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2009 Mend Our Broken Art Exhibition February 13 - March 27 Opening Reception: This year, we have chosen to focus the exhibition on our extensive and rare collection of works by Raymond Duncan, brother of iconic dancer Isadora Duncan. An eclectic artist who shared his fervor for dance and art with his parents and siblings, Raymond focused his life on establishing schools of art throughout Europe that taught that “the value of labor is the development of the worker and not production or earnings.” From raising sheep, weaving fabric and rugs, printing textiles and books, to writing plays and manifestos, Raymond and his wife Penelope lived a life centered around artistic production, teaching, and living free from modern industry and war. Florence Sloane took notice of this self-proclaimed Parisian’s arts-and-crafts mission and in 1927 invited Duncan to exhibit his craft in cooperation with the Norfolk Society of Arts at the Seabord Air Line Building. In the opening pages of the program catalogue (hand made and printed by Raymond Duncan himself) Raymond Duncan made a dedication “to Mrs. William Sloane in appreciation of her initiative in bringing my art back to America and with it something of myself, happy to turn towards home after these long years.” The Hermitage would like to introduce a new audience to this exciting and independent artist who strived to create a new, undiscovered world. But in order to exhibit these delicately crafted articles properly, much work needs to be done to save them. Hand woven linen, cotton and silk crepe textiles, dyed with natural pigments, have sat untouched since being purchased eighty years ago. Woodcuts on handmade paper and mounted on acidic board, are now suffering from foxing and stains across. In addition, all works need proper mounting and display systems created in order to protect them from future damage. We ask each of you to visit the Mend Our Broken Art exhibition this February, learn more about this eclectic soul, and help bring his work back to life.
Hermitage Museum & Gardens |
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