Graduates of the School of Art voted on which fellow alumni artists should be represented in the Tercentennial exhibition in the Holcombe T. Green Jr. Hall gallery.

School of Art show pays testament to Yale
alumni's influence on world's art scene

When faced with the task of selecting who to include and who to leave out of an exhibition celebrating the work of School of Art alumni, Dean Richard Benson decided to not decide. Instead, Benson asked the alumni themselves who they thought should be in the show. "It was an idea of trying to decide who really knew who had achieved something among the alumni," he says. "And who knows better than them?" Benson mailed questionnaires to all 2,500 living alumni of the School of Art asking them to nominate artists for the show. "The show was selected absolutely according to the vote of the alumni," he says. "No changing or messing with it on my part or anybody else's part." Thus the "Alumni Choice" exhibition came to be. Part of the School of Art's ongoing participation in Yale's Tercentennial celebration, the exhibition features 130 works on paper by some familiar and other not-so-familiar names, including Chuck Close, Richard Serra, Matthew Barney, William Bailey, Nancy Graves, Eva Hesse, Audrey Flack, Ivan Chermayeff and Thomas Geismar, John Currin, Lisa Yuskavage, Philip-Lorca diCorcia, Gregory Crewdson, Rackstraw Downes, Ann Hamilton, Sean Landers, Roni Horn, Howardena Pindell, Alan Fletcher, Michael Craig-Martin, Michael Joo, Robert Mangold, Sylvia Plimack Mangold, Judy Pfaff, Brice Marden, Neil Welliver, Martin Puryear, Jessica Stockholder, Leonard Baskin and Garry Trudeau. "This is a show that gives a real look at the achievement of the School of Art in a way that has never been done before," Benson said. "In the past, shows about the school have concentrated on those people who have achieved significant things. This show is not that at all. Those people are in there, but many, many other very interesting artists are in there also." Yale's School of Art is one of the oldest art schools in the United States and was the first to be associated with a U.S. college or university. Founded in 1864 through the generosity of August Russell Street and his wife (for whom the original art school building, Street Hall, was named), the school evolved from an academic program that also included studies in architecture and drama into an independent professional school of studio art that launched a master's degree program in 1972. Many of the School of Art's alumni have gone on to have national and international influence on contemporary art in the fields of painting, photography, graphic design and sculpture. Their influence is considered to be unusually significant for what is a relatively small program, says the dean. Currently there are only 118 master's students in the four departments of sculpture, painting/printmaking, graphic design and photography. Unlike most exhibitions which are curated or which consider a specific theme, "Alumni Choice" has no overriding curatorial concept about content or form. The only limitation was that all works had to be on paper no larger than three feet by three feet. It's a limitation that Benson believes works here but, he admits, may never work again elsewhere. "Paper sits underneath all artistic achievement of the past," Benson explains. "Sculptors, graphic designers, photographers, painters, printmakers -- they all use paper in one way or another. They might use it for preliminary drawings, they might use it for a print or an etching or a poster or a book. We have selected paper as a medium that is common to all aspects and all practitioners of the school. "If you did an alumni show of any art school 20 years from now and tried to have a works-on-paper show, you'd probably find many people whose work was never on paper because of the digital revolution and the changes that caused," he continues. "This is a works-on-paper show, and it's probably the last time you can do that of people who are presently working." Andrew Forge, the William Leffingwell Professor Emeritus of Painting and former dean of the School of Art, placed the exhibition in the three-room Holcombe T. Green Jr. Hall gallery. He is also writing the essay for the exhibition catalogue, which will be published in late November. The catalogue will include reproductions of all the pieces in the show. "Alumni Choice" is on view free of charge 10 a.m.­5 p.m. seven days a week through Oct. 28 in the Holcombe. T. Green Jr. Hall gallery located at 1156 Chapel St. For more information, call (203) 432-2622 or (203) 432-2605 Monday­Friday, 10 a.m.­5 p.m. -- By JinAh Lee T H I SW E E K ' SS T O R I E S Alumnus James Bundy to be next Drama Dean Endowment increases to $10.7 billion Beinecke display explores how Yale's library has evolved over the centuries School of Art show pays testament to Yale alumni's influence . . . New book will explore ways to combat terrorism Renowned architect Tadao Ando is year's first Chubb Fellow Study reveals cells' critical role in fighting cancer Looking at art proves to help students become better doctors Archive documents work of lover of nature and good literature Exhibit features Chinese artist's prison paintings, notes Former Yale president to discuss public education Faculty to be featured speakers at campus events Divinity Dean, faculty serving as presidents of scholarly groups Link between abolitionism and feminism will be explored in conference Yale composers are honored with ASCAPLU$ awards Setting the stage for Yale's gala celebration Campus Notes Bulletin Home|Visiting on Campus|Calendar of Events|In the News|Bulletin Board Yale Scoreboard|Classified Ads|Search Archives|Deadlines Bulletin Staff|Public Affairs Home|News Releases| E-Mail Us|Yale Home Page