For those who have been staying in one place throughout the last year and a half, the Palmer Museum of Art has an antidote for your wanderlust: the current special exhibition, “Place to Place: Recent Gifts of American Drawings and Watercolors, 1900–1950.” This exhibition of works on paper by American artists presents a wide array of geographical locales depicted with a dynamic range of mediums and artistic approaches, offering a jaunt around the United States and abroad during the first half of the 20th century. The exhibition is on view at the Palmer now through Dec. 12.
Organized by the Palmer Museum and curated by Adam Thomas, curator of American art, “Place to Place” brings together 23 new arrivals to the museum’s collection, nearly all donated since 2017 and all on view for the first time.
“We are profoundly grateful to the collectors and donors who have enhanced our collection with these exceptional gifts of drawings and watercolors to the Palmer,” said museum director Erin M. Coe.
Conceived in 2020, when both domestic and international travel plummeted, the theme of the exhibition stands in marked contrast to the circumstances out of which it emerged. From New York to New Mexico to New Orleans, the exhibition features watercolors and drawings that represent a variety of locales, some well known, others more obscure, though no less a journey. International scenes relocate the viewer across the Atlantic to sites in Belgium, England, France, Germany, and Morocco, provoking questions about rootedness and movement in artists’ lives. The exhibition showcases work by a variety of American artists, including Colin Campbell Cooper, Marsden Hartley, Charles Webster Hawthorne, Robert Henri, Irene Rice Pereira, and Alice Schille, some of whom were particularly known for their travels.
“This exhibition reflects on the power of place in the lives of 20 artists and is the first chance to see many new additions to the Palmer’s permanent collection,” said Adam Thomas.
Transport yourself with a journey through “Place to Place.” Free timed tickets can be reserved at www.palmermuseum.psu.edu.
For more information on the Palmer Museum of Art or for the calendar of upcoming events, visit www.palmermuseum.psu.edu.