PRATT MUSEUM

Watermark

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June 4 – August 4, 2015
Opening reception: Thursday, June 4, 5-7 p.m.

 

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Asia Freeman and Michael Walsh present a duo show depicting their connections to the local landscape through painting and moving images. Freeman presents new oil paintings. Walsh presents new digital videos. The two artists have shared a studio for several years. They also share a sensual language of mark making with a focus on water as media and muse. Explore Kachemak Bay’s vast, ethereal waterscapes, places that are near yet remain elusive and enigmatic due to Alaska’s volatile weather. Islands rise like mirages from mist-shrouded shorelines, light bursts through translucent layers of color to create a mysterious sense of place. Investigate the tension between the solidity of paint, the realism of photography and the instability of form in fleeting light and motion. Watermark centers on artwork that hovers between pure abstraction and natural realism.

This exhibit is supported in part by Holland America Line, Alaska State Council on the Arts, National Endowment for the Arts, and City of Homer.

Faith Revell: Bird Dance

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April 3 – May 31, 2015
Opening reception: Friday, April 3, 5-7 p.m.
Artist’s Workshop: May 30, 10 a.m. – 4 p.m. ($30)

Lesser Yellowlegs 24x24Bird Dance presents a confluence of birds in motion. Artist Faith Revell’s drawings and paintings exude a strong kinesthetic quality, are often gestural in nature, and focus on movement. These images will be paired with selected artifacts from the Pratt Museum’s natural history collection, as well as video and audio of birds in motion. Explore birds in motion through a variety of perspectives in Bird Dance.

Join Faith on May 30 for “Gesture and Form in Nature.” This workshop, geared toward adult and young adult artists, will start with a field session of outdoor observation and gestural drawing. After lunch, students will return to the museum for a gallery talk, additional drawing of mounted birds, and then move to a workshop space for final projects. Workshop space is limited. Please visit the link above for more information, and call the front desk to register and reserve your place.

This exhibit is supported in part by Alyeska Pipeline Service Company, Alaska State Council on the Arts, National Endowment for the Arts, and City of Homer.

Capital Update – April 2015

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As we move forward on the Capital Project and architectural work for the new Pratt Museum, the design and curatorial team are already at work developing exhibits to fill this exciting new space. We invite you to be a part of this process!

Over the next 18 months, the lower galleries will feature a series of prototype exhibits to invite your feedback. These are works in progress and need your input as we refine them into permanent installations.

Currently on display is “Community Connectors: Radios, Telephones and Pathways.” Please stop by and let us know what you think or if you can help contribute to the story.

Additionally, you can visit a new section of our website on the Master Exhibit Plan and see what we’re looking for right now—be it stories, artifacts, photographs, or information on materials in the Pratt’s collection. We’ll also use this area to post future public meetings and feedback sessions about the exhibit development process.

Thank you for being a part of the Pratt!

Jubilee: Festival of Young Artists

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April 3 – May 10, 2015
Opening reception: Friday, April 3, 5-7 p.m.

Birch Trees by Kaitlyn Johnson, West Homer Elementary, 2013.

The annual student art showcase will open in the lower level Art Gallery on April 3, in conjunction with the opening of Bird Dance. Come celebrate works of art in all media by area students from Kindergarten through High School.

Capital Update – March 2015

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CHAMP (Culture Humanities Arts Museums Partners) Advocacy Fly-In, January 28-29, 2015

Delegates from Alaska State Council on the Arts, Alaska Humanities Forum, Museums Alaska and Alaska Historical Society met in Juneau on January 28 and 29, where they participated in advocacy training, gave a luncheon presentation at the capitol, and met with legislators.

Specific to museums, in 2014 a McDowell Group survey demonstrated critical infrastructure needs for Alaska’s cultural institutions. 27 museums cited the need for significant capital improvements within the next five years: exhibition space expansion or improvement; increase in facility size; collections storage expansion; and security improvements.

To address this need, the Museums Alaska delegation asked Representative Bob Herron to sponsor a bill to establish a Museum Construction, Expansion, and Major Renovation Matching Grant Program. This legislation, HB 52, mirrors an existing program for libraries, providing matching grants to those selected from the prioritized list of projects around the state, based on their readiness.

