically important, because one day we’re not going to be here to donate. But if we endow funds for what we believe in now, we are making an impact for generations to come. We support the Diverse Exhibition Fund to continue the exhibitions and programs that reflect the diversity of our community. Those funds ensure this work carries on, long after we close our eyes and go on to be with the Lord. The art is still here for others to enjoy.

Stephen: And from a historic point of view, the art is here for new generations to learn from, to get to know their history, to know the struggles that people went through to get to where we are today.

Sheridan: We brought our 15-month-old grandniece to the Christian Robinson exhibit last summer. We took home a poster from the exhibit, and she’ll grow up with that art on her bedroom wall, seeing the work of a Black illustrator.

Still, DelArt is not as well-known as it could be in the African American community. That’s one of the things I’m working on with the Community Engagement Committee—making others aware of the bounties that are here. I’ve learned so much as a DelArt member—like about artist Charles Ethan Porter, whose work the Museum recently acquired. I’m excited to help more people of color know about this Museum and all it has to offer. I’m excited about the James Newton exhibition—we knew him personally; he was a mentor of Stephen’s. I’ve already begun talking with friends about the upcoming There Is a Woman in Every Color exhibit. I think the Museum is really stretching, and we have to let everybody know.

Thank you, Sheridan and Stephen, for your generous support and advocacy for the Delaware Art Museum.

Interested in learning more about the Diverse Exhibition Fund? Please contact Amelia Wiggins, Director of Advancement, at awiggins@delart.org or 302.351.8503.

Celebrate the artistic life and legacy of James E. Newton—painter, printmaker, public intellectual, educator, and professor of African American history and art—with three exhibitions on view in locations throughout Delaware in early 2024. These exhibitions highlighting Newton’s legacy will be on display at the Delaware Art Museum, the University of Delaware’s Mechanical Hall Gallery and the University of Delaware’s Morris Library.

A beloved member of the Delaware arts community, Newton had a passion for teaching Black history, art and art history to students at the University of Delaware, local grade schools and in the community. He was integral to the establishment of UD’s Black American Studies program in the 1970s, known today as UD Africana Studies; helped found the Mitchell Center for African American Heritage in Wilmington; and served as a Wilmington leader on the boards of the YWCA and the Delaware Art Museum.

“It is an honor to join in the celebration of Dr. Newton’s legacy and the many ways his spirit shaped the artistic landscape of Delaware,” said Margaret Winslow, chief curator and curator of contemporary art at the Delaware Art Museum. “DelArt is thrilled to be closely collaborating with the University of Delaware to acknowledge this important artist.”

The exhibitions include:

The Artistic Legacy of James E. Newton: Poetic Roots

On view at the Delaware Art Museum in Wilmington, DE, from January 27 through May 19, 2024

Among James E. Newton’s many titles are artist, scholar, educator and the first African American to graduate with a Master of Fine Arts from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

In this exhibition, visitors will discover Newton’s early works, which range from his time as a graduate student at UNC Chapel Hill to his exploration of abstraction and emergence of figuration throughout the 1970s. His vibrant compositions explore social justice and American history and will prompt visitors to do the same.

The exhibition is co-curated by Delaware Art Museum’s Rachel Ciampoli, the 2023 Alfred Appel Jr. Curatorial Fellow, and Winslow. Ciampoli is a doctoral student in the Department of Art and Art History at UNC Chapel Hill.

The Artistic Legacy of James E. Newton: Heritage and Character Portraits

On view in Mechanical Hall Gallery at the University of Delaware in Newark, DE, from February 6 through May 16, 2024

Humor and history were key components to James E. Newton’s artistic process. While wit was important to his work, it never interrupted the artwork’s gravitas.

In this exhibition, visitors will get a closer look at Newton’s drawings, collages and prints to discover the many faces – from those of jazz musicians to animals to himself – he used to explore character and personality. Through these artworks, visitors will delve into the importance of African American heritage, community and culture in his work.

The exhibition is co-curated by Carolyn Hauk, graduate research assistant to the Museums and doctoral student in the Department of Art History at UD, and Amanda T. Zehnder, chief curator and head of Museums at the UD Library, Museums and Press.

The Artistic Legacy of James E. Newton: The Archival Record

On view in Morris Library at the University of Delaware in Newark, DE, from February 6 through August 23, 2024

James E. Newton believed that art, education, mentorship and community could change the world for the better.

In this exhibition, visitors will explore how Newton lived his life building communities and changing the lives of those around him. Through artwork, photographs, articles, ephemera and other materials in Newton’s papers at the UD Library, Museums and Press, visitors will gain insights into his artistic output, his work as an educator in the community and at the University, and his commitment to collecting and sharing Black history.

This exhibition is curated by Demetra McBrayer, a doctoral student in the Department of English at UD. McBrayer’s research and curatorial work was supported by the Paul R. Jones Initiative.

Related programming will be held at both the Delaware Art Museum and the University of Delaware’s Newark campus while the exhibitions are on view. Events will include talks with curators, scholarly lectures and poetry readings. These events are open to the public. More information will be shared on the Delaware Art Museum’s and the University of Delaware Library, Museums and Press’ websites in the coming weeks.

“It is an honor to be part of this broad effort to commemorate the legacy of James E. Newton,” said Zehnder. “It feels especially important to be celebrating James E. Newton’s career as an artist here at the University of Delaware, an institution where he had such a profound impact as the founding director of Black American Studies and as a mentor and inspiration to so many students and colleagues over the years.”

The Delaware Art Museum and the University of Delaware have long collaborated to enhance awareness of, and accessibility to, the visual arts and the creativity of artists. In spring 2023, both institutions signed a non-binding Memorandum of Understanding that outlines high-level mutually agreed upon principles for the Delaware Art Museum and the University of Delaware to further their discussions surrounding a deeper and more formalized collaboration to advance their missions. The collaboration, which is overseen by a committee of representatives from each organization, intends to increase student opportunities, expand exhibition and collection collaboration, deepen joint community engagement initiatives, and increase the public’s awareness of the Delaware Art Museum and the University of Delaware’s rich offerings.

For more information on the upcoming exhibitions, please contact Amelia Wiggins, director of advancement and external affairs at the Delaware Art Museum, at awiggins@delart.org or Allison Ebner, communication specialist at the UD Library, Museums and Press, at aebner@udel.edu.

IF YOU GO:

WHAT: The Artistic Legacy of James E. Newton: Poetic Roots
WHEN: January 27 – May 19, 2024
WHERE: Delaware Art Museum
COST: Free after admission; tickets available at delart.org
INFO: delart.org/event/james-e-newton/

WHAT: The Artistic Legacy of James E. Newton: Heritage and Character Portraits
WHEN: February 6 – May 16, 2024
WHERE: University of Delaware’s Mechanical Hall Gallery
COST: Free
INFO: https://exhibitions.lib.udel.edu/artistic-legacy-james-e-newton-heritage-character-portraits/

WHAT: The Artistic Legacy of James E. Newton: The Archival Record
WHEN: February 6 – August 23, 2024
WHERE: University of Delaware’s Morris Library
COST: Free
INFO: https://exhibitions.lib.udel.edu/artistic-legacy-james-e-newton-the-archival-record/

Homage to Frederick Douglass, 1972. James E. Newton (1941–2022). Collagraph, 30 x 22 inches. Private Collection. © Estate of James E. Newton.

With “The Rossettis” on view through January 28, DelArt commits to mount an exhibition of Pre-Raphaelite painter Simeon Solomon in 2027.

Thousands of visitors have traveled to Delaware in recent months to see “The Rossettis,” a major international exhibition organized in partnership with Tate Britain. The exhibition, which runs through January 28, 2024, showcases the work of the Rossettis, the extraordinarily creative family that includes artists Dante Gabriel Rossetti and Elizabeth Siddal, and poet Christina Rossetti. As “The Rossettis” nears its closing date, the Delaware Art Museum has announced its next major Pre-Raphaelite art exhibition on the artist Simeon Solomon (1840–1905).

Scheduled for spring 2027, this will be the first museum show in the United States to comprehensively focus on Solomon. The British artist’s life and career still astonish many today. For nearly fifteen years Solomon worked in the orbit of the Pre-Raphaelite and Aesthetic movements, receiving sustained critical attention. While fellow Pre-Raphaelite artists frequently illustrated scenes from the New Testament, Solomon drew on his Jewish faith, picturing stories from the Torah and Prophets, as well as scenes of Jewish cultural and liturgical practices. By the mid-1860s, he was exploring same-sex passion in his art, frequently depicting multi-figure compositions marked by overt homosocial intimacy. Following arrests for homosexual crimes in the early 1870s, Solomon was rejected by the art establishment in which he had previously thrived. For his three remaining decades, he lived precariously, suffering from alcoholism and homelessness, yet his artistic output remained prolific.

Delaware Art Museum’s exhibition will bring together works by Solomon in public and private collections worldwide. The show will argue that Solomon, as a queer, Jewish artist, occupied a far more conspicuous role in the Victorian art world than has previously been recognized. The exhibition will be co-curated by Dr. Sophie Lynford, DelArt’s Annette Woolard-Provine Curator of the Bancroft Pre-Raphaelite Collection, and Dr. Roberto C. Ferrari, Curator of Art Properties, Columbia University. A leading expert on Solomon, Ferrari founded and co-manages the online “Simeon Solomon Research Archive.”

Sophie Lynford explains the significance of a major show on Solomon: “In histories of Victorian art, Solomon’s robust oeuvre was consistently downplayed and, in many instances, entirely omitted. This has led to a gap in the appreciation and understanding of his work. DelArt’s exhibition redresses this lacuna, foregrounding his Judaism and his homosexuality as essential to his contributions to Victorian art.”

Art lovers have two more weeks to experience “The Rossettis,” which will not travel to additional venues. Also on display at the museum is a new installation in the permanent galleries devoted to a significant oil painting by Solomon, The Mother of Moses (1860), in Delaware Art Museum’s collection.

Executive Director Molly Giordano shares, “It is a tremendously exciting time for Victorian art at Delaware Art Museum. Partnering with Tate Britain to bring ‘The Rossettis’ to Wilmington has offered an unprecedented opportunity for enthusiasts of the Pre-Raphaelites to see so many stellar artworks in one location. With the 2027 Solomon show on the horizon, DelArt continues to lead the field on groundbreaking scholarship on this important art movement.”

For more information about “The Rossettis,” visit delart.org/rossettis.

The Rossettis was organized by the Delaware Art Museum in partnership with Tate Britain and is made possible through support from the Nathan Clark Foundation, the Amy P. Goldman Foundation, the Delaware Art Museum Council, and the Dr. Lee MacCormick Edwards Charitable Foundation. This exhibition is supported, in part, by the National Endowment for the Arts and by a grant from the Delaware Division of the Arts, a state agency, in partnership with the National Endowment for the Arts. The Division promotes Delaware arts events on www.DelawareScene.com.

IF YOU GO:

WHAT: The Rossettis
WHEN: Now through January 28, 2024, Wednesdays through Sundays; guided tours at 1 pm on Saturdays and Sundays.
WHERE: Delaware Art Museum, 2301 Kentmere Parkway, Wilmington, DE 19806
COST: $25; free for DelArt Plus members
INFO: delart.org

Image: The Mother of Moses (detail), 1860. Simeon Solomon (1840–1905). Oil on canvas, 24 x 19 7/8 in. Delaware Art Museum, Bequest of Robert Louis Isaacson, 1999.

It’s been just under a year since the Museum purchased Charles Ethan Porter’s Thistles with Butterfly, which is now on view in Gallery 5, a space dedicated to American art from the middle of the 19th century. Featuring a Clouded Sulphur butterfly alighting on a thistle head, this lovely canvas demonstrates the artist’s interest in his local landscape. Although Porter developed his approach to painting flowers in Paris, his family’s garden in Connecticut provided inspiration for much of his career. In the 1880s, when he painted this, appreciation was increasing among gardeners and artists for wildflowers and the insects that visit them. Enthusiasm was also growing for looser, more expressive brushwork and for outdoor painting—Thistles with Butterfly practically vibrates with the vitality of nature. Adding to the floral energy, the frame is decorated with twining grape vines. (With a label from J. H. Eckhardt in Hartford, the frame is very likely original to the painting.) We were delighted to add Thistles with Butterfly to the Museum’s collection in 2023. DelArt had no significant floral paintings from the 19th century, and this one—with its Parisian flair and attention to native plants—has a lot to say about the period.

This acquisition is also significant because Porter is one of a small number of African American artists, alongside Robert Duncanson and Edward Bannister, to build painting careers in the 19th century. Over the past five years, the Museum has acquired works by each of these three artists, allowing us to tell a more inclusive story of American art. Thistles and Butterfly is the first work by Porter to enter the collection. As we look toward our 2024 exhibitions The Artistic Legacy of James E. Newton: Poetic Roots and There is a Woman in Every Color: Black Women in Art, deepening our 19th-century collection provides context and helps make possible programs like The ABCs of Black Art History, which launches this year.

About Charles Ethan Porter and Thistles and Butterfly

Raised in Rockville, Connecticut, Porter suffered poverty and loss as a youth. Two of his brothers fought in African American regiments of the Union Army during the Civil War, and one died fighting in Virginia. Seven of his siblings died young of illnesses. After high school, Porter studied painting at Wesleyan Academy before he was accepted at one of the nation’s leading art schools, the National Academy of Design in New York, where he studied from 1869 to 1873. Porter lived in New York and spent summers in Rockville until late in 1877, when he set up a studio in Hartford, Connecticut. The city had a vibrant artistic scene at the time, with wealthy collectors and resident artists including Frederic Edwin Church. Porter’s still-life paintings attracted notice in the local papers. He was working in a meticulously detailed, trompe l’oeil manner, depicting flowers or fruits, sometimes visited by equally realistic insects. His still-life groupings were simply composed—often featuring a single type of fruit or flower—and free of fancy vases or exotic plants.

A studio sale of Porter’s paintings in 1881 earned him about $1,000 to travel to Paris, where he enrolled at the École Nationale Supériere des Arts Décoratifs and the Académie Julian. In the summer of 1882, Porter traveled to Fleury, close to Barbizon, where he painted landscapes, but his fruit and flower pictures were the works most admired in France, as they had been in the U.S. In Paris, Porter lived down the street from one of the leading French still-life painters, Henri Fantin-Latour, and first-hand exposure to the French artist’s paintings probably encouraged Porter to work in a looser, more painterly style.

Early in 1884 Porter was back in Hartford. The local press supported his work, praising it as even better now that he incorporated “the mode of treatment which is so characteristic of French art today.” His “broader, freer style” was contrasted favorably to his earlier “dainty, almost finicky” work, yet he had trouble selling enough work to support himself in Hartford and moved between New York and his family home for several years, before settling permanently in Rockville around 1900. He exhibited in all three cities and in Springfield, Massachusetts.

With its expressive brushwork, Thistles with Butterfly reflects Porter’s post-Paris style as well as his abiding interest in flowers and insects. Porter is best known for tabletop still life pictures of flowers in vases, but he also produced landscape pictures. Focused on a local plant in nature, Thistles with Butterfly bridges the genres of landscape and floral still life. The simple brown background keeps attention on the colorful subjects and is typical of the artist’s still-life compositions.

Considered both a flower and weed, the thistle is an evocative subject. In the mid-19th century, thistles often appeared in religious paintings, evoking the suffering of Jesus. Its spiny leaves are associated with pain and protection, and its ability to thrive in inhospitable places links the plant to resilience. The plant’s rich symbolism resonates with the artist’s experiences.

Porter’s network included local white artists as well as his extended family, but he struggled to make a living as a painter in a small community—a struggle made much more challenging for Porter as a Black artist. Porter exhibited and sold regularly, as well as teaching, through the early 20th century, and he seems to have been quite prolific—news reports indicate him selling hundreds of works at a time in studio sales—but his difficulties are also clear.

Heather Campbell Coyle
Curator of American Art

To learn about Porter, see Charles Ethan Porter: African-American Master of Still Life (New Britain Museum of American Art, 2007)

Thistles with Butterfly, c.1888. Charles Ethan Porter (1847–1923). Oil on canvas, 20 3/16 x 12 1/8 inches. Delaware Art Museum, F. V. du Pont Acquisition Fund, 2023.

Have you ever thought about how Santa disembarks from his sled and drags that bag of toys into the chimney? I have not, but it’s a complicated proposal when the chimney is tall and the roof is steeply pitched. If the sled lands on the snow-covered roof, Santa would have to clamber up to the chimney’s opening, and he is not an action star. Also, the roof may not be large, so where would the reindeer alight—on the downslope? Even magical physics seems to rule against that. Plus, it would make for a weird composition in a picture.

Designing the cover for a new edition of Clement C. Moore’s classic The Night Before Christmas, Everett Shinn put some thought into this conundrum. His solution, seen here, involves a plank. It’s kind of like a dock plate for unloading a truck.

Shinn may have felt compelled to consider such practical logistics because he began his career as a newspaper illustrator in the 1890s. He had a flair for catching activity in motion with dashing lines, and he built his career among realists and impressionists dedicated to depicting daily life in the city. In the early 1900s, Shinn illustrated urban scenes for major magazines and participated in exhibitions organized by progressive artists. He showed his scenes of modern life with The Eight in 1908, alongside William Glackens, George Luks, and John Sloan, whom he met as newspaper artists in Philadelphia in the 1890s. Shinn had a long artistic career, painting, illustrating, and working in theater and film.

In the late 1930s and ’40s, he illustrated classic stories, including a series of Dickens’ tales, for various publishers. To plan his 1942 edition of The Night Before Christmas, Shinn produced a mock-up with several original watercolors in an empty sketchbook. He probably shared this with the publisher for feedback on his designs. He made some alterations for the final cover, but the plank solution remained in the final version.

I hope you stop by the Museum this winter, while this watercolor is on view. (Our feature exhibition The Rossettis is on view through January 28, 2024.) To see Shinn’s clever work, visit the Weinberg Gallery dedicated to the work of Sloan and The Eight. It’s in the wall-mounted case.

Heather Campbell Coyle
Curator of American Art

Sunlight filters through your studio, specs of sand and dust twinkling in the beams. You’ve just finished your lunch – wiping your hands on a rag stained with paint and crumbs. Now it’s time to sort through the day’s mail. You begin sorting through the small pile of mail that arrived earlier that morning. Familiar handwriting catches your eye, and you glance at the return address. It’s just the letter you’ve been waiting for. Gathering your letter opener, your stationary, and finally finding that pen you swore you had just moments ago, you’re ready to slice open the envelope to read the message that awaits.

A dear friend has written to you – giving you updates about their family, their thoughts on a new painting technique they’ve tested, and even including a paw print of their dog so you can see how much it’s grown. A smile tugs at the corner of your mouth as you trace the shape of the paw print. Putting pen to paper, you write your response; words flowing easily and filling the page. Later that afternoon, you drop the letter off at the post office, and the morning’s mail stays tucked away in a drawer as you carry on your day.

Fast forward over one hundred years, the letter is found resting comfortably in an archival box by the DelArt Digital Project Manager. It is carefully removed from its folder, scanned into a computer, and, finally, transcribed and uploaded to the Digital Archives so that researchers and art enthusiasts alike can read this letter and many other memories for years to come. It’s letters like these, along with photographs and, of course, pieces of artwork, that allow the people of today a glimpse of the past.

The John Sloan Manuscript Collection measures 238 linear feet (approximately 112 baguettes) and fills over 300 boxes and drawers, accounting for about 10% of the Museum’s total archival holdings (which stands at over 2,000 linear feet or 24,384 goldfish crackers). The Collection includes Sloan’s extensive correspondence, personal diaries, and notes about his career; personal and family papers; financial and legal records; photographs and more.

The John Sloan Digitization Project, funded by a generous grant from the Institute of Library and Museum Services (IMLS), aims to digitize and make accessible online the 300 boxes of letters, photographs, and other archival material. Currently, the project consists of 7,261 individual scans with more to come! If you’ve ever wondered what John Sloan’s typical day might have been like, there are plenty of letters and photographs that can transport you back in time. Be sure to follow along by checking the Digital Archives as more material is uploaded every day!

Illustrated letter from Will Shuster to John Sloan, November 30, 1920, Helen Farr Sloan Library & Archives, Delaware Art Museum

In 1880, Samuel Bancroft, Jr., was “shocked with delight” on viewing his first Pre-Raphaelite painting. A decade later, Bancroft purchased his first Pre-Raphaelite work of art, Dante Gabriel Rossetti’s Water Willow (1871), starting what would become the largest and most important collection of British Pre-Raphaelite art and manuscript materials in the United States.

It’s because of that collection that I’m “shocked with delight” to be over from the University of York in the UK as a Visiting Researcher for October and November. It’s a privilege to be here, particularly with The Rossettis opening last week.

My doctorate, funded by the UK’s Arts and Humanities Research Council, explores the work of Rossetti, one of the major painters and poets of the Victorian era. Specifically, I’m researching his “double works of art.” These image-text composites often take the form of a painting and a sonnet — with the poem frequently inscribed on the frame of the picture. They share a title, comment and elaborate on each other, and work to develop a vision, ideal, or experience.

Water Willow, Bancroft’s first purchase, was actually a “double work” and Delaware Art Museum has a number of major examples. These include: Lady Lilith (1866-1868), Veronica Veronese (1872), La Bella Mano (1875), Mnemosyne (1881), and Found (1859-unfinished).

Put bluntly: I couldn’t do my research without access to these compelling artworks which is why I’m so excited to finally be here. It’s impossible to be a scholar of 19th-century British art and literature and not know about this rich collection — I knew about it before I actually knew where Delaware was on a map!

I’ve had an interest in Rossetti since first encountering his poetry as a teenager, but it wasn’t until the latter part of an English Literature degree at the University of Oxford that I really started to think about his poetry and his paintings. Despite him being a commanding figure in 19th-century studies, appreciation of artistic skills and experimental technique is still held back by preconceived ideas about his sumptuous, “fleshly” pictures. Paradoxically, his huge public popularity seems to have hindered (rather than helped) his academic reputation.

