Virtual Art Talk Series with Janet Mandel
Join us on Zoom for a series of art talks by Janet Mandel. Janet Mandel taught in New Jersey’s public schools for 32 years, where she taught English, art history, World Languages and Cultures. Now retired, Janet presents illustrated talks on a variety of art history topics at adult schools, libraries, museums, senior centers, community centers, and similar venues.
6 pm Wednesday January 18th: Suzanne Valadon
Suzanne Valadon was the illegitimate daughter of a sewing maid whose formal education ended at age eleven. She worked as a circus acrobat and artists’ model and gleaned what she could about painting by watching and listening to the men who put her image on canvas. Toulouse-Lautrec and Degas were her most important artistic influences. Under their tutelage she began to paint and created powerful, unconventional images, principally of women. Although mostly unknown today, she is regarded by scholars as an important chronicler of women’s experiences. Her paintings remain fresh and modern, cementing her legacy as a significant figure in the history of art.
6 pm Tuesday February 7th: Florine Stettheimer
One of New York’s most unconventional painters, Florine Stettheimer was a keen and opinionated observer of the people and rapidly changing world around her. Her famous salon, attended by New York’s avant-garde during the 1920s through the early ’40s, was legendary. She prophetically chose to portray subjects considered controversial even today, such as race, sexual orientation, gender, and religion. Come and hear about the unique life of this German-Jewish artist and see some of her most celebrated works. It is time to recognize Florine Stettheimer as one of the most significant artists of the 20th century, whose work remains as modern and relevant today as it was a century ago.
6 pm Wednesday March 22nd: Augusta Savage
Augusta Savage overcame poverty, racism, and gender discrimination to become a luminary of the Harlem Renaissance. Her sculptures celebrated African American culture, and her work as an arts educator and political activist catalyzed social change. This talk will explore Savage’s lasting legacy by examining her remarkable life and affecting works, as well as those of the younger artists she inspired.
6 pm Wednesday April 19th: Ruth Asawa
American sculptor, educator, and arts activist Ruth Asawa is known for her extensive body of work including paintings, printmaking, public commissions, and especially her wire sculptures that challenge conventional notions of material and form. A firm believer in the radical potential of arts education, she also devoted herself to expanding access to art-focused educational programs by co-founding the Alvarado Arts Workshop in 1968 and the first public arts high school in San Francisco in 1982. Come and hear about this pioneering and inspirational artist.
This series is brought to you by the Chilmark and Vineyard Haven libraries. Please contact vhpl_programs@clamsnet.org for the Zoom link.
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