American Masterworks Come to the Thorne Gallery
KEENE, N.H., 8/8/07 - The Thorne-Sagendorph Art Gallery will be one of the national venues for the rarely seen art exhibition “From Cassatt to Wyeth: American Masterworks from the Mitchell Museum,” a collection never before exhibited beyond the gates of its home at the Cedarhurst Center for the Visual Arts in Mt. Vernon, Ill.
The exhibition will be open Friday, September 14, through Sunday, November 11, at the Thorne Gallery at Keene State College. This exhibition will showcase art by renowned artists, including Thomas Eakins, Mary Cassatt, Frederick Childe Hassam, John Singer Sargent, George Wesley Bellows, Robert Henri, William Glackens, Andrew Wyeth, and others.
“These artists are among the most significant figures in the development of American art and in the wider history of art,” explained Maureen Ahern, director of the Thorne Gallery.
The Friends of the Thorne will host an opening reception on Friday, September 14, from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. at the gallery. The Friends will use the “Cassatt to Wyeth” exhibition for their education program for area schoolchildren and residents of retirement and nursing facilities. The Friends donate their time giving docent tours and providing a hands-on art experience for schoolchildren and the elderly. The education program runs from October 29 through November 9. To schedule a group tour during this time, contact Colleen Johnson by phone at 603-358-2731 or by e-mail: cjjohnso@keene.edu.
“This exhibit is a real coup for New Hampshire that will attract visitors from all over the state and beyond,” said Ahern. “This art experience is also significant to the citizens of the Monadnock area because there are few major museums that can provide this kind of learning and aesthetic experience.”
The 33 paintings, works on paper, and a sculpture are from a collection formed mainly between the 1940s and 1960s by John R. and Eleanor R. Mitchell, a prosperous Illinois couple who acquired American art when it was underappreciated and undervalued. Although well known to American art scholars, the Mitchell Museum’s collection has never been exhibited as a whole beyond the gates of Cedarhurst Center. While the museum undergoes renovation and expansion, the collection is traveling, allowing American art enthusiasts outside of Illinois a rare opportunity to see these remarkable works of art. Art lovers can adopt a painting to help support the “Cassatt to Wyeth” exhibition until it opens September 14. Individuals and businesses can help sponsor this important educational art exhibition by adopting a piece of artwork in the show. Any of the 33 works in the exhibition may be adopted for $250. The adopter’s name or business will be listed on a label next to the work adopted. If you are interested in adopting a painting, please contact the Thorne Gallery by phone at 603-358-2720 or by e-mail at thorne@keene.edu.
“From Cassatt to Wyeth: American Masterworks from the Mitchell Museum” was developed by the Mitchell Museum at Cedarhurst Center for the Arts and toured by International Arts & Artists, Washington, D.C.
The exhibition and reception are free and open to the public. The Thorne Gallery is open Saturday to Wednesday, from noon to 4 p.m., and Thursday and Friday, from noon to 7 p.m. Located on Wyman Way on the KSC campus, 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 more information, call 603-358-2720 or visit http://www.keene.edu/tsag.