Before the doctorate, I worked in politics in London and spent far too many hours on weekends looking at Rossetti’s work (as well as Pre-Raphaelite and Aestheticist paintings) in the Tate Britain. It’s a great pleasure, then, that I now get to think, write, read, and talk about his paintings and poems as my day job.

On that note, I’m delighted to be giving a number of gallery talks for The Rossettis exhibition during my time here. I’ll be talking about the “double works” Lady Lilith (November 2nd), Found (November 17), and Veronica Veronese (November 30th). Please sign-up and come along if you’re interested: they’re fascinating works of art, and please feel free to bring along any questions you might have about them.

Nicholas Dunn-McAfee
Doctoral candidate, History of Art and English Literature, University of York, UK

Artwork in image: Found, Designed 1853; begun 1859; unfinished. Dante Gabriel Rossetti (1828–1882). Oil on canvas, 36 1/4 × 31 15/16 inches, frame: 50 × 46 inches. Delaware Art Museum, Samuel and Mary R. Bancroft Memorial, 1935. Photograph by Shannon Woodloe.

Before anything goes on view at the Museum, curators do a lot of research. In the case of our illustration collection, we research the original publications which were illustrated by the pictures in the collection, as well as the careers of the artists. Identifying the story (or poem or advertisement) helps us to understand the illustrator’s decisions.

Thanks to decades of research by curators and librarians here, we know where most (literally thousands!) of DelArt’s original illustrations appeared. However, there are still mysteries to be solved, and I love to investigate. When I have free time, that’s where you’ll find me—online or in the stacks trying to identify where the Museum’s illustrations appeared. I hesitate to put works on view until I fully identify them, but this August I gave in. In the Peggy Woolard Gallery of American illustration, three lovely ink drawings are hanging through early December. Elegantly finished and carefully signed, each appears ready for publication, but despite years in the collection, none of the publications have been identified.

Henrietta Adams McClure’s At Dawn is a stellar ink drawing that demonstrates her specialty in fairy subjects for children. The delicate, decorative patterning of the foliage reflects what she learned at Moore College and from Howard Pyle. (If you come see her drawing, don’t miss the chance to walk around the wall and compare it to Pyle’s richly patterned images of Sir Launcelot.) At Dawn didn’t appear in her most famous book commission, Rachel Varble’s The Red Cape, nor have I found the title in my searches of magazines from the late 19th and early 20th centuries. And Google image search has failed so far (though I try it every couple of months). Children’s books have not been digitized as widely as other books, and DelArt doesn’t have a huge collection of them, so it could certainly be hiding in one of those. At Dawn might have been a design for a greeting card or calendar, which are even harder to find. McClure was a successful illustrator, so I have faith that this mystery will be solved one day. Perhaps you have a book she illustrated on your shelf? Give it a look and let me know!

McClure’s mystery drawing is accompanied by two others: Pierrot and Columbine and The Black Cat. Each is inscribed on the back by Frances M. Call of Haddonfield, New Jersey. Nothing is known of Call, and it’s possible the charming drawings—which also appear influenced by Pyle and other turn-of-the-century illustrators—may not have been published. (There are no notes or measurements in the margins, which can indicate that a drawing was published.) With their careful notations of Call’s contact information, these could have been submissions to an exhibition or samples sent to an art editor. We may never know, but I’m inviting you to research with me. Maybe we can solve a little mystery together.

Heather Campbell Coyle
Curator of American Art

At Dawn, not dated. Henrietta Adams McClure (1876–1945). Ink on illustration board, 15 1/16 x 12 inches. Delaware Art Museum, Acquired through the estate of Frieda Becher.

As a child, I had a Grandma Moses print hanging in my bedroom, and I remember being surprised that my teacher knew the artist. I realized there was art out there that lots of people knew and appreciated. It was a way of connecting with others.

After college, a friend who loves Howard Pyle’s The Mermaid brought me to the Delaware Art Museum for the first time. Fast forward a little bit, I’m a teacher at Wilmington Montessori School, and a parent suggested a field trip to DelArt. We had an amazing docent, and I enjoyed the trip so much that we did it again the next year. It lit a fire in me: How do I bring more of this into the classroom? I purchased a Lady Lilith poster, and I started talking to the kids in very simple terms about the Pre-Raphaelites: They didn’t think it was a good idea to be mass producing things; they believed everything in your home should have meaning and be beautiful. That aligns with Montessori values too.

I taught at Wilmington Montessori for 15 years, so that’s 15 field trips to DelArt, learning from the docents. As I continued to bring students here, I myself learned more and more. After my twins went off to college, I went to London. I visited the Pre-Raphaelite collection at the Birmingham Museum and the Red House (designed by William Morris). In 2019 I traveled to the Leighton House (home of Frederic Leighton) and was just wowed. Most recently I saw Leighton’s Flaming June at the Met, on loan from the Museo de Arte de Ponce.

Over time I’ve developed a passion and an eye for this. I took curator Sophie Lynford’s Pre-Raphaelite class, and I loved the stories she shared of the people behind the art. The paintings are what drew me in, but the stories of the Victorians who created them give it a fullness that I can relate to.

Sponsoring Lady Lilith for The Rossettis exhibition is a culmination of my love for the Pre-Raphaelites. I’m at a point in my life where I can do something to support this passion. Being able to carry on my parents’ generosity after they have passed on gives my life fullness. And this art really matters to me. It brings together my love of London and British culture, my own interests and learning, and my passion for teaching. I know that somewhere in each group of students who visit DelArt there’s a child like I once was, connecting with art for the first time. For a student, a museum visit is an entrée into appreciating art and culture, seeing the emotions an artist captures, or a political viewpoint, or a beautiful snapshot of our world.

I can’t wait for the exhibition this fall—it’s like waiting for my granddaughter to be born, waiting to see all of those Rossettis again, all in one place. The Rossettis is an exhibition that people will never forget.

Artwork: Mary Magdalene, 1877. Dante Gabriel Rossetti (1828–1882). Oil on canvas, 29 7/8 × 25 3/8 inches, frame: 42 × 37 3/4 inches. Delaware Art Museum, Samuel and Mary R. Bancroft Memorial, 1935. Photograph by Shannon Woodloe.

August 2023 marks 50 years of Hip-Hop, a culture that brings together music, technology, spoken word, dance, people, and more. Hip-Hop was born in the Bronx borough of New York City. Joe Conzo, Jr. was there to capture it, taking photographs of DJs, B(reaker)-Girls and B-Boys, and the crowds who gathered to experience a new genre being birthed.

Conzo was born and raised in the Bronx and began taking photographs at an early age. In 1978, he befriended the pioneering Hip-Hop group, Cold Crush Brothers, joining them for live performances at legendary venues.

His photographs document the excitement of new sounds and new movements. Conzo captured the essence of Hip-Hop, shown in this selection of photographs taken between 1979 and 1982, a foundational period in Hip-Hop. The grouping includes a self-portrait of the artist and reflections of the Bronx, DJing, breaking, and identity. Conzo explains he was “documenting his surroundings.” In doing so, he captured the heart of Hip-Hop as it began to beat.

Don’t miss the special exhibition of six of Conzo’s photographs on view in the Lynn Herrick Sharp Gallery for contemporary art through the end of 2023. It is supported by Allhiphop.com, Guerrilla Republik, and a grant from the Delaware Division of the Arts, a state agency, in partnership with the National Endowment for the Arts. The Division promotes Delaware arts events on www.DelawareScene.com.

DJ Charlie Chase and Grandmaster Caz, Norman Thomas High School, 1981. Joe Conzo Jr. (born 1963). Digital print, 16 x 20 inches. Joe Conzo Archives. © Joe Conzo Jr.

Free Korean Festival and Día de los Muertos Observation Offer Performances and Activities

The Delaware Art Museum presents, for the eighth time, a fall Korean Festival, on Saturday, October 14, 2023, 11 a.m.—3 p.m., as well as the fourth annual Día de los Muertos: Walking Among the Ancestors event on Saturday, October 28, 2023, from 11 a.m.—4 p.m.

Both family-friendly outdoor events will feature music and cultural dances, and both cultures are known for placing an emphasis on honoring ancestors, particularly this time of year.

Community Engagement Specialist Iz Balleto says, “These events recognize the fact that our ancestors are with us. It’s important for us to reflect on those who came before and acknowledge their names and their spirits, and continue to celebrate them.”

Balleto adds, “We hear from a lot of guests at these cultural festivals that it’s an experience they’ve never had—seeing the culture come to life, and not just through a television screen. It’s especially amazing for those who take time to learn about others’ cultures.”

The Korean Festival invites guests to explore traditional and modern Korean culture with family-friendly activities and performances by Jinhee Oh’s Delaware Korean School, with TaeKwonDo gymnastics, chorus, and samulnori percussion; Selahart Institute and MIMIC K-pop Dance Group; Korean School of Southern New Jersey; Tiger Kicks and Master Choi demonstrating TaeKwonDo; KODAC, the university of Delaware K-pop club. Yegeun Song & Jung-young Park will host and Jonathan Park, Director of the Delaware Korean Association, will also be on site.

Día de los Muertos invites guests to experience a variety of activities, such as an Indigenous ceremony, labyrinth walk and contribute to ofrendas by bringing pictures of loved ones and food to leave at the altars. Jazmin Buke will host, and opening ceremonies will include Danza Azteca Anahuac, Seylin Abarca, Mr Capo 302, Ballet Folklorico Mexico Lindo, Esmeralda LaCor and Mariachi Arrieros. The very popular La Catrinamia, the skeletal embodiment of a well-to-do woman who has passed, makes her annual return to the Museum.

Korean food will be available for purchase at the Korean Festival, and Los Taquitos de Puebla will sell food at Día de los Muertos. Beverages will be available for sale, but alcohol will not be sold at these events.

The Festival coincides with the Korean holiday ChuSeok. In South Korea, it is the most celebrated traditional holiday, and often includes pilgrimages to the family’s hometown. It also celebrates the September harvest, with much of the attention placed on rice, a Korean staple.

Día de los Muertos is observed in Mexico and other countries in the days leading up to All Saints’ Day and All Souls’ Day, and, therefore, is often conflated with Halloween traditions. However, the holiday combines the celebration of those who have passed with reverence for the act of mourning, and is neither scary nor prank-oriented.

Although these are both free events, each consistently reaches full capacity, therefore, registration is strongly encouraged. To register, or for more information on the event, visit our website. In the event of bad weather, the programs will be moved indoors.

The Korean Festival is presented in partnership with the Delaware Korean Association, Overseas Korean Service, the TD Charitable Foundation, and the Jessie Ball duPont Fund.

Día de los Muertos is presented in partnership with the Center for Interventional Pain & Spine, Nuestras Raices Delaware, Hoy en Delaware, the TD Charitable Foundation, the Jessie Ball duPont Fund, and Guerrilla Republik.

This organization is supported, in part, by a grant from the Delaware Division of the Arts, a state agency, in partnership with the National Endowment for the Arts. The Division promotes Delaware arts events on www.DelawareScene.com.

About the Delaware Art Museum

Under the leadership of our Board of Trustees, the Delaware Art Museum is implementing a comprehensive approach to community and civic engagement. This exciting new strategic direction requires that we increase our value and relevance to all audiences. Visit delart.org to for the latest exhibitions, programs, and performances or connect with us via social media.

IF YOU GO

WHAT: Korean Festival
WHEN: Saturday, October 14, 2023, 11 a.m.—3 p.m.
WHERE: Delaware Art Museum, 2301 Kentmere Parkway, Wilmington, Del. 19806
COST: Free, Registration Strongly Recommended
INFO: delart.org

WHAT: Día de los Muertos: Walking Among the Ancestors
WHEN: Saturday, October 28, 2023, 11 a.m.—4 p.m.
WHERE: Delaware Art Museum, 2301 Kentmere Parkway, Wilmington, Del. 19806
COST: Free, Registration Strongly Recommended
INFO: delart.org

Successful Inaugural Program Expanded for 2023-2024 with a Roster of Solo Pianists and More

The Delaware Art Museum has expanded its Jazz Series for 2023-2024 following a successful inaugural season in 2022. The current series debuts on Thursday, October 5, 2023, and features Dayramir González, who will play—on the Museum’s century-old Steinway Grand Piano—his favorite works, and tell stories from his life. The Jazz Series is hosted by Raye Jones Avery, an accomplished jazz vocalist and a Wilmington arts leader, who will engage each guest artist in “Chords and Conversations,” an artist chat with audience participation. Tickets are available at delart.org for $30, with a discount for Museum members. Refreshments will be available for purchase.

Each installment of the Jazz Series takes place on the first Thursday of the month from 7—9 p.m. and performances last approximately 1.5 hours, with the artist chat occurring mid-performance. Future dates are November 2, 2023; February 1, March 7, April 4, and, May 2, 2024. Additional artists for this season—nearly all pianists and some vocals—include Sumi Tonooka, V. Shayne Frederick, Cyrus Chestnut, and Brandi Younger, with one more to be announced.

Avery says, “The solo nature of the artists we’ve selected for the Jazz Series creates a sense of intimacy and individualism within the performances, and the Chords and Conversation chats—which are more than just interviews, but real audience interaction—have become a unique feature that appeals to the community. Plus, the acoustics in the Museum are wonderful, and the audience not only can, but does listen very intently.”

González is a Havana-born Yamaha artist who began his professional career as a pianist and composer with former Irakere member Oscar Valdes’ Afro-Cuban jazz ensemble, Diákara, at the age of 16. Since winning Havana’s JoJazz festival in 2004 and 2005, González has gone from winning three Cubadisco awards for his 2007 debut album “Dayramir & Habana enTRANCé” to becoming Berklee College of Music’s first Cuban national “Presidential Scholarship” recipient to perform in 15,000-seat stadiums. Performing with legends such as Chucho and Bebo Valdes and headlining Carnegie Hall, González represents the young generation of Afro-Cuban jazz.

Avery adds, “González is very skillful, but the animation and the joyfulness of his connection to the instrument, and his musical expression, are very uplifting. For people who are really interested in moving to the music, this is a great artist to experience.”

The series was curated by Jonathan Whitney, owner of Flux Creative Consulting, who has worked behind the scenes to help make the series happen. Whitney says, “I am excited to share these special artists with our community in such a beautiful and intimate setting.”

Saralyn Rosenfield, the Museum’s Director of Learning and Engagement, says, “Based on the success of last year’s two-part Fall Jazz Series, we’ve tripled the program and expanded it from October through May. The concerts are mesmerizing and the experience is congenial and social, plus you come away from the program having learned something. We love being able to bring jazz and art together in a multi-disciplinary space—art connects us.”

In addition to promoting the mission of the Museum to connect people with art and to each other, this expanded Jazz Series serves as a preview to an exciting Jazz Age Illustration exhibition the Museum presents next fall, which highlights illustrative art originating from the Jazz Age of American history.

For more information about the exhibition, visit our website.

This event is made possible through a grant provided by PNC Arts Alive and the TD Charitable Foundation. This organization is supported, in part, by a grant from the Delaware Division of the Arts, a state agency, in partnership with the National Endowment for the Arts. The Division promotes Delaware arts events on www.DelawareScene.com.

About the Delaware Art Museum

IF YOU GO:

WHAT: Jazz Series with Raye Jones Avery featuring Dayramir González
WHEN: Thursday, October 5, 2023, 7 p.m.
WHERE: Delaware Art Museum, 2301 Kentmere Parkway, Wilmington, DE 19806
COST: $30, with discount for members
INFO: delart.org

Delaware Art Museum Is the Only U.S. Location for Major Pre-Raphaelite Exhibition and Events

The Delaware Art Museum presents “The Rossettis,” a major international loan exhibition organized in partnership with Tate Britain, opening on Saturday, October 21, 2023, and running through Sunday, January 28, 2024. The exhibition features the art of the Rossettis, an iconic artist family that includes Dante Gabriel Rossetti, a founder of the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood, his wife, Elizabeth Siddal, and siblings, Christina, Maria, and William Michael Rossetti. Significant special programming, such as the Pre-Raphaelite Weekend and Pre-Raphaelite Promenade, have been developed in conjunction with this exhibition.

The Delaware Art Museum, which is home to the most comprehensive collection of Pre-Raphaelite art outside of the United Kingdom, will be the only museum in the United States to host this exhibition after it closes in London on September 24.

DelArt’s collections of paintings by Dante Gabriel will be contextualized alongside the family’s works from international public and private collections, exceeding 150 objects. Delaware has added many works to the display that were not on view at Tate. These include paintings, drawings, watercolors, and writings by Dante Gabriel, drawings by Siddal, and poetry and prose by Christina, Maria, and William Michael. Highlights include a trio of portraits of Siddal, reunited for the first time since their making in 1854.

Sophie Lynford, Annette Woolard-Provine Curator of the Bancroft Collection, explains the significance of bringing the three portraits together, “These drawings are records of the close friendships among women artists in the Pre-Raphaelite circle. Two were made by Barbara Leigh Smith Bodichon and Anna Mary Howitt. Dante Gabriel had asked the women to take Elizabeth on a trip that would lift her spirits. Partway through the women’s holiday, Dante Gabriel joined them. On May 8, 1854, Dante Gabriel, Barbara and Anna each made a portrait of Elizabeth, all from slightly different angles. These three drawings have never been displayed together since their making.”

The poets, writers, and painters of the prodigiously artistic Rossetti family blended their passion for social justice with their commitment to reforming outdated academic artistic traditions. Through this exhibition, visitors familiar with and new to the Pre-Raphaelites will experience fresh insights that address contemporary debates about romance, class, sex, and gender.

Executive Director Molly Giordano says, “Shortly after the Museum was founded, we were given an incredible gift: Samuel P. Bancroft, Jr.’s significant Pre-Raphaelite collection. Our holdings have since grown, and we’re home to critically important paintings and drawings by Dante Gabriel Rossetti, as well as rare works on paper by Elizabeth Siddal. Partnering with Tate Britain, and its extraordinary collection, makes this exhibition an unprecedented opportunity for enthusiasts of the Pre-Raphaelite movement to see so many rare objects in one location, and enjoy immersive programming.”

Lynford adds, “While Bancroft acquired art by many Pre-Raphaelites, he was drawn most intensely to Rossetti and would be delighted that this show reunites works that haven’t been displayed together for over 150 years.”

DelArt’s presentation of “The Rossettis” will be further enhanced by a range of programs and special events throughout the exhibition’s run, including: the Pre-Raphaelite Weekend, a multi-day celebration of Pre-Raphaelite art; the Pre-Raphaelite Promenade, an enchanting gala set in the Victorian world; guided tours of the show; and, special gallery talks on key works in the exhibition.

For more information about the exhibition, visit our website.

This exhibition was organized by the Delaware Art Museum in partnership with Tate Britain and is made possible through support from the Nathan Clark Foundation, the Amy P. Goldman Foundation, the Delaware Art Museum Council, and the Dr. Lee MacCormick Edwards Charitable Foundation. This organization is supported, in part, by the National Endowment for the Arts and by a grant from the Delaware Division of the Arts, a state agency, in partnership with the National Endowment for the Arts. The Division promotes Delaware arts events on www.DelawareScene.com.

IF YOU GO:

WHAT: “The Rossettis”
WHEN: October 21, 2023 through January 28, 2024
WHERE: Delaware Art Museum, 2301 Kentmere Parkway, Wilmington, DE 19806
COST: $25; free for DelArt Plus members
INFO: delart.org

WHAT: Guided Special Exhibition Tours
WHEN: Saturdays and Sundays, October 21, 2023 through January 28, 2024, 1 p.m.
WHERE: Delaware Art Museum, 2301 Kentmere Parkway, Wilmington, DE 19806
COST: Free with exhibition admission; registration encouraged
INFO: delart.org

WHAT: Gallery Talks with Visiting Researcher Nicholas Dunn-McAfee
WHEN: Thursdays, November 2 and 30, 5 p.m.; Friday, November 17, 12 p.m.
WHERE: Delaware Art Museum, 2301 Kentmere Parkway, Wilmington, DE 19806
COST: Free for select DelArt Plus members or with exhibition admission
INFO: delart.org

WHAT: Pre-Raphaelite Weekend
WHEN: Thursday, November 9 through Sunday, November 12, 2023
WHERE: Delaware Art Museum, 2301 Kentmere Parkway, Wilmington, DE 19806
COST: $250
INFO: delart.org

WHAT: Pre-Raphaelite Promenade
WHEN: Saturday, November 11, 2023, 7–10 p.m.
WHERE: Delaware Art Museum, 2301 Kentmere Parkway, Wilmington, DE 19806
COST: $150
INFO: delart.org

Top: La Ghirlandata (detail), 1873, Dante Gabriel Rossetti. Oil on canvas. Guildhall Art Gallery. Photo credit: City of London Corporation.

From the Delaware Art Museum, a few turns and a straight drive down Delaware Ave will find you nine minutes away and on the corner of 7th and Washington, now home to the Art-O-Mat. This is the newest location from Wilmington Alliance, a local organization dedicated to the city’s economic revitalization. Like DelArt, the front of the Art-O-Mat is all glass and light; jazz plays here, and artists can create here. The contrasts between the two are clear: age is a big one—the Art-O-Mat just opened at the end of July—and the drastic socioeconomic differences of the neighborhoods where the two each reside is another. However, these opposing factors highlight the things they share, like their proximity and remarkably similar hopes to uplift Wilmington by investing creative resources in the community.

In August, DelArt hosted Charles Edward Williams for a two-week artist residency. This residency was facilitated through an opportune partnership with the Art-O-Mat. The location served as Williams’s primary studio space and, in turn, the residency marked the first partnership between DelArt and Wilmington Alliance.

