'EARTH, RIVER AND LIGHT'
SHOWCASES RARELY SEEN MASTERWORKS OF
PENNSYLVANIA IMPRESSIONISM
AT THE MICHENER ART MUSEUM
To visit the museum web site CLICK HERE

This autumn art enthusiasts will have the opportunity to view many outstanding and rarely displayed works of the Pennsylvania Impressionist school, as the James A. Michener Art Museum proudly presents Earth, River and Light: Masterworks of Pennsylvania Impressionism (September 21-Decepmber 29, 2002). This exhibition marks the start of a national tour of Pennsylvania Impressionist paintings. While the traveling show will also include many works on loan from public art institutions, the Michener exhibition features twenty-eight paintings drawn from the finest private holdings of regional collectors, among them works by acclaimed Impressionist painters Fern Coppedge (1883-1951), Edward Redfield (1869-1965), George Sotter (1879-1953) and Charles Rosen (1878-1950).

"So many of the best Bucks County paintings are in private hands, where the average person has little or no hope of seeing them,” Michener Art Museum Senior Curator Brian H. Peterson says. “I'm grateful that many of the most distinguished collectors of Pennsylvania Impressionism have agreed to let us borrow some of their finest paintings for this exhibit."

The opening of the Earth, River and Light exhibition coincides with the September publication of Pennsylvania Impressionism, the first major scholarly study of this school of artists, which was edited and principally authored by Peterson. The book is being co-published by the Michener Art Museum and the University of Pennsylvania Press.

"For many years now I've believed that the best work by our Bucks County painters compares very favorably to the work of the mainstays of American Impressionism,” Peterson says. “My hope is that this book will help to get the word out not only to the larger art community but the general public as well."

Centered in the picturesque village of New Hope, Bucks County, the Pennsylvania Impressionists played an important role in the American art world of the early twentieth century. Their work was celebrated for its freedom from European influence and was praised by the noted painter and critic Guy Pène du Bois as “our first truly national expression.”

“Something significant happened in Bucks County in the early twentieth century,” Peterson writes in his introduction, “and the story needed to be told in a comprehensive way that reflects the true depth and mastery of these artists.”

Exhibition sponsored by N.T. Callaway Real Estate, L.L.C., exclusive affiliate of Sotheby's International Realty. With additional support from John Knoell & Son, Inc. and The Grundy Foundation.

Click here for directions to the exhibit.

September 2002
Contact: Elisabeth Flynn
215-340-9800, ext. 113
eflynn@michenerartmuseum.org