ROCKLAND — The Farnsworth Art Museum opened an exhibition in the museum’s Crosman gallery titled “Decorating the Everyday: Popular Art from the Farnsworth,” on Dec. 29, that will run through Sept. 22. This exhibition features furniture, paintings and textiles reflecting mainly 19th- and early 20th-century regional life in Maine and New England.
This exhibition celebrates the Farnsworth’s holdings of 19th- and 20th-century American folk art. There are paintings by the nationally renowned Grandma Moses and portraits attributed to Maine-born William Matthew Prior, whose patriotic subjects include George and Martha Washington.
Also on display is the recent Farnsworth acquisition, an early 19th-century tall case clock with wooden works by Connecticut clockmaker Riley Whiting, and a scrimshaw sperm whale tooth incised and inked by Seaman John G. Fish on a voyage between Boston and San Francisco in 1869. Carvings by Laban Smith Beecher and John Haley Bellamy include American eagles and other works by master and student, the latter who established his studio in Kittery. Other works illustrative of national pride include a portrait of Abraham Lincoln framed in a wreath of seashells, and a miniature replica of the U.S. Capitol by an unknown maker.
The Farnsworth Art Museum celebrates Maine’s ongoing role in American art. It offers a nationally recognized collection of works from many of America’s greatest artists, with 20,000 square feet of gallery space and more than 13,000 works in the collection. The Farnsworth has one of the largest public collections of works by sculptor Louise Nevelson, while its Wyeth Center features works of N.C., Andrew and Jamie Wyeth. Two historic sites, the Farnsworth Homestead and the Olson House, and Julia’s Gallery for Young Artists complete the museum complex.
For more information, visit www.farnsworthmuseum.org.
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