Colby-Sawyer College Presents
‘Working Women: 36 Contemporary Women Artists’
NEW LONDON, N.H. – The Fine and Performing Arts Department of Colby-Sawyer College presents “Working Women: 36 Contemporary Women Artists,” an exhibition of young artists and demonstrated masters and their diverse works in painting, drawing, printmaking, sculpture, photography, ceramics and graphic design.
An opening reception will be held at the Marian Graves Mugar Art Gallery in the Sawyer Fine Art Center from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. on Thursday, Sept. 17. The exhibition runs through Tuesday, Nov. 3. The opening reception and gallery exhibition are free and open to the public; the gallery is open weekdays from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
“Working Women” will feature 36 female artists from the Northeast and beyond.
Kate Clark of Brooklyn, N.Y., will display her anthropomorphic creations which critics have described as evoking awe in some and discomfort in others, all while asking the viewer to evaluate their relation to animals and nature. Her unique approach to sculpture and taxidermy has drawn acclaim and attention from National Geographic, Vice and The Wall Street Journal.
Sophia Ainslie, originally from South Africa and currently lecturing at Northeastern University, is a graduate of the Tufts University and Boston Museum of Fine Arts joint M.F.A. program. Ainslie draws and paints out of her Somerville, Mass., studio where she says she is inspired by, and experiments with, visual language. “Drawing becomes a tool where observation and imagination intersect,” she says, “resulting in a relationship of connections and disconnections between inside and outside, mark making against flat color, absence and presence.”
Vicky Tomayko of Truro, Mass., will display her one-of-a-kind prints that have been featured at exhibitions in New York, Melbourne, Venice and other cities around the globe. Tomayko has taught art at colleges, secondary schools and workshops throughout New England, and she manages the Provincetown Fine Arts Work Center’s print studio.
Professor of Studio Art at Dartmouth College Brenda Garand will exhibit sculptures investigating the language of abstraction using bright colors contrasted with greys and blacks. The Hartford, Vt., resident has received several honors, including a Fulbright Grant to France and a New Hampshire State Council on the Arts Individual Fellowship. Garand will be among several local and regional artists who attend the opening reception.
The creative force behind the exhibition, Mugar Gallery Director and Sonja C. Davidow ’56 Endowed Chair of Fine and Performing Arts Bert Yarborough, says the college’s commitment to education within a broad range of disciplines is the foundation for the exhibition. “This show will serve to deepen Colby-Sawyer’s commitment to bringing dynamic, relevant and influential art to our student body and the larger regional community,” says Professor Yarborough. “‘Working Women: 36 Contemporary Women Artists’ celebrates women in the art world as powerful agents of creativity and change.”
Professor Yarborough says the exhibition will offer powerful examples of creative work by female artists with a variety of backgrounds, ages, races and ethnicities. “These artists are also teachers, working professionals, mothers and activists–individuals fully engaged in the world,” he says. “The work on view provides questions and answers for all those willing to engage with the creative efforts of these artists.”
For more information about the exhibition, contact Professor Bert Yarborough at byarborough@colby-sawyer.edu or 526.3459.
A full list of featured artists can be found here.
- Aaron Records ’15
Aaron Records is a presidential fellow in the Office of College Communications at Colby-Sawyer College.
About Colby-Sawyer College
Colby-Sawyer College is a comprehensive college that integrates the liberal arts and sciences with professional preparation. The College's faculty, staff and students strive for excellence in an engaged teaching and learning community that fosters students' academic, intellectual, and personal growth. With a strong emphasis on learning outcomes, including breadth and depth of knowledge, self-growth, creative and critical thinking, and effective communication, Colby-Sawyer prepares students to thrive post-graduation and make a positive impact upon a dynamic, diverse, and interdependent world.
Founded in 1837, Colby-Sawyer is located in the scenic Lake Sunapee Region of central New Hampshire. Learn more about the College's vibrant teaching and learning community at www.colby-sawyer.edu.
