CLARK ART INSTITUTE CURATOR EXPLORES PICASSO’S COLLABORATIONS

Free lecture to be held at Albany Institute of History & Art

July 5, 2017

Williamstown, Massachusetts—Jay A. Clarke, curator of the exhibition Picasso: Encounters at the Clark Art Institute, presents the free lecture “Picasso and Creative Collaboration” at the Albany Institute of History & Art on Thursday, July 20 at 6 pm. The Albany Institute of History & Art is located at 125 Washington Avenue, Albany, New York.

Clarke investigates how Pablo Picasso’s (1881–1973) creative collaborations fueled and strengthened his art, challenging the notion of Picasso as an artist alone with his craft. She explores relationships between the artist and the printers who pulled the images off his copper plates, the publishers who commissioned and sold his prints, and the many muses who played important roles in the atmosphere of the studio or in the homes they shared.

An example of such collaboration is Picasso’s work in creating linoleum cuts with printer Hidalgo Arnéra (1922–2007). Finding the process of using different linoleum blocks for each color cumbersome, he collaborated with Arnéra to adopt a process known as the reduction linocut. In this process Picasso successively cut more and more away from one or two linoleum blocks. Arnéra printed proofs of each color for Picasso to approve, and the printer then created the final image.

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 daily, 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.

Press contact:
Clark Art Institute
413 458 0471
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