BY RUTH RICE
RRICE@TRIBDEM.COM
One museum is not enough to hold all the works of an Altoona artist.
“Shirley Goldfarb: The Later Years” will be on display Friday through Feb. 20 at Southern Alleghenies Museum of Art at Loretto, on the campus of St. Francis University.
At the same time, Goldfarb’s earlier works, spanning the first five years of her career, will be on display through Feb. 13 at Southern Alleghenies Museum of Art at Altoona.
“This was originally going to be at the Altoona museum only as a tribute to her,” said Bobby Moore, interim curator at the Loretto museum. “The paintings from her later years are very large and would not fit at Altoona.”
A majority of the 27 large-scale works were created between 1955 and 1979.
Moore said this is the first time a simultaneous exhibit by the same artist has been on display at any of the Southern Alleghenies museums.
While Goldfarb, who died in 1980, did most of her work in abstract expressionism, she moved from that genre and developed her own unmatched style.
“Her latest works use small, controlled strokes with a palette knife,” Moore said. “She described it as ‘slow, small walks across the canvas.’ ”
Goldfarb used bright, vivid, primary colors in some of her paintings, while others are all one color.
“The way she applies the paint gives her work dimension,” Moore said.
This is the first time Southern Alleghenies Museum of Art has displayed any work by Goldfarb, who is an internationally known artist.
“This exhibition is a homecoming for her,” Moore said.
“Her works are well-known, but little is known about her in her own hometown.”
The art for the two exhibits was provided by her son, Marc Masurovsky of Virginia.
At 25, Goldfarb left Altoona for New York City to pursue her love for all the arts and with hopes of becoming an actress.
After discovering a talent for art, she attended the Art Students League of New York and met her husband, Gregory Masurovsky.
On their first trip to Paris, Goldfarb fell in love with the city, and she and her husband decided to relocate there.
In addition to painting, Goldfarb also wrote journals while in Paris, which were published and later adapted into the one-woman play, “Shirley.”
Goldfarb was inducted into the Blair County Art Hall of Fame in 2007.
Receptions will be held Dec. 12 at both museums. Hours will be 5:30 to 7 p.m. at Loretto and 7:30 to 9 at Altoona.
The cost of the Loretto reception is $18, or $15 for members. The cost for the Altoona reception is $12, or $10 for members.
For $20, guests can attend both receptions.
Those who wish to attend either reception should make reservations by Dec. 9 by calling Altoona at 946-4464 or Loretto at 472-3920.
The Altoona museum also will hold a lunch a l’art program at noon Dec. 9 featuring Rebecca Cohen, who is writing a book on the life of Goldfarb.
The cost for the luncheon is $13, or $12 for members.
Exhibitions
What: “Shirley Goldfarb: The Later Years.”
Where: Southern Alleghenies Museum of Art at Loretto and Southern Alleghenies Museum of Art at Altoona.
When: Friday through Feb. 20 at Loretto; through Feb. 13 at Altoona.
Hours: 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesdays through Fridays and 1 to 5 p.m. Saturdays.
Information: 472-3920 (Loretto), 946-4464 (Altoona).