Williams is a featured artist in the museum’s collection. His work focuses on translating historical moments in ways that resonate and connect with audiences today. In a previous commission for the Museum, Williams focused his gaze on Delaware’s history by taking inspiration from the life and legacy of Alice Dunbar-Nelson. In the residency, he continued his exploration of history. “It’s not about me documenting what happened in history,” Williams says. “It’s about…how can I reappropriate this moment in history from a photograph or from a video and then take it to [be] more hopeful, more positive, more abundant…what kind of added point can I [bring] to it?”

The added point came in the community participation that the Museum and the Art-O-Mat organized. Families and youth groups had the opportunity to come and assist in creating the first layer of Williams’s artwork, literally making their own marks. This effectively inserted community members into the long arch of Black cultural history and legacy that Williams eagerly engages with in his work.

The artist also had his own opportunities for reflection and inspiration throughout the residency. He visited the Delaware Contemporary, met with local artists and business owners, and toured the Delaware History Museum’s Mitchell Center for African American Heritage. With the Wilmington Alliance partnership, the residency presented the opportunity to go deeper into the Wilmington community, literally. Its activities and themes highlight the history and ties that run through both DelArt and the Art-O-Mat as locally established and emerging cultural organizations.

As DelArt continues to grow as an organization, we’ve had the pleasure of hosting public programs that bring hundreds to the museum, such as Julieta Zavala’s fashion show this spring and the exhibition-inspired KidChella earlier this summer. Events like these demonstrate the museum’s commitment to highlighting local creative voices and empowering community members to take ownership in the arts. Initiatives like the artist residency illustrate how this vision extends beyond the bounds of Kentmere Parkway, taking the museum to the people and providing advancement and enrichment inside and outside our institution. ~

This artist residency was organized by the Delaware Art Museum and supported, in part, by a grant from the Delaware Division of the Arts, a state agency, in partnership with the National Endowment for the Arts. The Division promotes Delaware arts events on www.DelawareScene.com.

Zoe Akoto, DelArt’s Summer Residency Bridges Communities and Histories

Top: Boys to Men, 2023. Charles Edward Williams (born 1984). Oil, acrylic and crayon on gesso watercolor paper, 102 x 4 inches.

Explore the Creative World of Award-Winning Children’s Book Illustrator

During this summer season, the Delaware Art Museum took center stage as it proudly presented an exhibition spotlighting the creations of Christian Robinson, a prominent figure in the realm of children’s book illustration, writing, and animation. The enchanting artworks from well-loved children’s tales such as “Last Stop on Market Street” and “You Matter” grace the exhibition titled “What Might You Do? Christian Robinson.” Open just through September 10th, this family-oriented exhibition captivates audiences of all ages.

This exhibition proudly showcases a collection of 90 authentic art pieces crafted by Robinson himself. With a masterful blend of acrylic paint and collage techniques, these artworks adorn the pages of 17 children’s books, including notables like “Last Stop on Market Street,” “Milo Imagines the World,” and “Carmela Full of Wishes.”

Saralyn Rosenfield, the Director of Learning & Engagement, said, “This summer was filled with great joy having Christina Robinson’s Exhibition here at the museum, engaging families in and around our community with art and literature.” She welcomes area families and educators to visit before the exhibition closes.

In honor of the exhibition, the museum extends an invitation to children and their accompanying adults to engage in art-making activities during the exhibition’s closing days. This creative opportunity unfolds on a Stories & Studio session held Friday morning, September 8, and Family Second Sunday, on September 10. For additional information and registration, interested participants could access details on delart.org.

Christian Robinson has amassed a plethora of accolades, notably the Newberry Medal and the Caldecott Honor, both of which he earned for his exquisite illustrations in the book “Last Stop on Market Street.” His artistic style is a symphony of vivid colors and playful elements, acting as a triumphant ode to the tapestry of human experiences and offering readers a glimpse of his entire world. The doors are open to visitors of every age, welcoming them to immerse themselves in Robinson’s original artworks and literary creations within the confines of a repurposed city bus, now transformed into a cozy reading nook conveniently stationed within the art gallery.

IF YOU GO:

WHAT: “What Might You Do? Christian Robinson”
WHEN: July 1- September 10, 2023
WHERE: Delaware Art Museum
COST: Free after admission; tickets available at delart.org
INFO: delart.org/christian-robinson

WHAT: Stories & Studio
WHEN: September 8, 2023, 10:30 am to 11:30 pm
WHERE: Delaware Art Museum
COST: $5 Non-Members and Free for Members
INFO: delart.org

WHAT: Family Second Sunday
WHEN: September 10, 2023, 10:00 am to 1:00 pm
WHERE: Delaware Art Museum
COST: $5 Non-Members and Free for Members
INFO: delart.org

This exhibition was organized by the National Center for Children’s Illustrated Literature, Abilene, Texas. “What Might You Do?” is made possible in Delaware by the Jessie Ball duPont Fund, the Edgar A. Thronson Foundation Illustration Exhibition Fund, and M&T Bank. This organization is supported, in part, by a grant from the Delaware Division of the Arts, a state agency, in partnership with the National Endowment for the Arts. The Division promotes Delaware arts events on www.DelawareScene.com.

About the Delaware Art Museum

Under the leadership of our Board of Trustees, the Delaware Art Museum is implementing a comprehensive approach to community and civic engagement. This exciting new strategic direction requires that we increase our value and relevance to all audiences. Visit delart.org to for the latest exhibitions, programs, and performances or connect with us via social media.

Executive Director, Arsht-Cannon Fund at the Delaware Community Foundation

I have always dreamed of being an artist—like my late father-in-law, Dr. Norman Cannon, or my granddaughter, Randi H. Aquino. Falling short of this aspiration, I found something better—using my creativity to find ways to express my thoughts and emotions. Whether it is decorating a cake or making an appetizing entree, choosing and arranging a bouquet of flowers, making seasonal wreaths, or teaching my grand-daughter, Avery, how to cross-stich, I feel a powerful sense of release and control, that puts my worries—even grief—in the backseat for a while. Using art and creativity offers opposing opportunities to either dive deeply into anxiety and loss or to be temporarily distracted from the pain of it all. I have practiced and preached the benefits of art therapy for many patients, family caregivers, and nursing students during my forty years as a nurse.

The Arsht-Cannon Fund is very excited to provide a second year of grant funding to the Delaware Art Museum for its community-based program, Healing Through the Arts. Ten groups of Latinos from partnerships with the Latin American Community Center and the Hispanic American Association of Delaware (490 participants total in FY2022–23) were provided with culturally relevant and Spanish-language art wellness instruction from professionals through the Museum’s partnership with Mariposa Arts. Evaluated outcomes of the program included feeling more relaxed, less stress, feelings of inclusion and respect, and greater interest in being creative. This coming year, the program hopes to expand beyond New Castle County with pilots that combine participant stories followed by painting to express the thoughts and feelings of each person’s journey.

The Delaware Art Museum exemplifies the growth and expertise that the Arsht-Cannon Fund has fostered in its work over the last 16 years: greater inclusion, equity, and diversity among nonprofits; growing community engagement, participation, and leadership; and program excellence with opportunities to expand capacity to serve all Delaware’s Latino families. The Arsht-Cannon Fund at the Delaware Community Foundation, endowed by the late Honorable Roxana Cannon Arsht, the first female judge appointed in Delaware, and S. Samuel Arsht, a leading Delaware corporate attorney, is now advised by their daughter, Adrienne Arsht, a philanthropist who supports the arts nationally, and the environment internationally.

As the Executive Director of the Arsht-Cannon Fund, I work to carry out our mission to partner with Delaware’s nonprofit organizations to provide a variety of educational and support opportunities to our growing number of Latino families, many of whom are recent immigrants. Grants support language and literacy programs, early childhood through adulthood instruction, educational advocacy, health education initiatives, and arts and cultural learning projects.

I believe that the best results are obtained when nonprofits know and engage their communities and build trusting relationships with each other and other community organizations; in this way, they can collaborate to best meet the needs of their communities. La Colectiva de Delaware was created in 2018 by the Arsht-Cannon Fund and La Esperanza Community Center in Sussex County to foster this work. I strongly encourage arts organizations to work closely together when planning and implementing programs for the communities that they serve in common. It is a win for everyone.

A final personal revelation: In the thirteen years that have passed following the loss of my daughter, Jan, I have experienced the calm and peace that comes from being captured by the artistic work of others or when I am immersed in my own creative endeavors. Art truly can be healing for many. Thank you, Dr. Cannon, for your ongoing support of DelArt and our work to serve Delaware’s Latino communities, including Healing Through the Arts, a program offered in partnership with Mariposa Arts.

Photo by Shannon Woodloe.

The Artist and the Museum Bridge the Past and the Present in a Collaboration that Centers Local Community

The Delaware Art Museum has partnered with contemporary visual artist Charles Edward Williams and the Wilmington Alliance for an artist residency from July 31 through August 13, 2023. Members of the community are invited to contribute directly to Williams’s artwork for the residency by visiting the Art-O-Mat, particularly during Community Hours on August 4, 7, and 8, 2023. Much like Williams’s own art practice, which he describes as, “excavating history, taking the past and bringing it into the present,” this new residency builds on the Delaware Art Museum’s previous partnership with the artist and established commitment to uplifting local community voices in the arts.

Building on the Museum’s previous partnership with Williams, as well as the institution’s mission and vision, this new residency echoes his own artistic practice of “excavating history, taking the past and bringing it into the present.”

“We are thrilled to welcome Charles back to the Delaware Art Museum for this inaugural residency,” says Margaret Winslow, Chief Curator and Curator of Contemporary Art. “Charles excels at weaving history and social justice together to create powerful imagery.”

For this residency, Williams continues his excavation of history and undertakes one of his largest projects to date, using multicolored wax and black paint to reinterpret the famous 1940s photo “Negro Boys on Easter Morning,” shot by Russell Lee. The effect will mimic the “magic” scratch pads kids use to create rainbow art—the same that Williams used in his youth. “[The work] is designed to evoke the nostalgia of childhood, while taking inspiration from the local community he’s hoping to reach,” says Zoe Akoto, Education Initiatives Coordinator.

The residency includes a new partnership with the Wilmington Alliance’s Art-O-Mat location, which opened its doors at 7th and Washington Street in Wilmington just weeks ago. The Art-O-Mat will serve as Williams’s primary studio space.

Residents of the West Center City neighborhood where the Art-O-Mat is located, and museum community members more broadly, are invited to visit the community space and participate in creating the multicolored wax layer of the project. Williams hopes to have young members of the Wilmington community play an active part in creating the work: “My interest in having teens and kids involved in this residency stems from my own passion for teaching and inspiring students to pursue creative arts—not simply as a pastime, but as something you can build your life around.” Williams, who is a professor of drawing and painting at North Carolina Central University, emphasizes, “there are career paths in the arts, and I want to model that for them.”

Williams was commissioned by the Museum in 2021 for “I Sit and Sew: Tracing Alice Dunbar Nelson.” The exhibition explored the legacy of Dunbar Nelson, an important 17th century literary figure and Delaware activist. Williams interwove Dunbar Nelson’s poetry with paint and other unconventional materials like fishing line, sewn items, and etched glass in what Winslow deems “a stunning installation” and “an important acquisition for the collection.” In renewing the Museum’s successful collaboration with Williams and developing a new local partnership with the Art-O-Mat, this residency brings the Museum’s long-held commitment to connecting and supporting artists and underserved communities, at the local and regional level, into the present in new forms.

Williams is represented in numerous public collections including the Mississippi Museum of Art, 21c Museum Hotels, the North Carolina Museum of Art, and in the private holdings of Michael and Susan Hershfield and the Petrucci Family Collection of African American Art, among others. Between 2016 and 2019, Williams attended residencies at the Otis College of Art and Design and SOMA Mexico City. Additionally, he was an artist-in-residence at the Gibbes Museum of Art and the McColl Center of Art and Innovation. Williams has received numerous awards and grants for his work including a Mississippi Humanities Council Grant, a National Endowment for the Arts Grant, and the Griffith-Reyburn Lowcountry Artist of the Year Award. Solo exhibitions of Williams’ projects have been presented at the Urban Institute for Contemporary Arts in Grand Rapids, the Polk Museum of Art at Florida Southern College, and the Southeastern Center for Contemporary Art, among others. He has participated in group shows at the Knoxville Museum of Art, Wadsworth Atheneum Museum of Art, and Allentown Art Museum, among other galleries and museums across the United States and abroad.

Williams holds a BFA from Savannah College of Art and Design (SCAD) in Georgia and an MFA from the University of North Carolina Greensboro (UNCG).

About the Delaware Art Museum

Photograph by Shannon Woodloe.

Drawing is an essential element of artmaking. Though drawing is often associated with observation or preparation, the act can also result in a discrete work of art.

Drawn celebrates the important gift of contemporary drawings from Sally and Wynn Kramarsky. These patrons have championed artists and works on paper, specifically, through their collection development, New York City exhibitions, and generous donations. In 2009, the Delaware Art Museum joined a list of public institutions throughout the United States to receive gifts from the donors. This selection brings together artists separated by generations and genres, grounded in the foundational practice of drawing. The distinct artistry of each work exemplifies the diversity and range of non-representational contemporary works on paper.

Artists like Suzanne Bocanegra use drawing as a means of observation and understanding. This work is based on Joachim Anthonisz Wtewael’s 1605 painting, Kitchen Scene with the Parable of the Great Supper. Bocanegra’s drawing is not a direct translation but is instead an accounting of the formal components in the Dutch painting.

Tight, 1993. Sharon Louden (born 1964). Ink and graphite on double sided mylar, 11 × 8 1/2 inches. Delaware Art Museum, Gift of Sally and Wynn Kramarsky, 2009. © Sharon Louden.

Sharon Louden embraces the power of the singular line. She describes its ability to move across the page, becoming “tangled” in itself. This layering creates the illusion of threedimensionality on a flat surface.

Untitled, 1998. Alyson Shotz (born 1964). Mixed media on paper, 9 × 12 inches. Delaware Art Museum, Gift of Sally and Wynn Kramarsky, 2009. © Alyson Shotz.

Alyson Shotz is known for her sculptures that bring attention to our experience of the world around us. The artist uses reflective surfaces to interact with natural and artificial light.

Visit Drawn, on view in gallery 9 from September 23 through December 31, 2023, to see the myriad ways that artists explore drawing.

Margaret Winslow
Chief Curator and Curator of Contemporary Art

Top: Untitled: from Joachim Uytewael’s Kitchen Scene, 2005. Suzanne Bocanegra (born 1957). Found paper and gouache, 23 1/2 × 34 3/4 inches. Delaware Art Museum, Gift of Sally and Wynn Kramarsky, 2009. © Suzanne Bocanegra.

Experience a presentation of celebrating Black Cinema

The highly anticipated Dirty Popcorn Black Film Festival 2 returns to the Delaware Art Museum on Saturday, August 12, from 10 am to 4 pm. This year’s festival, themed “The Saga Continues,” will pay homage to the rich and diverse history of Black cinema while highlighting its ongoing evolution.

Attendees can expect an immersive experience, complete with a brand-new art exhibit and four engaging panel discussions on several topics related to Black film. The festival aims to create an inclusive environment where attendees can enjoy popcorn, food, and drinks while celebrating the artistry and talent within the black filmmaking community.

With 15 different screenings, Dirty Popcorn Black Film Festival 2 offers a wide selection of BIPOC filmmakers from multiple genres, including drama, comedy, and documentary. Audiences will have the opportunity to witness the most exciting and innovative work being produced in Black cinema today. Moreover, attendees will have the chance to engage in meaningful conversations with filmmakers and industry professionals about the art and business of filmmaking.

Highlighting the festival will be the presentation of the prestigious 2023 Lifetime Achievement Award to a legendary figure in Black cinema. The name of the recipient will be announced closer to the event. This award serves as a tribute to the remarkable contributions made by Black filmmakers and artists to the world of cinema, acknowledging the ongoing significance of their work.

Dirty Popcorn Black Film Festival 2 promises attendees an unforgettable day filled with celebration, education, and entertainment. Whether you are a seasoned film buff or simply seeking an introduction to the world of Black cinema, this event is a unique opportunity not to be missed.

This event is sponsored by the Center for Interventional Pain & Spine, Tuby Catering, and Prime Beverage Group. This organization is supported, in part, by a grant from the Delaware Division of the Arts, a state agency, in partnership with the National Endowment for the Arts. The Division promotes Delaware arts events on www.DelawareScene.com.

IF YOU GO:
WHAT: 2nd Annual Jet Phynx Dirty Popcorn Black Film Festival
WHEN: August 12, 2023, 10:00 am to 4:00 pm
WHERE: Delaware Art Museum Auditorium
COST: Free
INFO: delart.org/blackfilmfestival2023

About the Delaware Art Museum

Under the leadership of our Board of Trustees, the Delaware Art Museum is implementing a comprehensive approach to community and civic engagement. This exciting new strategic direction requires that we increase our value and relevance to all audiences. Visit delart.org to for the latest exhibitions, programs, and performances or connect with us via social media.

Between the lines of a watery maze and the layered striations of condensed planetary photographs, Anna Bogatin Ott transforms a gallery at the Delaware Art Museum into a space for peace and contemplation in Our Red Planet. Her painting Mars Wanderings invokes a whole archive of photography documenting Martian environments, and yet I was most inspired to reflect on the ecological relationships that define life on this blue planet.

The title “Mars Wanderings” alone conjures some of the familiar NASA photographs of our neighboring planet. But what images come to mind exactly? Is it the ones of Mars taken at distance to reveal a vermillion, desert-like orb suspended in space? Or perhaps we easily recall Exploration Rover images that depict a rocky and arid Martian terrain. As mystifying as these images are, the environment seems wholly inhospitable. Yet even as we wander through the exhibition space, the Mars 2020 Perseverance Rover is drilling for samples of rock and soil, searching for signs of ancient microbial life. The linear paint strokes in Ott’s Mars Wanderings are reminiscent of the grooved tracks left behind by Perseverance’s four predecessors, the only “bodies” from Earth that have actually traveled across Martian ground. The repetition of these lines suggests the iterative and redundant process of all five rover missions. The way they overlap might even emulate how those paths have crossed one another over time. Inspired by the work of abstract artists Agnes Martin and Barnett Newman, the paint strokes may also imitate the Mars horizon while the gradient tonality of red suggests shifts in its atmosphere and soil. As we think about our mission to find signs of life on Mars, Ott’s title also sparks wonder about the forms of life that have previously wandered its landscapes.

Without setting foot on the planet, how familiar can we truly become with the Mars environment using only soil samples and photoimaging technology? While this question partially underpins scientific investigations of the Martian climate, Ott cautions us against repeating the same extractive behavior that has distinguished the age of the Anthropocene––or the Plantationocene as Donna Haraway and Anna Tsing have astutely offered–– from other geological eras. Why venture into the solar system in search of more resources instead of repairing our relationship with the environment we currently inhabit? In the case of Martian sediment, studying soil samples might reveal the lifeforms that formerly supported its ecosystems. On earth, soil science reveals a whole ecology of microscopic agents that work together to prevent erosion, cycle nutrients and water, and aid the regenerative process of decomposition. Naturally, it provides insight into the most foundational layer of an environment, but what if we were to adopt a perspective scaled to the sediment? What if we began to look at things from the microbial level?

Mars Wanderings (detail)

When we look at Mars Wanderings from a distance, it is easy to view each panel as its own bodily whole, but as we get closer, we notice how each paint stroke becomes its own being. We also become aware of the scattered specks of glitter that evoke the glimmer of sand or glint of minerals. These individual agents assemble and animate Ott’s work so that, when viewed from afar, we see one whole embodied network, yet up close we see how multiplicities of bodies work together to create a new abstracted image scaled to their size. Like viewing through a microscope, the abstraction from this magnified vision provides a perspective that may be more productive in thinking about the future of life on our planet.

I borrow this concept from Art historian James Nisbet who offers environmental abstraction as a useful way to visualize environmental crises and pollution. In his 2017 article, “Environmental Abstraction and the Polluted Image,” Nisbet argues that the prolific images of pollution tend to oversimplify ecological situations. He reasons that sometimes ecological phenomena are not always visible to the eye. So, too, are the inner workings of systems and industries that pollute the environment. To his point, sometimes it is better to view at the abstract, microscopic, and microbial level.

At the microscopic level, we can observe the minuscule organisms in our soil that are responsible for the larger and often invisible processes that are crucial to sustaining life on this earth. And so, I return to the question of what happens when we take the perspective of microorganisms and when we incorporate a bit of abstraction in our looking? We begin to understand that we are not as disconnected from one another as we tend to believe.

Anna Bogatin Ott’s artwork asks us to reflect on the global impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic and the war in Ukraine. I think we can recall the image of coronavirus’s viral anatomy, that spikey orb which seemed to circulate as much as the disease itself. And over the course of a few years, we became hyper-aware of how infection occurred through invisible, microscopic droplets. In many ways, we had to think about how we occupied spaces and operated in terms of one another’s safety. The war in Ukraine presents a similar phenomenon. For example, technoscience scholar Michelle Murphy illustrates how the toxic fallout and pollution of modern warfare chemically and metabolically imbricate us all within these global conflicts, though we may not witness them directly in our backyard.

These examples are not cause for alarm but are a way to reflect on the benefits of understanding how events transpire even at the microbial level. We begin to realize how interconnected we are to our collective environments and understand our actions as part of a deeply entangled web of networks shared not only between humans but non-humans as well. Mars Wanderings does not offer Mars––nor any other planet in our solar system––as a solution for resolving our environmental crises here. Rather, I argue it provides another way of looking that might lead us to greater change. Perhaps, the terrain and soil of Mars offer us a key lesson in the value of contemplating how change occurs and involves us even at the microscopic level.

Carolyn Hauk
PhD Student, Department of Art History
University of Delaware

Images: Mars Wanderings, 2023. Anna Bogatin Ott (born 1970). Acrylic on canvas, each panel: 62 × 62 inches (157.5 × 157.5 cm), overall: 62 × 124 inches (157.5 × 315 cm). Courtesy of the artist, Larry Becker Contemporary Art, and Margaret Thatcher Projects.

