The New-York Historical Society Announces Summer 2015 Lineup
By: BWW News Desk Jun. 25, 2015
The New-York Historical Society has announced its upcoming exhibitions and events for Summer 2015. Scroll down for details!
All special exhibitions and events are free with general admission unless otherwise noted.
Art as Activism: Graphic Art from the Merrill C. Berman Collection
June 26 - September 13, 2015
Art as Activism: Graphic Art from the Merrill C. Berman Collection, an exhibition of more than 70 posters, showcases protest art that inspired communities, called attention to injustice, and roused Americans to action. Created between the early 1930s and the 1970s, some by known artists like Emory Douglas and Hugo Gellert, others by unidentified designers. Many of the best known date from the activist period of the 1960s, but their style and power have deep roots in the past and would continue to shape the imagery of protest until replaced by other forms of social media, including street art and ultimately the internet.
Related Event: Singing for Our Lives: The Music of Protest
Friday, July 17, 7 pm
Just Friends, with opening remarks by Brent Staples
In conjunction with Art as Activism: Graphic Art from the Merrill C. Berman Collection, the New-York Historical Society presents a free concert with the vocal group Just Friends featuring protest songs from the 1960s and '70s, as well as select pieces from the '30s and '40s. The program will be introduced by author and journalist Brent Staples. Since its inception in 1989, the vocal group Just Friends (Shelton Becton, Gail Blanche-Gill, A. Makea McDonald, Nedra Olds-Neal, and Teresa Bowers Parker) has cultivated an enthusiastic following in the New York area. They have performed with the Dance Theater of Harlem, Alice Parker and Melodious Accord, and the Canadian Brass and have appeared on HBO, as well as at the Riverside Church. Cost: Free as part of pay-as-you-wish Fridays (6 pm - 8 pm).
Lafayette's Return: the "Boy General," the American Revolution, and the Hermione
Through August 16, 2015
"She sails like a bird," the Marquis de Lafayette wrote about the Hermione, the ship that carried him and a decisive stache of arms across the Atlantic in aid of the nascent American Revolution. During the summer of 2015, a reconstructed Hermione returns to America, leaving from France and spending the weekend of the Fourth of July in New York. The New-York Historical Society exhibition focuses on both the recreated ship and Lafayette himself, the Boy General whose close friendship with George Washington and diplomatic networks in Paris helped win the war. The show focuses on Lafayette's early years from his initial advocacy on behalf of the Revolution in the late 1770s to the Hermione's voyage in 1780 and the events leading to the British surrender at Yorktown in 1781.
Related Event: Fourth of July Celebration for Families
Saturday, July 4, 10 am - 6 pm
The New-York Historical Society invites families to celebrate American independence and the Marquis de Lafayette-America's "French Founding Father"-with scavenger hunts, performances of Revolution on the River by the Hudson River Ramblers, and other interactive programs organized through the DiMenna Children's History Museum. All ages. Museum admission is free Independence Day for kids 18 and under.
Discover treasures that tell the story of the American Revolution during an all-day Independence Day Scavenger Hunt! Highlights include a fragment from a statue of British King George III and a model of President George Washington's New York City abode.
Join us for tunes 'n tales from the American Founding era! The Hudson River Ramblers are back this Independence Day (11 am - 4 pm) and will regale families with the story behind Yankee Doodle, introduce the young girl who outrode Paul Revere, and reveal why George Washington threw a tantrum on Broadway.
Did you know that ice cream has been around for centuries? America's Founding Fathers and Mothers enjoyed the tasty summer treat-just like you! Come explore The History of Ice Cream (12 pm-4 pm): crank out ice cream from scratch, discover age old recipes and check out 18th-century kitchen appliances!
Picasso's "Le Tricorne"
Ongoing
The show will position Picasso's curtain in a dialogue with other New-York Historical Society objects, including paintings from the European tradition that provide background to the artist's work as well as to the traditions against which the revolutionary artist rebelled. Other thematic threads pivot around dance subjects and explore roughly contemporary American paintings, sculpture, posters, and watercolors. Among the works included will be examples by William Adolphe Bouguereau, Will H. Bradley, Philippe de Champaigne, Jean-Léon Gérôme, Childe Hassam, Malvina Hoffman, Ricardo de Madrazo y Garreta, Elie Nadelman, Edward Penfield, Maurice Prendergast, John Sloan, and Adriaen van Utrecht.
The Hirschfeld Century: The Art of Al Hirschfeld
Through October 12, 2015
The Hirschfeld Century: The Art of Al Hirschfeld examines his influences, his iconography, and his techniques, from his earliest works to his last drawings. Visitors will have the opportunity to trace this unique artist's evolution by viewing his own body of work, including drawings, paintings, selections from sketchbooks, ephemera, and video. The exhibition is being organized in partnership with the Al Hirschfeld Foundation and is guest-curated by David Leopold, the Foundation's Archivist.
Related Event: Sketching in the Galleries: The Hirschfeld Century
Wednesdays, July 1, 8, 15, 22, 29 @ 3:30 pm
Do you know what it means to be "Hirschfelded"? In this exciting, educator-led sketching program, families will be introduced to the work of iconic portraitist Al Hirschfeld through the works exhibited in The Hirschfeld Century: The Art of Al Hirschfeld. Kids will look closely at his use of expressive lines and, after a turn in the Barber's Chair have the chance to embellish their own Hirschfeld. Ages 6 and up. Free with Museum admission.
Freedom Journey 1965: Photographs of the Selma to Montgomery March by Stephen Somerstein
Through October 25, 2015
This exhibit features the stunning and historic photographs of Stephen Somerstein, documenting the Selma-to-Montgomery Civil Rights March in January 1965. Somerstein was a student in City College of New York's night school and Picture Editor of his student newspaper when he traveled to Alabama to document the March. He joined the marchers and gained unfettered access to everyone from Martin Luther King, Jr. to Rosa Parks, James Baldwin, and Bayard Rustin.
ABOUT THE NEW-YORK HISTORICAL SOCIETY
The New-York Historical Society, one of America's pre-eminent cultural institutions, is dedicated to fostering research and presenting history and art exhibitions and public programs that reveal the dynamism of history and its influence on the world of today. Founded in 1804, New-York Historical has a mission to explore the richly layered history of New York City and State and the country, and to serve as a national forum for the discussion of issues surrounding the making and meaning of history. www.nyhistory.org
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