LATROBE, PA – The Verostko Center for the Arts is proud to announce the anticipated opening of Shared Concerns on Thurs., Jan. 25. The exhibition pairs the work of 12 Associated Artists of Pittsburgh (AAP) members with selections from the Saint Vincent Art & Heritage Collections intended to illuminate the affinities of creatives working across continents and centuries.To celebrate the opening, a reception is scheduled for Jan. 25 from 5:00-8:00 p.m. at the Verostko Center for the Arts located inside the Dale P. Latimer Library on the campus of Saint Vincent College. The event is free and open to all. Reservations are not required.
Participating AAP members include Sandra Bacchi, Tony Cavalline, Eunsu Kang, Clayton Merrell, Mary Kay Neff, S.C., Adalberto Ortiz, Marian Phillips, Patrick Schmidt, Nicolle Renee Ryan, Evan Rumble, Silvija Singh and Sarah Tancred.
The work of these Southwest Pennsylvania-based artists has been placed in conversation with historical pieces held by Saint Vincent, many rarely exhibited, that range from an illuminated Book of Hours created in France in the mid-15th century to an early 20th century woodland scene by Scalp Level painter Olive Turney. Shared Concerns features 24 artist projects that explore the evolving social, environmental, familial and formal considerations that have motivated artists for generations.
Pairing selections culled from Saint Vincent’s holdings with recently completed works is intended to forge new resonances between the motivations of artists working across time; reminding us that artists have long communicated to viewers what is sacred, overlooked, under threat, and is possible. The exhibition also illuminates similarities and divergences between historical forms of artmaking. Taken collectively, these pieces animate tradition, push the boundaries of abstraction, foreground the experiences of women and girls, and stress the mounting ecological crisis.
Shared Concerns has been curated by Andrew Julo, Director of the Verostko Center for the Arts and Curator of the Saint Vincent Art & Heritage Collections.
Noting the framework for the exhibition Julo shares, “Regardless of style or training, many artists are compelled to make work that records the world, others to escape from it, and still others to identify alternative futures. I’m struck by the remarkable overlap between the formal and conceptual motivations of artists from previous generations and their contemporary counterparts.”
Clayton Merrell, Point of Origin, 2023, oil on canvas, 62 x 70 inches. Image courtesy of the artist.
Unidentified Artist, German, late 17th century, Tree and Lake with Figures in Rowboat, n.d., ink on paper, 11 1/2 x 14 3/4 inches, Saint Vincent Art & Heritage Collections