Galleries

Every summer, Visual Arts at Chautauqua Institution (VACI) presents 11 exhibitions in the newly renovated Strohl Art Center, Fowler-Kellogg Art Center and the Melvin Johnson Sculpture Garden. These diverse spaces allow VACI to host a variety of contemporary shows from nationally recognized artists. VACI strives to exhibit a balance of two- and three-dimensional works, specifically curated for its gallery spaces.

This summer, VACI is proud to present our third season long exhibition "Works on Paper from the Permanent Collection of the Albright-Knox Art Gallery", sponsored by the John R. Oishei Foundation. Please join us in 2013 for this dynamic show as well as other shows of contemporary art, surveys of national and regional art, and the ever popular Annual School of Art Student Exhibition. The season begins on Sunday, June 23 with several gallery openings from 3 - 5 p.m. Dr. Janne Siren, the newly appointed director of the Albright-Knox Art Gallery, is the juror for the 56th Chautauqua Annual Exhibition of Contemporary Art. We join the Albright-Knox and the City of Buffalo in welcoming him to Western New York!

2013 Exhibition Proposal Form (PDF)

2013 VACI Exhibitions

♦ 56th Chautauqua Annual Exhibition of Contemporary Art· June 23–July 15
♦ Contemporary Couples: A Creative Life Together· July 17–August 20
♦ Abstraction in America, part III — Contemporary Abstraction
Works on Paper from the Permanent Collection of the Albright-Knox Art Gallery· June 23–August 19
♦ Wood: On and Off the Wall· June 23–August 4
♦ Asina / Familiar· August 6–August 20
♦ Looking Forward Looking Back· June 23–July 18
♦ City Scapes· June 23–July 18
♦ An Object of Beauty: Metal / Fiber / Glass· June 23–July 18
♦ Chautauqua School of Art Annual Student Exhibition· July 21–August 1
♦ VACI Open Members Exhibition· August 5–22
♦ Melvin Johnson Sculpture Garden· June 23–August 22

♦ Strohl Art Center♦ Fowler-Kellogg Art Center

56th Chautauqua Annual Exhibition of Contemporary Art
June 23–July 15 / Opening Reception Sunday June 23 / 3–5 p.m.
Strohl Art Center / Main Gallery

VACI, the Visual Arts at Chautauqua Institution, is pleased to announce that the new director of the Albright-Knox Art Gallery, Janne Siren, will serve as the juror for the 56th Chautauqua Annual Exhibition of Contemporary Art. A Finnish native, Siren was educated in the U.S. and has held leadership positions at several European galleries and museums. He has been director of the Helsinki Art Museum, which focuses on modern and contemporary art, since 2007, and has also served as the director of the Tampere Art Museum, which is located in southern Finland. He is the first Nordic director to take the helm of a major American art museum.

Albright-Knox Board President Leslie Zemsky spoke spoke of Siren as “an impressive scholar and visionary administrator who is able to embrace and connect local, national, and global stages in a relevant and viable way".

His love of art and unique combination of experience both in the U.S. and Finland, make him an exciting choice for this year's annual exhibition.

Click here to view the prospectus and apply
to the 56th Chautauqua Annual Exhibition of Contemporary Art.

Contemporary Couples: A Creative Life Together
July 17–August 20 / Opening Reception Wednesday July 17 / 3–5 p.m.
Strohl Art Center / Main Gallery

In conjunction with the “Romeo and Juliet Collaborative Arts Project”, involving the Chautauqua Symphony, Theater, Dance and Voice programs, VACI is pleased to present this exhibition curated by Director of Galleries, Judy Barie. Paintings, sculpture, ceramics and works on paper will be featured in this themed based exhibition celebrating four creative couples who are all artists, working independently while living together. Twenty or more works will be shown in an eclectic colorful arrangement by Stephanie McMahon and Jason Greene, Erika Osborne and Tracy Stuckey, David and Ann Provan, Linda Sikora and Matthew Metz, all accomplished artists whose work can be found in museum and private collections as well as established galleries across the country

Abstraction in America, part III — Contemporary Abstraction
Works on Paper from the Permanent Collection of the Albright-Knox Art Gallery
June 23–August 19 / Opening Reception Sunday June 23 / 3–5 p.m.
Strohl Art Center / Gallo Family Gallery

This exhibition will be the third and final installment of our series on Abstraction in America from the 1940’s to the present. As a follow up to last summer’s “Abstraction in America 1960”s – 1980”s”, this year’s exhibition is focused on abstract works by emerging and contemporary artists. This year's exhibition was organized by VACI Artistic Director, Don Kimes and Albright-Knox Curator for the Collection Holly Hughes. This three year collaboration between the Albright-Knox Art Gallery in Buffalo and Chautauqua Institution has been generously funded by the John R. Oishei Foundation.

