The Academy Art Museum in Easton, MD celebrated its 60^th anniversary year with one of its most memorable galas. The event featured a concert by acclaimed Mezzo Soprano Denyce Graves, who mesmerized guests with her performance at the Avalon Theatre. Guests then strolled down Harrison Street to the Museum for cocktails and dinner, catered by Gourmet by the Bay.

L-R: AAM Director Ben Simons, Denyce Graves, and Museum Board of Trustees member Holly Fine.

Director Ben Simons, comments, “This was a spectacular event. Guests were enchanted by Denyce Graves and enjoyed mingling, eating and socializing amidst the Museum’s impressive collection of artwork exhibited in the Museum’s galleries. It was an event that will be remembered.”

The Museum’s 60^th Anniversary will continue with a 60th Birthday Party, featuring a participatory public art installation in the courtyard, to be held on September 15, 2018; followed by the Academy Art Museum Craft Show, “Dazzled!” to be held on October 19 through 21, 2018; and its Members Exhibition, with the suggested theme of “60” and held for the first time during the holiday season.

Pictured are participants in the 2017 Academy Art Museum Studio Sale.

On Saturday, June 9, from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., the Academy Art Museum will host its second annual Studio Sale. The Museum’s instructors, artists and students are cleaning out their studios for this one-day sale. No work over $300. Framed and unframed drawings, paintings in oil, pastel, watercolor, acrylic, ceramics, pottery, art prints and large quantity of art books. There will be a special sale on frames and mats from Ben Franklin Crafts and Framing. Food and music will be available. The sale offers the opportunity to purchase original art from some of the region’s best artists.

According to local artist Katie Cassidy, Educational Consultant at the Museum, “This event was so well received last year. It provides an opportunity for people to buy original art at a very reasonable price. We are excited to hold this event again at the Museum this year.”

Contact Katie Cassidy at wkmcgarry@verizon.net for additional information.

The Academy Art Museum has announced that Maryland Governor Larry Hogan and First Lady Yumi Hogan will be the Distinguished Chairs for the Museums’ 60th Anniversary Gala on June 2, 2018. In addition to the Anniversary Gala featuring Denyce Graves, the Museum is honoring its past and celebrating its future with a series of exciting events including an Anniversary Exhibition, a Public Birthday Party and Public Art Event, and its Annual Craft Show and Members’ Exhibition.

“The First Lady and I have a strong connection to the arts, and a strong commitment to promoting the arts in Maryland,” said Governor Hogan. “We are proud to support the Academy Art Museum, which has partnered with many prestigious art organizations over the years to offer quality exhibitions, including the National Gallery of Art, the Walters Art Museum, and the Baltimore Museum of Art. We commend the Museum’s leadership, staff, and volunteers for their continued community involvement and innovative programs, and we look forward to sharing in their 60th anniversary celebration.”

The Governor has proposed record funding of $21.7 million in FY 2019 for the Maryland State Arts Council (MSAC), which provides grants, technical assistance, and other support services, for the arts, and is a significant source of annual operating support for the Museum. The First Lady is an accomplished artist and an adjunct professor at Maryland Institute College of Art. Her artwork, created on traditional Hanji paper with Sumi ink and mixed media, has been featured in art shows and museums in Maryland, Virginia, the District of Columbia, South Korea and more, including an exhibit at the National Museum of Women in the Arts.  She has also juried numerous art exhibitions, as well as has taught art classes to patients with cancer and people with disabilities.

Ben Simons, Director of the Academy Art Museum, states, “We are thrilled to have the Governor and the First Lady as our Distinguished Chairs for the 60th Anniversary Gala. Their continued commitment to the arts and its importance in our daily lives and in building healthy and vibrant communities resonates with our organization’s mission. Having them a part of our anniversary celebration will be special.”

Known originally as The Academy of the Arts, the Museum was founded in 1958 by a group of Talbot County residents who included among others first president A. Brittain “Britt” Banghart, a painter who studied with N. C. Wyeth, and Lee Lawrie, a German émigré most famous for his 1937 Art Deco “Atlas” sculpture at Rockefeller Center in New York City. In its six decades, the Museum has undergone two major building expansions, was reborn in 1999 as the “Academy Art Museum,” and in 2003 achieved accreditation by the American Alliance (then Association) of Museums.

