In my last posting I mentioned that I would be returning to view the shows at the Albany Institute of History and Art (www.albanyinstitute.org) after having had a quick glimpse of them during 1st Friday — I did return the following Sunday, happily plunked down $10, and saw two very fine exhibitions.
Marcia Clark, whose third-floor show “In Search of Ice” features paintings and collages, many with maps applied, goes to extreme-climate places to paint icy landscapes, and she does it very well. The work is fresh, skillfully assembled and provides a valuable counterpoint to “Impressionist Giverny,” the ’tute’s bigger draw in the main galleries below it.
Clark is not a young woman, which makes it all the more impressive that she paints outdoors in places above the Arctic Circle, but she clearly has the energy to pursue what is an almost evangelical zeal for showing us what we are likely never going to see for ourselves. And she’s worth quoting: “I find myself, like the naturalist John Muir and many others today, traveling to the ends of the earth, and I bear witness as an artist.”
As for “Impressionist Giverny,” if you haven’t already seen it, then what are you waiting for? The collection of paintings by Americans who spent time at Claude Monet’s retreat between 1885 and 1915, on loan from Chicago’s Terra Foundation through Jan. 4, is a sumptuous lesson in art history and a delight to the eye. One visitor to the gallery told me it was her third time back. So you know I’m not alone in recommending it.
The paintings in the show include names somewhat obscure (such as Lilla Cabot Perry) and somewhat famous (Frederick Carl Frieseke), most of them being in a recognizable Impressionist style but some being more classical or, in a few cases, more progressive. The signature piece of the exhibition, used in all the publicity, is actually 12 paintings made in a series by John Leslie Breck. As a whole, they are stunning, representing the changing light throughout an entire day in a field of haystacks. Individually, they read (and are described) as studies, but that’s part of what makes them a fascinating experience to spend time with.
Other highlights of the show include Frieseke’s stripey 1912 piece “Lady in a Garden” and works by the Giverny colony’s American founder, Theodore Earl Butler, who married two of Monet’s stepdaughters and painted in a garish manner that verges on the psychedelic. Perhaps most impressive is a small, tightly painted image of a hillside by Guy Rose, who is also in the show of California Impressionism now at the Hyde Collection, where he is represented by several equally strong pieces.
(To read Gazette reporter Wendy Liberatore’s feature story about “Impressionist Giverny” and see a beautiful photo gallery, click HERE.)
Lastly, another facet of the Institute’s current offerings is the Holiday Shop, where they have been inspired by the Giverny show to offer French herbal sachets, milled soaps and Provençal fabrics, along with a whole lot of other great stuff from books to jewelry to tree ornaments. It’s a nice opportunity to pick up gifts while supporting the museum, which I don’t need to tell you is hurting in these times.
