Museum - Wadsworth Atheneum Museum of Art in Hartford, Connecticut

Wampum holds profound spiritual, economic, and aesthetic significance for indigenous tribes and communities throughout North America. Artist William Donehey discusses his journey producing wampum from local quahog shells and working with members of the Mohegan Tribe and at-risk youth. Tune in at https://youtu.be/xlFLAkUatUg

In 1994, Pepón Osorio transformed a vacant store on Park Street in Hartford into an artist’s interpretation of a traditional Latino barbershop. The project was organized by Real Art Ways. For Osorio, the world of the barbería represents an institutionalized version of Latino machismo. A boy’s first barbershop haircut is a rite of manhood, and crying represents a failure. The installation refers to the way in which this experience became personal and traumatic for Osorio; he c...ried during his first haircut, when the inexperienced barber tore at his unruly hair. "En la barbería, no se llora " (No Crying Allowed in the Barbershop)" is on view in "Protest and Promise: Selections from the Contemporary Art Collection, 19632019". Using art as a form of activism, criticism, and empowerment, the work in this installation confronts longstanding injustices and social disparities with an eye to systemic transformations and a more hopeful future. Pepón Osorio (American, born Puerto Rico, 1955), "En la barbería, no se llora " (No Crying Allowed in the Barbershop)", 1994. Mixed media. Purchased through a gift from Southern New England Telephone in recognition of the vitality of Connecticut’s Puerto Rican community, and through the Alexander A. Goldfarb Contemporary Art Acquisition Fund, 1994.37.1. Installed in "Protest and Promise", 2020.

On Indigenous Peoples’ Day we honor the Native peoples of the Americas. The Wadsworth's notable collection of American Indian baskets was largely formed by a donation from philanthropist and traveler, Constance S. Mead (18401919). Mead purchased baskets on excursions to India, China, and South America, and from American Indians in North America. Scroll through for a sampling of these exquisite works, and visit the museum to see a selection on view in the American Art 1700s ...- 1950 galleries. Basket, c. 1910. American, Washington. Klickitat tribe. Western red cedar, brown cedar, and red and green wool; Covered basket, probably c. 18901915. American, California. Possibly Hupa or Karuk tribe. Reed and dyed reed; Basket with rattletop lid, c. 1900. American, Southern Alaska or Canada, British Columbia. Tlingit tribe. Spruce root and dyed grass. Bequests of Mrs. Constance S. Mead #IndigenousPeoplesDay

Spend an evening with celebrated ceramic artist Kate Malone, MBE. Coming up this Tuesday, October 13 at 5pm. Visit Malone’s exquisite ceramics in the exhibition "Savor" and join her online for a virtual discussion of her work, inspiration, and methods. Tune in with a drink to toast this artist and her devotion to clay! Free. Join using the link below. https://www.facebook.com/events/271194027289317/

Tomorrow at noon, tune in for a short talk by "Made in Connecticut" artist William Donehey. Hear about his journey producing wampum from local quahog shells and his commitment to working with members of the Mohegan Tribe and at-risk youth. https://www.facebook.com/events/387845815703013/ #thewadsworth #wampum #madeinconnecticut #ctarttrail #virtuallearning #virtualtalk #localartist Connecticut (CT) Art Trail #jamesprosek

Cuban-born Chilean artist Mario Carreño's unique style merges Cubist abstraction, Mexican mural techniques, and Renaissance imagery. Here, Carreño paints Venus after she has been washed ashore, born of sea foam. Envisioned as a strong and graceful Latina, she reclines on a fishing net on the beach while fishermen continue to work behind her. Compare Carreño’s work with the seventeenth-century sculpture of Venus in the fountain in Avery Court. ... Mario Carreño (Cuban, active in Chile, 1913-1999), "Venus and the Fisherman", 1940, Oil on canvas. Gift of Miss Mary Lewis through the Council of Inter-American Cooperation Pietro Francavilla (French, worked in Italy, 15481615) "Venus with a Nymph and Satyr", 1600. Marble. The William Arnold Healy Fund, 1933.333 See more

