Richard J. Powell, PhD, is the John Spencer Bassett Distinguished Professor of Art and Art History at Duke University, where he has taught since 1990. After completing his undergraduate studies at Morehouse College and earning an master’s degree in fine art from Howard University, Powell earned a master’s degree in African American Studies, as well as a master’s degree in philosophy and doctorate in history of art from Yale University.
Denise Murrell, PhD, holds the position of Merryl H. and James S. Tisch Curator-at-Large at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Murrell was previously the associate curator of 19th- and 20th-Century Art at the Met. Prior to that, she was the curator of the exhibition Posing Modernity: The Black Model from Manet and Matisse to Today (October 2018–February 2019) at Columbia University’s Wallach Art Gallery while serving as the Wallach’s Ford Foundation Postdoctoral Research Scholar (2014–19). She was a co-curator of the exhibition’s expansion at the Musée d’Orsay, Paris, as Le Modèle Noir de Géricault à Matisse (March–July 2019) and a guest lecturer for its final tour as Le Modèle Noir de Géricault à Picasso at the Memorial ACTe, Pointe-à-Pitre, Guadeloupe (September–December 2019).
Diedra Harris-Kelley is co-director of the Romare Bearden Foundation, the nonprofit organization perpetuating the legacy of Romare Bearden. She offers a unique perspective on Bearden’s work being a formally trained painter, and niece of the artist’s late wife, Nanette Rohan Bearden. For the last 10 years, she has been part of the team leading the foundation through a successful run of exhibitions, publications, and educational and celebratory programs around the life and art of Bearden. She also acts as its chief researcher.
From left: Romare Bearden (American, 1911-88). The Open Door, 1979, lithograph. Collection of the Mint Museum, Charlotte, NC. Gift of Jerald Melberg. 2009.88.1 © 2022 Romare Bearden Foundation / Licensed by VAGA at Artists Rights Society (ARS), NY. Pablo Picasso (Spanish, 1881-1973). Nature Morte devant une Fenêtre Ouverte sur l’Eau, stencil after a work by Pablo Picasso 1923, gouache on silkscreen on paper. Musée Picasso, donation Pablo Picasso, 1979, MP3505 © RMN-Grand Palais (Musée national Picasso-Paris) / Adrien Didierjean © 2022 Estate of Pablo Picasso / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York.
For Immediate Release | Images available here
Charlotte, North Carolina (January 25, 2023) — Bearden/Picasso: Rhythms and Reverberations, opening February 11 at Mint Museum Uptown, explores the shared interests of Romare Bearden and Pablo Picasso in one exhibition. The exhibiition is an exciting additional narrative to Picasso Landscapes: Out of Bounds, also on view February 11–May 21, 2023 at Mint Museum Uptown.
Curated by Jonathan Stuhlman, PhD, senior curator of American art at The Mint Museum, Bearden/Picasso: Rhythms and Reverberations includes three loaned works by Picasso and 17 by Bearden, many drawn from the Mint’s rich holding, as well as special loans from other museums and private collections. While Bearden’s later collages and prints comprise a majority of the exhibition, nearly half of the works are of his the artist’s rarely seen early paintings from the 1940s — a period when he was immersed in the New York art world and a time when Picasso was frequently exhibiting there.
The exhibition is divided into four thematic sections. The first theme considers the two artists’ shared interest in imagery of bulls and bullfighting. The second explores the importance of music and rhythm as both subject matter and a way of creating a dynamic composition. The third theme considers their shared interest in interior scenes and their use of doorways and windows as compositional devices, and the fourth looks at each artist’s use of black outlines defining simplified, brightly colored forms, called the “stained glass” aesthetic.
“On the surface, it might seem odd to organize an exhibition that brings together the work of American artist Romare Bearden and Spanish artist Pablo Picasso, as it might seem the two have little in common, however there has rightly been some notice of the relationship between the two artists’ works,” Stuhlman says. “Discussions have primarily centered upon the comparison of their shared subject matter of folk musicians and the impact of Cubism on Bearden’s approach to collage, a relationship that he himself acknowledged, and each artist’s use of African masks in their art. While these are important and valid connections, this exhibition seeks to add additional points of aesthetic and intellectual overlap and shared interest to the story.”
On March 18 from 2 to 4 PM, the Mint will host “An Afternoon Salon: Romare Bearden and Modernism” at Mint Museum Uptown featuring Richard Powell, PhD, Duke University professor and Romare Bearden Foundation advisor; Denise Murrell, PhD, curator-at-large at the Metropolitan Museum of Art; and moderator Diedra Harris-Kelley, co-director of the Romare Bearden Foundation, who will discuss the life and works of Romare Bearden. Admission is $10 for the salon and to see Bearden/Picasso and Picasso Landscapes; or $5 for the salon and general admission to the museum.
Bearden/Picasso: Rhythms and Reverberations is generously presented in Charlotte by Bank of America, the City of Charlotte, Duke Energy, Mecklenburg County, M.A. Rogers, Ann and Michael Tarwater, North Carolina Arts Council, and Moore & Van Allen. Additional generous support is provided by: Leigh-Ann and Martin Sprock; Robin and Bill Branstrom, Sally Cooper, Laura and Mike Grace, Marshelette and Milton Prime; Posey and Mark Mealy; Chandra and Jimmie Johnson; Marty and Weston Andress, Mary and Walt Beaver, Betsy and Alfred Brand; Tim and Sarah Belk, toni and Alfred Kendrick, Beth and Drew Quartapella, Rocky and Curtis Trenkelbach, Charlotte and John Wickham; Mary Lou and Jim Babb, and Jo Ann and Joddy Peer. The Mint Museum is supported, in part, by the Infusion Fund and its generous donors. Bearden/Picasso: Rhythms and Reverberations is organized by The Mint Museum. Special thanks to media partner Charlotte magazine.
“At Bank of America, we believe in the power of the arts to help economies thrive, enrich societies, and create greater cultural understanding,” says Milton Prime, CFO for Global Technology and Global Operations for Bank of America and Board of Trustees Chair for The Mint Museum. “We are very pleased to support The Mint Museum and to have the Charlotte region become the first-ever to host the Picasso Landscapes: Out of Bounds exhibition, as well as support their efforts to showcase another world-renowned artist, Romare Bearden, who is also one of Charlotte’s own in the Bearden/Picasso: Rhythms and Reverberations exhibition.”
Exhibition Ticket Information
Price of admission is $25 for adults; $20 for seniors 65 and older; $10 members and college students with ID, and includes general museum admission and admission to Picasso Landscapes: Out of Bounds.
Children ages 17 and younger and art teachers are admitted free of charge. Tickets are available for advance purchase at mintmuseum.org/ticketing.
For exhibition hours, visit mintmuseum.org.
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Contact:
Clayton Sealey, senior director of marketing and communications
clayton.sealey@mintmuseum.org | 704.534.0186 (c)
Michele Huggins, associate director of marketing and communications
michele.huggins@mintmuseum.org | 704.564.0826 (c)