Georgia O’Keeffe’s Untitled (Abstraction, Lake George) traveled to the Hyde Collection in Glens Falls, New York to be part of an exhibition titled, Modern Nature: Georgia O’Keeffe and Lake George,  that will also travel to the Georgia O’Keeffe Museum in Santa Fe and the deYoung Museum in San Francisco.

“This intriguing painting in the collection of the University of Mississippi Museum may have been inspired by a forest fire Georgia O’Keeffe witnessed during her first summer at Lake George in 1918. While it appears, at first glance, to be a wholly abstract or a non-objective composition, the central conical shape of brilliant orange is evocative of fiery flames encircled by the blue sky. Although O’Keeffe rarely addressed natural phenomena in her work, her response to the occurrence of fires and storms was a unique feature of her Lake George years. Part abstraction, part evocation, this intriguing image greatly enhances our understanding of O’Keeffe’s initial response to the dramatic atmosphere at Lake George,” said Chief Curator Erin B. Coe at the The Hyde Collection.

The painting will return in late Spring 2014. We are excited to be a part of an exhibition of such beautiful and interesting paintings depicting the influence and long relationship O’Keeffe had with Lake George.On Loan 

Originally using legos to bring his imagination to life, Hamlett Dobbins
transitioned to paint as a means for creative expression. Dobbins’s newest exhibition, The Wellspring, at the University of Mississippi Museum is a collection of paintings that draw specifically from a diverse set of experiences with his two children, Milla (aka M.R.M.) and Ives (aka I.V.).  The paintings span a number of years and reflect different stages of their rich relationships.

“The University Museum is exceptionally pleased to present these remarkable paintings by a very talented artist whose career has taken him this year to a Rome Prize Fellowship.
We are thrilled to anticipate Hamlett’s return from Italy in December, to discuss these works with our audiences,” said Museum Director Robert Saarnio.

In conjunction with the exhibition, there was an Opening Reception on Thursday, November 14, 2013.
An artist’s lecture will be held on Wednesday, December 18, 2013, from noon to 1:00 PM.  These events are free and open to the public.

A native of Tennessee, Hamlett Dobbins has spent most of his life in Memphis. He received his BFA from the University of Memphis in 1993 and went on to receive his MA and MFA from the University of Iowa. After completing his graduate studies, Dobbins moved to Memphis where he worked as a curator for Delta Axis @ Marshall Arts while teaching at the University of Memphis, University of Mississippi, and at Memphis College of Art. In 2000, he received a fellowship for a residency at the Vermont Studio Center in Johnson, Vermont, as well as a three-month residency at the Bemis Center for Contemporary Art in Omaha, Nebraska. Since 2001, Dobbins has worked at Rhodes College as an instructor and as the director for the Clough-Hanson Gallery where he has curated shows with Thomas Nozkowski, Roe Ethridge, Jon Haddock, Radcliffe Bailey, and Nikki S. Lee.  This year Dobbins is a fellow at the American Academy in Rome.

Growing up in Asheville, North Carolina, Ron Dale was exposed to the annual exhibitions of the Southern Highlands Handicraft Guild. Watching a potter throw pots, transforming wet smooth clay into a shaped vessel was magic to Dale. This sparked his interest in ceramics, and he began his journey as an artist in the 1970s. Recollecting: 1980-2012, Works by Ron Dale showcases the Oxford artist’s works in ceramics and mixed media spanning over 20 years.

“My sculptural work has evolved out of the traditional vocabulary of the vessel. Combined with architectural and furniture imagery, I am able to explore concepts of altered space and perspective, light and shadow and the flattening of form while allowing for a more direct expression of ideas—ideas dealing with both social and personal issues. I view them as three-dimensional paintings—images, color and texture layered one on top of the other. I often use suggested “mirrors” to reflect space as a means
of enveloping the viewer, placing him/her in a particular environment.
In recent years I have used the frame as an integral element in these constructions,” Dale stated.

In conjunction with the exhibition, there was an artist’s lecture on September 17, 2013.  The Museum’s Annual Membership Party, held October 10, 2013, celebrated and highlighted Ron Dale’s career in ceramics.

“The University Museum is extraordinarily pleased and proud to be the presenting venue for Recollecting 1980 – 2013,” said Museum Director Robert Saarnio. “With every passing day we watched in a state of growing awe as Ron has installed these intelligent, playful, and dramatic works. We encourage our entire community to help us celebrate the career of this leading figure in contemporary American ceramic arts.”

Dale obtained his B.A. at Goddard College and his M.F.A. at Louisiana State University. Before teaching at the University of Mississippi, Dale taught at the Penland School of Craft in Penland, North Carolina, and at the Cortona, Italy study abroad program with the University of Georgia.  He joined the faculty at the University of Mississippi in 1980 and retired as Emeritus Professor of Art in 2005. Currently, Dale owns and runs Irondale Studio, which was built in 1995.

This exhibition will run until January 11, 2014.