Silvermine’s 71st A•ONE Exhibition Juried by Richard Klein of the Aldrich Museum
NEW CANAAN, CT, Oct. 26, 2021—The 71st A•ONE Exhibition, opening Oct. 30 at Silvermine Galleries, celebrates a dynamic array of contemporary art across all visual art mediums. This year’s exhibition was juried by Richard Klein, who brings to the task more than twenty years of expertise at The Aldrich Museum of Contemporary Art, the only museum in Connecticut solely dedicated to the presentation of contemporary art. National in scope, A•ONE shows a wide spectrum of forms and ideas as well as innovation in composition and materials.
Included in the exhibition are Christina Baril’s stoneware sculptures of complex, curved forms, James Buxton’s emotionally charged sculptures that explore themes of social justice, Leslie Giuliani’s compelling new textile work, Megan Marden’s oil paintings that channel the textures of medieval tapestry, Tom Matt’s atmospheric oil paintings featuring a child’s drawing, and Claudia Renfro’s stunning bronze sculptures. Some of the artists are familiar to the Silvermine community, others are new. All have created exceptional work during the last year or two. For Klein, each of these accomplished works of art also projected a certain “aura” that was impossible to define.
“As a curator–and more fundamentally as a human being–the continuing social and political upheaval as well as the pandemic has affected my psyche with the result being my taste skewed towards art that is more serious and consequential,” Klein commented. “I’m not sure if this is apparent in my choices, but I do think it created a firm foundation for an exhibition with such a diverse range of approaches. Some think of art as a diversion or escape, others want it to be an irritant or reminder. The works in 2021’s A-ONE represent both ends of this spectrum and almost everything in between. Hopefully, the viewer will find in the exhibition what type of beauty they need at this moment.”
The Board Chair Grand Prize was awarded to Tom Matt of Long Island City, NY. The prize includes a solo exhibition at Silvermine Galleries in 2023. The Patricia Warfield Jinishian Figurative Award went to Julia Dixon of North Adams, MA. Christina Baril of Bradenton, FL, received the Mollie and Albert Jacobson Sculpture Award, and James Buxton of Farmington, CT, received the Carole Eisner Sculpture Award. The Jerry’s Artarama of Norwalk Awards went to Cynthia Cooper of Farmington, CT, and Kevin Ford of Norwalk, CT. Five artists including Jennifer Cadoff of New Rochelle, NY; Sharon Cavagnolo of Mt. Kisco, NY; Megan Marden of Danbury, CT; Jessica Dowling of Norwalk, CT; and Mary Janacek of Fairfield, CT, were honored with Awards of Excellence.
Richard Klein is a curator, artist, and writer. Since 1999 he has been Exhibitions Director of The Aldrich Contemporary Art Museum in Ridgefield, Connecticut. In his two-decade long career as a curator of contemporary art he has organized over 80 exhibitions, including solo shows of the work of Janine Antoni, Sol LeWitt, Mark Dion, Roy Lichtenstein, Hank Willis Thomas, Brad Kahlhamer, Kim Jones, Jack Whitten, Jessica Stockholder, Tom Sachs, and Elana Herzog. Major curatorial projects at The Aldrich have included Fred Wilson: Black Like Me (2006), No Reservations: Native American History and Culture in Contemporary Art (2006), Elizabeth Peyton: Portrait of an Artist (2008), Shimon Attie: MetroPAL.IS. (2011), Michael Joo: Drift (2014), Kay Rosen: H Is for House (2017), Weather Report (2019), and Frank Stella’s Stars, A Survey, co-curated with Amy Smith-Stewart (2020). As an artist, he has exhibited widely, and his essays have appeared in Cabinet Magazine and in numerous books on art and culture.
Throughout its history, Silvermine’s signature exhibition has featured the work of many prominent artists including Louise Nevelson, Elaine de Kooning, and Milton Avery, and jurors have included major critics, curators, and directors from influential art institutions. A•ONE was established in 1949 as the New England Exhibition. Known recently as Art of the Northeast, it now draws artists from all over the U.S.
A•ONE opens to the public on Sat., Oct. 30 and runs through Dec. 30, 2021. The Silvermine Galleries are open Tues. to Sat. 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. The exhibition can be viewed online, and a full list of exhibiting artists can be found at https://www.silvermineart.org/online-exhibition/71st-a-one/.
