From Russia with Love
Memorial Modeling, an installation exhibit, was made possible with support from AU’s Initiative for Russian Culture. Artists Peter Belyi and Petr Shvetsov, two of the most important and original artists working in Russia today, encountered the collapse of the Soviet empire in their youth. As a result, they acquired a certain unifying view where they are suspicious of any new doctrine, instinctively sensing its instability and ephemerality. On display through Oct. 19.
Celebrating Marcel Duchamp
Readymade@100 is a juried exhibition of submissions by contemporary artists of “new” readymades that significantly expand upon Duchamp’s original idea. The exhibition will be juried by Corcoran College of Art and Design Professor Mark Cameron Boyd. Readymades are ordinary, constructed items modified slightly, or joined with another item. Duchamp started the concept with his choice of commercially available objects for exhibit, such as “Bottle Rack” and his infamous “Fountain” urinal. It was Duchamp’s location of these objects within the “art context” that began a century of debate about the definitions of art and established his influence on contemporary art. On display through Oct. 19.
Cuba Libre?
Bridging the Past, Present, and Future: Recent Works by Sandra Ramos showcases prints, video, collage, and installations by Cuban artist Sandra Ramos. Ramos reflects on the conflicting experiences of living in her beloved homeland with all of its many challenges. Viewers will be given a look at Cuban life today and some aspects of the impact and interaction of that country with the United States as seen through the sensitive eyes of one of its top creators.On display through Oct. 19.
Dangerous and Intriguing
Steel Sculpture: Anxiety and Hope, a sculpture exhibition by Sam Noto, is both serious and playful. In his large steel constructions, largely made of found materials, Noto allows his materials to generate form and occupy space in a dynamic way. Noto creates pieces of welded steel that are sometimes literally dangerous as well as formally intriguing. On display through March 15, 2015.
Photography by Washington Artists
Some Uses of Photography: Four Washington Artists continues AU Museum’s fine tradition of showcasing Washington artists. The work of four artists – Jenn De Palma, Ding Ren, Siobhan Rigg, and Sandra Rottman—represents an ongoing dialog about craft, authenticity, the role of the artist, and other concerns that embody today’s definition of photography. The exhibition curator Phyllis Rosenzweig was formerly curator of the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden. On display through Dec. 14.
Surrealist Art from the Estate Art of H. Marc Moyens
Estate Art of H. Marc Moyens is an exhibition and auction of 34 items specially selected from the estate of the late gallerist H. Marc Moyens. Moyens and his partner, Komei Wachi, ran a gallery that bucked trends. When pieces of their collection exhibited at Corcoran Gallery of Art in 1969, one reviewer described the show as “creepy and menacing.” It was not until 2006 that items from the collection were shown again at the AU Museum. By this time, the tone of critics had changed, and they embraced the provocative content. On display through the Sept. 20 Fall for the Arts and auction. Fall for the Arts is a fundraiser for the arts, and all proceeds benefit the arts at AU. Tickets are $25 and $10 for students and those under 18. For workshop schedules, online tickets, and auction information, visit the Fall for the Arts website here: http://www.american.edu/cas/fallforthearts/.
MUSEUM INFORMATION, HOURS, LOCATION:
The American University Museum is a three-story public museum and sculpture garden located within the university’s Katzen Arts Center. The region’s largest university facility for exhibiting art, the museum has a permanent collection that highlights the donors’ holdings and AU’s Watkins Collection and Rothfeld Collection. Rotating exhibitions emphasize regional, national, and international contemporary art. The Katzen Museum Store is open during museum hours plus one hour before select special events. Visitors may purchase books, catalogs, and prints related to past and current exhibitions, as well as fine crafts and other one-of-a-kind objects by predominantly local artisans.
The Katzen Arts Center, named for Washington-area benefactors Dr. and Mrs. Cyrus Katzen, brings all the visual and performing arts programs at AU into one space. Designed to foster interdisciplinary collaboration in the arts, the Katzen includes the museum, the Abramson Family Recital Hall, the Studio Theatre, a dance studio, an electronics studio, artists’ studios, rehearsal space, and classrooms.
The American University Museum at the Katzen Arts Center is open from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesday through Sunday. Admission is free.
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