Click image to enlarge…
This exhibition comprises a bold and exciting introduction to Modern and Contemporary art. Seven Bowdoin alumni and alumnae, representing classes from 1937 to 2000, are sharing works from their collections of recent art. Classic Pop Art by Warhol, Rosenquist, and Lichtenstein is included, as are African-American political statements by Betye Saar, Glenn Ligon, and Kara Walker; conceptual games by Vik Muniz and Raymond Pettibon, the strange Surrealism of Bontecou and Kusama, and the poignant storytelling of Kiki Smith. These collectors, in sharing their works, not only give us a glimpse of the contemporary art world and their aesthetic preferences, but also an understanding of the interaction of intellect, emotion and visual pleasure in collecting. The reasons for the selection of a particular artist’s work are intensely personal, as in the case of Alvin Hall’s collection of Raymond Pettibon’s works featuring the letter "A." The scarlet letter, a recurrent motif in Pettibon’s work, forms a significant connection not only to the collector’s years as a Bowdoin student and the College’s connection to Nathaniel Hawthorne, but also his undergraduate literature professor. These works have been collected, as have all works in this exhibition, in a manner that is a blending of the artist’s interests with those of the collector.
