From the Mind’s Eye:
Nonrepresentational Art from the Collection
Adtran, Jurenko and Thurber Galleries
August 22 – October 31
Broadly speaking, a work of art falls into one of three categories – representational art, abstraction, and nonrepresentational art. Representational art is characterized by the attempt to replicate an object or scene from the real world as accurately as possible. Abstraction runs the gamut from recognizable but altered subjects to depictions that have almost no relationship to their original source. Nonrepresentational art can be seen as the antithesis of representational artwork in that it has absolutely no reference to the real world.
Our minds are geared to make sense of the world through the library of images that we carry with us. But some things just can’t be conveyed in a visual manner using the narrative vocabulary of images. Artists in the modern era began to explore new concepts of artmaking using color, shape, line, texture and space to express things which cannot be seen, including feelings, emotions or experiences.
From the Mind’s Eye features approximately 30 thoughtful yet intuitive artworks selected from the Museum’s extensive permanent collection. The works date from the latter half of the 20th century to the present, and convey a sensation or experience without the use of recognizable imagery. Some of these works express the simple desire to create for the sake of creation — and the beauty that results from that act—through mark making, patterning or even mathematical design. As you explore the galleries, try to open yourself up to what each artist may be attempting to communicate— from pressure and dread to joy and the infinite. There is no right or wrong interpretation!
The exhibition features 22 artists, including Richard Anuszkiewicz, Chryssa, John Chamberlain, Richard Diebenkorn, Sol Le Witt, Rocio Rodriguez and Richard Zoellner, among others. A number of works on display have not been on public view in over 25 years. From the Mind’s Eye: Nonrepresentational Art from the Collection will continue in the Adtran, Jurenko and Thurber galleries from August 22 – October 31, 2021.