Masterpieces Of African American Art Come To Museum Of Art – Deland

Historic works from Faith Ringgold, Romare Bearden, Jacob Lawrence, Purvis Young on View in 2019

DELAND, FL – December 21, 2018 – In January 2019, the Museum of Art – DeLand will be premiering a world-class exhibition comprised of two significant collections; African American Art: We Too Dream America, curated by Dorian Bergen, co-owner of the ACA Galleries in New York, and Purvis Young: Overtown’s Visual Poet, selected from the Museum’s permanent collection at its galleries located at 600 N. Woodland Blvd. in DeLand, Florida. “The works exhibited from these collections are not only interesting for those who appreciate art, but also are important to the history of our country. Although African Americans comprise 12.1 percent of the U.S. population they are creating some of the most notable and compelling art of our time. To take advantage in the surge of popularity, the Museum of Art – DeLand has organized in collaboration with the ACA Galleries, and its national network of collectors, a critically acclaimed exhibition featuring the art of the first generation of African American artists,” said George S. Bolge, Museum of Art – DeLand CEO.

African American Art: We Too Dream America highlights the Harlem Renaissance and the relationship between the visual arts and the social and racial issues of this era. It marked a period of time when a sense of black identity, pride and self-determination changed the way African Americans thought about themselves and their cultural and intellectual contributions to American society. Many of the featured artists in this exhibition were instrumental in launching the civil rights movement of the 1960s in the United States.

Pam Coffman, Museum of Art- DeLand curator of education, explains in her essay on the exhibition, “Historically the Harlem Renaissance denotes the period from the end of World War I in the early 1920s through the middle of the Great Depression in the 1930s. It is difficult to assign an exact date because the factors that brought it to fruition had been brewing for decades. Although ‘renaissance’ refers to a rebirth or renewal, the Harlem Renaissance was the birth, rather than the rebirth of a cultural, social, political and urban revolution.”

African American Art: We Too Dream America is comprised of an extensive collection of works by artists that include Faith Ringgold, Romare Bearden, Henry Ossawa Tanner and Jacob Lawrence. According to Bolge, “These artists along with their contemporaries vividly capture the spirit of the time and contributed to a new African American aesthetic and artistic vision. African American artists, like their brethren, are concerned with man and his family. The deepest religious art is concerned with the purpose of the inner nature of man. It is because of this intimate connection between mankind and the expression of the artist that all the many things in this exhibition have a common linkage – to underline the universality of the human mind at the depth from which the artist draws his inspiration.”Bolge continues, “The hope of sponsoring this exhibition, of course, is that such an effort will ensure that future generations will study a much broader, more inclusive, and richer art history than their predecessors.”

Purvis Young, who is one of the world’s most widely-recognized outsider artists, created his art in the economically depressed Overtown section of Miami, which became known as the “Harlem of the South”. Young famously used every surface available to him including cardboard and scraps of carpet to create his works. The Purvis Young exhibition features art as protest that addresses power, alienation, ignorance and oppression.

The presentation of major examples by such recognized luminaries will open to the general public on January 20, 2019 and continue through March 17, 2019 before going on tour, according to Bolge. A researched catalog with accompanying curriculum guide will be published for this occasion. “The timing of the opening of this show is critical for supplementing our public school curriculum, since it will be on view for Martin Luther King’s birthday observance and also during Black History Month,” said Bolge. Inspired by the theme of the exhibition, the Museum and its presenting partner, Main Street Bank, will be holding a fundraiser gala benefiting the Museum’s exhibition and educational programming, which will offer event goers an exclusive first-look at the exhibition. You can dress to the nines in formal attire of the 1920s, 30s or 40s and enjoy Jazz-age standards played by Paul DeRitter Quintet. Guests will be transported back to a special time in American history as they enjoy supper club hors d’oeuvres and offerings from the prohibition bar by The Table Restaurant. The event will to be held from 7 to 10 p.m., Saturday, January 19, 2019 at 600 N. Woodland Blvd. There are many more sponsorship opportunities still available. Tickets for the gala are $50 per person and can be purchased at www. MoArtDeLand.org or by calling the Museum at 386 734-4371.

Before the exhibition opens to the general public, an Opening Reception will be hosted by the Museum from 1 to 4 p.m., Sunday, January 20, 2019 at 600 N. Woodland Blvd. in DeLand. This special event offers members and guests a chance to see the current show and to partake of refreshments and the fellowship with other art enthusiasts. There is no cost for Museum Members to attend the reception; Non-member cost is $20. On MLK Day, January 21, 2019, the Museum will be open from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. and admission will be free.

The exhibition will be open to the general public January 20, 2019 to March 17, 2019. Beginning, Tuesday, January 22, 2019, the cost of admission for to see this special exhibition will be $10 and also includes admission to the Downtown Galleries located at 100 N. Woodland Blvd. Special group rates are available Tuesday through Friday. Children under 12 and Volusia County public school students receive free admission. All other students receive a discounted admission of $5. To book a group or for more information, call the museum at 386-734-4371 or visit www.MoArtDeland.org.

About the Museum of Art – DeLand

The Museum of Art – DeLand is a vital and interactive visual arts museum dedicated to the collection, preservation, display and educational use of the fine arts in Central Florida. Established in 1951, the Museum is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization, and is comprised of a 23,000 square foot arts facility housing five galleries on two levels located at 600 N. Woodland Blvd. and the Downtown Galleries located at 100 N. Woodland Blvd. Enriching the community through its permanent collection, art exhibitions and educational programs, the Museum is a source of cultural focus and is recognized statewide by its peers for academic excellence and community outreach. The Museum is supported by its Guild, Krewe Nouveau, grants, admissions, generous patrons and donors, and Museum Store adjacent to its galleries in downtown DeLand. To learn more about the Museum, its programming exhibits and opportunities to engage with the Arts visit us at www.MoArtDeLand.org or on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

For more information contact:
Donna Tinoco, APR
Tinoco@MoArtDeLand.org
386-734-4371