Portraiture with a Touch of Landscape

On view March 2nd through April 2nd 2010

Opening Reception:
Friday, April 2nd, 2010

(Downtown Ithaca Gallery Night)
5-8pm
At The History Center

Wine and refreshments served!

Henry Noble Hinckley (1888-1969) was an avid local antiques collector. His Seneca Street home became a museum after his death, and was open to the public until the late 1980s. This vivid 1964 portrait, painted by Norwegian colorist and Cornell professor Christian Midjo, highlights Hinckley’s military service as a lieutenant in the First World War, through the image of an eagle prominently displayed above his head.

This month’s chapter of the “Paintings Unwrapped” exhibition presents a selection of portraits, which highlight a genre of painting that dominates the History Center’s art collection. Dating from 1830 to 1964, these works feature the well heeled of Ithaca’s past as painted by a variety of local, non-local, obscure, and prominent artists. By bringing together a variety of subjects and artistic styles across a 130-year span, this exhibition gives visitors the opportunity to explore local history through the lens of commissioned portraiture. Also on display are two unique watercolors by etcher and painter John Hill Millspaugh, as well as a striking Ithaca landscape by famed Hudson River School painter John Fredrick Kensett.

About Historic Paintings Unwrapped

Our records inform us that The History Center has over 200 paintings in its collection. Most have not been seen in a very, very long time and are stored in crates and other containers, so we thought it was time to see what we have! In October 2009, we began the process, bringing the crates, a few at a time, into the gallery, to open them up and exhibit the pictures for all to see. Each painting will be on display for about a month so come often to see them all by the end of April, 2010. As we hang each piece, we will assess them for condition, retention, future storage, and improved record-keeping. We are also taking this opportunity to condense some items in deep-storage in the first floor locked storage area so that the paintings can be repacked and moved into the empty space. This will make room in our archives for more heavily used documents and photographs.

The Exhibit is on view through December on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays from 11-5pm.

For more information, please call (607) 273.8284.

For info, contact
The History Center
401 East State Street, Suite 100
Ithaca, New York 14850
Phone: 607.273.8284 ext. 6, Fax: (607) 273-6107
community@TheHistoryCenter.net