PMoA to Open Two New Exhibitions Inspired by Nature

8 Jan. 2010

Starting January 23, 2010, Polk Museum of Art open two new exhibitions featuring artwork inspired by flowers and gardens: Joseph Raffael and Kenneth Treister: The Colors of Nature.

CONTACT: Meredith Spresser, Public Relations & Marketing Manager, 863-688-7743 ext. 235, MSpresser@PolkMuseumofArt.org

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: 1/8/2010

PMoA to Open Two New Exhibitions Inspired by Nature

LAKELAND, FL. – Starting January 23, 2010, Polk Museum of Art open two new exhibitions featuring artwork inspired by flowers and gardens: Joseph Raffael and Kenneth Treister: The Colors of Nature. Joseph Raffael, an American artist who lives in France, paints large scale contemporary watercolors of the flowers his garden. Treister, a Winter Haven resident and internationally acclaimed architect and sculptor, paints abstract fields of color inspired by the outdoors.

Joseph Raffael features 10 monumental paintings, many of which are around 5 feet tall and 7 feet wide. This scale is generally unprecedented for watercolor painters, a fact made even more astonishing by the knowledge that he tends to work with the paper rolled up so that he can only see one section at a time. The exquisite detail found in each stroke of Raffael’s collection of bouquets has stunned people around the country. They are not photorealistic, nor are they impressionistic. Instead his style seems to fall somewhere in between.

Raffael was born in Brooklyn, New York in 1933. He studied at Cooper Union, Yale-Norfolk School, Yale School of Fine Arts, and was granted Fulbright Fellowship to Florence and Rome. He received the 1975 Purchase Prize from Concours d’Antiques from the Oakland Museum, the 1974 First Prize from Tokyo International Biennial in Japan, and was awarded the 1960 Louis C. Tiffany Fellowship. Raffael’s work is appreciated throughout the United States and is featured on the cover of the June 2007 issue of Watercolor Magic magazine.

Joseph Raffael was organized by the Nancy Hoffman Gallery. The exhibition is sponsored by Fields Auto Group with additional support by WUSF.

A reception for the exhibition will be held on Friday, January 22. Nancy Hoffman, exhibition organizer and owner of Nancy Hoffman Gallery, NYC, will present a lecture at 6pm entitled "Joseph Raffael: His Life, His World, His Art." A light reception will follow at 7pm. Admission to the reception is FREE for Museum members, $10 for non-members.

Kenneth Treister: The Colors of Nature takes a more minimalist approach to the beauty of the garden. Instead of focusing on the details of individual plants surrounding his lushly landscaped Winter Haven home, Treister steps back and allows the forms to dissolve into shimmering silky colors, revealing what he calls "the patterns of nature." The exhibition will feature several of Treister's paintings, but will be presented as a single installation.

Kenneth Treister is an internationally acclaimed architect and sculptor. His work has been exhibited in museums across the United States, and his work has been featured in art and architecture journals world-wide. One of his most prominent sculptures is the 50 foot tall bronze Holocaust Memorial in Miami Beach. He was honored with a fellowship by the National American Institute of Architects and was awarded the Silver Medal by the Miami Chapter of the American Institute of Architects.

A reception for Kenneth Treister: The Colors of Nature will be held on Thursday, February 11. Treister will present a lecture about his life in art at 7pm, followed by a reception and signing of his newly published book Havana Forever: A Pictorial and Cultural History of an Unforgettable City (2009, University Press of Florida). Admission to the reception is FREE for Museum members, $10 for non-members.

For more information about the exhibitions please call 863-688-7743 or visit www.PolkMuseumofArt.org.

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