While in Juneau, 15 Museums Alaska advocates met with over 30 legislators and staff to educate them about the issues and gauge their support of the bill. Legislators were generally supportive of the concept, particularly because it carries a zero fiscal note. Senator Gary Stevens has filed a companion bill, SB 61. Please thank Representative Herron, rep.bob.herron@akleg.gov,and Senator Stevens sen.gary.stevens@akleg.gov, for their leadership in sponsoring the legislation.

Once the bill has been scheduled, public testimony will be taken and we will send an eblast as to time and date. Please contact Michele Miller, mmiller@prattmuseum.org, for more information.

Senator Stevens visited Homer Monday and Tuesday, March 9 and 10, at which time he briefed the Board members and staff on the state’s financial status. This year’s capital budget will be minimal in comparison to previous years. Only critical projects will be funded. It is unlikely that the Pratt will receive capital funds this year.

One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Brooks Fish

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Thirty Years of Counting Fish at Brooks Lake,
Katmai National Park and Preserve
February 1 – March 29, 2015Brooks lake fish racks 1940

The Bristol Bay Investigation’s temporary tent camp and fish weir established at the outlet of the Brooks River in 1940. Photographed by Robert Hacker. “Brooks Camp Interpretive Collection,” KATM Photo Archives, Records of Katmai National Park and Preserve, Anchorage, Alaska.“One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Brooks Fish” shows visitors how counting fish at the outlet of Brooks Lake helped develop the management methodology used to regulate one of the most important sockeye salmon fisheries in Alaska. Thanks in part to the scientist’s eye for detail, the composition of the photographs are compelling and engaging. Most importantly, this exhibit underscores the conclusion that salmon-pursuing human beings have been an integral force that have profoundly shaped the salmon resource since the Brooks River formed nearly 4,500 years ago. Contrary to most salmon and people stories, the fish runs of Bristol Bay remain healthy, they serve as the ecological engines for an entire ecosystem, and support an industry that employs a high number of Alaskans. Simply put, this is a resource management story Alaska got right.

Biologists find the perfect balance for photographing salmon near the weir site in July 1959. “Theodore Merrell Collection,” Records of Katmai National Park and Preserve, Anchorage, Alaska.

Curators Kathryn Myers (Katmai National Park and Preserve) and Katherine Ringsmuth (Anchorage Museum, formerly Katmai National Park and Preserve) will give a curators’ talk as part of the Pratt Museum Annual Meeting: Tuesday, February 3 at 6pm.

This exhibit is supported in part by Icicle Seafoods, Alaska State Council on the Arts, National Endowment for the Arts, and City of Homer. Developed in partnership with the National Park Service.

Free Admission during December

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mooseThanks to individual donors and the City of Homer, the Pratt Museum is offering complimentary admission throughout the month of December. Enjoy your community museum during the holiday season!

Women Who Run with the Tides

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New Work by 29 Women – 25 Years
November 7 – December 31, 2014
opening reception Friday, November 7, 5-7 pm

An Invitational Art Exhibition

Women Who Run with the Tides

“…Several of us were reflecting on our early days in Kachemak Bay 25-35 years ago. We chatted about how our experiences then significantly impacted who we were becoming as young women artists. From that conversation a plan was hatched to invite this dynamic group of about 30 current and former Kachemak Bay women artists to create new work for an art exhibition to be held at the Pratt Museum in Homer, Alaska.”

– Kim Terpening and Nancy Wise, exhibit curators

In conjunction with the exhibit, the Pratt Museum has produced a catalog featuring new work by each artist in the show. The catalog is 66 pages, full color, and retails for $24.95. Copies will be available at the Pratt on November 7.

Welcome to our new website!

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Pratt Word CloudAfter months of planning and editing, the Pratt Museum is very excited to share our newly designed website! Not only should this new site be more user-friendly and easy to navigate, visitors can access information on programs,  explore the collections, purchase or renew memberships, and import calendar items. You can even make a secure end-of-year donation to support the Pratt Museum online! This is the first part of a two-phase project. Early in 2015, we will launch the online store and additional content and resources for students and educators.

What do you think? We value your input and want to hear from you! You can comment below or send us an email with your thoughts.