FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                                                            February 29, 2008

PICASSO, MATISSE AND OTHER FAMOUS ARTISTS’ WORKS TO BE ON DISPLAY IN CARY BEGINNING TONIGHT

Exhibit director from Davidson College to give gallery talk during reception

CARY, NC – Art will be in the eyes of Triangle beholders tonight when the “Davidson Collects:  1938-Present” collection opens at the Page-Walker Arts & History Center, 119 Ambassador Loop in Cary, during a reception from 6 p.m. until 9 p.m.; Brad Thomas, the Van Every/Smith Galleries Director at Davidson College, will present a gallery talk about the exhibit at 7 p.m.  More than 42 works on paper by renowned artists such as Diane Arbus, Henri Matisse, Edvard Munch and Pablo Picasso will be featured in the free exhibit through Wednesday, April 23, 2008 . 

The pieces on display in the Cary exhibit are a snippet of Davidson College’s permanent art collection at Van Every/Smith Galleries that has been in existence for 70 years and contains nearly 3,000 works that span 500 years of art history.  This exhibit marks the first time a full exhibition has been presented away from the Davidson campus.  As director of the Galleries and exhibit, Brad Thomas strives to build connections between his exhibitions and Davidson College ’s permanent art collection; Thomas has served as director of the Galleries since 1998.

“Everyone is invited to witness the talents of history’s most magnificent artists here in the Town of Cary ,” said Public Art Coordinator Denise Dickens.  “We are pleased to bring this showcase to Cary so that Triangle art enthusiasts can interact with real works, while also learning about the context of the art.”

The artist talks are part of the Town’s exhibition program to broaden the general public’s education about the artwork on view as well as the exhibiting artists’ viewpoint and/or sources of inspiration.

Located on Davidson College ’s campus, the Van Every/Smith Galleries play a fundamental role in the pedagogical life of Davidson College . The Galleries provide a challenging forum for the presentation, interpretation, and discussion of primarily contemporary artworks in all media.  Works from the Permanent Art Collection are also loaned to other regional, national, and international art institutions for inclusion in thematic exhibitions and/or individual retrospectives.

For more, visit Galleries at www.townofcary.org or call (919) 469-4061.

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