Preview of Spring 2008 Shows at the AU Museum

Winter's William Christenberry Site/Possession extended until May 11

Contact: Maralee Csellar, AU Media Relations, 202-885-5952

Washington, D.C. (March 3, 2008)—The American University Museum at the Katzen Arts Center announces its line-up of four exhibitions for Spring 2008:

Personal Landscapes: Contemporary Art from Israel (Tuesday, April 1–Sunday, May 18)
This exhibition, which coincides with the 60th anniversary of the founding of the state of Israel, is a collaboration between the American University Museum, the Center for Israel Studies and the Naomi and Nehemiah Cohen Foundation. The exhibit features works from fifteen emerging Israeli artists that reveal the physical, emotional and intellectual landscape of contemporary Israel.

Willem de Looper (Tuesday, April 1–Sunday, May 18)
Born in 1932 in The Hague, Netherlands, Willem de Looper studied under Ben L. Summerford and Robert Gates at American University and was the long-time curator of the Phillips Collection in Washington, D.C. This one-person show examines de Looper's unique contributions to color field abstraction developed during the past fifty years.

American University Art Department: Student Exhibitions (Tuesday, April 1–Sunday, May 18)
American University's Department of Art showcases work by undergraduate (April 1–6), first year MFA (April 10–15) and MFA thesis students (April 19–May18). Painting, prints, sculptures, design and video installations will be included.

Photos from the Prague Quadrennial 2007 (Tuesday, April 1–Sunday, May 18)
This selection of 35 photographs from the 11th International Exhibition of Scenography and Theatre Architecture—Prague Quadrennial 2007—showcases the excitement and vibrancy of the festival that celebrated its 40th anniversary with a record-breaking number 35,000 visitors from more than 70 countries. This modest photo exhibition also demonstrates how the event transformed the city of Prague into a living stage for a world theatre.

In addition, the American University Museum has announced a change to the closing date of one of its current exhibitions:

William Christenberry: Site/Possession
Tuesday, Feb. 5–Sunday, May 11 (**note new closing date, originally scheduled to close March 22)
Organized by the University of Virginia Art Museum, this exhibition features 50 of Christenberry's rarely-exhibited drawings and the Klan Room Tableau, which includes over 200 works. According to Christenberry this body of work describes his "visceral reaction to this wholly and abhorrently American phenomenon, which, although officially excised from the public, still exists and arouses intense feelings in all areas of the country." This exhibition is made possible with the generous support of the FUNd, the Oakwood Foundation, the Glenstone Foundation, the University of Virginia Council for the Arts and Arts Enhancement Fund, Barbara and Richard S. Lane, Cary Brown-Epstein, Irwin and Linda Berman, the Virginia Commission for the Arts, Dr. Robert L and Lucinda W. Bunnen, Betsy and Frank Karel, Soul of Virginia Magazine, Yvette Kraft and an anonymous donor.