FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Springfield, MO. (January 9, 2019) – The Springfield Art Museum celebrates its 91st year of service to our community with a special exhibition calendar packed with local, regional, and international interest.
New in 2019
Creating an American Identity Reinstallation (re-opens January 18, 2019, then ongoing) – The rotating exhibition of the Museum’s permanent collection focused on the ways in which artists respond to and reveal our cultural identity as Americans re-opens in 2019 with a new look and multiple new points of view. The re-installation will include changes to gallery colors, physical layout, text panels, exhibition labels, as well as the selection of 75 works from as wide an array of artistic voices as possible with our current collection including even more works by women, people of color, Native Americans, and LGBTQ+ communities.
Nick Cave (April 6, 2019 – July 28, 2019) – Nick Cave is a preeminent multi-disciplinary artist working between the visual and performing arts through a wide range of mediums including sculpture, installation, video, sound, and performance. This exhibition will feature a focused selection of Soundsuits, pulled from both private collections and the artist, courtesy of Jack Shainman Gallery, New York, as well as an example from the Tondo series, and the video Drive-By. Funding for this exhibition is supported in part by an award from the National Endowment for the Arts and the Missouri Arts Council, a state agency.
Ubuhle Women: Beadwork and the Art of Independence (August 17, 2019 – November 10, 2019) – This traveling exhibition presents a spectacular overview of a new form of bead art, the ndwango (“cloth,”) developed by a community of women living and working in rural KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. Ubuhle Women: Beadwork and the Art of Independence was developed by the Smithsonian Anacostia Community Museum, Washington, DC, in cooperation with Curators Bev Gibson, Ubuhle Beads, and James Green, and is organized for tour by International Arts & Artists, Washington, DC.
Randy Bacon: The Road I Call Home (September 14, 2019 – February 23, 2020) – Randy Bacon is an American photographer based in Springfield, MO. This exhibit features simple, direct, emotive, casual studio portraits of homeless individuals accompanied by personal narratives. These portraits emphasize the beauty, humanity, identity, and integrity of each subject while raising public awareness of our homeless community.
Anders Zorn: Etchings (November 30, 2019 – March 15, 2020) – Anders Zorn (1860-1920) was a Swedish artist known for his skills as a sculptor, printmaker, and portraitist including three American presidents – Grover Cleveland, William Howard Taft, and Theodore Roosevelt. This exhibition presents all 93 of Zorn’s etchings from the Museum’s permanent collection, gifted to the Museum in 1970 by the late Arthur E. Anderson.
Returning in 2019
All School Exhibition (March 2, 2019 – April 29, 2019) – The Museum’s longest running exhibition initiative, the All School Exhibition invites student artists from public, private, parochial, and home school cooperatives to exhibit outstanding artwork in our largest gallery space. This exhibit also reflects the work of the incredibly talented teachers in our community, many of whom are practicing artists themselves.
Missouri State University MFA Showcase (May 4, 2019 – May 26, 2019) – Features bodies of work produced by Missouri State University graduate students pursuing a Master’s Degree in Visual Arts from the Art + Design Department.
Watercolor USA 2019 (June 7, 2019 – September 1, 2019) – This annual summer favorite returns with over $20,000 in cash prizes and possible Museum purchase awards available. This will be the 58th showing of the very best in contemporary American watermedia, judged by award-winning watercolor artist Dean Mitchell.
Art in Our City: Zone 4 (March 23, 2019 – October 20, 2019) – This special exhibition highlights local artists and the character of Springfield’s unique neighborhoods. The final rotation in this series features work from 11 artists representing six neighborhoods in City Council Zone 4 in Avant Art, the Museum’s flexible, social gallery that combines art, retail, and limited beverage and snack service.
Evergreen in 2019
New works will continue to rotate into selections from our Asian Art collection on view in the Hartman Gallery. Patrons can also enjoy installation pieces like Anne Lindberg’s titled sky and Dale Chihuly’s Autumn Persian and Feather Chandelier, year-round. The Museum’s grounds also include six outdoor sculptures including works by John Henry, Richard Hunt, Ernest Trova, and John Walker.
Continuing from 2018
Decades: 90 Years of Collecting (through February 17, 2019) – The Museum’s 90th Anniversary special exhibition traces the history and growth of the Museum’s permanent collection while examining the shifting trends and diversity contained within the collection. The exhibit is divided into decades, presenting 10 objects per decade, including decorative arts, paintings, prints, ceramics, sculptures, textiles, and historical objects.
El Grabado: Contemporary Cuban Printmaking (through March 17, 2019) - This exhibition presents over 75 prints by 33 Cuban artists who have all worked at the Taller Experimental de Gráfica de Habana – the oldest, continuously running print workshop in Cuba. This exhibition is pulled entirely from the private collection of Drs. Antonio and Luz Racela.
Art In Our City: Zone 3 (through March 17, 2019) – This rotation of the Art In Our City special exhibition features work from seven artists representing four neighborhoods in City Council Zone 3 in Avant Art.
Plan to join us for any, or all, of these exciting exhibits during 2019 at the Springfield Art Museum, located at 1111 East Brookside Drive. Admission is always free. Donations are gratefully accepted.
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The Springfield Art Museum is Springfield, Missouri’s oldest cultural institution, founded in 1928. A department of the City of Springfield, the Museum invites you to connect with the world, your community, and yourself through active engagement with art objects. For more information, please visit www.sgfmuseum.org or contact Joshua Best, Development and Marketing Coordinator at (417) 874-2859 or jbest@springfieldmo.gov.
Image Credit: NICK CAVE, Soundsuit, 2009, Mixed media including sisal, knitted fabric, metal armature, plastic, electrical tape, 103 x 38 x 26 inches © Nick Cave. Courtesy of the artist and Jack Shainman Gallery, New York.
