First of Three New Exhibits Opens at the Addison Saturday

On Jan. 14, the Addison Gallery of American Art, located on the campus of in Andover, Mass., welcomes the first of three new exhibitions. Open Windows: Keltie Ferris, Jackie Saccoccio, Billy Sullivan, and Alexi Worth kicks off an exciting winter season, followed by John Marin: Modernism at Midcentury and Land, Sea and Sky: Contemporary Art in Maine on Jan. 28.

In celebration of the new season, the Addison is holding an opening reception on Friday, Jan. 27, from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. at the museum, free and open to the public. For additional information, please visit addisongallery.org or call 978-749-4015.

“This season’s line up of exhibitions are all of note – in particular, we are thrilled to welcome the John Marin exhibition to the Addison following its successful run at the Portland Museum of Art and the Amon Carter Museum of American Art in Fort Worth,” said Brian T. Allen, the Mary Stripp & R. Crosby Kemper Director of the Addison. “As is often the case with Addison exhibitions of well-known artists, this show has a unique aspect: it is the first to focus on the late phase of Marin’s work, in its evolution from 1933 until his death in 1953. As curator Debra Bricker Balken notes in her catalogue, Marin’s work during this 20-year period foreshadows aspects of Abstract Expressionism. It was this work that led him to be considered a harbinger of one of the most prominent movements in American art.”

Exhibitions arriving at the Addison this month are:

Jan. 14 – April 8: Open Windows: Keltie Ferris, Jackie Saccoccio, Billy Sullivan, and Alexi Worth

Guest-curated by artist Carroll Dunham, this exhibition presents the work of four contemporary American painters: Keltie Ferris, Jackie Saccoccio, Billy Sullivan, and Alexi Worth. Representing distinct and varied approaches to painting from abstraction to realism, these artists’ works will be set in counterpoint to modernist paintings chosen by Dunham from the Addison’s permanent collection. By juxtaposing new and recent paintings by the four artists with historic works ranging in date from the 1930s to early 1960s by artists such as Franz Kline, Irene Rice Pereira, John Graham, and Reginald Marsh, to name a few, Open Windows reveals sometimes surprising affinities, influences, and contrasts among and between the twenty-first-century works and mid-twentieth-century paintings, opening windows on new possibilities and fresh ways of seeing.

Jan. 28-April 1: John Marin: Modernism at Midcentury

Co-organized by the Addison and the Portland Museum of Art, Maine, and guest curated by Debra Bricker Balken, John Marin: Modernism at Midcentury brings together nearly 60 paintings in oil and watercolor from the 1930s through 1953 that draw their inspiration from the coast of Maine and the architecture of Manhattan. Recognized as one of America's foremost watercolorists since his early work was first championed by Alfred Stieglitz, John Marin (1870 – 1953) also took up oil painting during the last two decades of his career after a long hiatus. This re-engagement with oil was liberating, eventually yielding a more fluid, linear, and calligraphic style in his work in both media. Marin’s dynamic, evocative abstractions from this period were noted for their invention, singularity, and authority, and forecast aspects of Abstract Expressionism. More than half a century later, Marin’s work from his late phase emerges as his most daring, adventuresome period. This exhibition is accompanied by an extraordinary illustrated catalogue authored by Balken and published by Yale University Press.

Jan. 28 – March 18: Land, Sea, and Sky: Contemporary Art in Maine

Complementing John Marin: Modernism at Midcentury and curated by Brian T. Allen, the Addison’s Mary Stripp and R. Crosby Kemper Director, Land, Sea, and Sky: Contemporary Art in Maine features works by nine contemporary landscape painters: Dozier Bell, Katherine Bradford, Alan Bray, Terry Hilt, Michael Lewis, Dennis Pinette, Vivien Russe, Susan Shatter, and Robert Solotaire. As the two exhibitions attest, Maine’s rugged coast and rocky topography has long been a fertile source of artistic inspiration. In addition to Marin, Maine has historically attracted a large and varied group of artists among them, Frederic Church, Winslow Homer, George Bellows, Rockwell Kent, William and Marguerite Zorach, Georgia O’Keeffe, and Andrew Wyeth. Representing a similarly diverse range of artistic styles and approaches, the nine contemporary artists included in Land, Sea, and Sky continue this tradition and confirm Maine’s enduring role as artistic muse for artists.

In addition to the January 27 opening reception, there are number of upcoming events linked to the Addison’s winter exhibitions, including:

Wednesday, January 25, 6:30 pm

• GALLERY CONCERT of experimental music for voice, harpsichord, and handmade electronics by Lesley Flanigan and Tristan Perich.

Saturday, January 28, 2:00 pm

• GALLERY TALK for Open Windows: Keltie Ferris, Jackie Saccoccio, Billy Sullivan, and Alexi Worth with guest curator Carroll Dunham and the exhibiting artists.

Sunday, February12, 2:00 pm

• GALLERY TALK for John Marin: Modernism at Midcentury with guest curator Debra Bricker Balken.

The Addison Gallery of American Art, Phillips Academy, Andover, Mass., is open to the public from Tuesday through Saturday, 10 a.m. – 5 p.m., Sunday 1 – 5 p.m. The Gallery is closed on Monday. Admission to all exhibitions and events is free. The Addison Gallery also offers free education programs for teachers and groups. For more information, call 978-749-4015, or visit the website at www.addisongallery.org