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Bank Of America Supports Mongolian Art Project at Thorne

KEENE, N.H. 9/27/05 - Bank of America has become a major sponsor of a Mongolian Art Project open through Sunday, Nov. 20 at the Thorne-Sagendorph Art Gallery at Keene State College. Bank of America joins a long list of sponsors of the exhibit “Mongolian Art: A Living Landscape” at the Thorne Gallery, one of three national venues for the show, which tells the story of the nomadic Mongols of central Asia through art objects, artifacts, and images. The Mongolian Project also includes “Convergence: Mongolia in the 21st Century,” a photography exhibition by Adrienn Hruska, and the PBS video, “Wild Horses of Mongolia with Julia Roberts.”

“Mongolian Art: A Living Landscape” presents rare art and artifacts and provides information about Mongolian life, history, and religion from the Paleolithic Age to the modern era. The exhibit includes an 8-foot high 19th century folk painting depicting Mongolian deities, a 3,000-year-old bronze sculpture of a wild sheep, and a set of 18th century religious masks.

“Convergence: Mongolia in the 21st Century” is a special exhibit designed by the Thorne Art Gallery from photographs of Adrienn Hruska, taken in 2001 while she was volunteering in a Mongolian orphanage and cultural center while her husband Major Dan Green, was assigned to the U.S. Embassy. The photography, which complements the artifacts in “Mongolian Art: A Living Landscape,” shows contemporary Mongolian life and images of the Mongolian people. From the powerful visage of a 97-year-old Shaman woman, images of families setting up yurt homes, pictures of animals associated with the nomadic life, motorcycles, and pool tables to the effervescent expression on children’s faces, these photographs show the convergence of ancient traditions and contemporary life.

“Wild Horses of Mongolia with Julia Roberts,” a NATURE program which first aired on PBS, also complements the Mongolian art exhibit. In this 60-minute video, Julia Roberts has accepted an invitation to spend several weeks with a nomadic family and learns first hand about the wild horses that have been such an important part of Mongolian life for millennia.

The Mongolian project also includes a lecture about Mongol people and their art by Pamela Crossley, professor of history at Dartmouth College, on Thursday, Nov. 10, at 7 p.m. at the Thorne Gallery. Crossley teaches courses on the history of China and East Asia and the Mongols. Her current projects include the history of coercive institutions in China; a comparative history of cross-cultural empires in Inner Asia; and a comparative history of horsemanship in medieval Eurasia. She co-edited the book Making Mongols: Empire, Frontier and Ethnicity in Early Modern China and has published several books and articles on China and the Manchu people.

Free guided gallery tours of the Mongolian art project are offered by Keene State art student Adrienne LaBombard at 3 p.m. on Sundays. Reservations are not required.

This exhibit supports Keene State’s Commission on multiculturalism and Diversity and the KSC Fourth Biennial World Affairs Symposium, “Globalization: Impact on Peoples of the World,” which runs Thursday to Saturday, Nov. 3-5.

Major funding for this project comes from the Friends of the Thorne; Bank of America; New Hampshire State Council on the Arts and the National Endowment for the Arts Grant; KSC Alumni Association Grant; Pepsi-KSC Partnership Grant; KEA and KSC Thorne-Sagendorph Art Gallery Endowment Funds; and other funding from C & S Wholesale Grocers Inc.; Kingsbury Fund; Markem Corporation; Bruce LeVine Mellion ‘69 and Linda Zucker Mellion; Savings Bank of Walpole; Cheshire Oil Company; Fred H. Hamblet Inc.; Filtrine Manufacturing; Re/Max Town and Country; Findings Inc.; Grashow’s Corporation; Nicola’s Trattoria; Fenton Family Dealerships; Church and Main Inc.; Goodnow, Arwe, Ayer, Prigge, Hoppock, Kane & Abert; Sterling Design; The Pub Restaurant; Toepfer Jewelers; and Bellows House Bakery.

“Mongolian Art: A Living Landscape” is organized and circulated by Curatorial Assistance Traveling Exhibitions (CATE), Pasadena, Calif.

The exhibit, reception, lectures, tours, and educational program are free and open to the public. The gallery is open from noon to 4 p.m. Saturday through Wednesday, and noon to 7 p.m. Thursday and Friday. It is closed Friday, Nov. 11, for Veterans Day and Wednesday to Sunday, Nov. 23-27, for the Thanksgiving break. The gallery is accessible to people with disabilities. To request accommodations for a disability, please call the gallery at least two weeks before your visit. For information, call 603-358-2720 or visit www.keene.edu/tsag.

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