Two new art exhibits get personal with selections from private collections

"Blah, Blah, Blah, Blah" was created in 2010 by Mel Bochner and is a work of art that uses printmaking, engraving, embossing and hand-dyed handmade paper. It is on loan to the Hunter Museum from a personal collector in Chattanooga for a special exhibition. (Image: Contributed)

Two unique art exhibitions showcasing individual works of art from the personal collections of Chattanooga-area residents open this month.

Across the Board at UTC's Cress Gallery of Art and Chattanooga Gems III at the Hunter Museum of American Art each feature a diverse span of art, artists, mediums and moods.

At UTC, pieces from the personal collections of the Department of Art's faculty and staff will be on exhibit at the Cress Gallery beginning Aug 28 and running through Sept. 30. The exhibition includes 43 different artists representing "an amazing span of work," according to gallery director and curator Ruth Glover.

Pieces at the Cress will include artists whose works are also in the Museum of Modern Art in New York City and the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C., such as American painter David Ligare and pop artist Jim Dine.

Lithographs from both artists are featured in the collection at Cress. Dine's early art was included in one of the nation's first pop art exhibitions in 1962, alongside the works of the form's most famous contributors, Andy Warhol and Roy Lichtenstein. One of Dine's works on paper, titled "Hair," now housed at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, is said to have inspired the name of the rock musical of the same name, according to the show's co-writer James Rado. 

The show also includes work by video artist Rueban Lorch-Miller, majolica pottery by Linda Arbuckle and a Suzuki motorcycle.

American pop artist Jim Dine's 1973 lithograph, "Wire Strippers," is on exhibition at UTC's Cress Gallery as part of a new show featuring works from the private collections of the Art Department’s faculty and staff. (Image: Contributed)

Over at the Hunter, the third installment of the museum's Chattanooga Gems series will feature selections from 17 local art collectors, reflecting an interest and appreciation for realist historical paintings and photography to sculpture and multimedia contemporary art, according to curator Nandini Makrandi.

"Collecting art is a rather personal act, motivated by an individual's interest and passions and often reflecting an individual journey," Makrandi said in a prepared statement.

Works by internationally acclaimed artists Richard Serra, Kenneth Noland and Robert Motherwell are each on loan from locals for the special exhibition.

Gems III, which opens Saturday and is on view through Oct. 14, presents artwork that spans from the early 20th century to present day, including Theodore Earl Butler's 1910 painting "Modiste" and digital artist Gregory Scott's "Locket," created in 2010.

Full details on gallery hours, receptions and other related programming can be found on the websites for the Cress Gallery and the Hunter Museum.

Updated @ 11:01 a.m. on 08/23/12 to correct an artist's name: Joe Dine should have been referred to as Jim Dine.