January 9, 2008

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Exhibit at Ramapo College Features Commemorative Poles

James Andrew Brown in his studio.

(Mahwah) – Anna and James, an exhibit by James Andrew Brown that pays tribute to his parents, will open in the Kresge Gallery on the campus of Ramapo College Wednesday, February 6 and continue through March 7.  A reception will be held February 6 from 5 – 7 p.m; an artist’s talk will begin at 6 p.m.

Brown will assemble an environmental installation that will fill the Kresge Gallery and touch on themes of family, African-American identity and history.  The exhibit, featuring multimedia work comprised of various elements, will be dedicated to the memory of the artist’s parents, Anna and James, who died in 2003.

Dominating the gallery will be a series of assemblages in the form of poles composed, in part, of found materials that feature wildly colorful and wistfully symbolic artifacts, ranging from altered toys, paint and fabric to other found objects.  The exhibition will also feature video projections with historical references.

Brown was born and raised in Paterson, NJ and received his B.F.A. from Calvin College in 1977 and his M.F.A from Western Michigan University.  The artist’s spiritual upbringing, as well as his religious education at Calvin College, is reflected in his approach to life and his art.

James Andrew Brown’s work are part of the collections of the Rutgers Center for Innovative Printmaking, Rutgers Museum; University of Delaware, African American Museum Ohio; Morgan State, Gabriel Tenabe James Lewis Museum; Maryland, Studio Museum of Harlem, New York; and in New Jersey, the Jersey State Museum, Morris Museum and Montclair Art Museum.

This program is made possible in part by funds from the New Jersey State Council on the Arts/Department of State, a Partner Agency of the National Endowment for the Arts.

The Kresge Gallery is located in the Berrie Center for Performing and Visual Arts at Ramapo College.  Hours are Tuesday, Thursday and Friday from 1 to 5 p.m. and Wednesday, 1 to 7 p.m.  For more information, call 201.684.7147. 

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