News and Events
Outsider art with a Cuban perspective: paintings by Hudson Valley resident Corso, at the Palmer Gallery, March 5-19, 2009.
POUGHKEEPSIE, NY-Works by Rhinebeck resident and self-taught outsider artist will be on view in the exhibition, Cubata: Paintings by Corso de Palenzuela, at the James W. Palmer '90 Gallery at Vassar College from Thursday, March 5, through Thursday, March 19. The gallery hours are 11:00 am to 4:00 pm; Saturdays and Sundays from 12:00 to 6:00 pm. The opening reception on Thursday, March 5, from 4:30-6:30pm, will be followed with special tours of Faith and Fantasy in Outsider Art from the Permanent Collection, during "Late Night at the Lehman Loeb," in the Frances Lehman Loeb Art Center (5:00-9:00pm).
Mary-Kay Lombino, the Emily Hargroves Fisher '57 and Richard B. Fisher Curator at the Frances Lehman Loeb Art Center at Vassar, worked closely with two Vassar students, Emily Kloppenburg (class of 2011) and Kate Conlow (class of 2009), to organize the exhibition of 19 paintings that combine colorful landscapes, portraits of people, and exotic animals that capture the culture and beauty of Cuba. Baron Corso de Palenzuela, known simply as Corso, creates imaginative and idiosyncratic scenes that are painted in oil on plywood and cardboard-often enhanced with symbolism derived from Spanish-Hebraic mysticism and visions from his childhood experience.
Lombino is the curator of the Art Center's current exhibition Faith and Fantasy in Outsider Art from the Permanent Collection (2/13 - 4/26). "These two exhibitions, each featuring work by self-taught artists, complement one another beautifully," noted Lombino. "Corso's paintings, with their fantastic scenes and clear focus on the spiritual, fit perfectly with the theme of Faith and Fantasy."
The self-taught outsider artist describes himself as obsessive, and this trait comes out in his selections chosen for this exhibition. Corso's obsession: Cuba, and he devotes his vision to depictions of his mother country. All of his paintings in the show, and most of his artwork, are set in the context of Cuba, or about Cuba. Many of these depict birds, dogs, or other animals.
Cubata, pronounced with the accent on the last syllable, is the term used by the artist to describe the aesthetic essence of his work. Self-referential, Cubata speaks of his intense affection for the Cuba of his childhood. In his own words, "Cubata is the beautiful and the ugly. Cubata is life and death."
His artwork is also inspired by his Sephardic Jewish background, with scenes of Jews traveling by boat to Cuba. The landscape where he lived in until he was eight also is found in his work, with depictions of plants, workers, and wildlife, as well as the activities that surrounded him. He says that many of the scenes he depicts come to him through visions.
Using a palate of bright colors, Corso paints with oil on wood or cardboard. Artwork, for him is more of a pastime that suits his cultural and spiritual craving. He began making his artwork around 30 years ago, but not to please other people only himself. Soon after he began painting, the Cuban-born artist Ana Mendieta discovered Corso's artwork. Since then he has exhibited his work along the Atlantic coast, including galleries in the Hudson Valley area, Yeshiva University, and the American Visionary Art Museum in Baltimore.
ABOUT BARON CORSO DE PALENZUELA
Born in Havana, Cuba, into a prominent Spanish aristocratic family of bankers, jewelers, diamond merchants, distinguished clergy, and landowners, Baron Corso de Palenzuela, left Cuba at the age of seven with his mother and father for the United States during Fidel Castro's rise to power. While in America, the family maintained its high status and wealth for many years and encouraged Corso's artistic pursuits, when he began painting at the age of ten.
In addition to painting he has explored the fields of jewelry design, writing, and photography. Corso is also accomplished in the culinary arts and is a food critic with a specialty in Cuban, Spanish, Basque, Nuevo Latino and Latin World cuisines.
Conversant in three languages, Corso has traveled to over 20 countries. In addition, the artist has extended his interests to equestrian sport, cycling and chess playing. His work, has received high acclaim internationally, as well as domestically. Corso resides in the Hudson Valley and Virginia.
ABOUT THE JAMES W. PALMER III GALLERY
Situated between the North Atrium and the Retreat cafeteria, the James W. Palmer III Gallery is at the heart of the College Center. Constructed in 1996, the gallery was named and endowed by the Palmer family in 2000 in memory of their son James, a member of the class of 1990. Serving as an exhibition space for artwork created within and beyond the Vassar community, the gallery displays art of diverse mediums, themes, and origins.
Individuals with disabilities requiring accommodations at Vassar should contact the Office of Campus Activities at (845) 437-5370. Without sufficient notice, appropriate space and/or assistance may not be available. Directions to the Vassar campus are available at www.vassar.edu/directions.
Vassar College is a highly selective, coeducational, independent, residential liberal arts college founded in 1861.
2009 SPRING SCHEDULE AT THE PALMER GALLERY, VASSAR COLLEGE
(845) 437-5970 or http://arts.vassar.edu
February 11 - February 22
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(Audiophile) Sound works exemplifying the versatility of artistic expression engendered by recent developments in digital technologies will be presented by 14 Vassar students.
February 25 - March 3
VOICES: All College Day Mural Retrospective 2001-2008
Reception: Thursday, February 26, 4:30-6:00pm
Features the eight-year history of All College Day murals at Vassar. The canvasses depict comments and expressions on All College Day, held in late February to mark a day of dialogue and campus community building. The murals feature a range of themes, including Vassar/Poughkeepsie relationships, race relations, collective responsibility, and finding common ground.
