Description

New Directions ’17 Exhibition Showcases
Contemporary Art in Historic Setting
 
[Poughkeepsie, NY] Barrett Art Center will open New Directions ’17, its 33^rd annual national juried exhibition of contemporary art Saturday, October 7 with an opening reception from 3 to 6pm in its historic galleries in the City of Poughkeepsie. Chosen from over 730 submissions from across the country, New Directions ’17 features 60 oil and acrylic paintings, sculpture, photography, pen & ink drawings, prints, fiber arts, and mixed media assemblages. The juror’s prize of $1,000 will be announced at the opening reception.
 
New Directions ’17 juror, Ruth Erickson, is the Mannion Family Curator at the Institute of Contemporary Art Boston, and was formerly at the Centre Georges Pompidou in Paris, France as a Fulbright Fellow. Erickson says she was drawn to work with the Barrett Art Center on New Directions ‘17 because juried national art exhibitions are “a rare democratic form in the contemporary art world,...like journeys across the country.”
 
The exhibition showcases the work of 44 artists from 16 states, including Hudson Valley painter Kevin Frank (Kingston), photographer Elizabeth Panzer (New Paltz), and sculptor Chris Papa (New Paltz).
 
Papa’s 4-foot tall sculpture, “New Paltz, NY: December 2016 – July 2017” is constructed of over 100 everyday objects including a badminton birdie, furnace filter, matches, a tail light piece and a piece of an old sweater. Papa notes that his art is directly inspired by and, constructed from, his community: “I collect from places I have lived, from within homes and yards, from roadsides and waterways, and along routes I have walked.”  
 
Texan artist Alejandro Macias is also inspired by his community, specifically the natural division represented by the Rio Grande River at the US/Mexico border. Macias says his work describes his own feeling of being divided by the border, “but also composed of it.”
 
An opening reception for both exhibitions will be held on Saturday, October 7, from 3:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. Juror’s awards will be announced at 5:00 p.m. followed by a tour through the galleries with participating artists. The reception is free and open to the public.  The list of prize winners will be posted on Barrett Art Center’s website after the opening reception at www.barrettartcenter.org.  The exhibitions will be on view through November 4 at the Barrett Art Center at 55 Noxon Street in Poughkeepsie, New York.

Opening Reception: Saturday, October 7, 2017, 3:00- 6:00 p.m.
 
Artists’ Talks:             Saturday, October 21, 3:00 – 4:00 p.m. 

On View:                    October 7 – November 4, 2017

Gallery Hours:           Wednesday - Friday, 10:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m. and Saturdays, noon – 3:00 p.m.

Closed Sunday - Tuesday 
 
Related Event:
Artist’s Talks
New Directions ’17 artists Jason Isolini (Lake Peekskill & Brooklyn) and Elizabeth Panzer (New Paltz) will give illustrated artist’s talks moderated by Monica Church, Associate Director, James W. Palmer ’90 Gallery, Vassar College on Saturday, October 21, 3-4:00.  The event is free and open to the public.