Rick Shaefer

Bird's of the Northeast: Gulls to Great Auks features paintings, sculpture, prints, drawings, photographs, and natural history specimens from the early 19th century through the present day. Beyond merely connecting us to the natural world, the artworks in this exhibition remind us of the toll taken on bird habitats since the beginning of European colonialism in North America; the delicate ecosystems that allow birds of all species to thrive came under attack, as birds were hunted for food and ornamentation and their habitats were destroyed.

Touchstones, Totems, Talismans: Animals in Contemporary Art

October 13, 2017 - February 11, 2018

The inspiration for this exhibit dates back to the 2004 BMAC exhibit Andy Warhol: The Jon Gould Collection. The most commented-on works in that show were the large prints from Warhol’s 1983 “Endangered Species” portfolio. Observing visitors’ reactions to those powerful images, I sensed that their aesthetic experiences were enriched by the deep connections humans have with animals, both domestic and wild.

Depicting animals—as symbols, teachers, muses, companions—connects human cultures across time. Pictures of animals serve as proxies for happiness, distress, or fear. They speak of love, remembrance, and condolence. Whether literal or abstract, animal images call into play both our experiences with the creatures themselves and the often deep-seated characteristics, traits, and qualities we assign to them.

Featuring the work of Walton Ford, Bharti Kher, Colleen Kiely, Stephen Petegorsky, Shelley Reed, Jane Rosen, Michal Rovner, Rick Shaefer, and Andy Warhol, this exhibit offers a mere glimpse into the complexity of human-animal relationships in contemporary art. The selected works are diverse in intention and execution. Some are humorous; others are unsettling. All invite contemplation of the various ways in which animals inhabit our personal experiences, our cultural history, and our common world.

— Mara Williams, Chief Curator

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The Refugee Trilogy is a suite of large-scale charcoal drawings by Connecticut-based artist Rick Shaefer. The works employ the visual language of Baroque painting to express–in a language both familiar and historical–the plight of contemporary refugees, and the persistence of this epic human tragedy across time. The three triptychs, each measuring 96" x 165", are exhibited in a chronology suggested by news reports. Land Crossing, the first of the three, addresses the hazardous journeys faced by refugees fleeing war, famine, drought, or other causes. The second work, Water Crossing, portrays the perilous journeys across open water. The third work, Border Crossing, addresses the conflicts and hostilities faced at borders. In addition to the three triptychs, the exhibition includes seventeen preparatory drawings. In an interpretive space adjacent to the exhibition, visitors may watch short video interviews with Marquette University faculty members–from areas ranging from law to nursing to history–who work on the subject of refugees. Rick Shaefer: The Refugee Trilogy was organized by the Fairfield University Art Museum

Silvermine Arts Center announced today its award winners and finalists in the 67th annual Art of the Northeast Exhibition, Silvermine's signature show, which is open to artists from Maine to D.C.  David Kiehl, Nancy and Fred Poses Curator at the Whitney Museum, served as the 2017 curator.

Kiehl's Best in Show was Fairfield resident Rick Shaefer's large-scale drawing, "Sugar Maple," done on charcoal on vellum on aluminum.

Link to the exhibition press release:

http://www.hcc.commnet.edu/artmuseum/exhibits/coming.asp

September 18, 2014 - February 7, 2015: Rick Shaefer: Rendering Nature

 Connecticut-based artist Rick Shaefer, best known for his remarkable works in charcoal on vellum, will have his artworks featured in the newest exhibition at Fairfield University's Bellarmine Museum of Art. Entitled Rick Shaefer: Rendering Nature, the exhibition is on view September 18, 2014 through December 19, 2014. An opening reception, free and open to the public, takes place on Thursday, September 18, 2014, from 6 to 8 p.m. Shaefer's charcoal drawings will be complemented by more than a dozen of his cloud paintings, many of which have never been exhibited publicly before and several of which were painted specifically for the Bellarmine's main gallery.

more info: http://www.fairfield.edu/lifeatfairfield/artsminds/thebellarminemuseum/exhibitions/