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Welcome
Welcome to the website for the Museum of Florida Art. We offer
exhibitions, education programs, and outreach to engage children, youth,
adults, seniors and families in the experience of the visual arts. Working
with the community, the Museum is committed to: providing an exhibition
venue for emerging and establish Florida artists; arts education for youth
and adults; interpretive art experiences; public art offerings and partnership
programming. Below are a list of our current exhibitions on display:
HAROLD GARDE. painting. 50 years.
Exhibition Dates: December 5, 2008 - February 15, 2009
Opening Reception: December 5, 2008 5:00 PM to 7:00 PM
Harold Garde, born in 1923, is a New Smyrna Beach artist whose roots go back to the abstract expressionist movement of the mid-20th century. These strong influences have helped create his current unique style as a figurative painter. His mediums include paintings, monotypes, and strappos which are a self-invented process of transferring dried acrylic paint from glass to paper or canvas. He moves from simplicity of form to intense psychological works with an effervescent wit. Harold Garde is a moving force in whatever artistic community he finds himself and always emphasizes his belief in the personal and social necessity of art.
Dr. Gay Hanna, Executive Director of the National Center for Creative Aging explains, "Harold Garde's life in the arts exemplifies a life well lived with meaning and purpose. He destroys the stereotype of aging as a time of loss and regrets - changing the paradigm to a time of "liberation" - freedom to explore, learn and grow while giving generously expertise gained through decades of experiences, contemplation and relationships with colleagues, students, family and friends...Garde's work gives us all a legacy from which to build vibrant communities for all generations."
Curator Jeanne Dowis says, "Harold Garde is a painter's painter. He truly is, in every sense of the term. He is a master at composition; he is a genius with line. His works are often difficult to view, because they are simultaneously complex in message but simplified in presentation. I think the thing Harold would want you to know about him as an artist is that he considers his paintings to be his side of an ongoing conversation about what it means to be human, and that he'd like each of us to consider our own humanity and enter that discussion when we view his works."
Dowis first became aware of Garde while his figurative work was on display at the DeLand Museum of Art.
"I had never met Harold, but when I saw his large, visceral paintings they practically knocked the air out of me," says Dowis. "The paintings had very psycho-dramatic elements and his figures were confrontational; for weeks after viewing the exhibition, I could not get those snarling swimmers out of my mind! Then, about two years later, my friend, artist and curator Steve Aimone, was mounting a show of Harold's Kimonos at Ormond Memorial Art Museum & Gardens where I was working. The Kimonos were gorgeous, floaty and quiet - the antithesis of his figurative work - but they had Garde's signature gesture and line. I knew then that Harold's body of work was so multi-faceted that I had to see more."
"Over the years I have used as subjects the images of chairs, single and in groups," explains Garde. "I have a pinnacle series, a series with still life references. There are some series have figures and faces, puppeteers and puppets. A group of recent work related to the ‘T' shape of the kimono. Such subjects, suitable for a series, attract me when they are generic, ones that are familiar, readily recognized, capable of being rendered with many variations. Whether they are presented subtly or boldly, small or large, fragile or monumental, I want my works to be visually exciting, capable of engaging the eye, the emotions and stimulating the mind of the viewer."
Legendary Florida: The Florida History Paintings of Jackson Walker
March 28 - May 25, 2008
For more information or to download the accompanying educational resources, please visit the website. Call the Museum to book a school or group tour!
The Museum of Florida Art
600 N. Woodland Boulevard
DeLand, Florida, 32720
A member of the Florida Cultural Alliance
Arts Work! Advocating for the Arts in Florida
2007 Legislative Priorities for the Arts and Culture
THE MUSEUM OF FLORIDA ART (FEID #59-0678769. The Museum of Florida Art, Inc. is
recognized as Exempt under Section 501(c) 3 of the Internal Revenue Code. Donations
are tax deductible to the extent allowed by law. A copy of the official registration
and financial information may be obtained from the Division of Consumer Services by
calling toll free within the State: (800) 435-7352. Registration does not imply
endorsement, approval or recommendation by the State of Florida Dept. of Agriculture
and Consumer Services registration number SC-11933. The DeLand Museum of Art, Inc.
receives 100% of each contribution. A professional solicitor retains no percentage of
contributions.
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