Wood: On and Off the Wall
June 23–August 4 / Opening Reception Sunday June 23 / 3–5 p.m.
Strohl Art Center / Bellowe Family Gallery

This contemporary exhibition features work created by five artists carving, manipulating, staining, embellishing and depicting the appearance of wood, in order to stretch the boundaries of classic wooden sculptures. The works by Michael Bauermeister, David French, Kevin O’Toole, Eric Serritella and Jesse Walp, while all quite different, relate to each other through thematic and gestural likeness. They collectively captivate and transform our perception of wood as a medium.

Asina / Familiar
August 6–20 / Opening Reception Sunday August 11 / 3–5 p.m.
Strohl Art Center / Bellowe Family Gallery

In conjunction with Chautauqua’s Week 8 theme Turkey: Model for the Middle East, Rochester Institute of Technology and Chautauqua School of Art’s faculty member Roberley Bell has curated an exhibition consisting of six women who live and/or work in Turkey. Asina is a word that means "familiar". This exhibition allows us to look through the eyes of six artists whose friendships and shared experiences explore the local and the global world, recognizing the "familiar".

Looking Forward Looking Back
June 23–July 18 / Opening Reception Sunday June 30 / 3–5 p.m.
Fowler-Kellogg Art Center / First Floor

We get to know the students during their short time in Chautauqua, but there are many success stories for students whose artistic trajectory began with Chautauqua. We look to the future by taking a look back at five Chautauqua School of Art alumni from the past 25 years. Curated by VACI Artistic Director, Don Kimes, this exhibition celebrates five alumni stories, with work shown by Jenny Glenn, Lisa Jakab, Alyse Rosner, Amber Scoon and Bobby Tso.

City Scapes
June 23–July 18 / Opening Reception Sunday June 30 / 3–5 p.m.
Angela Fowler Memorial Gallery

Ryder Henry has created an installation of floating urban islands and buildings. He constructs miniature buildings using assorted recycled paper packaging materials, water soluble glues and small plastic miscellany. Most of his creations are of his own imagining, incorporating the buildings into his ongoing city project called “4 Lydia”. The city provides a context for the buildings and serves as a way station to house them between their creation and when they depart on their own islands to the homes of collectors.

An Object of Beauty: Metal / Fiber / Glass
June 23–July 18 / Opening Reception Sunday June 30 / 3–5 p.m.
Fowler - Kellogg Art Center / Second Floor Galleries

Explore the beauty of craft with work by fifteen nationally acclaimed artists, who have created metal, fiber and glass pieces specifically for this Chautauqua exhibition. Curated by Director of Galleries, Judy Barie, it highlights the elevation of craft and object making while honoring the artist's unique craftsmanship and sheer imagination. Each of these disciplines will be shown separately in the three second floor galleries, yet they will jointly transform the second floor into an experience for avid craft enthusiasts to enjoy.

Chautauqua School of Art Annual Student Exhibition
July 21–August 1 / Opening Reception Sunday July 21 / 3–5 p.m.
Fowler-Kellogg Art Center / First and Second Floors

One of our most popular shows of the summer will be displayed once again in the Fowler- Kellogg Art Center on both the first and second floors. Students who are attending the seven week summer session at the Chautauqua School of Art will exhibit original work created on and off the grounds and in their studios. The show will exhibit hundreds of recent works and will include paintings, drawings, prints, sculpture and ceramics.

VACI Open Members Exhibition
Download an Exhibition Form
August 4–20 / Opening Reception Monday August 5 / 3–5 p.m.
Fowler-Kellogg Art Center / First and Second Floor

Exhibiting Members of the Visual Arts at Chautauqua Institution (VACI) are invited to show their original artwork each summer in the Fowler-Kellogg Art Center. This group show always offers a diverse mix of styles and media by adult artists. To become an Exhibiting Member, click here to download a 2013 membership application or stop by the Strohl Art Center during the 2013 season for a paper form.

Melvin Johnson Sculpture Garden
June 23–August 23

Featured Artists:
• Tom Dunn / Cairns Rock Sculpture
• Kevin Kautenberger / Mixed Media
• Michael Loop / Metal
• David Provan / Metal
• Susan Ferrari Rowley / Metal and Mesh

VACI Special Events

Art in the Park
Sunday July 7 and Sunday August 4 Noon–4:30 p.m.

Due to the overwhelming popularity of the annual "Art in the Park" shows in Miller Park each August, there will be two "Art in the Park" shows once again in 2013. These events are hosted by the VACI Partners, Chautauqua's friends of the Visual Arts group. Sixty artists will have the opportunity to exhibit and sell their works in Miller Park on either Sunday, July 7 or Sunday, August 4, 2013. To get an application to participate in "Art in the Park" click here. Paper applications will also be available at the Strohl Art Center after June 23, 2013.

Stroll Through the Arts
Thursday July 25 5 p.m.

Plans are underway for this summer’s fundraiser for the visual arts, hosted by the VACI Partners, Chautauqua’s friends of the visual arts group. We will continue to update this post with more exciting details and we promise an evening of art, fun, food and music! Please mark this date on your calendars and plan to spend the evening with us! Tickets can be purchased during the season at the Strohl Art Center beginning July 1, 2013. Proceeds from this event will benefit the Chautauqua School of Art Scholarship fund.