Sheldon celebrates women artists' works in permanent collection galleries
Released on 03/18/2010, at 2:00 AM
Office of University Communications
University of Nebraska–Lincoln
WHEN: Friday, Apr. 2, 2010
WHERE: Sheldon Museum of Art, 12th and R streets
In a yearlong effort to recognize and celebrate women artists, the Sheldon Museum of Art at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln will present an all-women's exhibition titled "Better Half, Better Twelfth: Women Artists in the Collection."
The exhibition opens with a First Friday reception 5-7 p.m. April 2.
The phrase "Better Half" evokes an often unnamed title of a wife or lover while "Better Twelfth" refers to the current ratio of female to male artists represented in the Sheldon collection. The small number of works by female artists in the collection reflects the historical imbalance of authority between men and women in society.
Organized by Sharon L. Kennedy, curator of cultural and civic engagement, the exhibition features important women artists, some who have received scant attention in what has historically been a male-dominated art world. Women artists have gained recognition for their work only in the past few decades.
Among the artists included in the exhibition are: painters Mary Cassatt, Georgia O'Keeffe, Helen Frankenthaler and Lee Krasner; sculptors Bessie Potter Vonnoh and Elizabeth Catlett; printmakers Faith Ringgold and Pat Steir; and photographers Berenice Abbott, Diane Arbus and Cindy Sherman.
To present a timeline of women artists and their works, the permanent collection galleries will be organized by media and chronology. The first will be dedicated to pioneer women artists. Others will include works by abstract and representational painters, photographers, sculptors and printmakers.
Sheldon Museum of Art houses a permanent collection of more than 12,000 objects focusing primarily on American art. Sheldon, located at 12th and R streets on the UNL City Campus [map]), is open free to the public during regular hours. The museum's hours are: Tuesday, 10 a.m. to 8 p.m.; Wednesday through Saturday 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Sunday noon to 5 p.m.; closed Mondays. For information or to arrange a tour, call (402) 472-4524. Additional information is also available on the Sheldon Web site, www.sheldon.unl.edu.
Writer: Tom White