Events
Works by acclaimed artist on display in Richland
BY RUTH RICE
RRICE@TRIBDEM.COM
Reality and illusion will merge in an exhibit by an internationally acclaimed artist.
“Colleen Browning: Realist – Illusionist” will be on display through March 19 at Southern Alleghenies Museum of Art at Johnstown, Pasquerilla Performing Arts Center, Richland Township.
A larger version of this exhibit was on display this spring at the museum’s Loretto facility on the campus of St. Francis University.
“We’ll have 30 pieces here,” said Tina Lehman, Johnstown’s museum coordinator.
“That is about half of what was at Loretto. I pick them by the space I have.”
With almost 100 of Browning’s works in its permanent collection, Southern Alleghenies Museum of Art is one of the largest repositories of her work in the country.
Browning’s medium is primarily oil painting, but she is very expressive with it rather than putting on heavy layers, Lehman said.
“Her layers blend, they’re not heavy,” Lehman said.
“Oil painting is a long process. You don’t just paint a picture and you’re done.”
While the exhibit is scheduled to be up until March, it will take a hiatus beginning Thursday until Jan. 14 while building maintenance is completed.
“They’re going to be sanding and replastering,” Lehman said.
“That would not be good for the art or the patrons.”
The paintings will be kept in a safe, secure place while renovations are going on, then replaced when the work is ended.
Browning’s paintings at the Johnstown museum feature realism and portraiture alongside abstract works.
There is also a self-portrait, a landscape and a cityscape.
Some of Browning’s paintings are so clear they appear to be photographs from a distance, while others seem to glow with an inner light.
Born in Cregg, County Cork, Ireland, Browning arrived in the United States in 1949, becoming a leader in the modern and postmodern revivals of realism in American art.
“I paint different subjects, but I am always a realist and illusionist, if you prefer,” Browning is quoted as saying.
“I look for technique that will effectively present the character of the object or scene.
“I can make windows into a transformed world where the mundane becomes magical in an illuminated moment.”
One of the reasons Lehman brought the exhibit to Johnstown is because the museum plans to set up a traveling exhibition of Browning’s works at the end of next year that will tour the country.
“We want to use it for awhile,” Lehman said.
“This is a good opportunity for people to come and see it. This is just a snippet of her work.”
After Browning died in 2003, her estate donated her work to the National Academy of Design in New York and Southern Alleghenies Museum of Art.
“I wish more people would do that for the arts,” Lehman said.
“It’s an exciting time for the museum. She’s a very interesting artist and a special lady. We’re glad to have her collection in our collection. It makes it special.”
A lunch a l’art will be held at 12:30 p.m. Feb. 12, with Lehman giving a tour of the exhibit.
The cost is $8, and reservations are required by Feb. 10.
Exhibition
What: “Colleen Browning: Realist – Illusionist.”
When: Through March 19.
Where: Southern Alleghenies Museum of Art at Johnstown, Pasquerilla Performing Arts Center, Richland Township.
Hours: 9:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Mondays through Fridays and one hour before arts center performances.
Information: 269-7234.
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