A boy in a neon yellow beanie and round glasses sits on the subway, drawing pictures of the people around him. While his big sister plays on her phone, Milo imagines the lives of the other passengers and records his ideas on a sketchpad: the bride her white dress, the tired businessman, and a boy about his age with his father. When a troupe of break-dancers comes aboard, performing for donations, Milo and his sister are delighted to be distracted on the long ride to see their mother in prison.

Illustrator Christian Robinson captured these characters in Milo Imagines His World, a children’s book produced in collaboration with author Matt de la Peña. With characteristically spare outlines and sophisticated colors, Robinson conveyed the shifting emotions of his subjects as they travel across the city. The book is inspired by the illustrator’s childhood. Growing up in an apartment crowded with family, Christian Robinson took up drawing to make space for himself and create the world he wanted to live in. He went on to graduate from the California Institute of the Arts and worked with the Sesame Street Workshop and Pixar Animation Studios, as well as illustrating children’s books.

Instantly familiar to parents of young children today, Robinson’s illustrations appear in best-selling and critically acclaimed books. Published in 2015, Last Stop on Market Street, written by Matt de la Peña and illustrated by Robinson, reached #1 on the New York Times bestseller list and was awarded a Caldecott Honor, a Coretta Scott King Illustrator Honor, and the Newbery Medal. Playful, poignant, and full of positive energy, Robinson’s illustrations celebrate the value of different perspectives and kindness to all.

This summer DelArt is delighted to welcome the national traveling exhibition What Might You Do? Christian Robinson, which features 96 original works of art for 17 children’s books. The artist produces his colorful and modern pictures primarily in acrylic paint and collage, and the exhibition includes study drawings and finished works that give insight into the artist’s process. DelArt’s installation also features a drawing station, artist videos, and a “reading bus” designed by artist-musician Daniel Smith and stocked with Robinson’s books.

Join us to celebrate childhood and the arts on Thursday, July 27, at Kidchella, a family friendly music festival. The fun runs from 4 to 7:30 in the Copeland Sculpture Garden at DelArt.

Heather Campbell Coyle
Curator of American Art

Christian Robinson’s colorful & whimsical illustrations have sparked a summer of family fun!

This summer, the Delaware Art Museum hosts an exhibit featuring the work of Christian Robinson, the major children’s book illustrator, author, and animator. Illustrations from beloved children’s books like “Last Stop on Market Street” and “You Matter” will be on display in the exhibition “What Might You Do? Christian Robinson.” This family-themed exhibition opens July 1st and continues through September 10th.

The summer is filled with family-friendly programming in celebration of the exhibition. On July 13, DelArt Members are invited to a curator tour of the exhibition during Happy Hour. On the evening of July 27, audiences of all ages are invited to “Kidchella,” a family-friendly music festival. The Kidchella festival lineup includes Mister John’s Music, HFam, Seylin Abarca, and Beatles tribute band The Newspaper Taxis. And the Museum invites children and their grownups to make art throughout the summer on Family Second Sundays and during Stories & Studio on select Friday mornings. Details and registration are available at delart.org.

Saralyn Rosenfield, Director of Learning & Engagement, said, “We can’t wait to introduce families to the art of Christian Robinson. I look forward to seeing families celebrate art and music together at Kidchella. Our hope is that the evening will be just as fun for the grownups as it is for the kids.” The event will include cross-generational music and sweet treats provided by Kaffeina, Natalie’s Fine Foods, and El Rey’s Ice Cream in the inspiring outdoor setting of DelArt’s Copeland Sculpture Garden.

Christian Robinson’s numerous awards include the Newberry Medal and the Caldecott Honor for his illustrations in “Last Stop on Market Street.” His art is colorful, playful, and celebrates diversity of experience, presenting the entire world to readers. Visitors of all ages are invited to see Robinson’s original art and read his books inside a city-bus-turned-reading-nook, which is parked within the art gallery. The exhibition includes 90 original artworks that Robinson created using primarily acrylic paint and collage for 17 children’s books, including “Last Stop on Market Street,” “Milo Imagines the World,” and “Carmela Full of Wishes.”

Organizer and Sponsors: 

This exhibition was organized by the National Center for Children’s Illustrated Literature, Abilene, Texas. What Might You Do? is made possible in Delaware by the Jessie Ball duPont Fund, the Edgar A. Thronson Foundation Illustration Exhibition Fund, and M&T Bank. This organization is supported, in part, by a grant from the Delaware Division of the Arts, a state agency, in partnership with the National Endowment for the Arts. The Division promotes Delaware arts events on www.DelawareScene.com.

IF YOU GO

WHAT: “What Might You Do? Christian Robinson”
WHEN: July 1- September 10, 2023
WHERE: Delaware Art Museum
COST: Free after admission; tickets available at delart.org
INFO: delart.org/christian-robinson

WHAT: Kidchella WHEN: Thursday, July 27, 2023, 4:00 pm – 7:00 pm
WHERE: Delaware Art Museum’s Copeland Sculpture Garden
COST: Register at delart.org
INFO: delart.org

Large-Scale Imagery Installed in Public Spaces Represent Museum’s Pre-Raphaelite Collection

The Delaware Art Museum has partnered with Wilmington City Councilperson Nathan Field on a mural project, “Nature’s Palette,” with images and words inspired by nature. The works will be on view throughout City Council District 8 beginning in June through the remainder of 2023.

They will be installed throughout the built environment of District 8 in the following locations:

Gilpin Liquors
Luther Towers
BrewHaHa Trolley Square
The intersection of Delaware Avenue and Dupont Street
Lincoln Towers
Southeast Kitchen
Joseph E. Johnson Jr. School
The intersection of Pennsylvania and Greenhill Avenues outside the Marian Coffin Garden

The Museum is situated in the center of District 8, which begins at the western border of Wilmington that wraps around Rockford Park, and ends just east of Cool Spring Park, with its northern and southern borders defined by Brandywine Park and Wawaset Park, so the murals are all in the general Museum vicinity.

District 8 Councilperson Nathan Field says, “I’m incredibly excited to work with the Art Museum team to grow the City of Wilmington as an Artistic and Cultural destination not just in the First State of Delaware but throughout the extended Tri-State region. Walking around the neighborhood and seeing scenes from nature that are so culturally meaningful to Delawareans integrated into the streetscape is so thrilling.”

“Nature’s Palette” features enlarged intricate and vibrant details of paintings and drawings from DelArt’s Pre-Raphaelite collection, combined with quotations inspired by nature and poetry penned by Victorian-era writers.

Sophie Lynford, Annette Woolard-Provine Curator of the Bancroft Collection, says, “Pre-Raphaelite artists lamented that nineteenth-century industrialization was destroying both natural and historic landmarks. These concerns remain urgent today.”

The murals include Pre-Raphaelite works by artists Barbara Leigh Smith Bodichon, Walter Crane, Henry Farrer, George James Howard, John Everett Millais, and William Henry Millais. Paired with these are quotations from authors Emily Brontë, George Eliot, Felicia Hemans, Christina Rossetti, Dante Gabriel Rossetti, and John Ruskin.

Margaret Winslow, Chief Curator and Curator of Contemporary Art, says, “The Pre-Raphaelite collection is a much-loved core of the Delaware Art Museum. These works of art have inspired generations of artists and art lovers throughout the greater Wilmington community and across the United States.”

Throughout 2023, the Delaware Art Museum is celebrating the “Year of Pre-Raphaelites,” which began in late 2022 with the special loan exhibition, “A Marriage of Arts and Crafts: Evelyn and William De Morgan” and the collections show, “Forgotten Pre-Raphaelites.” The celebration continues in fall 2023, with DelArt hosting the only U.S. appearance of “The Rossettis,” a major international exhibition organized in partnership with Tate Britain, on view from October 21, 2023 through January 28, 2024. A “Pre-Raphaelite Weekend,” co-hosted by the Pre-Raphaelite Society, based in the U.K., will take place from November 9 through November 12, 2023.

“Nature’s Palette” is supported by Nathan Field, 8th District Council Member. This organization is supported, in part, by a grant from the Delaware Division of the Arts, a state agency, in partnership with the National Endowment for the Arts. The Division promotes Delaware arts events on www.DelawareScene.com.

Top: November Landscape, 1883. Henry Farrer (1844–1903). Watercolor on paper, sheet: 6 5/8 × 10 7/8 inches. Delaware Art Museum, Gift of David A. Hanks in memory of Elizabeth Dixon Hanks, 2003.

Annual Events include a Fourth Celebration of Juneteenth and Year Two for Powwow and Black Film Festival

The Delaware Art Museum’s summer schedule has doubled down its commitment to celebrating ethnic cultures with the community. The fourth annual Juneteenth event, Beyond Juneteenth Ancestors Festival: AfrisymPOEMsium & Expo, takes place on Sunday, June 18, 2023, from 11 a.m.—4 p.m. inside the museum. The 2nd Annual Powwow of Arts and Culture takes place on Saturday, July 22, 2023, from 11 a.m.—4 p.m. in the in the Copeland Sculpture Garden. The 2nd Annual Jet Phynx Dirty Popcorn Black Film Festival takes place on Saturday, August 12 from 10 a,m.—4 p.m. in the Museum’s auditorium. While all these events are free, each traditionally reaches capacity, and guests are asked to register at delart.org.

The fourth annual Juneteenth observation at the Museum celebrates the ancestral traditions of people who were once enslaved and the accomplishments of their descendants. This year’s festival is an AfrisymPOEMsium and Expo, with its primary focus being the education, healing, protection and adaptation of the human spirit. The event has moved mostly indoors for 2023, with presenters stationed in conference rooms and open areas of the Museum.

Abundancechild, founder of the event, says, “AfrisymPOEMsium is a poem that will work hand-in-hand with a short film, opening up an artistic route toward having hard discussions. After the film, which includes the offerings and prayers one would expect from an ancestor-oriented Juneteenth observation, the guests—ideally people of all races and backgrounds—will have an opportunity to sit in breakout groups and talk about delicate topics and then reconvene as a larger group. The day will continue with music and both fun and functional learning opportunities, whether it be genealogy-tracing technology or African traditional religions.”

Nadj N Jea (Nadjah Nicole and Jea P. Street, Jr.) will serve as event hosts, and the day’s events will kick off with a rendition of “Lift Every Voice and Sing,” known as the Black national anthem, presented through dance by Pieces of a Dream, and a Juneteenth flag-raising ceremony. A shared libation and dance performance by Tonantzin Yaotecas follows. Ghetto Songbird, Hezekiah, Ebony Zuudia and Mystic Reggae Band will also perform. Twelve presenters are lined up for the symposium and expo.

Additional activities will include jump rope, hula hooping and a comic book art session with Jabaar Brown. Drop Squad Kitchen will be on hand with food.

Community Engagement Specialist Iz Balleto, who leads the Museum’s cultural festival efforts, describes the goals of the 2023 event, “This year, we are honoring Juneteenth by redirecting the activities toward learning and engagement. There will be music, but guests of all ages are invited to visit the different areas in the Museum to hear about subjects that affect the Afro-Indigenous community. To us, Juneteenth is not just about the past…it’s also about the future.”

Abundancechild explains why the educational opportunities carry this event “Beyond” Juneteenth, saying: “Oftentimes, with festivals and cultural events, we enjoy the music and food, but return home with little follow through of what we just learned. This year, we want Afro-Indigenous descendants to move Beyond Juneteenth and work with our ancestors to bring an end to generational oppression. Our goal is to provide information and resources, and effect not just words, but also deeds and solutions.”

The second annual Powwow of Arts and Culture, is a partnership with community advisors and the Nanticoke Indian Association, to celebrates indigenous culture. Keith Colston (Tuscarora and Lumbee) will emcee the event, and Will Mosley (Nanticoke Lenni-Lenape) is the Arena Director. Dancers and drummers include Head Lady Adrienne Harmon (Nanticoke), Head Male Louis Campbell (Lumbee) and a drum circle led by Red Blanket Singers (Nanticoke Lenni-Lenape). Visitors of all ages and backgrounds are welcome.

The second Annual Jet Phynx Dirty Popcorn Black Film Festival aims to discover, raise up and celebrate diverse new voices in and around Delaware through film, and preserve the work of local Black filmmakers. Festival events include short film screenings, meet-and-greets with filmmakers, a Q&A panel, and a 3 p.m. red carpet awards ceremony. Guests will vote on their favorite films—which may be narrative (drama / fiction), documentary, or experimental (music videos, animation, etc.)—created by local and regional Black and Indigenous filmmakers. Presenter Jet Phynx is a Delaware native and music artist-turned-film director.

Balleto adds, “The word ‘festival’ implies celebrations, and we continue to offer festive events, but aim to make them even richer. While it’s important for us to celebrate the culture, we want to be sure there are learning opportunities taking place.”

These events support the Museum’s mission, by offering an inclusive and essential community resource that generates creative energy that sustains, enriches, empowers and inspires.

The Juneteenth event is sponsored by Drop Squad Kitchen, Abundance Child Ministries and Guerrilla Republik, AfrisymPOEMsium and ReAfrikanization. Jet Phynx 2nd Annual Dirty Popcorn Black Film Festival is sponsored by the Center for Interventional Pain & Spine and Prime Beverage Group. These programs are supported, in part, by a grant from the Delaware Division of the Arts, a state agency, in partnership with the National Endowment for the Arts. The Division promotes Delaware arts events on www.DelawareScene.com.

For more information, visit delart.org.

IF YOU GO

WHAT: Beyond Juneteenth Ancestors Festival: AfrisymPOEMsium & Expo at the Delaware Art Museum
WHEN: Sunday, June 18, 2023, from 11 a.m.—4 p.m.
WHERE: Delaware Art Museum, 2301 Kentmere Parkway, Wilmington, DE 19806
COST: Free; registration required
INFO: delart.org

WHAT: 2nd Annual Powwow of Arts and Culture
WHEN: Saturday, July 22, 2023, from 11 a.m.—4 p.m.
WHERE: Copeland Sculpture Garden, Delaware Art Museum, 2301 Kentmere Parkway, Wilmington, DE 19806
COST: Free; registration required
INFO: delart.org

WHAT: 2nd Annual Jet Phynx Dirty Popcorn Black Film Festival
WHEN: Saturday, August 12 from 10 a,m.—4 p.m.
WHERE: Delaware Art Museum, 2301 Kentmere Parkway, Wilmington, DE 19806
INFO: delart.org

Sculptor David Meyer uses various materials—aluminum, steel, or ribbon—to form objects that elevate our senses. The artist approaches each substance with the utmost respect for its inherent qualities and the myriad associations we each bring to viewing them. We expect metal to be heavy and chains to be set. In Revision, Meyer invites us to scrutinize our assessment of the world around us.

The exhibition combines several major series from the last 10 years. With Air into breath, Meyer creates delicate aluminum and ribbon sculptures to investigate the tension between what is seen and what is perceived. Meyer begins with found photographic images that he distorts to create new outlines vaguely reminiscent of the original. The artist explains, “Because of the undefined nature of the imagery within the work, the subject matter can shift from one thought to another and only becomes real when we believe it, like a ghost.”

According to what, 2023. David Meyer (born 1963). Steel, variable dimensions. Courtesy of the artist. © David Meyer. Photo by Shannon Woodloe.

Meyer began creating the numerous steel links that make up According to what years ago. The building blocks in Meyer’s wall sculptures are joined to generate a network of interlocking chains. Meyer creates entirely new and unique configuration of According to what each time it is installed. As with his other large-scale installations, the artist interrogates our perception of a seemingly static reality.

Top: Air into breath, 2009. David Meyer (born 1963). Black vinyl and aluminum, variable dimensions. Courtesy of the artist. © David Meyer. Photo by Shannon Woodloe.

Delaware Art Museum Is the Only U.S. Location for Major Pre-Raphaelite Exhibition

The Delaware Art Museum presents “The Rossettis,” a major international loan exhibition organized in partnership with Tate Britain, opening on Saturday, October 21, 2023, and running through Sunday, January 28, 2024. The Delaware Art Museum, which is home to the most comprehensive collection of Pre-Raphaelite paintings outside of the United Kingdom, will be the only museum in the United States to host this exhibition after it closes in London.

Sophie Lynford, Annette Woolard-Provine Curator of the Bancroft Collection, says, “The Delaware Art Museum is a natural fit for the show’s American venue. We house the most significant holdings of Rossettis in the United States thanks to Samuel P. Bancroft, Jr., who assembled the collection at the turn of the twentieth century. While he acquired art by many Pre-Raphaelites, Bancroft was drawn most intensely to Rossetti and would be delighted that this show reunites works long separated.”

The exhibition features the art of the Rossettis, the family that includes Dante Gabriel Rossetti, a founder of the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood, his wife, Elizabeth Siddal, and siblings, Christina, Maria, and William Michael Rossetti. The Pre-Raphaelites inspired generations of artists to blend realism with medieval revivalism, and the poets, writers, and painters of this prodigiously artistic family blended their passion for social justice with their commitment to reforming outdated academic artistic traditions.

Executive Director Molly Giordano says, “Shortly after the Museum was founded, we were given an incredible gift: Samuel Bancroft’s significant Pre-Raphaelite collection. Our holdings have since grown, and we’re home to critically important paintings and drawings by Dante Gabriel Rossetti, as well as rare works on paper by Elizabeth Siddal. Partnering with Tate Britain, and its extraordinary collection, makes this exhibition an unprecedented opportunity for enthusiasts of the Pre-Raphaelite movement to see so many superlative objects in one location.”

While Delaware audiences are intimately familiar with DelArt’s paintings by Rossetti, those works have never been contextualized alongside works from international public and private collections that this exhibition brings together. DelArt’s exhibition will exceed 150 objects—many beyond the paintings and drawings that made Rossetti famous. One highlight of the installation is a manuscript of “The Portrait,” a poem by Rossetti believed to have been exhumed from Elizabeth Siddal’s grave.

DelArt’s presentation of “The Rossettis” will be further enhanced by significant loans from the Mark Samuels Lasner Collection, University of Delaware Library, Museums, and Press, as well as rare archival material by the Rossettis in the Samuel and Mary R. Bancroft Pre-Raphaelite Manuscript Collection, Helen Farr Sloan Library & Archives, Delaware Art Museum.

For the first time, “The Rossettis” places Dante Gabriel Rossetti’s art within the larger context of the radical politics of his family, exiled to England due to their support for revolutionary Italian nationalism. Paintings, drawings, and watercolors by Dante Gabriel will be viewed alongside the drawings of Siddal, and the poetry and prose of Christina, Maria, and William Michael.

A major contribution of the exhibition is its examination of the relationship between Dante Gabriel and Siddal, who was a poet and artist in her own right. Her career was on the rise when she died at age 32 of a laudanum overdose following a stillbirth. Art historians have long situated Siddal’s output as derivative of her husband’s, but new research reveals that many of the themes they mutually explored were, in fact, initiated by her.

Lynford adds, “Siddal’s oeuvre is disappointingly slim due to her premature death. ‘The Rossettis’ assembles the largest display of her drawings in over three decades.”

The exhibition explores how the Rossettis led a progressive counterculture before, through, and beyond the Pre-Raphaelite years, drawing on the past to reinvent art, politics, and relationships for their fast-changing modern world. The public is still fascinated by myths of Dante Gabriel’s intense relationships with fellow Pre-Raphaelites William Holman Hunt and John Everett Millais, and his models Fanny Cornforth and Jane Morris. The exhibition will engage visitors both familiar with and new to the Pre-Raphaelites with fresh insights that address contemporary debates about romance, class, sex, and gender.

“The Rossettis” will be the final show of a larger DelArt initiative called, “Year of Pre-Raphaelites,” which began in late 2022 with the special loan exhibition, “A Marriage of Arts and Crafts: Evelyn and William De Morgan.” A “Pre-Raphaelite Weekend,” scheduled November 9–12, 2023, and co-hosted by the Pre-Raphaelite Society, based in the U.K., will allow visitors from near and far to share in the celebrations with behind-the-scenes experiences, musical performances, tours, high tea, and a Pre-Raphaelite Promenade.

For more information about the exhibition, visit our website.

This exhibition was organized by the Delaware Art Museum in partnership with Tate Britain and is made possible through support from the Nathan Clark Foundation, the Amy P. Goldman Foundation, the Delaware Art Museum Council, and the Dr. Lee MacCormick Edwards Charitable Foundation. This exhibition is supported, in part, by a grant from the Delaware Division of the Arts, a state agency, in partnership with the National Endowment for the Arts. The Division promotes Delaware arts events on www.DelawareScene.com.

About the Delaware Art Museum

Top: La Ghirlandata (detail), 1873, Dante Gabriel Rossetti. Oil on canvas. Guildhall Art Gallery. Photo credit: City of London Corporation.

Diverse Areas of Expertise Will Bolster Museum’s Success in Growing Its Capacity to Serve

On May 11, Delaware Art Museum members voted in a slate of new trustees for three-year terms. Along with new trustees, the Museum is undergoing a change in board leadership, as Christine Moritz was elected to replace outgoing President David Pollack.

“It has been my great pleasure to embrace my role as Executive Director under David Pollack’s leadership as President,“ said Executive Director Molly Giordano. “Our Museum stewardship responsibilities began around the same time, and I look forward to learning from Christine Moritz as she takes on the mantle of board leadership.”

Pollack served as the Museum’s President since the spring of 2020, successfully navigating the Museum through the pandemic, and was an integral part of the Museum’s fundraising strategy during his term. He will remain on the board.

Moritz is a Director of Operations for Eastern States Group, a Wilmington-based real estate business, whose career has taken her from CPA at Ernst & Young to finance and operations at Louis Vuitton North America. She has served on the board of trustees since 2019. A Museum neighbor, Moritz recently led a successful fundraiser, Art of the Cocktail, the proceeds of which will support the Museum’s Kid’s Corner.

“As an arts lover who lives in walking distance of the Museum, this organization has been meaningful to me and my family for many years,” said Moritz. “I look forward to taking on this bigger role and to representing this important anchor institution in our community.”

