Night Visions: Nocturnes in American Art, 1860-1960

Bowdoin College Museum of Art (245 Maine Street, Brunswick, Maine)
through October 1

Spanning a century from the introduction of electric light to the dawn of the Space Age, this first major survey of American night scenes by artists such as Winslow Homer, Georgia O’Keeffe, Andrew Wyeth, and Joseph Cornell proposes the central importance of nocturnal images in the development of modern art.

Retooling their palette and reconsidering their techniques,
artists cherished the night as a time of heightened alertness
and active imagination. Mysterious and provocative, the
darkness was experienced as liberating, both on an aesthetic
and personal level—allowing artists to become invisible, turn
inward, and express personal truths in unique and poetic ways.

Night Vision expands the conversation on American art and the
rise of modernism, as it demonstrates how the theme of the
night inspired artists who sought to leave behind established
styles and traditions to better reflect the broader societal and
technological shifts as well as a new understanding of the value
of art as personal expression.

Excellent Review with Images

Images

Images #2

Catalogue

This gorgeously illustrated book investigates how leading American artists of diverse aesthetic convictions responded in a range of media—including paintings, drawings, prints, and photographs—to the unique challenges of picturing the night.

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