Press

ALBANY, NY (August 31,2006) – REPRESENT: Selections from The Studio Museum in Harlem opens at the New York State Museum on September 9th, marking the Studio Museum’s first exhibition as part of the Bank of America Great Art Series.

This exhibition, open through Feb. 25, 2007 in the Museum’s West Gallery, is the 16th installment of the Great Art Exhibition and Education Program, which brings art from New York State’s leading art museums to the State Museum.

“The State Museum is delighted to welcome the Studio Museum in Harlem to the Bank of America Great Art Series,” said State Museum Director Dr. Clifford Siegfried. “We are excited about the opportunity to showcase these outstanding selections from the premiere institution for the presentation of artworks created by artists of African descent.”

Organized by Thelma Golden, director and chief curator at the Studio Museum, REPRESENT presents highlights from the Museum’s permanent collection. The exhibition is centered around three distinct, yet interrelated eras in Studio Museum history – the Harlem Renaissance, the politically and socially charged 1960s and 70s and the vibrant contemporary moment. Included are such works as James VanDerZee’s iconic photographs of Harlem, Barkley Hendricks’ direct and unflinching portrait Lawdy Mama (1970) and recent artist-in-residence Adia Millett’s intricate cross-stitches invoking memories of her father.

The Studio Museum’s collection contains over 1,700 works of art, including drawings, paintings, prints, photographs and mixed media works. It includes works created by artists during their residency at the Museum, as well as pieces given to the institution. The Studio Museum has a longstanding commitment to supporting established and emerging black artists.

In conjunction with the REPRESENT exhibition, the State Museum will hold a series of programs on Saturdays from 1 to 3 p.m. Each week, participants will view the works of a different artist,

whose works are on exhibit and explore the style, message and materials represented with a hands-on-art

-more-

-2-

making adventure. The programs are scheduled for Oct. 28, Nov. 25th, Dec. 9 and Jan. 20 and Feb. 10, 2007. The program is free for Museum members and $5 for non-members. More information is available at (518) 473-7154.

The New York State Museum expresses its gratitude to Bank of America, First Lady Libby

Pataki, the New York State Senate and New York State Assembly for making this exhibition possible. Support was also provided by Hodgson Russ, LLP, a Buffalo-based law firm with an office in Albany.

The Studio Museum in Harlem, located at 144 West 125th Street, is one of three new institutions to join the expanded Great Art Series. The others are the Brooklyn Museum, which debuted its first exhibition last November, and the Albright-Knox Art Gallery in Buffalo, which ended its first exhibition Aug. 13th. These institutions join The Metropolitan Museum of Art, The Museum of Modern Art, the Whitney Museum of American Art and the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, which have been part of the Great Art Series since it began in 1999.

The New York State Museum is a cultural program of the New York State Department of Education. Started in 1836, the museum has the longest continuously operating state natural history research and collection survey in the United States. The state museum is located on Madison Avenue in Albany. It is open daily from 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. except on Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year's Day. Admission is free. Further information about programs and events can be obtained by calling (518) 474-5877 or visiting the museum website at www.nysm.nysed.gov.

# # #