Past Exhibitions
Images of American Development
Telling Landscapes
Highlights from the Hood Museum of Art
Modern and Contemporary Art at Dartmouth
The third in a series of comprehensive exhibitions and catalogues showcasing the permanent collection, this exhibition surveys the breadth and depth of the permanent collection and highlights key works from the holdings, only a tiny fraction of which are on view in the museum's galleries at any one time. Modern and Contemporary Art at Dartmouth focuses on post-1945 painting, sculpture, works on paper, new media, and photography, and includes works by Mark Rothko, Ed Ruscha, Alice Neel, Romare Bearden, Alexander Calder, El Anatsui, Juan Munoz, Alison Saar, Amir Nour, Bob Haozous, Richard Serra, and Bill Viola, among others.
The Great Age of English Mezzotints
“The Artful Disposition of Shades"
In the century and a half before the advent of photomechanical reproductions in the mid-1800s, mezzotints were the favored medium for publicizing English paintings. Compared to traditional printmaking techniques, such as engraving and etching, the new tonal method was praised by contemporaries for its ability to represent the painterly qualities of light and shadow. Although generations of artist had used prints to heighten awareness of their designs, the establishment of regular public exhibitions in London in the second half of the eighteenth century significantly increased the demand for inexpensive and widely available editions of fashionable pictures. Many painters embraced the picturesque appearance of mezzotints, including Reynolds, Turner, and Constable.
The Language of Emotion
Expression of the UnconsciousDrawing on Tradition
Contemporary Native American Ledger Art
Despite being stylistically diverse, the works in this exhibition are all linked both conceptually and formally to the tradition of Plains Indian ledger art of the nineteenth century. Created by artists who employ visual narrative as a means of exploring their cultural heritage and issues of present-day Native experience, these works may be read as expressions of solidarity and survival in the twenty-first century.