For further information about the Museum’s 60^th Anniversary events, call Damika Baker, Director of Development, at 410-822-2787.

Alexander Calder, Swirls, 1970 (detail)

EXHIBITIONS

AAM @ 60: The Diamond Exhibition
Through July 8, 2018
During the Museum’s anniversary year, this exhibition shares with the public many of the treasures from its Permanent Collection. Anke Van Wagenberg, Chief Curator, has selected artworks from among the over 1500 works in the Permanent Collection for two sequential exhibitions. The Diamond Exhibition will showcase a representative range of works including prints from Goya to Picasso, Rembrandt and Whistler, and selections of its holdings in other media including painting, photography and sculpture.

Elizabeth Casqueiro: Entrances and Exits
Through July 8, 2018
This exhibition is an exploration of masked identity in its many forms and purposes. Casqueiro is interested in how from an early age we acquire and shed identities as seamlessly as an accomplished stage actor or a fictional superhero. Through the melding of opacity and translucency, structure and fluidity, and figuration and abstraction, she alludes to identity’s perpetual dance between order and chaos, exposure and concealment, and connection and disruption. This is her a first solo museum exhibition in the United States.

New Photography: National Juried Exhibition
Through July 8, 2018
The exhibition aims to highlight the current state of photography across a broad spectrum in this juried show. Artists submitted all types of photographic works including digital, analog, alternative processes, etc. The show’s juror, Sarah Stolfa, Chief Executive Officer and Artistic Director of the Philadelphia Photo Arts Center (PPAC), is a working fine-art photographer and educator and teaches at the University of Pennsylvania. The awards for the exhibition include a Best in Show of $1,000, a Second Prize of $500, and a Third Prize of $250.

Elizabeth Casqueiro, Do Something Batman, 2017.

The Academy Art Museum’s exhibitions are generously supported by the Maryland State Arts Council, the Talbot County Arts Council and the Star-Democrat. Free Docent Tours are every Wednesday at 11 a.m. for all exhibitions. For additional information, visit academyartmuseum.org or call the Museum at 410-822-2787.

SPECIAL EVENTS

Juneteenth: The Year of Frederick Douglass
June 16, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.
2018 is “The Year of Frederick Douglass!” The Academy Art Museum proudly joins over 35 local organizations in celebrating the life of Talbot County’s most famous native son. This year marks the 200th birthday of the social reformer, abolitionist, writer and statesman. The Museum will again partner with the Frederick Douglass Honor Society with its Annual Juneteenth Celebration. Juneteenth, one of the most important African American holidays in the country, marks the abolition of slavery. The celebration will commemorate Emancipation Day, celebrate the significant contributions of African Americans in our country, and reflect on the common values that we share as a community. This free family event will include music, food, entertainment, art-related activities, and MORE! This year’s celebration will also join with the Talbot County Free Library’s Chesapeake Children’s Book Festival, which will be held from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. in the Waterfowl Building (Armory) in Easton. For information, visit academyartmuseum.org/juneteenth or contact Damika Baker, Director of Development at (410) 822-2787 or dbaker@academyartmuseum.org.

Michael Joseph, A-lister & Sherie, 2016 (detail)

Open MIC
Second Monday Each Month – June 11
7 to 9 p.m.
The Academy Art Museum’s Open Mic is a monthly occasion for our community to share and appreciate the rich tapestry of creativity, skills and knowledge that thrive in the region. Contact Ray Remesch at RayRemesch@gmail.com for additional information.

Special sale on frames and mats from Ben Franklin
Saturday, June 9, 11 a.m.– 3 p.m.
The Museum’s instructors, artists and students are cleaning out their studios for this one-day sale. No work over $300. Framed and unframed drawings, paintings in oil, pastel, watercolor, acrylic, ceramics, pottery, art prints and large quantity of art books! Food and music will be available. Contact Katie Cassidy at wkmcgarry@verizon.net for additional information.

