New Fall Exhibitions Coming to the Akron Art Museum

New Fall Exhibitions Coming to the Akron Art Museum

Akron – This fall, four new exhibitions will be on view at the Akron Art Museum: Continuum: Historical Resonances in Contemporary Art, The 10,000 Things: Recent Works by Jordan Wong, More is More: Visual Richness in Contemporary Art, and Afterimages: Geometric Abstraction and Perception. These shows invite visitors to experience art in unique and intriguing ways as they learn about creative processes, compare the past with the present, and explore exciting visuals through a variety of textures, patterns, colors, and effects.

Akron Art Museum Senior Curator Jared Ledesma said, “Our goal for the upcoming exhibitions is to create a variety of access points into the Museum’s collection. Many of the artists involved are from or have spent time in Northeast Ohio, geometric abstraction has many roots in Ohio, and a few works from the Museum’s collection are featured in the exhibitions. Through all of the shows this upcoming season, we want visitors to make meaningful connections to our permanent collection.”

Continuum: Historical Resonances in Contemporary Art opened on July 16, 2021, and will be on view through February 27, 2022, in the C. Blake McDowell, Jr. Galleries. The show features artwork from five contemporary artists whose work puts a new spin on long standing artistic themes. In addition, each of their works is paired with an older painting from the Museum’s collection to show the deep historical connections that exist in art being made today.

The 10,000 Things: Recent Works by Jordan Wong opened on August 21, 2021, in the Mary S. and David C. Corbin Foundation Gallery. The exhibition is a continuation of the themes displayed in Wong’s outdoor exhibition in the Museum’s garden. As part of the indoor version of The 10,000 Things, visitors can catch a glimpse into the artist’s creative process and learn how he transforms a few plain black and white lines into rich, detailed, and colorful work. Some artworks in this exhibition are being shown in a museum for the first time.

More is More: Visual Richness in Contemporary Art will be on view in both the Judith Bear Isroff Gallery and the Fred and Laura Jane Bidwell Gallery from October 2, 2021, through March 27, 2022. More is More features artwork by thirty-seven contemporary artists. The artworks are composed from several mediums and portray a variety of subject matter. Together they provide a lush and dense presentation of texture, pattern, and color. In addition, the exhibition is hung “salon style.” With this historical method, objects are hung above one another, allowing viewers to see more art at once.

Afterimages: Geometric Abstraction and Perception will be on view in the Karl and Bertl Arnstein Galleries from October 2, 2021, through January 9, 2022. The exhibition features large-scale abstract paintings, sculptures, prints, and interactive artwork from the 1960s and ‘70s. Through glittering patterns and radiant colors, these works create experiences that are both visual and mental. Several artists in the show are connected to Northeast Ohio, such as Richard Anuszkiewicz, Julian Stanczak, Ed Mieczkowski, and John Pearson. The remaining artists came from across the world, from Western art centers like New York, Los Angeles, and Paris, but also Eastern Europe, South America, and Japan. The majority of the works in the exhibition are on loan from the Carl & Marilynn Thoma Foundation in Chicago.

Assistant Curator Jeff Katzin stated, “It’s crucial for the Museum to show art that a wide variety of audiences can appreciate. With Afterimages, you don’t need any knowledge of art history in order to enjoy what you’re seeing because the art is all about visual sensation. The works in the show are not meant to illustrate complicated ideas or messages, so I am looking forward to viewers simply finding delight in the visual aspects of these eye-catching works.”