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December Issue
2008
Gibbes Museum
of Art in Charleston, SC, Features Printmaking Exhibition
The Gibbes Museum of Art in Charleston, SC, is presenting the exhibit, Printmaking, which examines the printmaking process from the 19th century through today, on view through Apr. 26, 2009, in the Museum's Gallery A. Drawn from the Gibbes permanent collection the exhibit will explore various printmaking processes from the nineteenth century through the present.
Though printmaking technology was developed in China as early as the second century AD, it did not appear in Europe until approximately 1400. Therefore, images were rare in the Western world prior to the fifteenth century, as each one had to be created by hand. Printmaking technology allowed for hundreds or even thousands of images to be created from a single carved block of wood or plate of metal. This revolutionized the distribution of images as printmaking began to flourish in Europe during the fifteenth century.
During the colonial and early national periods, American printmakers primarily utilized the medium to copy paintings and distribute images of historical events, famous battles, and portraits. American interest in the printmaking medium as an independent art form developed during the nineteenth century, led by artists such as John James Audubon, Mary Cassatt, Winslow Homer and James A. M. Whistler.
The collection of the Gibbes Museum of Art contains over three thousand works on paper, including prints created using a variety of techniques. This exhibition explores the breadth of the print collection, while focusing on the specific printmaking processes used to create the works. To help make connections between technique and the finished product, this installation pairs prints with rarely exhibited plates, blocks, and printmaking tools from the museum archives. Artists in the exhibition include Alfred Hutty, Jasper Johns, Roy Lichtenstein, Alice Ravenel Huger Smith and James A. M. Whistler.
The Printmaking exhibition is a prelude to the upcoming exhibition in the Rotunda Gallery: The American Scene on Paper: Prints and Drawings from the Schoen Collection. That exhibition will run from Dec. 19 through Mar. 22, 2009, and will feature 50 prints from the era between the Great Depression and World War II.
Established as the Carolina Art Association in 1858 (celebrating 150 years in 2008), the Gibbes Museum of Art opened its doors to the public in 1905. Located in Charleston's historic district, the Gibbes houses a premier collection of over 10,000 works, principally American with a Charleston or Southern connection and presents special exhibitions throughout the year. In addition, the museum offers an extensive complement of public programming and educational outreach initiatives that serve the community by stimulating creative expression and improving the region's superb quality of life.
For further info
check our SC Institutional Gallery listings, call the Museum at
843/722-2706 or visit (www.gibbesmuesum.org).
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