60th Anniversary Community Art Project
Help the Academy Art Museum celebrate its 60th Anniversary! Calling all students, teachers, professional artists, amateurs, families, friends, and everyone in between: Between July 1 and August 31, pick up a free card stock triangle at the Museum’s front desk. Draw on it, paint on it, write on it, make holes in it, glue things to it: your imagination is the limit. Return your completed triangle by September 30 and watch as we re-create the Museum’s logo on our front wall—triangle by triangle— to form a giant community mosaic. The bigger the better!

ADULT CLASSES

Frederick Douglass

Summer Mosaic Workshops for Adults and Teens
Instructor: Sheryl Southwick
2-Day Workshops: All are on Wednesdays and Thursdays
June 13, 10 a.m. – 2 p.m. and June 14, 10 a.m. – 11:30 a.m.
Cost: $75 Members per each 2-day workshop), $90 Non- members, plus $5 materials fee paid to instructor

Painting Water and Atmosphere with Pastels
Instructor: Nick Serratore
2-Day Workshop: June 19 and 20, 10 a.m.–3 p.m.
Cost: $125 Members, $150 Non-members

Mudheads–Painting the Essence of People Outdoors
Instructor: Diane DuBois Mullaly
1–Day Workshop: June 23 Saturday, 10 a.m.–2 p.m.
Cost: $48 Members, $58 Non-members

Monoprint Collage
Instructor: Rosemary Cooley
3–Day Workshop, June 22–24 Friday–Sunday, 10 a.m.–2 p.m.
Cost: $185 Members, $222 Non-members, plus $25 materials fee paid to the instructor at first class

AAM Studio Sale

Fundamentals of Drawing
Instructor: Katie Cassidy
3–Day Workshop: June 20 –June 22, 10.am.–1 p.m.
Cost: $110 Members, $132 Non-members, plus $15 materials fee paid to the instructor at first class

CHILDRENS’ CLASSES

Mini Masters Academy
Mini Masters is an art-based, early enrichment program for two to four-year old children. Flexible enrollment days are offered from September through May, Monday through Thursdays, 9 a.m. to 12:00, with optional extended day until 2 p.m. on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Email jhendricks@academyartmuseum.org for information and availability.

SUMMER CAMPS

The Power of Paint
Ages 8 –13
Instructor: Susan Horsey
June 18–21, 10 a.m.–12 noon
Cost: $105 Members; $115 Non-members

Sheryl Southwick

Animal Art Adventures (Including a visit from the Salisbury Zoo!)
Ages 7–13
Instructor: Dawn Malosh
Monday–Friday, June 25–29, 9:30 a.m.–12 noon
Cost: $175 Members; $185 Non-members

Clay
Ages 8–13
Instructor: Dawn Malosh
Monday–Friday, June 25–29, 1–3 p.m.
Cost: $120 Members, $130 Non-members

Introduction to Design Principles
Grades 4–7
Instructor: Gabby Lambeth
Monday–Friday, June 25–29, 10 a.m.–12 noon
Cost: $115 Members; $125 Non-members

PERFORMING ARTS CLASSES

Nick Serratore

Piano & Guitar Lessons
Instructor: Raymond Remesch
Contact Instructor for further information at (410) 829-0335 or rayremesch@gmail.com
Whether your goal is to audition for a conservatory, lead your family in song during the holidays, or learn to play the music you love, a personalized music education is one of the most rewarding and enduring investments people can make for themselves or their child.

Voice Lessons
Instructor: Georgiann Gibson
Contact instructor for information at (410) 829-2525 or georgiann@atlanticbb.net.
Whether you are interested in singing with a choir, becoming a soloist, getting a lead in the high school musical or community theatre production, joining a barbershop quartet, or preparing your audition for a conservatory, good singing requires a skill set that is developed over time.

Ballroom and Latin Dance
Instructor: Amanda Showell
Contact instructor for information at (302) 377-3088 or visit dancingontheshore.com.

For additional information, visit academyartmuseum.org or call the Museum at 410-822-2787.

