An exhibition showcasing parallels in the cultural achievements of Louisville and Owensboro opens at the Owensboro Museum of Fine Art with a preview gala from 6-8 p.m. Saturday. A 7 p.m. program will feature a gallery talk by the guest curator, Robert Lockhart.
The exhibition is titled “Artful Connections: Louisville/Owensboro.” The public is invited to attend the exhibition and gala but must make reservations by contacting the museum at 270-685-3181 or [email protected].
The exhibition features more than 100 works of art by 45 artists nominated by Lockhart, the highly regarded artist/educator and founding director of the Fine Arts Program at Louisville’s Bellarmine University. The works are on loan from artists’ studios, college and university collections in Louisville, private and public collections in Owensboro, and the Permanent Collection of the Owensboro Museum of Fine Art.
Highlights include exhibits by some of Kentucky’s leading artists including the renowned Louisville sculptor Ed Hamilton, who has been commissioned to produce major works of public art around the country. OMFA presented Hamilton’s work in a one-person exhibition in the late 1970s at the beginning of his career.
Also showcased are the works of the late Louisville sculptor Barney Bright (1927-1997). He is featured in the museum’s Permanent Collection by a bust of the founding chairman, the late Marshall S. Burlew, commissioned by Burlew’s family in commemoration of his leadership in establishing the OMFA. Also featured is a bronze dancer by Bright purchased by the former BB&T Bank, the predecessor of Owensboro’s Truist Bank and gifted to the museum.
Owensboro native and glassmaker Brook Forrest White, Jr., now a Louisville resident and owner of the Flame Run Glass Studio and Gallery, is represented in the exhibition by works in the museum’s Permanent Collection as well as large photographs of monumental installations in the Owensboro Convention Center and Owensboro Health Regional Hospital.
The exhibition will continue through July 17 and is open to the public during regular museum hours of 12-5 p.m. Tuesday through Friday and 1-4 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. Admission to the museum is free but donations are appreciated.
