DAYTON — The Dayton Art Institute’s upcoming exhibition will offer a unique perspective on the work of the popular folk artist, Grandma Moses.
“American Sampler: Grandma Moses and the Handicraft Tradition” is the first exhibition of its kind to focus on the formal relationships between the handicraft produced by Anna Mary Robertson Moses (1860–1961), better known as Grandma Moses, and her paintings, and to explore the concept of “sampling” from other sources that she employed in her work. The exhibit will be on view Nov. 21-Feb. 21.
Featuring approximately 50 works by Grandma Moses, including her paintings, embroideries, a quilt and other handmade ephemera, along with examples of embroidery from the 17th through 19th centuries, this exhibition presents a new frame through which to view one of America’s most beloved and iconic artists.
Grandma Moses was an accomplished seamstress who did not begin painting until she was 78, after arthritis made it difficult for her to embroider. In the remaining 23 years of her life, Grandma Moses became one of America’s most recognized and successful folk artists, drawing on the rich tradition of handiwork that played a major role in her life.
Moses also “sampled” from a variety of other media, including popular culture prints, such as Currier & Ives, as well as topographical and birds-eye-view landscapes, all of which served to inform her visual vocabulary.
The exhibition explores the relationship between Moses’s works and early examples of crewel work, crazy quilts and samplers to establish the tradition of handiwork and how its sense of pattern, form and space influenced Grandma Moses, as well as illustrating her innovative style. It also examines the impact her own embroidery had upon her painting.
“There was an amazing fluidity between her approach to the mediums of embroidery and painting, most visibly represented in a shared working style on her lap that compressed the perspective in her landscapes, and also in the mark-making — in stitch, and in paint — that she employed on both surfaces,” said Marcereau DeGalan, who curated the exhibit.
“American Sampler” includes works on loan from the Galerie St. Etienne in New York City, the Bennington Museum in Bennington, Vermont, and private collectors, as well as a recreation of Moses’s studio by Luken Interiors of Dayton.
“We’re excited to be able to close out our ‘Year of American Art’ with an exhibition organized by our own curatorial team,” said Dayton Art Institute Director and CEO Michael R. Roediger. “This is a one-of-a-kind exhibition that you won’t see anywhere else in the United States. The homespun art of Grandma Moses is perfect for the holiday season, and we encourage you to ‘make your holidays a masterpiece’ at the Dayton Art Institute.”
A companion focus exhibition, Visions and Dreams: Threaded Works by Mary Borkowski, showcases examples of handiwork by nationally recognized folk artist Mary Borkowksi (1916–2008), who was born in Sulphur Lick Springs, Ohio, and spent much of her life in Dayton. Visions and Dreams opened in October and is on view in the South Gallery of the museum’s lower level through February 28.
Admission to “American Sampler” is free for museum members; $14 adults; $11 seniors, students, active military and groups (10 or more); $6 youth 7-17; and free for children 6 and under. Prices include admission to the special exhibition and the museum’s permanent collection.
Tickets for the exhibitions and related programs may be purchased at 937-223-4ART (4278), or online at www.daytonartinstitute.org.