Jan Baptist Weenix, Girl as Shepherdess with Dog, Le Musée de Picardie, Amiens

Anke Van Wagenberg, PhD, Chief Curator at the Academy Art Museum will discuss paintings of Jan Baptist Weenix and his son Jan Weenix, at an upcoming Kittredge-Wilson lecture, “Painting for Princes: Dutch Art by Jan Baptist Weenix & Jan Weenix.” The event will be held on Friday, May 18 at 6 p.m. at the Academy Art Museum. She recently published her two-volume tome entitled “Jan Baptist Weenix and Jan Weenix: The Paintings.” It is the result of many years of scholarly art-historical research on the works of the Dutch, seventeenth-century painters Jan Baptist Weenix (1621–1659)—a contemporary of Rembrandt and Vermeer—and his son Jan Weenix (1641– 1719).

These important Dutch masters and contemporaries of Rembrandt painted Italianate landscapes, portraits and still lifes and are represented in most principal museums with Dutch collections. The publication fills a lacuna in the art history of the Golden Age and provides a broader base for the appreciation of Dutch art. From the beginning it has been the purpose to study and publish the art of father Weenix and son Weenix because the authorship of their paintings has been frequently confused, especially paintings of the 1660s, when Weenix II had just “graduated” from his father’s studio. With the similar subject matter and style, their paintings have puzzled many writers and art historians. After his father-teacher’s death, the son gradually transferred his style in line with a newer more “courtly” taste of the late seventeenth and early eighteenth century, culminating in a commission to decorate the castle Bensberg near Dusseldorf for a German Prince. This transformation can now be clearly illustrated in Anke’s books, in which hundreds of artworks have been documented.

The 850-page monograph contains new, unpublished archival material on these important painters and a catalogue of 500 entries. The dual volume set is presented in a cassette and published by the renowned publishing house Waanders, in The Netherlands, with world-wide distribution in New York.

Signed copies of Van Wagenberg’s recently published two-volume book will be available at the lecture. As limited copies are available, advanced copies can be reserved. The cost of the lecture is $24 for Museum members and $29 for non-members. Pre-registration is suggested.  Register online at academyartmuseum.org or call 410-822-2787.

On Friday, April 27, 2018 at 6 p.m., the Academy Art Museum will feature its Kittredge-Wilson Lecture Series with a lecture by the highly-acclaimed American fine art photographer Tina Barney.  Barney is an American photographer best known for her large-scale, color portraits of her family and close friends. Her work is in the collections of the George Eastman House International Museum of Photography and Film in Rochester, New York; the Museum of Modern Art in New York City; and the Museum of Fine Arts in Houston.

Barney began her career in the mid-1970s when she started photographing in color with a large-format view camera capturing the domestic life and private moments of the American and European elite. Her work chronicles the complexity of interpersonal relationships. Straddling the line between candid and choreographed photography, between engagement and detachment, she captures her subjects in a range of rarefied settings, both private and public. In choosing color over black and white and producing large-format prints, she broke the tradition of established fine-art photography at the time. Her unstintingly honest portrayal of her subjects, many of whom are family and friends, remains completely original.

The “New York Times” wrote, “For more than three decades, Tina Barney’s large-scale family photos have opened a window to a world beyond most people’s imagination — an idyllic dreamscape of sunny days in well-appointed houses filled with quintessentially dressed, all-American elites. It’s no wonder they are among her best-known works.”

Barney was the recipient of a John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Fellowship in 1991, and the 2010 Lucie Award for Achievement in Portraiture.  Her monographs include Tina Barney: Theatre of Manners, The Europeans, and her new book from Steidl, Players. She will be signing copies of her recent Rizzoli publication, Tina Barney at the lecture. She lives in New York and Rhode Island.

The cost of the lecture is $24 for Museum members and $29 for non-members. Pre-registration is suggested.  Register online at academyartmuseum.org or call 410-822-2787.

Joan Miró, (1893 – 1983), Oiseau Zéphyr, Color lithograph, 1960, AAM 2015.030.

EXHIBITIONS

The Academy Art Museum’s exhibitions are generously supported by the Maryland State Arts Council, the Talbot County Arts Council and the Star-Democrat. Free Docent Tours are every Wednesday at 11 a.m. for all exhibitions.

