Blue Day,1935-37, oil on canvas, Collection of Deborah and Edward Shein

Untitled (drawing for Vanguard), no date, ink on paper, Richard F. Brush Art Gallery Collection

9/27/12

Rockwell Kent Exhibition At St. Lawrence's Brush Gallery & ODY Library

CANTON - An exhibition called "Rockwell Kent: The Once Most Popular American Artist" will be in the Richard F. Brush Art Gallery and Owen D. Young Library at St. Lawrence University October 15
through December 14.

Exhibition curator Scott Ferris, author of two books about Kent and his work, will speak on Monday, October 15, at 7 p.m., in Room 123 of the Griffiths Arts Center. A reception will follow the talk, which is open to the public, free of charge.

Kent (1882-1971) resided most of his adult life at Asgaard Farm in the Adirondacks. He was one of the most noted figures of his time, so much so that The New Yorker quipped, "That day will mark a precedent, which brings no news of Rockwell Kent."

Kent's prominence as an artist and author, cavalier adventurer and socio-political activist made him a media phenomenon. He became a household name through his paintings of the Adirondacks, Maine, Alaska and Greenland, as well as his illustrations for popular editions of Moby-Dick, The Complete Works of Shakespeare and Beowulf. Kent's activism also generated publicity, as he campaigned for civil rights and unions, and protested against fascism, Senator Joseph McCarthy and the Vietnam War.

The St. Lawrence exhibitions re-introduce key areas of Kent's multi-faceted career as a painter and printmaker. A select group of books emphasizes the artist's preeminence as one of the finest illustrators of his time, while original manuscripts epitomize his adventurous spirit and reveal why the public was so captivated by him. While socio-political posters and pamphlets in the exhibitions define Kent's ethos and compassion for the common man, prints and original drawings illustrate his ability to rework original imagery into commercial greeting cards, advertisements, seals and pottery.
>p? "Rockwell Kent: The Once Most Popular Artist" includes nearly 75 works in a variety of media, presented in part as the result of recent acquisitions by the University. In addition, paintings from Brown University and the Warner Library in Tarrytown, N.Y., will be on display, as well as a painted blanket chest from the Adirondack Museum in Blue Mountain Lake.

Ferris is the author of Rockwell Kent's Forgotten Landscapes and The View from Asgaard: Rockwell Kent's Adirondack Legacy.

For information or to arrange individual or group tours, contact the gallery at 315-229-5174.

The Richard F. Brush Art Gallery website

St. Lawrence University Libraries website