The Delaware Art Museum presents "Out of the Commonplace ~ The Folk Art of Delaware"

Written by rubin Wednesday, 13 May 2009 00:40

Wilmington, DE - The Delaware Art Museum presents Out of the Commonplace:   The Folk Art of Delaware , featuring over 30 paintings, sculptures, quilts, and woodworks by Delaware artists, on view May 16, 2009 – August 16, 2009.   Part of the Museum’s Outlooks Exhibition Series, this exhibition was organized in collaboration with the Delaware Folk Art Collection, a program of Delaware State Parks. Folk artists bring their individual creativity to the routine and necessary objects of daily life.  Self-taught, they express the traditional and artistic values of their community.   Their craft is often passed down from one generation to the next, leaving a legacy for all to share.

Out of the Commonplace includes objects made for utilitarian purposes for work and home; works that celebrate history and life’s passages; and pieces that reflect deeply held beliefs, from spiritual to political.   Among the works are a painting of the American flag made from fence pieces, a sculpture made of farm implements, and a variety of duck decoys.

“When we are close to home, we often overlook what is in out midst — the extraordinary in the ordinary,” said Carol Balick, the Guest Curator for the exhibition.   For 27 years, she owned the Artisans III gallery in downtown Wilmington, which featured contemporary American craft as well as folk and tribal art from Africa, Latin America, and southeast Asia.  

Out of the Commonplace:   The Folk Art of Delaware serves to complement the exhibition Ancestry and Innovation:   African American Art from the American Folk Art Museum, on view at the Delaware Art Museum from May 9, 2009 – July 12, 2009.  

About the Outlooks Exhibition Series

The Delaware Art Museum’s Outlooks Exhibition Series encourages community involvement in the creation of exhibitions that will be hosted by the Museum.   The Delaware Art Museum accepts proposals for Outlooks exhibitions from organizations, community groups, and residents of our surrounding area, contributing to the Museum’s mission of providing an inclusive and essential community resource.   All Outlooks exhibitions are displayed in the Ammon Galleries on the Museum’s second floor.   For more information, please visit http://www.delart.org/exhibitions/outlooks/index.html

About the Delaware Art Museum

The Delaware Art Museum, located at 2301 Kentmere Parkway, Wilmington, DE 19806, is open Wednesday through Saturday 10:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m. and Sunday noon – 4:00 p.m.  Admission fees are charged as follows:   Adults (19 – 59) $12, Seniors (60+) $10, Students (with valid ID) $6, Youth (7 – 18) $6, and Children (6 and under) free.   Admission fees are waived every Sunday thanks to support from AstraZeneca.   For more information, call 302-571-9590 or 866-232-3714 (toll free), or visit the website at www.delart.org

Founded in 1912, the Delaware Art Museum is best known for its large collection of British Pre-Raphaelite art, works by Wilmington-native Howard Pyle and fellow American illustrators, and urban landscapes by John Sloan and his circle.   Visitors can also enjoy the outdoor Copeland Sculpture Garden and a number of major traveling exhibitions throughout the year.