AAM @ 60: The Diamond Exhibition
Part I April 21–July 8, 2018, Members’ Reception: Friday, April 20, 5:30-7:00 p.m.
In 1958, the Academy Art Museum opened its doors to the public as the Academy of the Arts. In 2018 the Museum invites all audiences to celebrate its 60th anniversary, honoring the past and celebrating the future. Program highlights include a special two-part Diamond Exhibition, representing the creative genius of artists from Europe and the United States, spanning from the seventeenth century to the present. The AAM @ 60: The Diamond Exhibition will showcase a representative range of treasures and Picasso, and selections of its holdings in other media, including painting, photography and sculpture. AAM @ 60: The Diamond Exhibition will be accompanied by a special anniversary catalogue.

Michael Joseph, A-lister & Sherie, 2016 (detail) W, Archival pigment print.

New Photography: National Juried Exhibition
April 14 – July 15, 2018
Saturday, April 28, 3-4:30 p.m. – Awards Ceremony with Juror Sarah Stolfa
Photographic artists of all walks have submitted their latest works to a new national juried show at the Academy Art Museum in Easton, MD. The exhibition aims to highlight the current state of photography across a broad spectrum. Artists may submit all types of photographic works including digital, analog, alternative processes, etc.

Elizabeth Casqueiro: Entrances and Exits
April 14 –July 15, 2018
May 4, 5:30 p.m. – Artist talk on First Friday
Elizabeth Casqueiro is a visual artist who was born in England and grew up in Portugal, studying art at St. Martin’s College of Art in London, the Corcoran School of Art, and the Washington Studio School. Her work is an exploration of masked identity and taps into the playful and entertaining origins of identity through a series of works involving the action hero, the stage actor, and what she calls “the cheesy plot.” Following her fall solo gallery show in Portugal (2017), the Academy Art Museum is offering her a first solo museum exhibition in the United States.

LECTURES

Elizabeth Casqueiro, Do Something Batman, 2017 Acrylic and oil on canvas, Collection of the Artist.

Kittredge-Wilson Lecture Series
These lectures feature an exciting array of speakers who impart a diversity of perspectives on subjects such as art, architecture, history and literature.
Cost: $24 Members, Non-members $29. Pre-registration is suggested. Register online at academyartmuseum.org.

Painting for Princes: Dutch Art by Jan Baptist Weenix and Jan Weenix and book signing
Anke Van Wagenberg Senior Curator, Academy Art Museum
Friday, May 18, 2018, 6 p.m.
Anke Van Wagenberg will discuss paintings of Jan Baptist Weenix and his son Jan Weenix. These important Dutch masters and contemporaries of Rembrandt painted Italianate landscapes, portraits and still lifes. She recently finished the monographs on the father-and-son team with c. 500 entries. She is currently working on the Weenix drawings.

ARTS EXPRESS TRIPS

Anke Van Wagenberg Senior Curator, Academy Art Museum

Longwood Gardens
Tuesday, May 8
Cost: $75 Members $90 Non-members (includes admission)
One of the world’s great gardens, Longwood’s story is one of legacy, innovation, and stewardship.
Longwood Gardens are a living expression of all that the founder, Pierre S. du Pont, found inspiring, meaningful, and beautiful. From the intricate fountain systems to the meticulous gardens to the architectural grandeur, awe-inspiring discoveries await at every turn.

ADULT CLASSES

Exploration into Intaglio Printmaking with Rosemary Cooley
Instructor: Rosemary Cooley
3-Day Workshop – May 4, 5 & 6, 2018, 10 a.m. – 2 p.m.
Cost: $185 Members, $220 Non-members (An additional $35 materials fee paid to the instructor and includes archival paper, plates, use of studio tools and inks as well as one archival mat.)
Students will learn how to prepare film positives of their artwork, which may then be later exposed onto light sensitive photo emulsion coated steel plates, known as Solarplates. Suitable artwork includes ink wash drawings, charcoal, pen and ink drawings, photographs, and other non-copyrighted images. Everyone is welcome to see the possibilities of this interesting process. Students will examine various film positives, which they may make themselves at a copy shop onto acetate sheets, and then will bring them to class to develop the images and print them on the etching presses in the new Printmaking Studio at AAM. This workshop is for the serious printmaker, and the results will be very exciting.

