Claremont Museum of Art Unveils Community-Based Abstract Installation on Saturday, May 3rd

Claremont, CA (April 22, 2008) — The Claremont Museum of Art is pleased to present a unique community-based abstract installation project, to be unveiled on Saturday, May 3rd in the courtyard on the east side of the Claremont Packing House.

The installation will be comprised of more than 80 painted panels created by children and adults, who were led by artist Janna Geary at the Museum’s April 12th Family Art Day. Geary has taken these panels and pieced them together using brass inserts and capscrews to create a one-of-a-kind Abstract Expressionist composition, which she will mount on the eight-foot-long wall in the Packing House courtyard. The community is invited to view this unique community project, on view through mid-June.

“This project is part of our ongoing ‘community engagement’ imitative,” said the CMA’s Executive Director William Moreno. “It is the second such installation – following the popular PhotoBooth – and we have many more planned in the future. I believe it’s important for museums to be centers of activity, and think this mural project, created by a variety of community members, fits that objective.

Los Angeles-based Abstract Expressionist artist Janna Geary is a Fine Arts/Illustration graduate of the Kendall College of Art and Design in Grand Rapids, MI, and has exhibited in many solo and group exhibitions, including Rockin’ for Peace at the House of Blues in L.A. in 2007, and the Los Angeles Open at Barnsdall Park in Hollywood in 2004. She has conducted several artmaking workshops for children of all ages. Geary said of her work; “The purpose of my art is to be a kind of ‘social therapy’ that functions through acknowledging experiences, emotions, or subject matter that is uncomfortable, and then re-presenting it to my audience in a matter in which they are forced to observe…sometimes through a different perspective, and sometimes through their own.”

Also coming up at the Claremont Museum of Art:

Saturday, April 26, 3 p.m.
REMINISCENCES: E. Gene Crain discusses several First Generation artists
Free for Museum Members, $5 for non-members (includes gallery admission)
E. Gene Crain, collector and friend to many of the First Generation artists, shares stories of his friendship with Millard Sheets, Phil Dike, and others, and discusses the history of his collection, widely acknowledged as one of the world’s most comprehensive collections of work by artists from the “California School.” First Generation Guest Curator Steve Comba hosts.

Sunday, April 27, 11 a.m. – 5 p.m.
FIRST GENERATION EXHIBITION CLOSING
Join us for the final day of the remarkable exhibition First Generation: Art in Claremont, 1907-1957, which traces the art history of the region in the first 50 years after the city’s incorporation in 1907.

About the Museum
The Claremont Museum of Art seeks to serve a diverse public as a regional museum of international significance and breadth. Grounded in Claremont’s important artistic legacy, the Museum engages artists and audiences through a compelling program of exhibitions and educational programs that connect the visual arts with contemporary life. In addition to a diverse slate of exhibitions, the Museum features an eclectic store offering contemporary and unexpected gifts from around the world. A comprehensive slate of educational programming and events are offered for all ages. Claremont Museum of Art is an independent, nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization.