PAST EXHIBITIONS

Spring / Summer 2006

Highlights from Private Collections in Niagara County May 5 - October 8, 2006

Opening reception with curator’s talk: First Friday, May 5, 5:00 - 8:00 p.m.

The role of the private collector is paramount to the integrity of the creative process. As they are free to acquire artworks boldly, unbound by potential constraints a museum might have, collectors can support visual artists who might be working more progressively, outside current trends. Collectors come from all walks of life and have backgrounds as diverse as their holdings, taking pleasure in living with these works in their own environments and, on occasion, donating to the entire community by entrusting them to the permanent collections of museums around the world. The Castellani Art Museum stands as an exemplary monument to the enthusiasm, curiosity, and generosity of such individuals, especially that of our founders Armand and Eleanor Castellani. The Castellani Art Museum is proud to present Niagara Collects, an impressive collection of recognized artists from private collections across Niagara County. Works by Mary Cassatt, Dale Chihuly, Salvador Dali, Lucian Freud, Peter Max, Robert Motherwell, Kenny Scharf, and Satoshi Yabauuchi, among others, will be on display through October 8.

TopSpin  A SERIES OF SOLO EXHIBITIONS FOR REGIONAL ARTISTS

According to Ani Hoover, her new series "is painted using only water-based media on a slick, plastic-like paper. The paint moves and slides across the surface," she says, "depending on how the paper is positioned. In some places, I have rubbed the paintings down to the white of the paper, and, in other places, I allow the paint to pool across the surface. The word ‘flow’ refers not only to the fluid nature of the paint, but also to the painting process. I think of ‘flow’ as being movement, a stream of consciousness or continuous breath."

Ani Hoover, Grey Shadow, 2006, watercolor and ink on yupo paper

Click here for the Ani Hoover Brochure

Issues in Contemporary Art: Class Exhibition May 19 - August 27 Selections from the permanent collection by NU students Students from this spring’s Issues in Contemporary Art class had the opportunity to learn first-hand how to curate an art exhibition. Working with the museum’s curators and education coordinator, they researched and selected artworks, wrote interpretive wall texts, and created interactive materials to accompany the exhibition.

May 15 - August 25, 2006

This selection of quilts celebrates four interrelated themes in African-American quilting: tradition, improvisation, community history, and personal expression. Ranging in style from boldly geometric strip quilts to carefully appliquéd naturalistic patterns, the quilts represent the best work of quilters from "The Sweet Seniors," who meet at the Niagara Falls Housing Authority, and the quilting class at St. Phillips Church in Buffalo, New York.

Quilt Workshop with Vernell Addison: String Block

June 11, 2:00 - 5:00 p.m.

Learn a great technique for using up your fabric scraps! String blocks can be color-coordinated but traditionally are made from strips of fabric in whatever colors are "at hand." Spontaneous combinations of different colors and textures result in vivid abstract patterns. Instructor Vernell Addison learned this technique as a young girl growing up in Union Springs, Alabama. "During the 1930s and ’40s," she says, "women made quilts from whatever they could get their hands on, including overalls and flour sacks." $10 members; $15 non-members. Ages 10 and