Exhibit explores the relationship between the artist and the subject.
[caption id="attachment_14643" align="alignnone" width="492" caption="The Generals of the Daughters of the American Revolution, DAR Convention, Mayflower Hotel, Washington, DC, October 15, 1963, Richard Avedon."]
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By Courtney M. Holbrook
For years, the Parrish Art Museum has stood as a testament to the energy of the art world on the East End. Over the past three years, the Parrish has hosted three special exhibitions featuring work gathered from their institutional collection. Now, the Parrish will present the “American Portraits” exhibition from Sunday, October 16 to Sunday, November 27. The exhibit will showcase the Parrish’s unique collection of artwork celebrating portraiture.
“This is a great way to display our permanent and beautiful portrait collection,” said Alicia B. Longwell, the curator of “American Portraits.” “It’s also sort of a warm up for future events — when we’ll be able to have these amazing works of art on display all the time.”
That extra delight adds weight to the exhibition; “American Portraits” is not just a display of art owned and framed — it’s a promise of things to come. Currently, the Parrish is in the process of moving to its new location in Water Mill, where the increased space will allow them to “create permanent, framed collections for the public,” according to Longwell.
Longwell insists the new, larger space will allow the Parrish to showcase more of their private collection, an addition necessary for an art-loving East End community.
In that spirit, Longwell is excited for this upcoming exhibition. “American Portraits” features works of portraiture and self-portraiture from American artists, stretching from the early 19th-century to the present day.
“In some ways, you can see the changes in portraiture through this [collection],” Longwell said. “There are certainly ongoing values, what you look for in the sitter and the artist, what’s revelatory about the work itself.”
Portraits often reflect the values of the artist, which in turn can reflect the values or arguments of the day. Looking at a portrait, one can examine the faces of those long gone, and portray the peculiarities of an age.
“Portrait of Mrs. Manice,” an oil on canvas by the artist William Sidney Mount, dates to 1833. It is the earliest piece in the collection. Longwell notes it is “emblematic of portraits in America at that time.” The painting shows an almost solemn woman in a black dress and blue bonnet. What strikes the viewer is the richness of the colors and structure — one wants to reach out and touch the sharp edge of her cheekbone.
In direct contrast, Chuck Close’s 1998 painting, “John,” a 126-color silkscreen, appears almost out of focus. According to Longwell, Close reveals a “radically different style” from the 19th-century Mount. Yet, despite the hazy image, the eyes of the sitter still pierce through the blur.
“When you see a portrait, you know the artist was attracted to this sitter for a reason,” Longwell said. “And we, as real people, we learn something about both of them, about I guess what you would call their point of view, and we’re drawn to that sense of real character.”
The collection also includes self-portraits, which can present an alternate question to the viewer — what happens when the artist and the sitter are one and the same? According to Longwell, the process of examination remains.
“Self-portraiture is an interesting sub-category, but it’s still the same idea,” Longwell said. “Great artists often use models, and it’s the same whether it’s for a self-portrait or a portrait with an outside sitter. Rembrandt always had a model — or he had a mirror.”
In a way, portraiture places a mirror to the artist, the sitter and the audience. Whether it’s a personal reflection of how the artist sees him or herself, or a societal reaction to the status of the figures in the painting, portraiture sets a subject on a pedestal, and encourages the audience to take notice. In certain instances, this “setting up” of the sitter may contain a “touch of irony; how many of us are truthful about ourselves or even what we see? It can be idealized, it can be humorous … it can even draw out the anxiety of our time,” according to Longwell.
Longwell hopes this exhibition will allow excited attendees to experience the power of portraiture, and, perhaps, find an artist they have never seen before. Other artists in the collection include William Merritt Chase, Richard Avedon, Fairfield Porter, Alex Katz, Dawoud Bey, Tina Barney and Elizabeth Peyton.
At the opening reception on Friday, October 15, guests will be able to watch a documentary about the creation of “American Portraits.”
“We’ve found that it’s just as interesting to people to see how everything comes together as it is sometimes to see the art,” Longwell said. “That’s very important when it involves artists … it’s fascinating to watch them create and see how they work.”
The documentary will take the viewers into the storage rooms and archives of the Parrish. Viewers will watch as the curators choose, hang and organize, and the immense effort involved in any art exhibition.
In a way, the documentary and the exhibition itself serve to prove that the fascination for art continues today. And with the opening of “American Portraits,” the new location for the Parrish and the enthusiasm for a behind-the-scenes look at the art world, artistic life on the East End remains strong as ever.
“Portraits show that certain sitters and subjects are worthy of our ongoing scrutiny and appreciation … We, as appreciators of art, are drawn to what the artist saw in their subject, and we’re drawn to the art itself. That’s something that I think will continue for a long time.”
