Newport Art Museum Announces New Exhibition, “Hair Stories”

PRESS RELEASE

CONTACT:
Merrill Allen
Director of Marketing
Newport Art Museum
76 Bellevue Avenue
Newport, RI 02840
(401) 619-7999
mallen@newportartmuseum.org

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

Newport Art Museum Announces New Exhibition, “Hair Stories”

(Newport, RI – July 15, 2021) – The Newport Art Museum is pleased to announce a new exhibition, “Hair Stories,” which will be on view to the public Saturday, July 17 through October 31, 2021.

Hair is more than just the threadlike growth in human beings. It has played important roles in culture, religion, politics, ritual, and identity throughout history and in the present day. In some cultures, hair is a source of strength or a sign of femininity, virility, and beauty. How it is cut, styled, treated, and kept embodies individual and cultural values. At times, it has been the subject of cultural and political conflicts. It is both symbolic and personal.

Bringing together a diverse group of artists whose work focuses on hair or uses hair as a medium, this show explores the multifaceted meanings of hair today. From hair jewelry and lockets that fetishize hair to photographs, sculptures, and video works that celebrate hair, this show examines the ways in which hair functions as a complex set of codes and as the loaded raw material for artistic expression. Themes include history, narrative, loss and mourning, and identity (cultural, racial, ethnic, gender, and sexual identity). Featured artists include: Eunice Adorno, Melanie Bilenker, Tara Bogart, María Magdalena Campos-Pons, Sonya Clark, Sean M. Johnson, Nneka Kai, Vivian Keulards, Wangui Maina, Ana Mendieta, Patricia Miranda, Zanele Muholi, J.D. ‘Okhai Ojeikere, Rachel Portesi, Shahzia Sikander, Lorna Simpson, Gu Wenda, Nafis M. White, Anne Wilson, and D.M. Witman.

“Hair Stories” was made possible with the generous support of the West Bay Foundation, Steven and Ellen Bowman, Chas A. Miller III and Birch Coffey / Charles A. and Lois H. Miller Foundation, Cleo and Michael Gewirz, Susan and George Petrovas, and Dwight and Susan Sipprelle.

For more information, please visit newportartmuseum.org.

About the Newport Art Museum
The Newport Art Museum was founded in 1912 on the belief that arts and culture have the power to bring diverse groups of individuals together, which ultimately promotes civic engagement and strengthens the social fabric of our communities. This core belief continues to guide the Museum’s direction today. Museum offerings range from exhibitions and lectures to art classes in its Museum School and art trips to other cultural institutions. Located on 3-acres along beautiful Bellevue Avenue in Newport, RI, the Museum’s galleries are housed in two historically significant buildings and feature notable special exhibitions as well as selections from its growing permanent collection.

Our Museum’s mission is to share a diversity of art and experiences that spark reflection, inspiration, discovery, and connection within our Newport community and beyond. The Museum is open to the public Tuesday through Saturday from 10 am to 5 pm, Thursdays (April – December) until 7 pm, and Sunday from noon to 5 pm. Museum membership levels and benefits, art school classes and registration, exhibition schedules, public programming, and more can be found at www.newportartmuseum.org. Phone: (401) 848-8200.

###