Like many American artists of the nineteenth century, William Merritt Chase traveled abroad to train in European schools. He spent his formative years at Munich's Academy of Fine Arts, where he trained with German realist painter Wilhelm Leibl, and studied Old Master paintings of the seventeenth century. This work is one of Chase's Munich portraits, which were characterized by a darkened palette and sitters with bold, direct gazes. The artist was born #onthisday in 1849. ... William Merritt Chase (American, 18491916) "Portrait of a Woman", 1878. Oil on canvas. Bequest of Clara Hinton Gould, 1948.209 #thewadsworth #americanart #impressionism #americanimpressionism #williammerrittchase #wilhelmleibl #arthistory #americanarthistory #americanpainters #artistbirthday #otd See more

Virtual Second Saturdays for Families: LatinX Heritage Day is live. Head over to thewadsworth.org/event/latinx-heritage-day/ and celebrate LatinX heritage and culture with art making, storytelling, and performances. Here, meet illustrator and designer Fernando Garcia and draw alongside him. Dibujar junto al ilustrador y diseñador Fernando Garcia.

Happy Halloween! The skeleton pictured in these anatomical engravings seems remarkably alive", don't you think? Head over to our stories for some more spook-tacular objects from the collection. Unidentified Artist, European, "Study of a SkeletonFront View"; "Study of a SkeletonBack View". Engravings on paper. Bequests of Edward Gorey. ... #halloween #museumhalloween #halloween2020 #creepyobject #skeletons #thewadsworth #artmuseum #anatomicalart #spookyseason See more

Join us this weekend as we celebrate the cultural legacies of Latinx, Hispanic and Latino-identified communities with collection highlights, artist spotlights, and Second Saturdays for Families virtual festivities. There is no original past to redeem; there is the void, the orphanhood. There is above all the search for origin. Ana Mendieta Mendieta blended photography, body art, earth art and performance as she addressed feminism and her experience as a Cuban e...xile. Sent by her parents at age 12 to live with a foster family in Iowa, she returned to Cuba in 1980-81 and began carving fertility figures into caves and cliffs, naming them after indigenous goddesses. This photo documents one of ten large sculptural reliefs the artist carved into limestone walls in a national park outside of Havana. Recalling petroglyphsrock carvings created by ancient peoplesthis work celebrates the goddess Guanaroca, the earth’s first woman. It serves as a symbol of Mendieta’s presence and identity as well as a reminder of ancient traditions of goddess worship. Ana Mendieta (American, born Cuba, 19481985), "Guanaroca (First Woman)" from the Esculturas Rupestres series, 1981. Black and white photograph, ed. 3/3. Contemporary Art Purchase Fund. Installation view from "SHE", 2016. See more

Howardena Pindell's Autobiography: Water/Ancestors/Middle Passage/Family Ghosts (1988) joins Artemisia Gentileschi's "Self-Portrait as a Lute Player" (c. 1616) as the latest Boulevard Features #AR episode. Explore this massive multi-media work brimming with signifiers of identity, experience, and history, all from the comfort of your own screen. *The Features app is available for free in the Apple App Store.... Image credit: AR experience: Howardena Pindell (BLVRD features), Howardena Pindell, Autobiography: Water/Ancestors/Middle Passage/Family Ghosts, 1988. Courtesy of the artist and Garth Greenan Gallery, New York. #howardenapindell #contemporaryart #americanartist #womenartists #pindell #africanamericanartist #africanamericanart #thewadsworth #multimediaartist #multimediaart #augmentedreality #immersiveexperience #musetech See more

Katsushika #Hokusai --the first Japanese artist to be internationally recognized--is thought to have been born on October 30, 1760. This print is part of a series by Hokusai depicting waterfalls located on Japan’s main island, Honshu. The vertical landscape dwarfs the pilgrims traveling the Tokaido Road. This important route connected the major cities of Edo (modern day Tokyo) and Kyoto (the seat of the Emperor). Katsushika Hokusai (Japanese, 1760-1849), "The Waterfall by the Kwannon Shrine at Sakanoshita on the Tokaido", from the series "A Tour of Waterfalls in the Provinces," c. 1883. Gift of Mrs. Jared K. Morse #otd #onthisday #thewadsworth