The five trustees joining the Delaware Art Museum board this spring are:

Daniel Cole, Attorney with a passion for business law and international law; Associate, currently of Richards, Layton & Finger, transitioning to Young Conaway Stargatt & Taylor in mid-June; former editor-in-chief of the Temple International Comparative Law Journal and former president of the Temple Law Student Bar Association
David Cullmann, Managing Director/COO and co-founder of Active Lifestyle Management, a concierge service company for active adults, following a lifelong career in finance
Richard P. Fitzgerald, Former head of three distinguished independent schools and one nationally-recognized charter school; former Associate Dean at University of Pennsylvania’s Weitzman School of Design; and former Vice President for Advancement at the College of Physicians/Mütter Museum
Kathleen (Kathy) S. Matt, PhD, Former dean of the University of Delaware College of Health Sciences (2009-2022), helped develop the Health Sciences Complex and the Tower on the Science, Technology and Advanced Research (STAR) Campus, a platform that facilitates collaborations engaging academia, businesses and the community with the intent of enhancing health outcomes and growing economic development
Phyllis Woolley Mobley is a past trustee of the Museum for African Art in NYC, and an award winning International Brand & Multicultural Marketing Executive for fortune 100 companies. She is currently an Educator in the Brandywine School District and a poet, writer, and storyteller whose work deeply reflects her Haitian American heritage and her global experiences in Africa, Europe, the Caribbean, Latin America and Oceania

These new trustees offer diverse areas of expertise from which the Museum will benefit. As the Museum continues into its newest chapter, these law, finance, fundraising and development, communications and marketing, health, senior services, and educational professionals will bolster the organization’s success in growing the Museum’s capacities to serve the public.

This organization is supported, in part, by a grant from the Delaware Division of the Arts, a state agency, in partnership with the National Endowment for the Arts. The Division promotes Delaware arts events on www.DelawareScene.com.

About the Delaware Art Museum

Experience the Tradition, Culture, and Memory before it leaves.

The Delaware Art Museum invites the public to come and experience the last weeks of Estampas de la Raza: Contemporary Prints from the Romo Collection on view. The exhibition will be open to the public until May 28th, 2023. The exhibition chronicles the unique heritage, history, and experience of Mexican Americans and Latinos between 1980 and 2010. It showcases 61 eye-catching screen prints and lithographs from the McNay Art Museum collection in San Antonio, TX. You certainly don’t want to miss this unique opportunity to see an exhibition of this kind in the area. You can also experience Estampas de la Raza with a guide-led tour in English or Spanish. Dates and times are available on the website. Check-in at the front desk 10 minutes before the beginning of the tour. Such a great chance to learn in more detail the history behind and the processes the artists use to exhibit as diverse and unique as Estampas.

Lifelong educators, Harriett and Ricardo Romo spent four decades supporting Latino artists and collecting their works. Inspired by the Chicano art movement of the 1960s and 1970s, many of these artists activate Pop Art aesthetics and powerful messages to explore the complex identities and struggles of Latinos living in the United States. The exhibition highlights Mexican icons, including Frida Kahlo and Che Guevara, and celebrates Latino cultural traditions.

Estampas de la Raza provides a comprehensive introduction to the Latino artists’ contribution to post-1960 American printmaking. The exhibition also raises awareness of three highly influential print shops—Self Help Graphics & Art (SHG) and Modern Multiples in Los Angeles, and Coronado Studio in Austin. Of the more than 60 prints in the exhibition, the vast majority came from one of these collaborative shops. These shops have not only introduced a previously underserved audience to printmaking but have also been central to the creativity and cultural awareness of their respective Chicano and Latino communities.

Works in the exhibition focus on five themes: Identity; Struggle; Tradition, Culture, Memory; Icons; and Other Voices. The 44 featured printmakers include Raul Caracoza, Sam Coronado, Richard Duardo, Germs (Jaime Zacarias), Ignacio Gomez, Ester Hernandez, Luis A. Jiménez Jr., Malaquias Montoya, Frank Romero, Patssi Valdez, and Ernesto Yerena.

You can also experience Estampas de la Raza with a guide-led tour in English or Spanish. Dates and times are available on the website. Check-in at the front desk 10 minutes before the beginning of the tour. Such a great chance to learn in more detail the history behind and the processes the artists use to exhibit as diverse and unique as Estampas.

Community Commissions To accompany Estampas de la Raza, the Delaware Art Museum commissioned two additional projects from local Mexican-born artists Julieta Zavala, a fashion designer, and Cesar Viveros, a muralist, painter, screen-printer, clay, and paper-mâché sculptor. “I’m proud that an important venue like DelArt chose to put on a culturally diverse exhibition like Estampas,” Zavala said. Viveros agrees, saying that the display of this type of art inside a museum excites him. Both artists created unique pieces inspired by their culture, heritage, and community.

Cesar Viveros is involved in many community projects in the Philadelphia area. His art is inspired by the stories and experiences shared by community members. Focused on sharing his culture, heritage, and history, he creates unique art pieces and spaces where those stories come alive, like Jardin Iglesias, where ancient traditions and contemporary art merge. Viveros transformed the Delaware Art Museum’s Orientation Hall with a mural and a series of screen prints inspired by his conversations with members of the Hispanic American Association of Delaware and Los Abuelos, a senior group from the Latin American Community Center.

Zavala, a graduate of the Art Institute of Philadelphia, is a fashion designer based in Newark, DE. She created a fashion collection inspired by the art in Estampas de la Raza and currently on display is a special piece in the museum gallery. “La Mera Mera,” this outfit and work of art combines references to the Virgin of Guadalupe and contemporary Latino culture.

On May 13th, “Julieta Zavala: Tradition, Cultura, Memory Fashion Show” the museum showcased more of Zavala’s designs, produced during her residency at DelArt this year. “The fashion show, brought light to the culture and the indigenous people of Mexico, expressing themselves through art and social justice to invoke that we are present even in the fabric that we wear. We will always be connected to our roots ” DelArt Community Engagement Specialist Iz Balleto says.

This exhibition is organized by the McNay Art Museum, San Antonio, Texas, with generous support provided by Art Bridges. Estampas de la Raza is also supported in Delaware by the Johannes R. and Betty P. Krahmer American Art Exhibition Fund. This organization is supported, in part, by a grant from the Delaware Division of the Arts, a state agency, in partnership with the National Endowment for the Arts. The Division promotes Delaware arts events on www.DelawareScene.com.

Community commissions are organized by the Delaware Art Museum, with generous support provided by Art Bridges.

Media Contact: Amelia Wiggins, Director of Advancement & External Affairs | awiggins@delart.org

About the Delaware Art Museum

For over 100 years, the Museum has served as a primary arts and cultural institution in Delaware. It is alive with experiences, discoveries, and activities to connect people with art and with each other. Created in 1912 to honor the renowned illustrator and Wilmington-native, Howard Pyle, the Museum’s collection has grown to over 12,000 works of art in our building and sculpture garden. Also recognized for British Pre-Raphaelite art, the Museum is home to the most comprehensive Pre-Raphaelite collection on display outside of the United Kingdom, and a growing collection of significant contemporary art.

Under the leadership of our Board of Trustees, the Delaware Art Museum is implementing a comprehensive approach to community and civic engagement. This exciting new strategic direction requires that we increase our value and relevance to all audiences. Visit delart.org for the latest exhibitions, programs, and performances, or connect with us via social media.

IF YOU GO

WHAT: Estampas de la Raza: Contemporary Prints from the Romo Collection
WHEN: April 1, 2023 – May 28, 2023
WHERE: Delaware Art Museum
COST: Free after admission; tickets available at delart.org 
INFO: delart.org/estampas

Top: Young Frida (Pink) (detail), 2006. Raul Caracoza. Screenprint, 26 1/8 x 26 1/8 inches (image). Collection of the McNay Art Museum, Gift of Harriett and Ricardo Romo, 2009.42. © Raul Caracoza.

In Gilbert Magu Luján’s print Cruising Turtle Island, the road doesn’t disappear into the sunset. It stretches around the horizon, dipping just out of sight before reappearing to convey a colorful low-rider car along a surface of white sand. A fiery heart rises – or is it setting? – in place of the sun. Opposite, a city lights up an indigo night sky. Buildings in the shape of an “L” and an “A,” alongside cactuses and palm trees, help us get our bearings. As our eyes follow the car and its passengers, we find ourselves in a radically re-imagined Los Angeles where Luján pictures Chicano identity mapped onto the land.

Gilbert Luján, nicknamed Magu, grew up in East Los Angeles during the 1940s and 1950s, a time before his neighborhood’s streets were paved. He lived with his maternal grandparents, Eladio and Luciana Sanchez, who had emigrated from Mexico in 1926.¹ After receiving an MFA in ceramics in 1973 from the University of California – Irvine, Luján moved home to East LA, where he became a founding member of Los Four, a group of artists intent on defining and advocating for a distinctive Chicano aesthetic. For most of his career, he worked primarily in sculpture, painting, and printmaking. Alongside other artists in Estampas de la Raza, he pieces together and narrates identities complicated by the US-Mexico border.

Luján uses utopian landscapes like this one to image a present rooted in Chicano and Indigenous realities rather than settler-colonial boundaries. Scholar Karen M. Davalos has written that his imaginary landscapes constitute a form of “emplacement.” According to Davalos, emplacement can be a process of healing: “The wounds emplacement addresses include those of injustice, erasure, and alienation—in other words, the injuries of nationalism and colonialism that continue to define the social order.”² But I say image rather than imagine because, crucially, Luján represents a real cultural landscape even if it does not match Western conventions of representational space and time. Luján visualizes an alternate reality with such forcefulness and consistency that it becomes, in his work, real.³ As a leader within the LA Chicano movement, Luján was concerned with the protection and flourishing of Chicano identity and self-determination. As part of that movement, he helped give voice to new bodies of theory, stories, and ways of telling history.

Many of Luján’s prints combine the mythical Chicano homeland of Aztlán with his own self-made utopia, Magulandia. Aztlán was the northern mythical homeland of the Aztec and Mexica. During the 1960s and 1970s, it became an important symbol of cultural identity and unity for people of Spanish and Indigenous descent in the Chicano movement. Magulandia was a self-invented utopia that was part of Luján’s broader project of building a Chicano aesthetic and articulating Chicano identity.⁴ In this print, Luján positions these landscapes as part of “Turtle Island,” an Indigenous term for North America that originated with the Haudenosaunee’s creation stories but has become widely used in pan-Indigenous circles. By identifying Aztlán and Magulandia with Turtle Island, Luján aligns his work within the Chicano movement with pan-Indigenous assertions of sovereignty and self-determination across the United States.

The car carries two figures along the sweeping path. The driver’s body is visible through the car, almost as though it is a part of the body of the car. The figure wears sandals and a feather headdress that suggest he is an antepasado, or Aztec ancestor.⁵ The front fender has an Olmec head decoration while the body contains animals who seem almost to drive the vehicle forward. The passenger in the backseat wears a fedora, his body hidden by the car. Unlike the antepasado in the front, he is almost entirely hidden from view. Yet the two figures are in dialogue with one another, which Luján makes clear through the Nahuatl speech glyphs drifting out of the mouth of each. Nahuatl was the language of the Mexica and other Aztec nations. Spanish missionaries recorded Nahuatl speech glyphs in sixteenth century codices that had just received broader scholarly attention in the 1970s, a decade before Luján made this print. The swirls and curls of color around the car have a similar shape. Luján uses these glyphs to put the past and present into conversation with one another, showing that Nahuatl history and aesthetics are just as much a part of the present as they are of the past. Luján called cars, and especially lowriders, “cultural vehicles.”⁶ Surrounding and threading through the car—a symbol of modernity—these symbols establish an Indigenous present.

Luján uses the landscape to show that Chicano identity does not simply refer to immigrants who cross the settler border between Mexico and the United States. Chicano also includes the Indigenous people who are not defined by national borders and who maintain a relationship with their homelands and culture even as they travel, or cruise, across North America. Pyramids rise from the desert, illuminated with electric lights. Their blocky, geometric shapes reference Aztec architecture, but dogs’ legs form their bases as dogs’ heads howl to the sky at the peak. To the left, one of the pyramids is set up as a single-family home, another low-rider settled in the driveway next to it. Luján often uses dogs as a metaphor for mixed Indigenous-Mexican heritage. Karen Davalos has described these buildings as “contemporary technological developments.” They are not “neoindigenous” or “appropriations of an Indigenous past,” but proof of how hybrid forms of modernity are built upon Indigeneity.⁷ Western notions of forward progress usually define history as a forward driving line. Many Indigenous intellectual traditions see time as a circle. In Cruising Turtle Island, night and day hang simultaneously in the same saturated sky.

Luján made this print at Self Help Graphics, a community-based print shop run out of East LA. Like Los Four, Self Help and other print shops represented in Estampas de la Raza were integral to the development of a Chicano aesthetic and art market. Without these institutions and collectors like Harriet and Ricardo Romo, whose collection is on display, Chicano artists were largely cut off from the fine art world. Not only did artists need to build their own aesthetic; they also needed to generate their own market and values. In a founding document for Los Four, Luján writes that alienation is the fundamental experience of urban socialization.⁸ He worked through collaborations and workshops to make the Chicano art movement one of anti-alienation and community formation governed by values of love, acceptance, and celebration.

In Luján’s print, neither Aztlán nor Turtle Island are static places defined by the fixed lines and points that nation-states have used to impose themselves onto these landscapes. Instead, the inhabitants are modern people who inhabit their world and build new technology in fluid dialogue with their antepasados. Colonialism changed, but did not a rupture, their connections to the past. The burning heart blazing across the sky, on the chest of the anthropomorphic dog in the bottom right corner, and on the engine of the car parked in its driveway turns the landscape of Turtle Island into a place of belonging, powered by the revelatory light of acceptance.

Julia Hamer-Light 
PhD Candidate, Depart of Art History
University of Delaware

Image: Gilbert “Magu” Luján, Cruising Turtle Island, 1986, screenprint on paper, image: 24 1⁄4 × 36 1⁄2 in. (61.6 × 92.7 cm) sheet: 25 × 38 1⁄4 in. (63.5 × 97.2 cm), Smithsonian American Art Museum, Museum purchase through the Frank K. Ribelin Endowment, 2020.22.1.

¹ Gilbert “Magu” Luján, interview with Karen Mary Davalos, September 17, 19, and 22, and October 1 and 8, 2007, Ontario, California. CSRC Oral Histories Series, no. 4. Los Angeles: UCLA Chicano Studies Research Center Press, 2013.
² Karen Mary Davalos, “The Landscapes of Gilbert ‘Magu’ Luján: Imagining Emplacement in the Hemisphere,” in Aztlán to Magulandia: The Journey of Chicano Artist Gilbert “Magu” Luján, ed. Constance Cortez and Hal Glicksman (Munich: University Art Galleries, University of California, Irvine in association with DelMonico Books Prestel, 2017), 37.
³ Hal Glicksman, “Introduction,” in Aztlán to Magulandia: The Journey of Chicano Artist Gilbert “Magu” Luján, ed. Constance Cortez and Hal Glicksman (Munich: University Art Galleries, University of California, Irvine in association with DelMonico Books Prestel, 2017), 17.
⁴ Glicksman, 17.
⁵ University Art Galleries, University of California, Irvine, “Aztlán to Magulandia: The Journey of Chicano Artist Gilbert ‘Magu’ Luján,” Google Arts & Culture, accessed May 5, 2023, https://artsandculture.google.com/story/aztlán-to-magulandia-the-journey-of-chicano-artist-gilbert-magu-luján/ZwWRt0v2OfvRJw.
⁶ Maxine Borowsky Junge, “Gilbert ‘Magu’ Luján–The Social Artist,” in Aztlán to Magulandia: The Journey of Chicano Artist Gilbert “Magu” Luján, ed. Constance Cortez and Hal Glicksman (Munich: University Art Galleries, University of California, Irvine in association with DelMonico Books Prestel, 2017), 84.
⁷ University Art Galleries, University of California, Irvine, “Place and Placement: Symbolic Geographies in the Work of Gilbert ‘Magu’ Luján,” Google Arts & Culture, accessed May 5, 2023, https://artsandculture.google.com/story/place-and-placement-symbolic-geographies-in-the-work-of-gilbert-“magu”-luján/6QXBJBBLJhwCLw.
⁸ Constance Cortez and Hal Glicksman, eds., Aztlán to Magulandia: The Journey of Chicano Artist Gilbert “Magu” Luján: (Munich: University Art Galleries, University of California, Irvine in association with DelMonico Books Prestel, 2017), 119.

At the Museum on May 13, Julieta Zavala will showcase new designs in a Fashion Show inspired by our spring exhibition, Estampas de la Raza. Below, Zavala shares about her residency at DelArt, her Chicano son, and the driving source behind all she creates: leaving a legacy that he will be proud of.

Julieta Zavala was born in Mexico City and started her long road trip to Delaware before turning 21. Her dad drove two days straight to get her and her sisters to their destination while listening to the Virus album and trying to learn English along the way.

Zavala’s story and her deep interest in artistic creation go back to when she was a child. In her youth, she was captivated by the magic of doll dresses discovered in a small, unclaimed suitcase at her mom’s. The fantasy world those dresses inspired has populated Julieta Zavala’s creations ever since. She grew up watching her aunt sew with patience and dedication. “She always looked so happy while sewing.” Zavala never followed big-name designers, instead believing that she has “a little something different” that sets her apart from the rest.

The emerging designer tried to attend the prestigious art and design school in Mexico, Jannette Klein University, but couldn’t afford it. Instead, she immersed herself in fashion design by taking as many free classes as she could in basic sewing, sketching, and design principles. This path led her to a job at a department store where big clothing brands, like Diesel, train employees in creating pieces of clothing. Zavala learned about design trends, how to choose fabrics and colors, and best practices for displaying garments. She got the itch, “Ahi ya se me quedó la espinita,” that would drive her to overcome language and cultural barriers to become a fashion designer at the Art Institute of Philadelphia many years later.

Once in the United States, not knowing the language lowered her self-esteem greatly. Learning English became Zavala’s main priority to accomplish her dreams. She took classes at churches and every free place she could find. She took night classes and graduated with honors from high school, then attended the Art Institute of Philadelphia, graduating with a degree in fashion design. In her road to success, nothing came easy. Three months before graduating, she gave birth to her son, but it did not stop her. Despite the logistical challenges that student moms face, including pumping in public bathrooms, finding childcare, struggling with postpartum depression, and facing societal judgement, Zavala kept going. A college degree was not just personally important, but an especially significant achievement because Zavala’s ancestors weren’t able to access higher education. She cites her family’s and husband’s support and encouragement as an essential factor in achieving her dream of becoming an independent designer.

Julieta Zavala’s business began when her sister suggested going to a Cinco de Mayo event to sell her creations. She started small by making fabric totes and cactus-inspired pillows. That was a revelation that led her to create something based on her culture that made her feel happy and fulfilled. Her roots became her source of artistic inspiration.

The originality of Zavala’s designs is key to her success. She sources unique fabrics and creates garments not available in stores. Her artistic creative process includes discovering material, touching it, and discerning what can be done with it. Rather than sketching, Zavala pictures her designs in her mind, creating a vision that she turns into a piece of art.

Aware of the fashion industry’s negative environmental impact, Zavala centers her design practice on reusing, recycling, and upcycling materials to make one-of-a-kind garments. For a Wisconsin Dia de los Muertos celebration, she created dresses with corn husks. While she stayed at a farm, volunteers helped her produce amazing catrina outfits (elegant female skeletons), as well as garments full of seeds for native dancers. The latter was planned to create a rain of seeds with every dance movement that, according to Zavala, “returned them to the ground, like sowing.” Zavala also uses plastic tablecloths “like the ones in every Mexican household and typical restaurant” to create dresses.Even though the material is hard to manipulate, the results are incredibly beautiful. For an LGBTQ+ Pride Parade, she fashioned a unicorn outfit from multicolored plastic springs sourced from a thrift shop. Searching through thrift shops and secondhand fabric stores, where other designers dispose textile leftovers, gives Zavala a way to practice environmental and financial consciousness.

Zavala’s current project is inspired by the DelArt exhibition “Estampas de la Raza,” showcasing the unique heritage, history, and experience of Mexican Americans and Latinos in the United States. She is excited that DelArt “brings culturally diverse art to the area and to the Anglo-Saxon community.” For the exhibition, Zavala created a one-of-a-kind version of a La Virgen de Guadalupe dress called “La Mera Mera,” which hangs in the special exhibition. This unique piece is a combination of religious iconography and the chola aesthetic to express the duality of their culture. On the one hand, it imbues female modesty and the norms of society, and on the other, it challenges gender norms by combining the masculine and feminine. For Zavala, the virgin is a symbol of Mexican culture, as iconic as mariachis, the Mexican flag, the prickly pear (nopal), wrestling (lucha libre), and Frida Khalo. Zavala admires Kahlo and has enormous respect for her work, considering her a woman ahead of her times whose art wasn’t properly recognized until recently.

Join Julieta Zavala at the Delaware Art Museum on May 13 for a Fashion Show highlighting her designs and celebrating her artist residency. Tickets available now.

Veronica V. Vasko

Photo by Manuel Flores from Dream Art Studio.

Come and experience the Culture, Art, and Traditions!

The Delaware Art Museum invites the public to experience Julieta Zavala: Tradition, Cultura, Memory Fashion Show on May 13th, 2023, from 6 to 9 pm. Zavala’s fashion stems from social justice and takes inspiration from the exhibition “Estampas De La Raza: Contemporary Prints from the Romo Collection.” Experience culture, tradition, and share in the memory of the Chicano movement from the 1970s, with a special live performance by Hip Hop artist Audry Funk. After the show, enjoy a cocktail hour and explore the special exhibition with sounds from DJ Kaadi setting the vibe for the night.

