Summer exhibits open July 28 at Silvermine

Silvermine Guild Art Center
1037 Silvermine Rd., New Canaan, (203) 966-9700
Charles Hinman and Gary Lichtenstein: Kites
Where Are We (Going)?
Viewing Room: Roger Mudre and Jason Gardner
July 28—Sept. 7, 2013.
Opening Reception: Sun., July 27, 2—4 p.m.
Artist Talk: Charles Hinman and Gary Lichtenstein: Tue., July 30, 6:30 p.m.
Artist Talk: Jason Gardner: Sat., Aug. 10, 2 p.m.

Press release from Silvermine Arts Center

Silvermine Arts Center is proud to announce its summer exhibition, Kites, a collaboration between painting pioneer, Charles Hinman and master printer, Gary Lichtenstein, and Where Are We (Going)?, a Silvermine Guild group show organized by independent curator Emily Cheng. Silvermine’s Viewing Room will feature new silkscreen prints by Guild Artist, Roger Mudre and photography by Brooklyn based artist, Jason Gardner. The exhibitions will open on Sun., July 28, with a reception from 2—4 p.m., and will run through Sept. 7. The reception is free and open to the public. Along with the exhibitions, there will be several artists' talks. Charles Hinman and Gary Lichtenstein will be giving an artist talk on Tue., July 30,at 6:30 p.m. and Jason Gardner will give his talk on Sat., Aug. 10, at 2 p.m.

Kites is an exhibition premiering a new body of work born of the collaboration between artist, Charles Hinman and master printer, Gary Lichtenstein. Their artistic partnership began in 2011 and this new series continues their exploration into translating the visual vocabulary of Hinman's signature hard-edged, shaped canvases into the realm of prints. By combining color and the use of subtle hand embossing, they have created a suite of prints that epitomizes the core of Hinman's ideology: "Though the works at first glance appear serene and placid, they are ever changing as the surface of the ocean or the expanse of the sky. Ever dynamic, they are ever alive."

Charles Hinman: "Suspension (Blue and Yellow)"

The prints faithfully reconstruct Hinman's paintings down to the inclusion of subtle lines referencing the support systems of his three dimensional work. As the viewer gazes at the work, the profound complexity of the arrangements of space unfolds into an ever- changing visual experience.

Where are We (going)?, organized by independent curator and artist Emily Cheng, marks a new direction for Guild group exhibitions at Silvermine. This change is evidenced in the show's title and theme, which are inspired by Guild Artist Susan Sharp’s painting, "Where are We?" Unlike the traditional model of submitting work to a predetermined theme, this group show is selected from curatorial threads found in the paintings, prints, photographs and objects currently being produced by the Silvermine Guild membership.

Susan Sharp: "Where Are We?"

In her exhibition statement, Ms. Cheng suggests that the show can be thought of in philosophical terms akin to Paul Gauguin's prophetic image, "Where do we come from? What are we? Where are we going?" However, unlike Gauguin's tableau, which visually expresses his contemplation on the meaning of existence, Ms. Cheng writes, "The theme of uncertainty in this exhibition is not so much found in the overt content of the individual art works, but uncertainty as it is experienced through the viewing process…As in, 'What am I looking at? Where is this situated?'

"A prime example of this experience can be seen in the selection of images by Guild photographers Karen Neems (Stamford), Sandi Haber Fifield (Westport), Torrance York (New Canaan) and J. Henry Fair (New York City), all of whom create work inspired by the world we know, their photographic processes eschewing the familiar." Other Guild Artists exhibiting include: Hanneke Goedkoop (Rowayton), Robert Gregson (Orange), Shelby Head (Madison), Liz Dexheimer (Washington), Eve Stockton (Alexandria, VA), Tina Blackburn (Santa Fe, NM), Amanda Duchen (Woodbridge) and Susan Sharp (Easton).

Silvermine Galleries’ Viewing Room will debut a selection of new abstract silkscreen prints by Guild Artist Roger Mudre, which he produced in collaboration with Master Printer, Gary Lichtenstein, from July 28 through Aug. 4 and Aug. 28 through Sept. 7. Photographer Jason Gardner will present a "visual anthropology" of the culture, music and rituals of the authentic folkloric Carnival festival in Pernambuco, Brazil from Aug. 7—25. The exhibit will be part of Silvermine's 3rd annual ArtsFest.