March 5 - March 19
Cubata: Paintings by Corso de Palenzuela
Reception: Thursday, March 5, 4:30-6:30pm
Curated by Vassar students, Emily Kloppenburg (class of 2011) and Kate Conlow (class of 2009), under the direction of Mary-Kay Lombino, this exhibition features 19 paintings by this self-taught outsider artist, Baron Corso de Palenzuela, who lives in Rhinebeck. He combines colorful landscapes, portraits of people, and exotic animals to capture the culture and beauty of Cuba. Corso's imaginative and idiosyncratic scenes are painted in oil on plywood and cardboard-often enhanced with symbolism derived from Spanish-Hebraic mysticism and visions from his childhood experience.
March 22 - March 28
A Celebration of Art: The Annual John Iyoya Children's Art Show
Reception: Sunday, March 22 at 2:00pm
This is an annual event honors the memory of John Iyoya, a former Vassar student, who exemplified a wonderful sense of creativity and love of children. The show is sponsored by the Department of Education and features the artwork of students from area schools.
March 30 - April 2
Exhibition of Haitian Art
In conjunction with the Annual Haitian Art Auction and Sale, sponsored by the Vassar Haiti Project. The Auction and Sale, held April 3-5, includes 300 original Haitian paintings, handcraft, hand-painted silk scarves, and iron sculpture. For more information about the Vassar Haiti Project, see http://projects.vassar.edu/haiti.
April 3 - May 24
Vassar College Studio Art Department Student Exhibitions
Rotating schedule of student exhibitions from the Vassar College Studio Art Department.
Posted by College Relations Monday, February 9, 2009
About the Arts
Powerhouse Theater
The Powerhouse Theater is a collaboration between New York Stage and Film and Vassar College. It is dedicated to both emerging and established artists in the development and production of new works for theater and film. During an intense eight-week summer residency on the Vassar campus, up to twenty different projects are publicly presented, typically engaging more than 200 professional artists and theater students. Plays, musicals, and screenplays are presented in a variety of forms: readings, workshops, and fully staged productions. Since the first Powerhouse Theater season in 1985, New York Stage and Film and Vassar have served more than 2,000 artists and over 175,000 audience members through the development and production of artistically exceptional and affordably priced performances.
Frances Lehman Loeb Art Center
Located just inside Vassar's Main Gate, the Frances Lehman Loeb Art Center houses the college's permanent collection, over 18,000 works, including paintings, sculptures, drawings, prints, photographs, and glass and ceramic wares, charting the history of art from antiquity to the present. The Permanent Collection Galleries feature 350 works, ranging from the sculpted Head of Viceroy Merymose from His Outer Sarcophagus (Egyptian, c 1375 BCE) in the Antiquities Gallery to Marsden Hartley's oil on canvas Indian Composition (1914-15) in the Twentieth Century Gallery. For information on current and upcoming special exhibitions, self-guided and curriculum-based tours, and group visits, please visit the website. The art center is open to the public, and admission is free.
James W. Palmer Gallery
Located in the College Center in Main Building, the James W. Palmer III '90 Gallery presents eight shows annually, including exhibitions by renowned artists and photographers, studio art faculty and students, and local arts organizations. Recent highlights included Andrea Baldeck’s black-and-white photo exhibit, Touching the Mekong: A Southeast Asian Sojourn, organized by the University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology; the Vassar Haiti Project’s annual exhibition and auction of imported arts and handcrafts; and Design Inside, showcasing the work of Vassar’s College Relations design team. All exhibitions are free and open to the public. For information on upcoming exhibitions, visit the website or call (845) 437-5370.
Music Department
Located in the Belle Skinner Hall of Music, the Martel Recital Hall is wonderfully suited, both acoustically and aesthetically, to music performance. With seating for 500, the Martel is home to the Vassar College Orchestra, Choir, Women's Chorus, Madrigal Singers, and numerous chamber groups and ensembles. The Martel concert schedule routinely includes distinguished guest artists, faculty recitals, senior recitals, and special musical events, such as last year's series of organ recitals celebrating the installation and dedication of the college's superb pipe organ, designed by masterbuilder Paul Fritts. For information on upcoming concerts and events (which are free and open to the public unless otherwise noted), please visit the website.
Dance Department
The Department of Dance sponsors several public performances each year. Among those, the Vassar Repertory Dance Theatre (VRDT) has a series of Works in Progress showings in the fall, a winter Modfest performance in conjunction with the The Department of Music, winter galas at the 1869 Bardavon Opera House, and two All Parents Weekend performances in the spring. The department's Master Class program annually invites at least one ballet and one modern expert to campus in addition to two people in other areas of dance. Public performances and lectures are often associated with these renowned visitors. Guest artists in the past have included: Irina Kolpokova, Arthur Mitchell, Helene Alexopoulos, Gregory Hines, Anna Kisselgoff, Donald Byrd, Edward Villella, Ronald K. Brown, Irene Dowd, Allegra Kent, Gelsey Kirkland, Pilobolus w/Adam Battlestein, Suzanne Farrell, Mummenschantz, Eldar Aliev, Deborah Jowitt, Bill T. Jones, Pascal Rioult, Clinton Luckett of ABT, Bill Irwin, and Donald McKayle. Many of the department's dance performances are in the Frances Daly Fergusson Dance Theater, located in Kenyon Hall.