Julieta is a Mexican-born fashion designer that has innovated in the local fashion world with designs based on her culture. Using environmentally friendly and unusually cool fabric designs she creates amazing fashions from dress ware to tote bags. Zavala is enjoying her residency at DelArt as a part of the spring exhibition “Estampas De La Raza.” Zavala, a graduate of the Art Institute of Philadelphia, is a fashion designer based in Newark, DE who believes this project is an opportunity to connect with Chicano and Latino artists to promote their cultural roots and social trends.

Iz Balleto Community Engagement Specialist at the Delaware Art Museum, said, “This fashion show will bring light to the culture and the Indigenous people of Mexico, expressing themselves through art and social justice to invoke that we are present even in the fabric that we wear. We will always be connected to our roots.”

Julieta Zavala’s residency at the Delaware Art Museum will culminate with the Fashion Show on May 13.

Sponsors

Julieta Zavala: Tradition, Cultura, Memory Fashion Show was commissioned by the Delaware Art Museum, with generous support provided by Art Bridges. Additional support provided by the Center for Interventional Pain & Spine, Dream Art Studio, and Nuestras Raices Delaware. This event is sponsored by Prime Beverage Group, Hoy en Delaware, and Made D!fferent. This organization is supported, in part, by a grant from the Delaware Division of the Arts, a state agency, in partnership with the National Endowment for the Arts. The Division promotes Delaware arts events on www.DelawareScene.com.

About the Delaware Art Museum

Under the leadership of our Board of Trustees, the Delaware Art Museum is implementing a comprehensive approach to community and civic engagement. This exciting new strategic direction requires that we increase our value and relevance to all audiences. Visit delart.org to for the latest exhibitions, programs, and performances or connect with us via social media.

IF YOU GO

WHAT: Julieta Zavala: Tradition, Cultura, Memory Fashion Show
WHEN: May 13, 2023
WHERE: Delaware Art Museum, 2301 Kentmere Parkway, Wilmington, DE 19803
COST: Members $25, Non-Members $30, V.I.P. $50
INFO: delart.org

Major children’s book illustrator Christian Robinson inspires summer of family fun.

This summer, the Delaware Art Museum presents the art of nationally recognized and award-winning illustrator, author, and animator, Christian Robinson. Fresh off the heels of his collaboration with Target, Robinson’s illustrations from popular children’s books such as “Last Stop on Market Street” and “You Matter” will be celebrated in the exhibition “What Might You Do? Christian Robinson,” on view July 1 through September 10.

The exhibition will be complemented by creative family programs including “Kidchella,” a family music festival on July 27; monthly Family Second Sunday artmaking sessions; and Stories & Studio for early learners on select Friday mornings. Museum members are invited to a Curator Tour and Celebration on July 13.

Robinson, a New York Times best-selling author, is the winner of the Newbery Medal for distinguished contribution to American children’s literature, the Coretta Scott King Illustrator Honor, and the Caldecott Honor for his illustrations in “Last Stop on Market Street.” His colorful, playful illustrations center diversity of experience, presenting the whole world to his readers. In this summer’s exhibition, visitors of all ages are invited to experience Robinson’s original art and to read his books inside a city-bus-turned-reading-nook, boldly parked within the art gallery.

“DelArt is known for its renowned collections of historic American illustration,” says Curator of American Art Dr. Heather Campbell-Coyle. “I’m excited that we can bring that history into the present by sharing the artistry of one of the most compelling illustrators working today.” The exhibition will include 90 original artworks that Robinson created using primarily acrylic paint and collage. The display will feature illustrations for 17 children’s books, including “Last Stop on Market Street,” “Milo Imagines the World,” and “Carmela Full of Wishes.”

Saralyn Rosenfield, Director of Learning & Engagement, said, “We invite families to visit the exhibition all summer long and join us on July 27 for Kidchella, a kid-friendly happy hour for families in celebration of the Christian Robinson’s exhibition. Our hope is that the evening will be just as fun for the grownups as it is for the kids.” The event will include cross-generational music and sweet treats provided by Kaffeina, in the inspiring outdoor setting of DelArt’s Copeland Sculpture Garden.

Organizer and Sponsors

“What Might You Do? Christian Robinson” was organized by the National Center for Children’s Illustrated Literature, Abilene, Texas. In Delaware, this exhibition is supported by the Jessie Ball DuPont Fund and the Edgar A. Thronson Foundation Illustration Exhibition Fund. This organization is supported, in part, by a grant from the Delaware Division of the Arts, a state agency, in partnership with the National Endowment for the Arts. The Division promotes Delaware arts events on www.DelawareScene.com.

About the Delaware Art Museum

Under the leadership of our Board of Trustees, the Delaware Art Museum is implementing a comprehensive approach to community and civic engagement. This exciting new strategic direction requires that we increase our value and relevance to all audiences. Visit delart.org to for the latest exhibitions, programs, and performances or connect with us via social media.

IF YOU GO

WHAT: “What Might You Do? Christian Robinson”
WHEN: July 1-September 10, 2023
WHERE: Delaware Art Museum
COST: Free after admission; tickets available at delart.org
INFO: delart.org/christian-robinson

WHAT: Kidchella
WHEN: Thursday July 27, 2023, 4:00 pm – 7:00 pm
WHERE: Delaware Art Museum’s Copeland Sculpture Garden
COST: Free; register at delart.org
RAIN DATE: Thursday August 3, 2023, 4:00 pm – 7:00 pm
INFO: delart.org

Media Contact: Amelia Wiggins, Director of Advancement & External Affairs, awiggins@delart.org

An art museum is a unique location for a wedding, whether the couple are creative types or just want an event that stands out from the banquet hall model. The venue contributes significantly to the vibe of the big day, from the look, to the convenience and guest experience, to the vendor choices. Adding art makes a wedding especially memorable and can dramatically enhance the look of the event and the photos of the day.

We spoke to recently wedded couples and vendors we’ve worked with to give you some insight into what it’s like to have your wedding here at the Museum.

THE EXPERIENCE: Kristen and Ryan’s intimate autumn labyrinth vows

Laura Briggs Photography.

Kristen Nassif said “I do” to Ryan Lee at the Museum in October 2022. While Nassif and Lee mostly got ready at The Westin at the Wilmington riverfront, final dressing took place at the Museum, just before their ceremony.

This autumn wedding faced extreme weather challenges—a hurricane in the southern part of the U.S.—but in the end, the “I dos” took place where the pair wanted them to: in the former-reservoir-turned-labyrinth, situated at the north end of the Copeland Sculpture Garden.

Nassif and Lee did move the cocktail hour from the terrace inside to the Museum’s East Court, reflecting that the flexibility of the Museum, particularly given the climate challenges, was “really, really helpful.”

Photo opportunities can be a major factor in choosing a wedding venue, and Nassif says, “We took lots of pictures outside, using lots of wall textures and colors.” Taking photos on the indoor Chilhuly Bridge (featuring Dale Chilhuly’s blown glass Persian Window) was also a big draw.

Lee says that most of the photos, taken by Laura Briggs of Kennett Square, show the wedding party in the Copeland Sculpture Garden. Family shots were positioned on the front steps, while his groomsmen posed in the labyrinth. His favorite photo, however, is one taken in a gallery. “It’s the background on my laptop,” he says.

Nassif further describes the photographic inspiration, as well as how it fit into their “minimalist-eclectic” design theme. “There’s all the stone and greenery and ivy, then you can also contrast that with the clean modern lines in the museum.”

Their guest count of 75 was “just right” for their reception in Fusco Hall, which featured dancing to DJ Mike Simmons.

Capping off the night was a very popular visit from an ice cream truck, which enabled them to make use of the terrace after all. In lieu of a cake, the UDairy frozen treat complemented the cake bites and chocolate fondue laid out by Brandywine Catering, which catered the plated dinner.

THE EXPERIENCE: The perfect venue for Andrew & Roberto’s perfect day

Meghan Newberry Photography. Sculpture: Monumental Holistic VII, 1980. Betty Gold (born 1935). Cor-Ten steel (TM), 168 × 96 × 108 in. Delaware Art Museum, Gift of Sidney M. Feldman, 1980. © Betty Gold.

Andrew Lukashunas and Roberto Torres tied the knot in October 2022.

After getting dressed in one of the large conference rooms in the Museum’s education wing, they made their way outside.

Their ceremony was in the Copeland Sculpture Garden, with the wedding procession entering the aisle directly behind the Crying Giant sculpture. A beautiful stone wall in the garden served as the ceremony’s backdrop.

After the vows, photos with loved ones were staged in the grass. Other photos included a snap in front of the Chilhuly glass, and the pair posed in front of the Museum after dark for a romantic shot featuring the windows and two-story arches filled with red light.

This couple was able to make use of the (tented) terrace for their cocktail hour, moving inside to Fusco Hall for a sit-down dinner, with food from Toscana Catering (which went the extra mile to create custom ocean fare for seafood-lover Torres) and a reception for 120 guests. The couple says they are still getting compliments on the food all these months later.

Christine Jennings of Ever Lively Events served as the day-of coordinator for the wedding. She says that the linens can be so important because the tables take up so much real estate, noting that, “Roberto and Andrew were so open-minded and fun to work with. They leaned into the aesthetics of the Museum.”

In turn, Lukashunas says, “She helped us take some bold colors and blend them into a theme that looked extraordinary.” The orange linens on the terrace tables matched the napkins on the dinner settings, which made for an excellent color pop against the navy-and-white geometric-print tablecloths inside. The fun hues played off the warm golden paint that bedecks the front wall of Fusco Hall, as well as the art in that hall, and were also featured on the cake topper that crowned the cupcake tower.

Floral arrangements, from DiBiaso’s Florist, incorporated bold colors, and were, as Lukashunas called them, “unobtrusive.” With a base of red, orange, and yellow, with blue and green accents, all the flower colors put together flowed into the handful of rainbow-colored accents, such as a cupcake tower and macaron towers provided by Michele Mitchell Pastry Designs.

Music for the ceremony and cocktail hour was provided by the Wilmington String Ensemble and Deejay Howard of Blue Root Entertainment.

Rumor has it, the wedding party hit the nearby Grottos Pizza en masse once the wedding festivities had concluded, before settling at The Westin for the night.

Lukashunas says, “I cannot stress this enough: we would not change a single thing about our wedding. The Museum was the perfect venue, and … everything went off without a hitch.”

He added, “Lauren McMahon [Museum Event and Rentals Manager] is a delight to work with; she has a wonderful tasteful eye and a calm and cool presence, and her lighting and signage recommendations were perfection.”

With the goal of making wedding preparations easy for the renter, McMahon says of couples, “Once they choose their vendors, I connect with each of them, and we all work together.”

THE VENDORS

The Museum has an excellent list of approved caterers and preferred vendors, and will also work with vendors couples may choose outside that list.

Wilmington’s Jamestown Catering is a regular partner of the Museum, and Catering and Events Manager Ashley Ghione says the Museum setting facilitates creative menu planning. “We’ve created menus that vibe with the sculptures that are outside, and others that work with specific eras, themes, and exhibitions,” she says.

While they serve plenty of the familiar wedding fare, such as shrimp cocktail, soup shooters have become very popular in recent years. And sometimes they’ll create a new take on a classic, like Beef Wellington. Jamestown specializes in full-service catering, meaning they will help with anything from coordinating limos to rental of furniture, such as chaise lounges and boho furniture arrangements … and even rugs. Champagne wall rentals are a popular wedding choice, and Jamestown can fulfill such Instagrammable setups to complement the everywhere-art.

Ashley Black is the owner of Fantail Photography in Kennett Square, PA. She says that the Museum offers cool options in terms of indoor and outdoor photography. “Some venues have no indoor options for rain,” she says. “I love the Chilhuly Bridge.” Black also likes the lighting options the Museum’s setting creates, and particularly enjoys shooting at sunset outside the Museum. “It actually accentuates the sunset because it reflects off the glass.” She also finds the Copeland Sculpture Garden presents interesting challenges. “There’s the installation [“Three Rectangles Horizontal Jointed Gyratory III” by George Rickey] that moves with the wind … it makes for a great frame but it’s always moving.”

Flowers by Yukie, winner of well over a dozen Best of Delaware awards, is a frequent florist to the Museum, from weddings to flower-focused fundraisers in the Copeland Sculpture Garden. Yukie Yamamoto describes a favorite wedding she helped adorn with blooms, “There was a really long table and I did a high and low flower arrangement. The dance floor was in the middle, and it was surrounded by high tops where guests could watch people dance.”

She complimented the Museum’s offerings, from interior contemporary spaces (which work well with blossoms such as orchids), to exterior green spaces, which can offer a country feel when floriated wooden arches are employed, and noted that there are opportunities to start with flowers outside and later bring them in. She sees the guest count and format as drivers of the floral plan, with sit-down dinners and cocktail buffets dictating different botanical choices.

“You could not have a more beautiful place to have a wedding,” says Yamamoto.

THE FINE POINTS

McMahon adds that just about everything at the Museum’s is flexible, except perhaps for start time, as the Museum stays open until 4 p.m. on typical wedding days. The earliest weddings typically begin no sooner than 6 p.m., but both vendors and wedding parties are welcome to arrive earlier in the day for setup, hair and makeup, and dressing.

“We have two conference rooms here that we use as suites for the wedding party. They have natural light, full length mirrors, closets for hanging clothing, and restrooms close by.” Your wedding can last until midnight. You’re welcome to return the next day to pick up items that have been stored on-site.

The Museum works with parties to consider indoor and outdoor spaces, for ceremonies, receptions and photo opportunities. The largest fully indoor space can accommodate a seated dinner for 130, and adding a heated/fan-cooled tent on the Museum terrace can increase capacity to 175. Standing cocktail receptions offer large capacity options as well.

Rain is always a worry for outdoor vows, and the Museum offers an indoor alternative for any ceremony.

With 85 dedicated parking spaces, as well as street parking, arrivals and departures are easy for guests—even if your ceremony requires guests to spend a brief period on the grass, you won’t need to subject your guests to muddy or rocky pathways to temporary parking in fields.

Both main entrances to the museum are easily accessed by shuttles, and ADA accessibility is built into our indoor spaces.

Climate control is very important to the Museum’s regular operations, so guests are neither likely to feel extreme cold nor heat, nor the humidity that is as bad for hairdos as it is for paintings.

The Museum also offers museum passes to share with all of the guests, whether in your favors, thank you notes, or hotel welcome baskets. The couple also receives a one-year museum membership.

Tables and chairs are included in your rental fee, as well as china, glassware, and flatware and access to a kitchen for your caterer. (Some limitations apply.)

Options you can choose to add onto your budget include special lighting (which often is part of a DJ’s offerings), video projection, photo booth, a coat check, and valet.

With a range of options to choose from starting at $1,000, Nassif says the cost of holding a wedding at the Museum is “so reasonable.”

Contact Lauren McMahon to schedule a walk-through and book your artful museum wedding: lmcmahon@delart.org

Delaware Art Museum Exhibition Combines Sculpture and Works on Paper

The Delaware Art Museum presents “Revision” by sculptor David Meyer, opening on Saturday, May 6, 2023, and running through Sunday, September 24, 2023. An artist gallery chat will take place on August 24 during a 5:30 p.m. Thursday Museum Happy Hour. The exhibition is included in the price of Museum admission.

“Revision” combines pieces from several of Meyer’s major series from the last decade, and will comprise ten objects, including two sculptures and eight works on paper.

Margaret Winslow, Chief Curator and Curator of Contemporary Art, says, “For this show, David is making two new pieces. ‘According to what’ is a hanging wall-based sculpture that will be assembled on-site, made with hand-formed chain links. This work is installation-specific and it’s different each time.”

Both the wall-based and the hanging sculptures are large-scale pieces, and the archival prints are based on photos the artist has taken of his sculptures. While the sculptures will hang in the East Court, the prints will hang in the adjacent upstairs hallway.

The Oklahoma-born Meyer sculpts various materials—aluminum, steel or ribbon—to form objects that elevate our senses. Meyer invites viewers to scrutinize their assessments of the world around them, such as expecting metal to be heavy and chains to be set. His “Air into breath” series uses delicate aluminum and ribbon sculptures as a way to explore the tension between what is seen and what is perceived.

The artist investigates systems, often creating sculptures that expand over time, and creating new works out of existing works.

Meyer frequently takes found photographic images and distorts them to create new, three-dimensional outlines vaguely reminiscent of the original, unidentified photos. Meyer then photographs his hanging sculptures to create his own works on paper. Each layer invites translation and interpretation, and Meyer perceives a person’s understanding of images as something that changes over time.

He says, “Because of the undefined nature of the imagery within the work, the subject matter can shift from one thought to another and only becomes real when we believe it, like a ghost.”

Meyer says, “Working in this realm helps me remain aware of nature’s relentless progression through the cycle of life, death and regeneration.”

Meyer’s connection to Delaware stems from his studies and career at the University of Delaware. After receiving his bachelor of fine art degree from Kansas City Art Institute in 1986, he earned a master of fine art degree from the University of Delaware in 1996, ultimately teaching there for more than 20 years. He retired in January 2023 and maintains an active studio practice at his home outside of Newark, Del.

He is an award-winning teacher and lecturer, and the recipient of multiple fellowships and commissions, including a Delaware Division of the Arts fellowship. Sculpture commissions include the City of Newark, Del. and the Delaware Community Foundation, and memorials for the Archdiocese of Oklahoma and the Oklahoma State Capitol.

Past exhibition highlights include participation in group shows at the Delaware Art Museum, The Delaware Contemporary, Art Museum of the Americas, United States Botanic Garden, Vox Populi (Philadelphia), Corcoran Gallery of Art, Towson University, Museum of Contemporary Art Arlington, Globe Dye Works, AREA 405 (Baltimore) and James Oliver Gallery (Philadelphia). Solo exhibitions of his work have been presented at venues throughout the United States including West Chester University, Tephra Institute of Contemporary Art, The Delaware Contemporary, Durbin Gallery at Birmingham-Southern College, Leedy-Voulkos Art Center (Kansas City), and the Visual Arts Center at San Antonio College.

For more information about the exhibition, visit our website. For more information about David Meyer, visit his website.

This exhibition is supported, in part, by a grant from the Delaware Division of the Arts, a state agency in partnership with the National Endowment for the Arts. The Division promotes Delaware arts events on www.DelawareScene.com.

About the Delaware Art Museum

Under the leadership of our Board of Trustees, the Delaware Art Museum is implementing a comprehensive approach to community and civic engagement. This exciting new strategic direction requires that we increase our value and relevance to all audiences. Visit delart.org for the latest exhibitions, programs, and performances or connect with us via social media.

IF YOU GO
WHAT: “Revision” by Sculptor David Meyer
WHEN: May 6–September 24, 2023
WHERE: Delaware Art Museum, 2301 Kentmere Parkway, Wilmington, DE 19806
COST: Included in Museum admission
INFO: delart.org

IF YOU GO
WHAT: Artist Gallery Chat with Sculptor David Meyer
WHEN: Thursday, August 24, 2023, 5:30–6:30 p.m.
WHERE: Delaware Art Museum, 2301 Kentmere Parkway, Wilmington, DE 19806
COST: Free
INFO: delart.org

The Delaware Art Museum is pleased to announce that it is a recipient of a Warhol Foundation Curatorial Research Fellowship to support the development of an upcoming historical exhibition honoring the art and artist employment opportunities produced by the 1973 Federal Comprehensive Employment and Training Act. Funding for this project was previously received from the National Endowment for the Humanities.

Working in collaboration with New York’s City Lore and Artists Alliance, Inc., the Delaware Art Museum is planning a traveling exhibition honoring the Federal Comprehensive Employment and Training Act of 1973, which led to public employment of artists at a scale not seen since the Works Progress Administration of the 1930s.

The Federal Comprehensive Employment and Training Act (CETA), signed into law by President Richard Nixon on December 28, 1973, provided federal funds in the form of block grants for states to train workers during a period of high unemployment. States in turn distributed the funds to different cities, allowing a localized approach. Some cities and states, such as San Francisco, Chicago, New York City, and Delaware, used CETA funds to hire artists to create public service art projects. From 1974 until its repeal by President Ronald Reagan in 1982, CETA led to the employment of ten thousand artists around the country.

From December 2021 through March 2022, City Lore and Artists Alliance Inc. presented the two-venue exhibition ART/WORK: How the Government-Funded CETA Jobs Program Put Artists to Work, curated by Molly Garfinkel and Jodi Waynberg. The highly acclaimed pilot exhibition chronicled CETA-funded arts programming in New York City, with a particular focus on the Cultural Council Foundation’s CETA Artists Project. Building upon the successful exhibition and associated programs, it’s exciting to move into this new phase of exhibition planning.

The next stage of development will focus on travel to other critical CETA sites throughout the United States. The project curators have identified locations where a wealth of information can be found including Baltimore, Washington DC, Philadelphia, Atlanta, Chicago, San Francisco, and Los Angeles. The curators will conduct meetings with prospective institutional partners and interview past CETA participants, administrators, and legacy organizations to examine primary source documents within public and private archives.

Margaret Winslow, chief curator and curator of contemporary art at the Delaware Art Museum, says, “we are excited to continue our efforts on this important topic with City Lore and Artists Alliance, Inc. In Delaware, CETA funding supported more than 50 artists and arts administrators who organized community performances, produced murals throughout Wilmington, and photographed people and events in Delaware during 1976 Bicentennial celebrations. CETA impacted the trajectory of arts and culture throughout the state, just as it did across the nation.”

CCF CETA artist Selvin Goldbourne drawing portraits at a Harlem block party; Photo by Blaise Tobia for the CCF CETA Arts Project,1978. © Blaise Tobia, 2023.

