[Chronicle]

Oct. 12, 1995
Vol. 15, No. 3

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    Harlem museum retrospective at Smart Museum

    Paintings, mixed-media works and sculptures by renowned African-American artists will be on view at the Smart Museum of Art in the acclaimed retrospective exhibition "The Studio Museum in Harlem: Twenty-Five Years of African-American Art" from Thursday, Oct. 19, through Sunday, Dec. 10.

    The exhibition celebrates the 25th anniversary of the Studio Museum in Harlem, the premier fine-arts museum dedicated solely to the art of black America and the African diaspora, and it marks the first time a major portion of the museum's permanent collection has gone on tour. The exhibition features works by renowned artists Romare Bearden, Fred Brown, Herbert Gentry, Sam Gilliam, Richard Hunt, Kerry James Marshall, Valerie Maynard, Ed Clark, Betye Saar and William T. Williams.

    A series of related events will accompany the exhibition, including a free symposium, "Twenty-Five Years of African-American Art: Multiple Perspectives," at 1:30 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 21, at the DuSable Museum of African American History, 740 E. 56th Place. The panelists will include three artists represented in the exhibition -- Richard Hunt, Kerry James Marshall and William T. Williams -- as well as Valerie Mercer, curator of collections, Studio Museum in Harlem; Paul Rogers, Assistant Professor in Art; and Ramon Price, chief curator, DuSable Museum. The symposium is co-sponsored by the DuSable Museum.

    The exhibition's opening reception, which is also free and open to the public, will follow the symposium at 5 p.m. at the Smart Museum of Art.

    On Saturday, Nov. 11, a jazz concert featuring Chicago musicians Jimmy Ellis and Bethany Pickens will be held at 5:30 p.m. at the Smart Museum. The concert is co-sponsored by Mostly Music. Tickets are $15, $5 for Smart Museum Friends, Mostly Music members, students and seniors.

    Other special events include free guided tours of the exhibition at 1:30 p.m. on Sundays from Oct. 22 through Dec. 10 and free video screenings of Two Centuries of Black American Art, an award-winning film by Carlton Moss, at 12:15 p.m. on Fridays and at 1 and 3 p.m. on Saturdays and Sundays, from Oct. 20 through Dec. 10, at the Smart Museum.

    The "Studio Museum in Harlem: Twenty-Five Years of African-American Art" exhibition, catalog and national tour are made possible by grants from the Metropolitan Life Foundation and the Henry Luce Foundation Inc. The 56-page color catalog is available at the Smart Museum gift shop for $15. The exhibition is free and open to the public.