The Hunterdon Art Museum Presents Interpretations of "Deconstructing Nature"

Written by Sabrina Suzuki Wednesday, 05 October 2011 22:53

Clinton, New Jersey.- The Hunterdon Art Museum presents "Deconstructing Nature", works by Chris Ballantyne, Gregory Euclide, Kim Keever, Dean Monogenis and Voshardt & Humphrey, on view at the museum until January 29th 2012. Deconstructing Nature is a contemporary interpretation of the modern landscape. By examining the essential qualities of nature through an updated lens, new possibilities emerge. The contemporary landscape is less concerned with a strict portrayal of a beach or a mountain and more concerned with a narrative about nature, regardless of the format. Deconstructing Nature features five artists; all with unique points of view on what happens when nature is dissected in order to return it in a different form.

The artists in Deconstructing Nature share an interest in nature, but take distinct approaches to capturing it in their work. Chris Ballantyne fuses nature and suburban development in his paintings, finding unusual ways to make these two adversaries interact gracefully. Gregory Euclide uses landscape as a springboard to ethereal and delicate dioramas that befuddle the mind with their complexity. Kim Keever incorporates cotton, twigs, plaster, rocks and pigment to make environments that are submerged in water and then photographed, revealing fictitious landscapes never before seen. Dean Monogenis updates the traditional landscape by including architectural elements in his paintings that comment on the fast-paced need for urban growth, which often intersects with nature. The videos of Robyn Voshardt and Sven Humphrey provide a new commentary on environmentalism while questioning whether the pursuit of the sublime in nature is still able to elicit a visceral response. Sometimes the need to know how something works requires that it be taken apart and examined before putting it back together. When it comes to nature and specifically to the landscape in art, the artists in Deconstructing Nature have begun this process. With great deference to the phenomenon that is nature, these artists have reconstructed landscapes in ways that are visually more challenging, as well as more representative of what nature means to them. While their work varies in medium and context, it is linked by familiar content that is made new by the artists' singular perspectives. The artists in Deconstructing Nature have developed their own narratives that bring the viewer to a new place; a place they are unable to find in our natural world.


Founded in 1952 by a group of spirited local citizens, the Hunterdon Art Museum has evolved into the region's premier showcase of contemporary art and design. The museum's changing exhibitions feature the work of emerging and established artists, and showcase the museum's collection of works on paper. A vibrant education program includes studio classes, workshops, summer art camps, lectures, docent-led exhibition tours and other interpretive and outreach experiences. The Stone Mill, home to the Hunterdon Art Museum, was re-built after a fire in 1836 on the site of a flour mill that is said to have ground wheat for General Washington's revolutionary army during its encampment at Morristown, NJ. From 1836 until 1952, the grist mill was in nearly continuous operation. In 1952, it was put up for sale by the owner and miller, Joseph Kreidel, for $10,000. Even before the mill went on sale, James R. Marsh of Pittstown had conceived a plan to create an art center and national school for craftsmen in the old mill. Throughout its early years, the Art Center (as it was then known) strove to maintain the building's architectural integrity while making it a suitable space for the enjoyment of the visual and performing arts. On March 5, 1953, almost immediately after taking possession of the building, the first stage of renovations began: chutes and machinery were cleared from the first and second floors, cement floors were laid on the first floor and plans were made for more substantial repairs. The museum has grown since it first opened, appointing its first executive director in 1970, staging special exhibitions including solo shows of the works of Lenore Tawney (1970), Tetsuro Sawada (1971), Sergio Campos Mello (1971), Hedda Sterne (1973), and John Vickrey (1974). There were also intriguing group exhibitions-- among them an Invitational Sculpture exhibition that included Harry Bertoia, Jeanne Miles, Isamu Noguchi, and James Seawright. In 1972 Samuel Dorsky, an important dealer and philanthropist, donated a selection of twentieth century prints to the Art Center. These prints by such well-known artists as Salvador Dali, Red Grooms, Philip Guston, Louise Nevelson, Ad Reinhardt, and George Sugarman greatly enhanced the center's collection. The 1980's saw expansion in the Art Center's programming and sustained financial support. More classes were offered, educational outreach to the schools became a priority and in 1989, the Children's Art Festival was inaugurated. In 1997, the center was re-named the "Hunterdon Museum of Art."

The Hunterdon Art Museum faces the twenty-first century determined to continue to produce programs of excellence, to expand its educational mission, and to bring nationally and locally significant artists to the attention of our patrons and visitors. Since 1997, the state of New Jersey has renewed its financial support and encouragement and honored the museum three times with the Annual Governor's Invitational Tennis Tournament Award. This recognition of excellence is given to institutions in the state that provide "outstanding work in the community and the state of New Jersey." Recently the generous bequest of Helen Tomson created an endowment that will continue to grow in future years. They look ahead to a future of exhibitions that draw from local and national talent, exciting classes in a wide variety of media, greater educational outreach to area schools, and increased participation between the art museum and the community. The permanent collection of the Hunterdon Art Museum concentrates on works on paper. The growing collection emphasizes prints, but also includes drawings and paintings. Dating from the 1930s to the present, the collection consists of work by internationally recognized artists as well as artists from the region. Highlights include prints by Mark DiSuvero, Philip Guston, Alex Katz, and Ad Reinhardt. Purchase prizes from the Museum's Annual National Juried Print Exhibition make up the Anne Steele Marsh Collection, which is part of the permanent collection. Visit the museum's website at ... http://www.hunterdonartmuseum.org

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