January 31 – May 10, 2020

The New Haven Paint & Clay Club, established in 1900, is the oldest continuously active art club in Connecticut. With a history and impact extending far beyond New Haven, the club draws members and exhibitors from across Connecticut, New York and New England.

The art in this exhibition explores place and regional identity. Traditional landscapes depict the land, water, people and locales that help shape our conception of the Northeast. Other works by Connecticut artists portray abstracted landscapes and imaginative or distant places. Drawn from the collection of the New Haven Paint & Clay Club and augmented with works by Club members from the Lyman Allyn and the New Haven Museum, this retrospective celebrates the history and continuing legacy of the Club in its efforts to support and encourage the visual arts. [Read more…]

November 23, 2019 – January 26, 2020

Go wild this holiday season with the Lyman Allyn’s newest family-friendly exhibit, Grand Menagerie: Animals in Art! From the earliest cave drawings to the sleekest modern art, the animal world has always been a source of inspiration. Discover a zoo’s worth of animals to be found throughout the museum’s collection—in paintings, ceramics, sculpture, drawings, bronze, textiles, photography and more.  Explore the ways artists have depicted animals throughout the centuries, both observing the natural world and seeing themselves reflected in it. Learn about the symbolism humans have attached to animals in different cultures and how those meanings have shifted over time as societies have changed. Featuring more than 50 artworks and artifacts from the museum’s collection and interactive fun for all ages, Grand Menagerie promises something for everyone in your herd!

 
Left to right: Egyptian Falcon Sarcophagus, n.d. Wood, paint, gesso. Gift of Mrs. Earle W. Stamm. 1980.89; William Zorach, Reclining Cat, ca. 1926, rosewood. Bequest of Mary Griswold Steube. 1998.21.

August 24 – October 27, 2019

Knot Theory: Sculptural Works by Gilbert Boro is the latest exhibit in Lyman Allyn’s Near :: New contemporary series. Boro is a sculptor, architect, educator, and international design consultant, whose sculptures focus on the interplay of space, place, and scale. As the name suggests, Knot Theory will highlight Boro’s  knot sculptures, exploring their intricate shapes and figures. The exhibition will be on view in Glassenberg Gallery.

Knots have dual associations for Boro: their indispensable applications in sailing, which he learned as a teenager living on Long Island Sound; their symbolism of unity, which is seen in the synergy created from weaving different strands to form a strong bond. Boro’s knots simultaneously expose the inherent power and strength of their construction with the smoothness and elegance of their grace. A sailboat cannot navigate challenging weather without a crew working in unison to ensure the knots and lines are correctly placed. It is this dual bond between strength and grace that creates a universal harmony — as in art and in life. Unlike the tautness of a sailor’s knot, the voids floating between Boro’s strands recognize that we still need space to expand and thrive while exploring our common bonds through sculpture.