Exhibitions Archive
Artists Celebrating the White Mountains
When Men and Mountains MeetPrivate Portraits/Public Conversations
Félix de la ConchaThe Hood Museum of Art continues its series of major public art projects, in conjunction with the Dartmouth Centers Forum, in a multimedia exhibition of fifty-one portraits exploring the ways members of the Dartmouth and Upper Valley communities have encountered conflict and how they made--or are making--the journey toward reconciliation.
De la Concha's effort to capture a truthful portrait results in a multidimensional representation of his encounter with his sitters--each one is intellectually, psychologically, and emotionally charged. Each portrait session lasted two hours, during which time the artist interviewed the sitter, and video- and audio-taped the entire experience. The artist added the aspect of video recording for the Hood project as a means of reconstructing, in real time, what transpired in each two-hour session. Thus, "portrait" here comprises painted representation, spoken narrative, and the visual recording of the interaction between artist and subject.
Tapis from Lampung, South Sumatra, Indonesia
Wearing Wealth and Styling Identity
Handwoven from cotton and silk threads, colored with ancestral dye recipes, embellished with gold- and silver-wrapped threads, embroidered with silk or pineapple-fiber threads, appliquéd with mirrors and mica, these ornate tube dresses were created by elite women of Lampung, South Sumatra. The product of a culture located between the two maritime routes between East and West Asia, these sumptuous garments communicate a family's global contacts, social station, and clan identity. Guest curated by Dr. Mary-Louise Totton, assistant professor of art history at Western Michigan University, the exhibition combines selected tapis from the Stephen A. Lister Family Collection with contextual archival photographs.
The Caricature of Honoré Daumier
France in Transformation
One of the most witty and adept caricaturists of all time, Honoré Daumier created a body of social and political cartoons that continues to resonate today. The Hood Museum of Art’s collection offers a rich overview of Daumier’s career as a graphic artist, presenting a picture of France at a time in the mid-nineteenth century when cultural and societal changes were ushering in a new era of modernity.
The Origins of Mezzotint in the Seventeenth Century
The Quest for Printed ToneWabanaki Ash Splint Baskets from Maine
Spirit of the Basket TreeSpirit of the Basket Tree: Wabanaki Ash Splint Baskets from Maine, guest curated by Jennifer Sapiel Neptune, focuses on the rich visual dialogue between contemporary Wabanaki basket artists of Maine and the legacy of Native American basket making in northern New England and southeastern Canada. Originally created for indigenous use, baskets emerged as valued items of trade with European settlers during the colonial era. They have remained at the center of cultural exchanges between Wabanaki people and Americans of non-native descent up to the present day, serving to solidify cultural identity, perpetuate intergenerational continuity, and symbolize political sovereignty for Wabanaki tribal members through the centuries.
Jennifer Sapiel Neptune, a basket maker herself and a co-manager of the Maine Indian Basket makers Alliance (MIBA), also has written an essay for the gallery brochure that accompanies the exhibition.