Molly Garfinkel, Co-Director of City Lore, Inc., says “City Lore is thrilled to renew our collaboration with Artists Alliance Inc., and the Delaware Art Museum on this timely and exciting initiative. The history and impact of CETA funding on artists, communities, and the arts ecology in the United States is woefully under-documented, but CETA provides valuable precedents and lessons for the current moment. CETA helped to demonstrate that artists and cultural workers deserve to be considered a critical part of the U.S. labor force. Moreover, artists applied to CETA-funded public service employment projects not just to stand in line for a check, but to do something meaningful with their time, skills, and resourcefulness. CETA funds enabled cultural workers to take risks, to grow, and to engage in new forms of collaboration—both with each other and with their communities. It helped many existing cultural organizations to establish a foothold and expand programming and capacity. Why does supporting culture matter? Culture should be supported because it is part of our daily lives, and it is an integral part of civic life. Expression of culture has much to do with how well we understand ourselves and each other, build relationships with and get along with one another. Being able to do this is as relevant now as ever.”

Jodi Waynberg, Director of Artists Alliance Inc., adds “There is hardly a more fitting moment to reflect on the benefits to our communities, individual arts workers, and cultural institutions when the United States invests in its labor force. We are thrilled that that the Warhol Foundation has afforded us the opportunity to amplify this extraordinary history and reimagine sustained investment in cultural workers.”

About the Delaware Art Museum

Under the leadership of our Board of Trustees, the Delaware Art Museum is implementing a comprehensive approach to community and civic engagement. This exciting new strategic direction requires that we increase our value and relevance to all audiences. Visit delart.org to for the latest exhibitions, programs, and performances or connect with us via social media.

Top: Wilmington Parade, 1976. Norma Diskau (born 1942). Gelatin silver print, image: 6 5/8 × 10 inches, sheet: 10 7/8 × 14 inches. Delaware Art Museum, Gift of the artist, 2015. © Norma Diskau Calabro.

Visitors to the Delaware Art Museum this spring are greeted by a colorful bodega in Orientation Hall. The mural, created by Philadelphia artist Cesar Viveros, celebrates Chicano culture and is inspired by our spring special exhibition, Estampas de la Raza: Contemporary Prints from the Romo Collection.

It’s almost impossible to walk or drive around the city of Philadelphia without admiring a magnificent Cesar Viveros mural. Viveros’ story of how he discovered muralism is as compelling as his art.

Cesar Viveros was born in the town of Veracruz, Mexico, and art was not part of his local high school’s curriculum. That didn’t stop his mechanical drawing teacher from encouraging his students to explore beyond that industrial side of illustration and ignite their creativity. This teacher conceived of contests to encourage the students to create and shared invaluable art supplies like canvas, acrylics, brushes and books. Viveros started making signage for shops and events to earn money. As a Mexican, he claims that murals and art are part of his unconscious, brought up in “muralist country.” People in his home country are used to living and breathing art as part of their daily lives, on the walls of their streets, in public sculptures, even on their currency. Artists like Diego Rivera and David Siqueiro have instilled muralism into Mexican culture.

Art school was not easily accessible to Viveros, financially or geographically. Seeking financial independence, Viveros pursued industrial scuba diving as his professional career instead of art. He was a Jacques Cousteau fan, always dreaming about exploring the oceans. This fantasy led him to work as a diver on an oil platform in the Gulf of Mexico. There, he used any industrial paints he could get his hands on to create murals on the scuba departments walls, shops in the port area, and wherever building owners would allow him. His designs included underwater scenes of mermaids and tritons. Soon, other workers began commissioning Viveros to make drawings and paintings for themselves.

As he pursued his art, Viveros was rejected by art galleries big and small. But his luck took a turn in 1997 when Meg Salligman was painting a 10-story high mural in Philadelphia. Viveros, impressed by the work, approached her and offered to volunteer. This opened the door to new opportunities, including directing a 14-story mural in Louisiana celebrating the millennium with 50 artists from around the country.

Through his work at the Philadelphia Mural Arts Program, the Philadelphia Catholic Diocese commissioned Viveros to paint a mural for Pope Francis visit in 2015 for the World Meeting of Families. The public was invited to help paint the mural through participation in a series of community paint days which broke a Guinness record for highest number of contributors to a painting. “The Sacred Now: Faith and Family in the 21st Century” mural was a learning experience and great exposure.

While he painted, Viveros worked multiple side jobs to support himself and his family. These gave him the opportunity to experience and learn from his surrounding community and their struggles, which he poured onto his art.

Cesar Viveros work was also guided by his late wife Ana. She was known as the queen of papier-mâché, and she was his inspiration and pillar for many his side projects, including various Ofrendas installations (offerings placed in a home altar during the traditional Mexican Día de los Muertos celebration) and piñatas workshops. This parallel work was focused on sharing culture and heritage. Viveros creates unique art pieces and spaces where stories come alive, like the Cesar Andreú Iglesias Community Garden, also called “el terreno,” where ancient traditions and contemporary art merge. This ongoing project started 10 years ago alongside a socialist group from Philadelphia. They cleaned up a piece of land that was being used as for garbage disposal. Their combined goal was to avoid real estate development of the space. From the beginning, Viveros offered his art as a weapon to fight against displacement, in the way Chicanos did at the southern border in the 70s. “This is a space to celebrate our Latin culture, which is so connected to the earth, and to organize and educate others about it,” says Viveros. With that goal in mind, he and his neighbors started to establish activities like food justice workshops, classes on sowing and harvesting corn and building a “barbacoa” (a hole dug in the ground covered with agave leaves). They shared sweat lodge ritual practices, Aztec Dances and ceremonies, and displayed altars for Day of the Dead celebrations, and created sculptures and mosaics. During the Covid-19 pandemic, the garden turned into a safe space for the community. Viveros found refuge and motivation in “el terreno.”

Viveros considers himself a Chicano art fan, inspired by the movement’s use of art for social action. When contacted by the Delaware Art Museum to create art inspired by the Estampas de la Raza exhibition, he saw s a window of opportunity to promote Chicano and Latino art in the area. He had the opportunity to meet and listen to members of the Hispanic American Association of Delaware and Los Abuelos, a senior group from the Latin American Community Center. “Meeting with the community of Delaware provided me with many stories that can be told through the use of ink and paper. My hope is that people can see themselves reflected in this transitional art, either displayed in a museum or attached to a wall,” shared Viveros. The mural painted by Viveros at DelArt represents a bodega or tienda de la esquina, a typical corner store which serves as a daily point of encounter in Latino neighborhoods. The bodega provides a gathering place where conversations about social and political issues can unfold. Screen prints are commonly posted in bodegas to advertise social events, political marches, and popular activities. Viveros remembers how screen printing was the most affordable way to promote these events, since the mainstream media wouldn’t provide the time or space for it. “This was before the Internet,” said Viveros, “and the only way to do outreach was to hang posters at the bodega in the barrio.”

Cesar Vivero’s goal is to take this type of art to more museums and galleries. He highlights the importance of giving recognition to Chicano and Latino artists. That is why he thinks Estampas de la Raza is an important exhibition in a greater movement. “DelArt is providing the space; now it’s time for the community of artists to take advantage of the opportunity that has been presented to them. Nobody will do the work for you, so if there’s a microphone, I will grab it; if there’s a stage, I’ll come up.”

Like all of Viveros’ work, this mural extends beyond its walls to the community around it. The screen prints on view in DelArt’s Orientation Hall are also posted on Latino businesses throughout Wilmington, bringing art into the neighborhoods that inspired it.

Veronica V. Vasko

My Life, My Voice is organized by the Delaware Art Museum, with generous support provided by Art Bridges. Screen printing by BadLandz Media House. This organization is supported, in part, by a grant from the Delaware Division of the Arts, a state agency, in partnership with the National Endowment for the Arts. The Division promotes Delaware arts events on www.DelawareScene.com.

Top: Cesar Viveros in front of My Life, My Voice: Occupying Spaces mural. Photo by Shannon Woodloe.

Delaware Art Museum invites the public to experience Estampas de la Raza: Contemporary Prints from the Romo Collection, on view from April 1 to May 28, 2023. The exhibition chronicles the unique heritage, history, and experience of Mexican Americans and Latinos between 1980 and 2010. It showcases 61 eye-catching screen prints and lithographs from the collection of the McNay Art Museum in San Antonio, TX.

Both lifelong educators, Harriett and Ricardo Romo spent four decades supporting Latino artists and collecting their works. Inspired by the Chicano art movement of the 1960s and 1970s, many of these artists activate Pop Art aesthetics and powerful messages to explore the complex identities and struggles of Latinos living in the United States. The exhibition highlights Mexican icons, including Frida Kahlo and Che Guevara, and celebrates Latino cultural traditions.

Estampas de la Raza provides a comprehensive introduction to the Latino artists’ contribution to post-1960 American printmaking. The exhibition also raises awareness of three highly influential print shops—Self Help Graphics & Art (SHG) and Modern Multiples in Los Angeles, and Coronado Studio in Austin. Of the more than 60 prints in the exhibition, the vast majority came from one of these collaborative shops. These shops have not only introduced a previously underserved audience to printmaking, but have also been central to the creativity and cultural awareness of their respective Chicano and Latino communities.

Community CommissionsTo accompany Estampas de la Raza, the Delaware Art Museum commissioned two additional projects from locally-based, Mexican-born artists Julieta Zavala, a fashion designer, and Cesar Viveros, a muralist, painter, screen-printer, clay, and papier-mâché sculptor. “I’m proud that an important venue like DelArt chose to put on a culturally diverse exhibition like Estampas.” Zavala said. Viveros agrees, saying that the display of this type of art inside a museum excites him. Both artists are creating unique pieces inspired by their culture, heritage, and community.

Cesar Viveros is involved in many community projects in the Philadelphia area. His art is inspired by the stories and experiences shared by community members. Focused on sharing his culture, heritage, and history, he creates unique art pieces and spaces where those stories come alive, like Jardin Iglesias, where ancient traditions and contemporary art merge. Viveros will be transforming DelArt’s Orientation Hall with a mural and a series of screen prints inspired by his conversations with members of the Hispanic American Association of Delaware and Los Abuelos, a senior group from the Latin American Community Center.

Zavala, a graduate of the Art Institute of Philadelphia, is a fashion designer based in Newark, DE. She is creating a fashion collection inspired by the art in Estampas de la Raza and will display a special piece in the museum gallery. Called “La Mera Mera,” the outfit combines references to the Virgin of Guadalupe and contemporary Latino culture. On May 13th, starting at 6 pm, a fashion show at the museum will showcase more of Zavala’s designs, produced during her residency at DelArt this winter. “This fashion show will bring light to the culture and the Indigenous people of Mexico, expressing themselves through art and social justice to invoke that we are present even in the fabric that we wear. We will always be connected to our roots,” DelArt Community Engagement Specialist Iz Balleto says.

On March 31st, members of the Delaware Art Museum can enjoy a preview party for the Estampas de la Raza: Contemporary Prints from the Romo Collection and Our Red Planet: Anna Bogatin Ott special exhibitions from 6 pm to 8 pm. Enjoy live music, small bites, and a cash bar. Register at delart.org.

This exhibition is organized by the McNay Art Museum, San Antonio, Texas, with generous support provided by Art Bridges. This exhibition is supported in Delaware by the Jessie Ball duPont Fund. Estampas de la Raza is also supported in Delaware by the Johannes R. and Betty P. Krahmer American Art Exhibition Fund. This organization is supported, in part, by a grant from the Delaware Division of the Arts, a state agency, in partnership with the National Endowment for the Arts. The Division promotes Delaware arts events on www.DelawareScene.com.

Community commissions are organized by the Delaware Art Museum, with generous support provided by Art Bridges.

About the Delaware Art Museum

Under the leadership of our Board of Trustees, the Delaware Art Museum is implementing a comprehensive approach to community and civic engagement. This exciting new strategic direction requires that we increase our value and relevance to all audiences. Visit www.delart.org to for the latest exhibitions, programs, and performances or connect with us via social media.

IF YOU GO:
WHAT: Estampas de la Raza: Contemporary Prints from the Romo Collection
WHERE: Delaware Art Museum, 2301 Kentmere Parkway, Wilmington, DE 19803
WHEN: On view from April 1st to May 28th
INFO: delart.org

Image: Raul Caracoza, Young Frida (Pink) (detail), 2006. Screenprint, 26 1/8 x 26 1/8 in (image). Collection of the McNay Art Museum, Gift of Harriett and Ricardo Romo, 2009.42. © Raul Caracoza.

El Delaware Art Museum invita al público a experimentar Estampas de la Raza: Impresiones Contemporáneas de la Colección Romo, del 1 de abril al 28 de mayo de 2023. La exposición narra la herencia, la historia y las experiencias únicas de los mexicoamericanos y latinos entre 1980 y 2010. Muestra 61 llamativas serigrafías y litografías de la colección del McNay Art Museum en San Antonio, TX.

Ambos educadores de toda la vida, Harriett y Ricardo Romo, pasaron cuatro décadas apoyando a artistas latinos y coleccionando sus obras. Inspirados por el movimiento de arte chicano de las décadas de 1960 y 1970, muchos de estos artistas activan la estética del arte pop y los mensajes poderosos para explorar las complejas identidades y luchas de los latinos que viven en los Estados Unidos. La exposición destaca íconos mexicanos, incluidos Frida Kahlo y Che Guevara, y celebra las tradiciones culturales latinas.

Estampas de la Raza ofrece una introducción completa a la contribución de los artistas latinos al grabado estadounidense posterior a 1960. La exposición también crea conciencia sobre tres imprentas muy influyentes: Self Help Graphics & Art (SHG) y Modern Multiples en Los Ángeles, y Coronado Studio en Austin. De las más de 60 impresiones de la exposición, la gran mayoría procedía de alguna de estas imprentas colaborativas. Estas imprentas no solo han introducido a un público previamente desatendido al grabado, sino que también han sido fundamentales para la creatividad y la conciencia cultural de sus respectivas comunidades chicana y latina.

Las obras de la exposición se centran en cinco temas: Identidad; Lucha; Tradición, Cultura, Memoria; iconos; y otras voces. Los 44 grabadores destacados incluyen a Raúl Caracoza, Sam Coronado, Richard Duardo, Germs (Jaime Zacarias), Ignacio Gómez, Ester Hernández, Luis A. Jiménez Jr., Malaquias Montoya, Frank Romero, Patssi Valdez y Ernesto Yerena.

Comisiones de la Comunidad: para acompañar a Estampas de la Raza, el Delaware Art Museum encargó dos proyectos adicionales a artistas locales nacidos en México, Julieta Zavala, diseñadora de moda, y César Viveros, muralista, pintor, serígrafo, escultor de arcilla y papel maché. “Estoy orgullosa de que un lugar importante como DelArt haya elegido presentar una exhibición culturalmente diversa como Estampas”, dijo Zavala. Viveros está de acuerdo y dice que le emociona una exhibición de este tipo de arte dentro de un museo. Ambos artistas están creando piezas únicas inspiradas en su cultura, herencia y comunidad. Cesar Viveros está involucrado en muchos proyectos comunitarios en el área de Filadelfia. Su arte está inspirado en las historias y experiencias compartidas por los miembros de la comunidad. Enfocado en compartir su cultura, patrimonio e historia, crea piezas de arte únicas y espacios donde esas historias cobran vida, como el Jardín Iglesias, donde se fusionan las tradiciones antiguas y el arte contemporáneo. Viveros transformará el Salón de Orientación de DelArt con un mural y una serie de serigrafías inspiradas en sus conversaciones con miembros de la Asociación Hispanoamericana de Delaware y Los Abuelos, un grupo de adultos mayores del Centro Comunitario Latinoamericano.

Zavala, graduada del Instituto de Arte de Filadelfia, es una diseñadora de moda que reside en Newark, DE. Ella está creando una colección de moda inspirada en el arte de Estampas de la Raza y exhibirá una pieza especial en la galería del museo. Esta pieza llamada “La Mera Mera”, es un atuendo que combina las referencias a la Virgen de Guadalupe y la cultura latina contemporánea. El 13 de mayo, a partir de las 6 p. m., un desfile de modas en el museo exhibirá más diseños de Zavala, producidos durante su residencia en DelArt este invierno pasado. “Este desfile de moda, resaltara a la cultura y los pueblos indígenas de México, expresándose a través del arte y la justicia social para invocar que estamos presentes hasta en la tela que vestimos. Siempre estaremos conectados con nuestras raíces” dice Iz Balleto, Especialista en Compromiso con la Comunidad de DelArt.

El 31 de marzo, los miembros del Delaware Art Museum podrán disfrutar de una fiesta de preestreno de las exposiciones especiales Estampas de la Raza: Contemporary Prints from the Romo Collection y Our Red Planet: Anna Bogatin Ott de 6:00 p. m. a 8:00 p. m. Pudiendo disfrutar de música en vivo, pequeños bocados y una barra en efectivo. Debe registrarse en delart.org.

Esta exposición está organizada por el McNay Art Museum, San Antonio, Texas, con el generoso apoyo de Art Bridges. Esta exposición cuenta con el apoyo del Jessie Ball duPont Fund en Delaware. Estampas de la Raza también cuenta con el apoyo del Johannes R. and Betty P. Krahmer American Art Exhibition Fund en Delaware. Esta organización cuenta con el apoyo, en parte, de una subvención de la Delaware Division of the Arts, una agencia estatal, en asociación con el National Endowment for the Arts. La División promueve eventos artísticos de Delaware en www.delawarescene.com.

Las comisiones de la comunidad son organizadas por el Delaware Art Museum, con el generoso apoyo de Art Bridges.

Acerca del Delaware Art Museum

Durante más de 100 años, el museo ha servido como institución principal de arte y cultura en Delaware. El museo está vivo y animado con experiencias, descubrimientos y actividades para conectar a las personas con el arte y entre sí. Originalmente creado en 1912 para honrar al reconocido ilustrador y oriundo de Wilmington, Howard Pyle, la colección del museo ha crecido a más de 12,000 obras de arte en nuestro jardín de edificios y esculturas. También es reconocido por el arte prerrafaelita británico, el museo es el hogar de la colección prerrafaelita más completa que se exhibe fuera del Reino Unido, y una creciente y significativa colección de arte contemporáneo.

Bajo el liderazgo de nuestra Junta Directiva, el Delaware Art Museum está implementando un enfoque integral para la participación comunitaria y cívica. Esta nueva y emocionante dirección estratégica requiere que aumentemos nuestro valor y relevancia para todas las audiencias. Visite www.delart.org para obtener las últimas exposiciones, programas y actuaciones o conéctese con nosotros a través de las redes sociales.

SI VISITA:

Qué: Estampas de la Raza: impresiones contemporáneas de la colección Romo
Dónde: Delaware Art Museum, 2301 Kentmere Parkway, Wilmington, DE 19803
Cuando: está a la vista del 1 de abril al 28 de mayo
Más Información: delart.org

Imagen: Raúl Caracoza, Joven Frida (Rosa) (detalle), 2006. Serigrafía, 26 1/8 x 26 1/8 in (imagen). Colección del McNay Art Museum, Donación de Harriett y Ricardo Romo, 2009.42. © Raúl Caracoza.

Visit the galleries this Women’s History Month to view some of the many women artists in the DelArt collections. Follow our suggested tour of 10 favorites, below.

Step into the Pre-Raphaelite galleries. Around the corner in gallery 3, look for a painting by Alice Boyd alongside exquisite jewelry by Arts and Crafts-era designer Phoebe Anna Traquair. In fact, this whole case is devoted to women artists working against the odds in the Victorian era.

Cross the hall and imagine you’re jumping across the pond, into American art gallery 5. Here you’ll find Lila Cabot Perry’s self-portrait. Friend of Mary Cassatt and Claude Monet, Perry led a successful painting career and helped introduce Impressionism in America.

Further on the main floor, Violet Oakley’s actual-sized designs for stained glass windows are highlights of the American Illustration gallery. Oakley’s work is surrounded by that of fellow female Golden Age illustrators.

Over in special exhibition gallery 9, explore the abstract paintings and sculpture of Anna Bogatin Ott, featured in the just-opened solo exhibition, Our Red Planet.

Take the stairs up to gallery 15, and pause in front of Isabel Bishop’s captivating painting, Dante and Virgil in Times Square. Next door, take in the modern art of Loïs Mailou Jones and Beulah Woodard, whose art was influenced by the art of Haiti and Africa.

End your tour in contemporary art gallery 17, where you’ll find the work of women artists still creating today, including Elizabeth Osborne and Angela Fraleigh.

We’re actively collecting more women artists in all areas of the Museum, and we’re working on new exhibitions of women artists planned for 2024 and beyond. Celebrate women artists with us at the Delaware Art Museum this March, and year-round.

Left to right: St. Columba’s Farewell to the White Horse, 1868. Alice Boyd (British painter and draftsman, 1825–1897). Oil on board, 13 7/8 × 19 7/8 inches. Delaware Art Museum, Acquisition Fund, 2011. Pendant: The Song, 1904. Phoebe Anna Traquair (1852–1936). Polychrome enamel and silver foil on copper set in gold, 2 1/8 × 1 7/8 inches. Delaware Art Museum, Gift of Mrs. H. W. Janson, 1976.

Left to right: Self-Portrait, 1897. Lilla Cabot Perry (1848–1933). Oil on canvas, 38 7/8 × 28 1/4 inches. Delaware Art Museum, F. V. du Pont Acquisition Fund, 2016. Hamlet, commissioned 1903. Violet Oakley (1874–1961). Oil on canvas, 75 1/4 x 43 1/2 inches. Delaware Art Museum, Gift of the Violet Oakley Memorial Foundation, 1983. © Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts. Mars_15L2B, 2021 2022. Anna Bogatin Ott (born 1970). Archival pigment print on aluminum, 12 × 12 inches. Courtesy of the artist. © Anna Bogatin Ott.

Dante and Virgil in Union Square, 1932. Isabel Bishop (1902–1988). Oil on canvas, 27 × 51 3/4 inches. Delaware Art Museum, Gift of the Friends of Art, 1971. © The Estate of Isabel Bishop. Courtesy of DC Moore Gallery, New York.