Longwood Gardens

Summer Mosaic Workshops for Adults and Teens
Instructor: Sheryl Southwick
2-Day Workshops: All are on Wednesdays and Thursdays
May 23 from 10 a.m. – 2 p.m. and May 24 from 10 a.m. – 11:30 a.m.
June 13 from 10 a.m. – 2 p.m. and June 14 from 10 a.m. – 11:30 a.m.
July 11 from 10 a.m. – 2 p.m. and July 12 from 10 a.m. – 11:30 a.m.
Cost: $75 Members per each 2-day workshop), $90 Non- members (plus $5 materials fee paid to instructor)
Students will learn the basics of mosaics: breaking and cutting glass and pottery, applying shards to a wooden surface with adhesives, applying grout. At the end of each workshop, the students will have a beautiful mosaic piece to take home. Goggles and gloves will be used to protect eyes and hands. Materials needed: All essential materials and tools will be provided. Students may bring in broken or chipped china or pottery and any special objects, like old jewelry. Bring a lunch.
Minimum for class is 6 and maximum is 10.

Sheryl Southwick

Paint Along with Diane and Sheryl
Mentors: Diane DuBois Mullaly and Sheryl Southwick
3 days: May 29-31
Tuesday – Thursday, 9 a.m. – 1:30 p.m.
Cost $95 Members, $114 Non-members
Diane and Sheryl invite all painters in any medium to paint along with them during this unique mentored outdoor painting experience. Each day the group meets at a different fabulous private property, where everyone picks a spot and starts painting. Diane and Sheryl will make rounds to each painter’s easel throughout the morning to make suggestions and give advice. They will also be painting. At about noon, the group will have lunch together, while Sheryl and Diane lead a constructive group critique of the paintings from that day. In the event of heavy rain, the group will paint indoors. Painters will find inspiration, grow their skills, and enjoy great group camaraderie – a special experience not to be missed! Bring a bag lunch except the last day, lunch is on us! www.dianeduboismullaly.com, www.sherylsouthwick.com. Minimum 10, Maximum 25.

CHILDRENS’ CLASSES

Mini Masters Academy
Mini Masters is an art-based, early enrichment program for two to four-year old children. Flexible enrollment days are offered from September through May, Monday through Thursdays, 9 a.m. to 12:00, with optional extended day until 2 p.m. on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Email jhendricks@academyartmuseum.org for information and availability.

PERFORMING ARTS CLASSES

Piano & Guitar Lessons
Instructor: Raymond Remesch
Contact Instructor for further information at (410) 829-0335 or rayremesch@gmail.com
Whether your goal is to audition for a conservatory, lead your family in song during the holidays, or learn to play the music you love, a personalized music education is one of the most rewarding and enduring investments people can make for themselves or their child.

Voice Lessons
Instructor: Georgiann Gibson
Contact instructor for information at (410) 829-2525 or georgiann@atlanticbb.net.
Whether you are interested in singing with a choir, becoming a soloist, getting a lead in the high school musical or community theatre production, joining a barbershop quartet, or preparing your audition for a conservatory, good singing requires a skill set that is developed over time.

Ballroom and Latin Dance
Instructor: Amanda Showell
Contact instructor for information at (302) 377-3088 or visit dancingontheshore.com.

For additional information, visit academyartmuseum.org or call the Museum at 410-822-2787.

Denyce Graves

The Academy Art Museum in Easton, MD is celebrating its 60^th anniversary year with a series of exciting events, including an Anniversary Exhibition, an Anniversary Gala featuring Denyce Graves, a Public Birthday Party and Public Art Event, and its Annual Craft Show and Members’ Exhibition. The Museum invites all audiences to celebrate its 60th anniversary, honoring the past and celebrating the future.

