A Review of 'A New American Sculpture: Lachaise, Laurent, Nadelman, and Zorach'
When a friend suggested at the conclusion of a trip that I join her and two other art collectors touring Maine museums I thought first of lobsters, and said yes to two days in Portland. I sincerely did enjoy the art – and the lobsters. Lachaise, Laurent, Nadelman and Zorach is the main exhibition at the four-story Portland Museum, and it was worth the one-hour flight to see the work of the four sculptors, immigrants who became decades long friends. The photos tell their story. What I did miss were Zorach’s bronze animals. This show was about human forms, moving through space, dancing, and loving.
Dorthea & Leo Rabkin Foundation
At the Dorothea and Leo Rabkin Foundation (www.rabkinfoundation.org) its Executive Director Susan Larsen showed us work by Leo that probably has never been exhibited before, prescient forms that predated a good deal of contemporary sculpture. This little-known foundation has produced a major coup in the art world by initiating a new grant program for visual art journalists, writers who don’t get a lot of publicity but who serve an important role in the arts. Grants of $50,000 each went to eight writers: Phong Bui, Charles Desmarais, Bob Keyes, Jason Farago, Jeff Huebner, Carolina Miranda, Christina Rees, and Chris Vitiello.
On View at the Maine College of Art:
The last stop was to the Institute of Contemporary Art at the Maine College of Art for a painting exhibition of both abstract and figurative works by artists from around the nation. And then we each independently revisited the Portland Museum – the exhibition was that good. I think I’d like to return to Portland very soon.
