20th-Century American Art Icons are Celebrated Through Exhibit at Mason Gross Galleries

Art on exhibit at the Mason Gross Galleries include, from left, "Sunburst" (undated, woodcut) and "Color Symphony" (1960, lithograph) both by Bob Blackburn; "Introspection" (1972, color serigraph) and "Gladys" (1936, lithograph) both by Will Barnet. About these images

NEW BRUNSWICK/PISCATAWAY, N.J. The extraordinary six-decade-long friendship and mentoring relationship of renowned artists Will Barnet and the late Bob Blackburn will be celebrated in an exhibition of their work at the Mason Gross Galleries, located in the Civic Square Building in New Brunswick, Jan. 5 through Feb. 4. The galleries are open Monday through Friday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. and on weekends by appointment. Admission is free.

Any history of American art during the second half of the 20th century would be incomplete without their inclusion, says Judith K. Brodsky, professor emeritus, department of visual arts, Mason Gross School of the Arts and founding director, Rutgers Center for Innovative Print and Paper (RCIPP). Brodsky is the curator of the exhibition.

Blackburns prints are in the Modernist, Cubist tradition with fragmented shapes and a restrained color palette. Blackburn, who died in 2003, remained an abstract artist all his life.

Barnet started as an abstract painter and then turned to figuration. He is known for his flat colors and simplified form that is associated with Japanese prints.

Barnet is a living American treasure, Brodsky says. Barnets paintings and prints are in museums all over the United States. A retrospective organized a few years ago by the Montclair Museum of Art traveled extensively.

Blackburn, who studied printmaking under Barnet, was the founder of the Printmaking Workshop, the largest nonprofit workshop in the United States. Through his workshop, Blackburn was instrumental in introducing thousands of diverse artists into the world of prints. He received the MacArthur genius Award in 1997 and the Lifetime Achievement Award by the College Art Association.

Both artists also have had a longstanding relationship with Rutgers. Barnet, now 94, painted the official portrait of Mason Gross which hangs in Old Queens, the oldest building on campus that houses the university presidents office. Blackburn taught printmaking at Rutgers in the 1970s.

In conjunction with the exhibition, Barnet has created a new print that has been published and is being sold by RCIPP. In addition, projects by the 2004 New Jersey Print and Paper Fellows will be included in the exhibition.

A gala also will be held to honor Barnet and memorialize Blackburn on Saturday, Jan. 15. The cost is $500, which includes dinner for two and a print by Barnet.

The exhibit and gala will be held at the Mason Gross Galleries in the Civic Square Building, 33 Livingston Avenue, New Brunswick. For further information on either event please call (732) 932-2222, ext. 838 or e-mail rcipp@rci.rutgers.edu.

About the Rutgers Center for Innovative Print and Paper

The RCIPP invites artists who are contributing new narratives to the American cultural mainstream to be in residence to create prints in collaboration with its staff of master printers and papermakers. The RCIPP was established by Judith K. Brodsky in 1986. Since then, more than 250 artists have been in residence, among them Fred Wilson, Margo Humphrey, Juan Sanchez, Leon Golub, Miriam Schapiro, Willie Cole, Joyce Scott, Kiki Smith, Renee Green, Buzz Spector, Chakaia Booker and Sam Gilliam. In addition, artists from Africa, Asia, South America and Eastern Europe also have made prints at the RCIPP. Prints published by the RCIPP have entered the collections of such museums as the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Whitney Museum of American Art and the Museum of Modern Art in New York; the Baltimore and Cleveland Museums of Art; the Victoria and Albert, London; the Stadtsmuseum, Berlin; and the National Gallery of Australia.

Contact: Nicole Pride
732/932-7084, ext. 610
E-mail: npride@ur.rutgers.edu

About These Images: Photos courtesy of Rutgers' Center for Innovative Print and Paper. Permission is granted to reproduce these images in connection with news coverage of this story. All other rights are reserved. "Sunburst" "Color Symphony" "Introspection" "Gladys"