OPENING LECTURE FOR “AN INNER WORLD” SCHEDULED AT CLARK ART INSTITUTE
February 22, 2017
Williamstown, Massachusetts—“Embracing an Inner World,” the opening lecture for the Clark Art Institute’s special exhibition An Inner World: Seventeenth-Century Dutch Genre Painting, will be held Sunday, March 5 at 3 pm in the auditorium. Exhibition curator Lara Yeager-Crasselt explores the innovations in genre painting that emerged in the seventeenth-century Dutch Republic.
Focusing on the significant developments in subject matter and technique pioneered by the fijnschilder (fine painter) Gerrit Dou and his contemporaries, the lecture considers artists' interests in representing aspects of an inner world. By discussing the work of artists like Dou, Gabriel Metsu, Domenicus van Tol, and others, this discussion also sheds light on the broader taste for collecting genre painting in this period.
An Inner World features seven exceptional genre paintings by Dutch artists working in or near the city of Leiden in the seventeenth century. Genre paintings, or scenes that take everyday life as their subject matter, flourished in the Dutch Republic in this period. Explored through the theme of an inner world, the works in this focused exhibition represent figures in interior spaces and individuals in moments of study, contemplation, and quiet exchange.
An Inner World is supported as part of the Dutch Culture USA program by the Consulate General of the Netherlands in New York.
ABOUT THE CLARK
The Clark Art Institute, located in the Berkshires of western Massachusetts, is one of a small number of institutions globally that is both an art museum and a center for research, critical discussion, and higher education in the visual arts. Opened in 1955, the Clark houses exceptional European and American paintings and sculpture, extensive collections of master prints and drawings, English silver, and early photography. Acting as convener through its Research and Academic Program, the Clark gathers an international community of scholars to participate in a lively program of conferences, colloquia, and workshops on topics of vital importance to the visual arts. The Clark library, consisting of more than 270,000 volumes, is one of the nation’s premier art history libraries. The Clark also houses and co-sponsors the Williams College Graduate Program in the History of Art.
The Clark is located at 225 South Street in Williamstown, Massachusetts. Galleries are open Tuesday through Sunday, 10 am to 5 pm. Admission is $20; free year-round for Clark members, children 18 and younger, and students with valid ID. For more information, visit clarkart.edu or call 413 458 2303.
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