Left to right: Parade de Paysans (Peasants on Parade), 1961. Loïs Mailou Jones (1905–1998). Oil on canvas, 39 1/4 × 19 inches. Delaware Art Museum, Acquisition Fund, 2018. © Estate of Loïs Mailou Jones. Mask, c. 1935. Beulah Ecton Woodard (1895–1955). Hammered and welded sheet metal with a copper patina, 20 × 12 × 3 inches. Delaware Art Museum, Acquisition Fund, 2017. © Artist or Artist’s Estate. Black Doorway I, 1966. Elizabeth Osborne (born 1936). Oil on canvas with objects, 40 × 49 3/4 inches. Delaware Art Museum, Louisa du Pont Copeland Memorial Fund and partial gift from Locks Gallery, 2016. © Elizabeth Osborne.

Art by Delaware Kids Ages 13 to 18 on Display in the Museum’s Galleries March through April

For the third time since 2012, the Delaware Art Museum clears the gallery walls to showcase the work of Delaware’s young artists for the 12 x 12 Youth Art Exhibition, March 4 – April 30, 2023. A free opening celebration is planned for Sunday, March 12, 2023, from 12 p.m.—2 p.m., coinciding with the Museum’s free Family 2nd Sunday.

Participating artists, who must be between the ages of 13 and 18 during the 2022-2023 school year, are asked to review the exhibition overview and guidelines, pre-register online, and drop off their art along with a printed submission form on Saturday, February 25 between 10 a.m. and 1 p.m. The same pre-registration and submission process applies to teachers, who may also submit up to three student works on that date.

Saralyn Rosenfield, the Museum’s Director of Learning and Engagement, says, “The 12 x 12 Youth Art Exhibition is about sharing the creativity found among our young people in Delaware. Teachers, especially, love this opportunity for their students to see their work professionally hung in the Museum, sharing space with other great art in the Museum’s collection.”

Submissions must be accompanied by an artist statement and descriptive information such as dimensions (must be no larger than 12 inches high or wide) and medium(s). Each artist may submit one piece, in a wide range of mediums (restrictions apply), which will, in turn, be reviewed by a preparator, to ensure the piece meets the submission guidelines. Pieces will be returned to artists between May 3 and 7, 2023.

The Museum established the 12 x 12 Youth Art Exhibition in 2012, as part of the Museum’s centennial celebration, which included a juried exhibition, with the intention of staging it every five years. Although 2022 would have been the ten-year anniversary of the first exhibition, the Museum’s exhibition plans had shifted due to the pandemic.

Rosenfield adds, “Each 12 x 12 Exhibition captures a generation of young artists’ identities, interests and creative expression. It will be interesting to see how this generation makes those connections.”

For more information on eligibility, requirements, and submission instructions, 12 x 12 Youth Art Exhibition and Guidelines (delart.org)or contact Director of Learning and Engagement Saralyn Rosenfield at srosenfield@delart.org. To register to drop-off artwork, visit 12 x 12 Youth Art Exhibition Drop-off – Delaware Art Museum (delart.org).

IF YOU GO

WHAT: 12 x 12 Youth Art Exhibition Art Drop Off
WHEN: Saturday, February 25, 2023, 10 a.m.—1 p.m.
WHERE: Delaware Art Museum, 2301 Kentmere Parkway, Wilmington, Del. 19806
COST: Free, registration required
INFO: delart.org

WHAT: 12 x 12 Youth Art Exhibition
WHEN: March 4 – April 30, 2023
WHERE: Delaware Art Museum, 2301 Kentmere Parkway, Wilmington, Del. 19806
COST: Included with Museum admission
INFO: delart.org

WHAT: 12 x 12 Youth Art Exhibition Opening Celebration
WHEN: Sunday, March 12, 2023, 12 p.m.—2 p.m.
WHERE: Delaware Art Museum, 2301 Kentmere Parkway, Wilmington, Del. 19806
COST: Free, registration required
CELEBRATION INFO: delart.org

About the Delaware Art Museum

Under the leadership of our Board of Trustees, the Delaware Art Museum is implementing a comprehensive approach to community and civic engagement. This exciting new strategic direction requires that we increase our value and relevance to all audiences. Visit delart.org to for the latest exhibitions, programs, and performances or connect with us via social media.

“Our Red Planet: Anna Bogatin Ott” explores space imagery, the pandemic, and the war in Ukraine through the lens of art.

Opening February 18, the abstract art of Ukranian-born artist Anna Bogatin Ott is on display in a new exhibition at the Delaware Art Museum. Our Red Planet: Anna Bogatin Ott is informed by NASA images from Mars and the artist’s meditations on the COVID-19 pandemic and the war in Ukraine.

The title of the exhibition and the art explore the artist’s relationship with nature, space, and humanity. Anna Bogatin Ott created these new works of art in the midst of multiple political crises and natural disasters, including the war in Ukraine, which she calls, “a devastating a very personal tragedy.” In response, Bogatin Ott created a contemplative space for reflection and restoration. The artist will speak about her work in a public gallery talk on February 26, and celebrate the exhibition with Museum members on March 31.

“I strive to give the viewer an experience of serenity and calm, a safe, private space to contemplate, to heal, to connect to a greater whole,” explains Bogatin Ott, whose precise, quiet paintings are filled with subtly shifting, tranquil tones. Visitors are invited to follow the meditative path of a labyrinth created by the artist in the center of the exhibition. With Our Red Planet, Bogatin Ott has transformed the gallery into a sanctuary.

“Through works of art that explore both the wonder and tragedy of humanity, Anna Bogatin Ott’s art encourages us to reflect,” says Chief Curator and Curator of Contemporary Art Margaret Winslow. “I welcome Delaware Art Museum visitors to spend time in this exhibition breathing, looking, meditating, and contemplating our world and place in it.”

This exhibition is made possible by the Emily DuPont Exhibition Fund, with additional support provided by Heidi Nivling and Larry Becker of Larry Becker Contemporary Art. This organization is supported, in part, by a grant from the Delaware Division of the Arts, a state agency, in partnership with the National Endowment for the Arts. The Division promotes Delaware arts events on www.delawarescene.com.

About the Delaware Art Museum

Under the leadership of our Board of Trustees, the Delaware Art Museum is implementing a comprehensive approach to community and civic engagement. This exciting new strategic direction requires that we increase our value and relevance to all audiences. Visit delart.org to for the latest exhibitions, programs, and performances or connect with us via social media.

IF YOU GO

WHAT: Art exhibition, Our Red Planet: Anna Bogatin Ott

WHERE: Delaware Art Museum, 2301 Kentmere Parkway, Wilmington, DE 19803

WHEN: February 18 – July 16, 2023

COST: Free with Museum admission

INFO: delart.org

Photo by Shannon Woodloe.

The typical art museum experience for adults is pretty comfortable: paintings hung at eye level, captions that share insights into works of art, and staff or volunteers available to answer questions.

But a kid might easily find the adult museum experience to be too big, too still, and too two-dimensional.

The solution? The Museum offers children their own enriching arts experience with a dedicated interactive space. Known as Kids’ Corner, this junior oasis on the Museum’s lower level has fostered creative exploration for several generations of visitors, some of whom are old enough to return to the space with their own children.

HISTORY OF THE KIDS’ CORNER

Created in 1987, and later named Kids’ Corner, this child-friendly space on the Museum’s lower level has been reimagined regularly in recent years. Each incarnation is designed to foster creative and imaginative play, hands-on exploration, and storytelling.

And we really love the way the latest changes to the Kids’ Corner have changed the Museum as a whole.

Three families—all including artists from Delaware, Pennsylvania, or New Jersey—have designed the last four installations since 2016:

Kaleidoscope Cove was designed by the Volta Family in 2016.

Lenny the Ice Cream Man was dreamed up by the Smith Family in 2017.

Creative Power was the work of the Silverman Family in 2018.

Most recently, in 2019, the New Jersey-based Smith family—Daniel, Elin, and children Lilly, Ida, and Lukas—was tapped for a second time to reshape Kids’ Corner into an immersive art-as-play experience. More than just a paint job and new textiles, Kids’ Corner has been transformed into a colorful enchanted forest, with paths winding around giant trees containing tiny, magical displays. This second Smith imagining is called, “Who Hears Twell Van Dunder?” [Who here is twelve and under?] and is an immersive celebration of childhood and a place for older people to rediscover the wonder of play.

Still in place in Kids’ Corner at the start of 2023, it has original music by the Smiths, a shimmering, magnetic-fishing “pond,” stool-sized mushrooms encircling a fabric campfire, and a plush bird’s nest seat. The walls bear murals depicting sunsets and trees. A larger than life-sized, furry sheepdog named “Twell Van Dunder” is part of the décor, and makes for an Instagrammable posing destination.

WHAT’S NEXT

The Museum is poised to reimagine the area, once again, and it’s looking for families to become our next Family-in-Residence. No, we aren’t asking a family to move in. Our Family-in-Residence concept is modeled after the widely known artist-in-residence model, wherein a museum recruits an artist to create work(s) and/or programming for a defined period of time. Instead of just one person, we want a whole family to conceptualize, design, and install the entire Kids’ Corner space.

Saralyn Rosenfield, the Museum’s Director of Learning & Engagement, describes how an artist-in-residence ask became a family-in-residence reality: “Artists are really busy and what we often hear is that they want more time with their families. The artist we approached to do the 2016 installation was someone who had a successful history of residencies. He actually came up with the idea to do this with his family, and we were thrilled!”

Just like we are reimagining the space, the Museum is reimagining the in-residence format.

What was once a fun idea to liven up a space was formalized into a full-on program. While our unique Family-in-Residence experiment began in 2016, we are rolling out a formal search for a new artistic family in 2023.

We invite regional creatives to watch for an announcement by the spring, and prepare to apply for this residency, which will start in the fall. We look forward to planning the next Kids’ Corner installation—and an opening celebration—with the selected family.

For the Family-in-Residence program, we encourage intergenerational collaboration on the look, vibe, materials, and interactive offerings of Kids’ Corner. Family can be however you define it, as long as each member contributes their own creative touch. As always, we hope the opportunity provides quality time for artists and their families.

We look forward to welcoming artists and their families to apply for the next Family-in-Residence.

HOW ME MAKE IT HAPPEN

Kids’ Corner has been fortunate to have support by the Pollyanna Foundation and Phyllis and Buddy Aerenson. The “Who Hears Twell Van Dunder” installation was also supported by Mannington Floor and Quality Finishers. Additional support is provided, in part, by a grant from the Delaware Division of the Arts, a state agency, in partnership with the National Endowment for the Arts. The Division promotes Delaware arts events on www.DelawareScene.com.

The Delaware Art Museum. The Delaware Contemporary.

Both art museums. Both long-time fixtures in the Delaware community. Both with passionate art lovers, funders and other stakeholders.

Many things distinguish the two museums. The Delaware Contemporary (TDC) puts its focus on living artists within a 250-mile radius of the facility. The Delaware Art Museum (DelArt) collects the work of British Pre-Raphaelite artists and American art from 1757 to today, with a focus on American illustration and the art of John Sloan.

But it’s natural to see where the two visual arts institutions align.

Leslie Shaffer, Executive Director of TDC says, “We do very similar things. We showcase artists. We perform outreach into the community with regard to art.”

The Delaware Contemporary has a strong focus on emerging artists, and the Delaware Art Museum has recently mounted a series of distinguished artist exhibitions, featuring artists late in their career.

But neither organization has any hard and fast rules about this. Visitors will find emerging artists’ work at DelArt, and TDC will show an internationally established artist, if it’s in the interest of a theme and complements the work of an emerging artist.

The one thing the two organizations absolutely share: arts patrons.

The two organizations are pleased to announce the first of hopefully many collaborations that the museums are forging in order to acknowledge the enthusiastic pool of patrons that support the spectrum of visual arts that exists in Wilmington.

They are working together to offer a joint bus trip – a Hudson Valley Art Adventure – planned for June 17-19, 2023. The group will travel several hours north by luxury coach. Tours on the trip include Magazzino Italian Art, Storm King Art Center, DIA Beacon, and the Al Held Foundation, as well as private collections and artists’ studios. Lodging and dining are top notch, with the guests taking over an entire boutique hotel: Le Chambord at Curry Estate, a charming country property.

What makes the collaboration even sweeter than the digs is that that experiences were selected jointly by representatives from each organization: Margaret Winslow (DelArt’s Chief Curator and Curator of Contemporary Art) and Maxine Gaiber (former TDC Executive Director) worked together to identify the arts, dining, and lodging experiences for the group, and will take part in the tours to help lead the conversations.

Shaffer says, “Pre-COVID, both museums planned trips for our patrons where we’d take a look at art in another place. After visiting museums and other arts destinations, the group might stay for a night, or maybe four nights, to intensively – together as a group – focus on that experience. Often, the trips would include a fun dining experience…something you wouldn’t get if you were to go on your own.”

Emerging from the pandemic’s restrictions on travel and period of social isolation, the organizations are now hearing from their audiences that patrons are eager to participate in travel programs again.

Shaffer says, “Knowing people are still tiptoeing into the idea of group travel, we thought, ‘Why not try planning a trip together?’”

Molly Giordano, Executive Director at DelArt, adds, “If this goes well, we’ll know there’s an interest in more travel. Maybe it will spark a more robust national and international travel program.”

More on the Horizon

Group trips are a straightforward way for two organizations to begin a growing collaboration. But TDC and DelArt’s plans don’t end there.

Giordano says, “We are excited that this is the beginning of a deeper partnership. We have so many shared goals and joint supporters. So many people are committed to the visual arts; it makes sense we are working collaboratively.”

She adds that this is not just a public relations move: the organizations intend to drive home the point that a strong artistic ecosystem is important for the future of artists in the area.

Shaffer says that the TDC sees itself as “…an organization that prepares artists to have a show at a place like the Delaware Art Museum.” Whether that means getting emerging artists in front of curators, offering residencies so artists can dedicate time to develop their art, or supporting an artist’s career by showcasing their work in an exhibition for the first time, it’s a community need. “We find it of value and so do they,” she says.

Giordano adds, “We need each other both to be strong, so that the emerging artist has access to studio space, the opportunity to hang their art in a show. It is a pipeline that is being built, so as an artist’s career strengthens, we may one day add them to our collections or mount their retrospectives here.”

“The ecosystem can’t function without both of us playing our respective parts,” says Giordano.

This is all on the heels of a trying financial period for not only the organizations, but for the general public.

Shaffer says that TDC is seeing the light at the end of tunnel, post-COVID, and that partnering with an organization with shared goals is natural.

“We are finding ways to be more efficient with our resources. Why would we both be doing the same thing with the same goals when we can do it together?”

Aside from resources, the organizations are looking at sharing information and experiences across their audiences, with the goal of creating a more successful product for both the museums and the visitors.

A feasibility study is under way. The organizations want to learn how they can build a bigger audience for what they do while identifying efficiencies.

Shaffer says, “We want to put the focus on art. Spend time building programs rather than raising funds.”

For more information on the bus trip, click here.

Photograph by Joe Del Tufo

A Marriage of Arts & Crafts: Evelyn & William De Morgan is just the first major exhibition of a year devoted to Pre-Raphaelite Art at the Delaware Art Museum.

Through February 19 only, the Delaware Art Museum showcases the paintings and ceramics of two underrecognized yet influential artists, Evelyn and William De Morgan. The visually stunning show kicked off DelArt’s Year of Pre-Raphaelites, a celebration of the Museum’s significant British Pre-Raphaelite art collection and special events and exhibitions that expand its story.

A Marriage of Arts & Crafts: Evelyn & William De Morgan, on view for the next two weeks, shares the richly symbolic Pre-Raphaelite paintings of Evelyn De Morgan and the brilliantly colored tiles, pots and plates of her husband, William. The exhibition has been heralded for “highlighting overlooked aspects of Pre-Raphaelite art and treading beyond typical gender hierarchies.” The show closes with “Paintings, Pots, and Patrons,” a talk by Curator Emerita Margaretta Frederick on February 19 at 2 p.m.

The Delaware Art Museum is home to the most comprehensive Pre-Raphaelite collection on display outside of the United Kingdom, a collection celebrated throughout 2023. “We’re calling this the Year of Pre-Raphaelites, and we can’t wait to share the masterpieces, exhibitions, and programs celebrating this rich period of art history,” shares Executive Director Molly Giordano.

DelArt’s Year of Pre-Raphaelites continues in the spring and summer with a series of talks before the debut of The Rossettis in October, a major exhibition organized in partnership with Tate Britain. Showcasing over 100 works from international public and private collections, the Delaware Art Museum is the only U.S. venue for The Rossettis, already named a “Must-See Exhibition of 2023.”

This exhibition was organized by the DeMorgan Foundation. This exhibition is made possible through support from the Nathan Clark Foundation, the Amy P. Goldman Foundation, and the Dr. Lee MacCormick Edwards Charitable Foundation. This organization is supported, in part, by a grant from the Delaware Division of the Arts, a state agency, in partnership with the National Endowment for the Arts. The Division promotes Delaware arts events on www.DelawareScene.com.

About the Delaware Art Museum

Under the leadership of our Board of Trustees, the Delaware Art Museum is implementing a comprehensive approach to community and civic engagement. This exciting new strategic direction requires that we increase our value and relevance to all audiences. Visit delart.org to for the latest exhibitions, programs, and performances or connect with us via social media.

IF YOU GO:
WHAT: A Marriage of Arts & Crafts: Evelyn & William De Morgan
WHERE: Delaware Art Museum, 2301 Kentmere Parkway, Wilmington, DE 19803
WHEN: On view through February 19
INFO: delart.org

Image: Evelyn De Morgan, Flora (detail), 1894. Oil on canvas. De Morgan Collection, Courtesy of the De Morgan Foundation.

I strive to give the viewer an experience of serenity and calm, a safe, private space to contemplate, to heal, to connect to a greater whole. I hope by experiencing my work the viewer will find peace and joy. – Anna Bogatin Ott

Ukrainian-born abstract painter, sculptor, and digital artist Anna Bogatin Ott captures the sublime in nature and the complexity of human existence. This exhibition showcases her most recent work, informed by NASA images from Mars and the moon; her meditations on the COVID-19 pandemic; and the war in Ukraine.

Glorious Truth (part 2) River Reporter, August 2022 (2), 2022. Anna Bogatin Ott (born 1970). Metallic paint on newspaper, 12 13/16 × 19 7/8 inches. sheet: 13 5/8 × 20 7/8 in. (34.6 × 53 cm). Courtesy of the artist. © Anna Bogatin Ott.

The artist explains, “In the process of preparing for this exhibition, the outside world was getting increasingly more agitated with different political events and natural disasters all around the globe. The war in Ukraine is a devastating and very personal tragedy. Our Red Planet acquired another, more literal meaning. Our planet is bleeding red.” In response, Bogatin Ott introduced quieting works of art, creating contemplative space for reflection and restoration.

Bogatin Ott began studying art at an early age, training first in Russia before immigrating to the United States. Disconnected from unfamiliar cultural references in 1960s American Pop art and postmodernism of the 1980s, Bogatin Ott focused on painting tradition and philosophical content. With further study, she found inspiration in the work of artists who combined execution with spiritual content like Agnes Martin and Barnett Newman. Bogatin Ott’s exploration of Indian tantric drawing offered additional creative direction, opening her practice to abstract imagery and geometric structure that emphasizes the lines and brush strokes in her work.

With seamless applications of acrylic paint and watercolor, Bogatin Ott creates fields of color that shift in hue and tone. The natural world provides endless exploration from flowers to oceans to the sky and beyond. The artist uses details from her own photographs, enlarging and altering the digital image to emphasize subtle variations in outwardly uniform colors. Compositions in blue correlate to the sky and water; reds, yellows, and oranges to flowers and sunsets.

Left to right: Moon_1L21, 2019 – 2022. Anna Bogatin Ott (born 1970). Archival pigment print on aluminum, 12 × 12 inches. Courtesy of the artist. © Anna Bogatin Ott. Mars_15L2B, 2021 – 2022. Anna Bogatin Ott

“My art serves as a reflection, in poetic images, of a total experience. There is something in it of tears, laughter, courage, awareness, and a zestful vigor which moves more definitely into the future than the promise of a new day.”1

Individuality and Community

Resilience and Resourcefulness

With “The Rossettis” on view through January 28, DelArt commits to mount an exhibition of Pre-Raphaelite painter Simeon Solomon in 2027.

About Charles Ethan Porter and Thistles and Butterfly

Free Korean Festival and Día de los Muertos Observation Offer Performances and Activities

Successful Inaugural Program Expanded for 2023-2024 with a Roster of Solo Pianists and More

Explore the Creative World of Award-Winning Children’s Book Illustrator

Executive Director, Arsht-Cannon Fund at the Delaware Community Foundation

The Artist and the Museum Bridge the Past and the Present in a Collaboration that Centers Local Community

Experience a presentation of celebrating Black Cinema

Christian Robinson’s colorful & whimsical illustrations have sparked a summer of family fun!

Large-Scale Imagery Installed in Public Spaces Represent Museum’s Pre-Raphaelite Collection

Annual Events include a Fourth Celebration of Juneteenth and Year Two for Powwow and Black Film Festival

Delaware Art Museum Is the Only U.S. Location for Major Pre-Raphaelite Exhibition

Experience the Tradition, Culture, and Memory before it leaves.

Come and experience the Culture, Art, and Traditions!

Major children’s book illustrator Christian Robinson inspires summer of family fun.

THE EXPERIENCE: Kristen and Ryan’s intimate autumn labyrinth vows

THE EXPERIENCE: The perfect venue for Andrew & Roberto’s perfect day

THE VENDORS

THE FINE POINTS

“Our Red Planet: Anna Bogatin Ott” explores space imagery, the pandemic, and the war in Ukraine through the lens of art.

HISTORY OF THE KIDS’ CORNER

WHAT’S NEXT

HOW ME MAKE IT HAPPEN

“My art serves as a reflection, in poetic images, of a total experience. There is something in it of tears, laughter, courage, awareness, and a zestful vigor which moves more definitely into the future than the promise of a new day.”¹