Landscapes by Jim Nawara at Muskegon Museum of Art

Wednesday, 10 October 2007 08:14

Muskegon, MI - The Muskegon Museum of Art will host an exhibition featuring landscapes by Detroit painter and printmaker, Jim Nawara. Following the reception, Nawara will talk about his work and give a slide presentation in the MMA’s auditorium. On exhibition October 19, 2007 to January 20, 2008.

Nawara has been part of the Detroit art scene for more than 35 years, and teaches art at Wayne State University. The exhibition will include more than 20 works spanning the artist’s prolific career. Opening Reception FRIDAY, October 19, 5:30–7:00 pm.

Jim Nawara is inspired by the landscape. The earliest paintings in the exhibition are “overviews” that present plausible, though imaginary, landscapes seen from an aerial viewpoint. Works from the late 1980s to the present are “afterlands”—ground-level observations of actual places in Michigan, Vermont, and Ohio, where pruned trees, mowed weeds, or remains of man-made objects, show the aftermath of human activity on natural surroundings. These often non-descript subjects are evocative and dreamlike. “Subject matter is simply a vehicle to express something intangible beyond itself,” says Nawara. “Ultimately the work is about imagination, memory and the process of painting.”

The MMA regularly exhibits artworks by contemporary regional, especially Michigan, artists whose vision enhances and challenges our view of the world. The MMA has organized Overviews and Afterlands: Landscapes by Jim Nawara to introduce this artist to West Michigan, thus continuing to nurture vital artistic endeavor in Michigan.

This exhibition is underwritten by the VanKampen Boyer Molinari Charitable Foundation.

The Muskegon Museum of Art is located at 296 W. Webster Ave., next to Hackley Public Library. General visitor information is available at 231/720-2570 or by visiting www.muskegonartmuseum.org.