Treasures from the Attic:

My 22 - Sept 21, 2008

Overview

Gallery

This exhibition is sponsored in part by a grant from Pennsylvania’s Department of Community and Economic Development and State Rep. Ronald Buxton.

Overview

From May 22 to September 21, 2008, the Susquehanna Art Museum will feature an exhibition entitled Treasures from the Attic: Unseen Collections of the Capital Region. This exhibition explores the unseen wealth in the permanent collections of regional institutions. The Susquehanna Art Museum has borrowed from prominent art and historical organizations across five counties. These include the Historical Society of Dauphin County the Perry County Council of the Arts, The State Museum of Pennsylvania, the National Civil War Museum, the Phillips Museum of Art at Franklin & Marshall College, The Trout Gallery at Dickinson College, the Cumberland County Historical Society, the Hershey Museum and others.

Treasures from the Attic showcases a collection of works removed from the public eye for decades and, in some cases, centuries. The variety of pieces ranges from a 1775 scenic view of Harrisburg to creations by modern masters from Europe and the United States.  Romare Bearden, Jacob Eichholtz, Stephen Etnier, Thomas Moran, Red Grooms, Jacob Lawrence, Robert Rauschenberg and Gustave Courbet are a few of the artists to be featured in the exhibition. The exhibit provides information about the intriguing history of the loaning institution and collections.    

One example of the region’s treasures is Gustav Courbet’s painting, La Cascade d’Hauteville, 1876, on loan to the Museum from the Perry County Council for the Arts – gift of Mary Landis.  The painting traveled across continents and through a turbulent local and world history to finally arrive in Newport, Pennsylvania.  To the Museum’s knowledge, this painting has never been exhibited in the United States.  Gustav Courbet is the subject of a retrospective exhibition currently featured at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City. 

Treasures from the Attic offers a unique opportunity to discover the hidden treasures of our regional institutions. In bringing these pieces to the public, the Susquehanna Art Museum continues to celebrate Central Pennsylvania’s cultural resources. An opening reception for the exhibit will be held on May 22, 2008 from 5-7PM. The reception is free and open to the public.