Known originally as The Academy of the Arts, the Museum was founded in 1958 by a group of Talbot County residents who included among others first president A. Brittain “Britt” Banghart, a painter who studied with N. C. Wyeth, and Lee Lawrie, a German émigré most famous for his 1937 Art Deco “Atlas” sculpture at Rockefeller Center in New York City. According to Ben Simons, Director of the Academy Art Museum, “In its six decades, the Museum has undergone two major building expansions, was reborn in 1999 as the “Academy Art Museum,” and in 2003 achieved accreditation by the American Alliance (then Association) of Museums. Since that important moment, the Museum has mounted shows from its growing Permanent Collection, hosted loan exhibitions from the National Gallery of Art, the Walters Art Museum, the Baltimore Museum of Art, the Art Gallery of Ontario and many other sister institutions. It has also presented annual Members and Student Exhibitions and community-partner shows.”

On April 21, 2018, the Museum will showcase a representative range of treasures and selections of its holdings in other media, including painting, photography and sculpture in a new exhibition, “AAM @ 60: The Diamond Exhibition – Part I.” A Members’ Reception will be held on Friday, April 20 from 5:30 to 7 p.m. The exhibition, which will be on display through July 8, 2018, will represent the creative genius of artists from Europe and the United States, spanning from the seventeenth century to the present and will be accompanied by a special anniversary catalogue. “AAM @ 60: The Diamond Exhibition – Part II” will be held from July 28 through October 14, 2018.

The Museum’s 60th Anniversary Gala on June 2, 2018, will feature acclaimed Mezzo Soprano Denyce Graves, recognized worldwide as one of today’s most exciting vocal stars. Graves continues to gather unparalleled popular and critical acclaim in performances on four continents. USA Today identifies her as “an operatic superstar of the 21st century.” Graves will be accompanied by Laura Ward a pianist and Artistic Director of Lyric Fest, a unique vocal recital series in Philadelphia. Cocktails and dinner will be held at the Museum following Graves’ performance at the Avalon Theatre.

The Museum’s 60^th Anniversary will continue with a 60th Birthday Party, featuring a participatory public art installation in the courtyard, to be held on September 15, 2018; followed by the Academy Art Museum Craft Show, “Dazzled!” to be held on October 19 through 21, 2018; and its Members Exhibition, with the suggested theme of “60” and held for the first time during the holiday season.

Cathy McCoy, Chairman of the Museum’s Board of Trustees, comments, “There is so much to celebrate in this six-decade journey. The Museum’s arts educational programming for children and adults, a centerpiece from the start, continues to flourish, with over 4,300 students and 50,000 visitors of all ages enjoying our rich, community-based offerings annually.”

For further information about the Museum’s 60^th Anniversary events, call Damika Baker, Director of Development, at 410-822-2787.

The Academy Art Museum’s Director of ArtReach and Community Programs, Constance Del Nero of Easton, was recently selected by the National Art Education Association (NAEA) to present a STUDIO Workshop at its annual convention in Seattle, WA.

Del Nero’s workshop, Junk Mail Fish, was born from a request by the Midshore Riverkeeper Conservancy in 2012, now known as ShoreRivers, to create an art project to complement their environmental science curriculum.  Del Nero designed a STEAM project that taught children about the importance of reusing and recycling, explained the basic anatomy of a fish, and led them on a creative journey to design their own fish and collage it with unwanted paper materials. STEAM is the acronym that stands for science, technology, engineering, art and mathematics and represents a group of core subjects deemed most significant for 21st century learning. To date, over 1500 local schoolchildren have participated in the program.

Pictured are some of the Junk Mail Fish created through Constance Del Nero’s workshops.

In 2016, Del Nero offered a Junk Mail Fish workshop at the Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum.  Parents and children worked side by side on their fish. Del Nero wrote an article about the experience, which appeared in the June 2017 issue of “Arts and Activities,” the nation’s leading art education magazine.

Upon selection of Junk Mail Fish for the 2018 NAEA National Convention, Kathy Duse, NAEA Executive Services and Convention and Programs Manager, commented, “NAEA received over 1,700 presentations this year; selection relied upon scoring criteria for the blind peer review and selection process. The peer review process ensure[d] each proposed presentation receive[d] three separate blind reviews that employ[ed] careful thought and consideration in terms of Statement of Purpose and Outcomes, Organization of Content, Relevance of Topic, and Impact on Practice. The caliber of this year’s presentations was excellent—making the acceptance of 801 sessions (approximately 45%) highly competitive.”