CHAMPAIGN, Ill. The Krannert Art Museum at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign opens its fall season Sept. 4 with two traveling shows one of which is being organized by the museum.
“Drawings of Choice From a New York Collection,” curated by museum director Josef Helfenstein, runs through Nov. 3 and showcases 100 works by more than 40 artists from an extensive collection of minimal and conceptual art. Drawn from the collection of Werner Kramarsky and the Museum of Modern Art, the exhibition features works circa 1960s to present by prominent American artists such as Jasper Johns and Robert Rauschenberg, as well as drawings by composer John Cage and unknown renderings by dancer Trisha Brown.
The exhibition, which will eventually travel to four other U.S. museums, reflects the full spectrum of contemporary drawing from the casual sketch to the more accomplished, completed picture. Selections included in the show emphasize the crucial role of drawings in the development of creative thinking and artistic processes.
A strong suit of Kramarsky’s collection is minimal work by artists Carl Andre, Dan Flavin, Donald Judd, Sol LeWitt, Fred Sandback and Robert Mangold. The collection also includes important works from the 1970s and 80s by conceptual artists Robert Morris, Bruce Nauman, Richard Serra, Robert Smithson and Lawrence Weiner.
Kramarsky, who avidly supports the work of young artists, also has amassed a significant collection of drawings by lesser known talents, among them Jill Baroff, Cheryl Goldsleger, Christine Hiebert, Glenn Ligon and Mark Williams.
Activities planned to coincide with the exhibition include:
Sept. 4, 6-8 p.m., public reception, hosted by the Krannert Art Museum Council.
Sept. 5, 10 a.m., exhibition walk-through and discussion with Kramarsky.
Sept. 25, 5:30 p.m., museum auditorium, artist talk by Mangold.
Oct. 9, 5:30 p.m., artist talk by Hiebert.
Oct. 13, 1 p.m., guided Second Sunday Gallery Tour of the exhibition, prior to the WILL-FM Second Sunday Concert.
Oct. 24, 5:30 p.m., museum auditorium, “Donald Judds Cosmos,” a discussion by Marianne Stockebrand, director, Chinati Foundation, Marfa, Texas.
On view at the museum Sept. 4 through Oct. 27 is “The Dream of the Audience: Theresa Hak Kyung Cha (1951-1982).” The touring show, organized by the Berkeley Art Museum, is the first to highlight the wide-ranging body of work by Cha, a Korean-American artist who was murdered in New York City at age 31.
Cha was noted for her accomplishments in a variety of genres from performance art and works in film and video to works on paper, including the novel “Dictee”; artists books; ceramics; and stamp and mail art. Chas art is distinguished by the frequent incorporation of multiple languages and references to psychoanalysis, memory studies, Confucianism and Catholicism. Recurring themes found in her work include geographic exile and cultural displacement.
The exhibition will feature continuously running film projections, six video performances on DVD, four CDs as well as books, works on paper, sculptures and textiles.
Events associated with the show include:
Sept. 4, 6-8 p.m., public reception hosted by the museum council.
Sept. 8, 1 p.m., Second Sunday Gallery Tour led by Helfenstein, prior to the WILL-FM Second Sunday Concert.
Sept. 12, 5:30 p.m., ” Dictee, by Theresa Hak Kyung Cha: An Informal Book Discussion,” moderated by Nancy Abelmann, professor of East Asian languages and cultures at Illinois. Scheduled guest speakers are Peggy Hong, Nan Kim, Susan Moynihan and Charse Yun.
The discussion will be followed by a walk-through of the exhibition by Constance Lewallen, senior curator of Exhibitions, Berkeley Art Museum. Pre-registration is required; to register, call (217) 333-1861.
Oct. 2, 5:30 p.m., museum auditorium, “Beyond Words: The Art of Theresa Hak Kyung Cha,” a talk by Lawrence Rinder, curator of contemporary art, Whitney Museum of American Art.
The Krannert Art Museum is located on the Illinois campus at 500 E. Peabody Drive, Champaign, one block east of Memorial Stadium. The museum is open to the public from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday; until 8 p.m. on Wednesday; and from 2 to 5 p.m. Sunday. A donation of $3 is suggested.
