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Kentucky Museum of Art and Craft www.KentuckyArts.org OPENING HOURS ADMISSION First Friday Trolley Hops And Exhibition Openings Are Always FREE!
as a dream to build interest in our state's rich craft and art resources. With the help of Mary Shands, the seeds were quickly sown for the Kentucky Art and Craft Foundation to continue to develop and eventually have a physical presence in Louisville. In 1984 the organization moved into the lower level of 609 West Main Street for retail and exhibition space. At that time, West Main Street was very deserted, yet the importance and popularity of the organization exploded. The Kentucky Museum of Art and Craft was established to promote the rich art and craft heritage of Kentucky through three main areas of programming: exhibition, education, and support of artists through a retail Gallery Shop. Since 1984 the organization has presented over 175 exhibitions, reaching approximately 65,000 viewers annually. By 1991 the Kentucky Art and Craft Foundation was a leader on the national forefront in preserving and advancing the art and craft heritage of Kentucky. As part of the national 'Year of the American Craft' the organization was recognized for making exemplary and unprecedented contributions to the documentation and interpretation of the cultural history of the commonwealth. The organization has seen artists progress from novices to masters and Main Street transform from an almost a deserted noncommercial street to the thriving business and cultural district it is today. However, the organization's commitment to preserving one of Kentucky's most precious resources, its continuing tradition of fine craftsmanship, has remained the same. By bringing the work of nationally recognized artists to Kentucky and by bringing the work of Kentucky artists to the national scene, KMAC has been able to preserve art and craft heritage and advance it. Over ten years ago we recognized the importance of including educational programming as part of our mission. The time was right for such an initiative, because in 1990 the state's educational system had been restructured resulting in the Kentucky Educational Reform Act, or KERA. Our educational programs are tightly connected to the KERA goals of combining art education with other subjects such as history, social studies, mathematics and language arts. Over the years, our educational programming has soared and its focus has continued to increase our work with under-served schools in our Education Center, Jefferson County, and throughout the state. In January of 2001 the organization purchased two adjacent buildings at 715 and 717 West Main Street in the heart of Louisville' s West Main Street Historic District (thanks to a successful Capital Campaign). Built in the 1880's the building is a four-story cast iron structure with a beautiful pastel facade and giant windows. After renovation, the facility provides us with 27,000 square feet of interior space in which to operate, spread over four floors and a lower level. This is an increase from the 10,000 square feet we used to occupy at 609 West Main Street. The new facility increased the size and visibility of the Gallery Shop, with frontage on Main Street, and houses three exhibition galleries: the Steve Wilson Gallery, the Mary + Al Shands Gallery, and the Lindy + Bill Street Gallery. The Lindy + Bill Street Gallery, on the second floor overlooking Main Street, is rented for meetings and entertaining. The third floor houses the Education Center and the fourth floor is used for administrative offices. We are delighted to be expanding as an arts organization and to be in such close proximity to Frazier International History Museum, Glassworks, Louisville Slugger Museum & Factory, Louisville Science Center, 21c Museum Hotel, Muhammad Ali Center, The Kentucky Center for the Performing Arts and KentuckyShow!. This is truly a testament to downtown development and the success of the West Main Street district. Visit www.museumrowonmain.com for more info! Permanent Collection Exhibitions: Scholastic Gold Key Awards Show
Opening Reception Interactive Design object by Marlon Darbeau and Christopher Cozier Discussion moderated by Nicholas Laughlin at the University of Louisville, Ekstrom Library, Elaine Chao Auditorium, 4pm Saturday Discussion with Christopher Cozier, Ebony G. Patterson, and Courtney J. Martin, PhD Vanderbilt, TBA What matters today is to translate the cultural values of cultural groups and to connect them to the world network. This “reloading process” of modernism according to the twenty-first-century issues could be called altermodernism, a movement connected to the creolization of cultures and the fight for autonomy, but also the possibility of producing singularities in a more and more standardized world. -Nicolas Bourriaud, French curator/critic The Kentucky Museum of Art and Craft is proud to present Into the Mix, a conversation about how materiality addresses the complexities of cultural stereotypes in an exhibition featuring 10 Caribbean artists. Their artwork takes on new meanings in a context where cultural history is influenced by outside migrating populations, colonial governments, tourists and the popular culture machine. In many societies, craft and hand-worked items help establish a culture of self-worth in the minds of the local population. The creation of these objects is influenced by the economic opportunity presented through tourism, yet souvenirs represent the visitor’s interests and are taken out of context. What is cultural authenticity and who decides what is truly a significant representation of a culture? It is up to contemporary artists and artisans to communicate their intentions and shape the framework in which their work is perceived. The Museum explores ideas from a variety of perspectives that describe the historical, conceptual, and aesthetic nature of the art works as singular vignettes not as sweeping generalizations. Furthering the conversation of what is culturally authentic, this exhibition reveals how disparate artists from the Caribbean connect with each other in a virtual world that has no boundaries. Through E-Catalogues by Draconian Switch and Richard Rawlins the show will develop written texts with the artists, blog comments, and include pictures from reviews, interventions, happenings, and discussions that happen in Louisville and other regions of the world during the 10 weeks. During the opening week from January 30th to February 4th, several artists in the exhibition will be in Louisville creating their works, interacting with students and museum visitors, doing artist talks, and making performances. In collaboration with this exhibition, Carlos Gámez de Francisco will be in the Steve Wilson Gallery as artist-in-residence, working on his newest series of paintings. This exhibition was generously supported by the National Endowment for the Arts, Brown-Forman, D.D. Williamson, Fund for the Arts, the Kentucky Arts Council, and other donors who wish to remain anonymous. Thank you to Magasin 3, Stockholm, Coulson and Voges Collection, Bahamas, Alice Yard, Trinidad, University of Louisville Latin American and Latino Studies Program, and University of Kentucky for making this exhibition possible. Janine Antoni
Opening Reception The Alliance for Young Artists & Writers, a nonprofit organization dedicated to bringing outstanding visual art and writing created by teenagers to a national audience, has launched the 2012 Scholastic Art Awards and will be on exhibit at the Kentucky Museum of Art and Craft, February 3rd – 25th, 2012. 179 student Gold Key award-winning works of art are on display in this gallery. The Awards offer early recognition for creative teenagers and art scholarship opportunities for graduating high school seniors. If a student receives a top Award (Gold Key) from the local Louisville Metropolitan Regional Art Awards, then he or she moves on to the national level. Known nationally as the oldest art contest in the United States, the annual awards competition began locally in early January, as students, grades 7-12, in the Louisville Metropolitan region submitted works of art in a wide array of categories, including painting, sculpture, fashion, design, digital art and photography. The entries, submitted to the Jefferson County Public Schools Arts and Humanities Specialist, were evaluated by a panel of local jurors comprised of artists, art educators and arts professionals. Entries were eligible from all public, private and parochial school in thirteen surrounding counties. Distinguished artists and writers who received an Art & Writing Award when they were in high school include Andy Warhol, Robert Redford, Sue Miller, Richard Avedon, Philip Pearlstein, Zac Posen, Joyce Carol Oates, Tom Otterness, Robert Indiana, Sylvia Plath, John Lithgow, and Joyce Maynard. Since Scholastic founded the program in 1923, more than 13 million of America’s most talented teens have participated in the Awards, and 2.5 million have been recognized through exhibition and publication and have shared in more than $25 million in cash awards and college scholarships. |
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