CONWAY—The University of Central Arkansas Baum Gallery will host a new exhibition “Source of Light: The Hearne Collection” from Jan. 26 to Feb. 24, 2023. This exhibition is curated by Brian Young, Baum Gallery director and Garbo Hearne and Archie Hearne III, owners of Hearne Fine Art, a Little Rock-based institution that has celebrated Black art and culture since 1988.
A reception to meet the collectors will be held on Jan. 26, 2023, from 4–7 p.m. at Baum Gallery. Baum Gallery is located in McCastlain Hall on the UCA campus.
“Source of Light: The Hearne Collection” has three components. In the entry gallery, visitors will view 16 works by four 19th-century Black painters. They are Robert Scott Duncanson (1821-1872), Edward Mitchell Bannister (1828-1901), Charles Ethan Porter (1847/49-1923) and Henry Ossawa Tanner (1859-1937). The Baum Gallery acknowledges the generosity of the collector Juan Rodriguez of New York, New York, for generously facilitating this loan through Hearne Fine Art, stewards of the collection since 2011.
In the Baum’s largest gallery, “Source of Light” continues with the contemporary work derived from the Hearnes’ private collection. It should also be noted that many of the artists in their collection have also been represented by Hearne Fine Art.
The Hearnes embraced the idea that their relationship with art extended to personal relationships with artists, the need to educate the public and their desire to create a premier cultural hub for Black art in Arkansas. Works in this gallery include printmaking, bronze, clay, alabaster, photography, fiber art, oils, pastels, watercolors, acrylics, limited-edition fine art books and others. The source of this work is nearly as varied.
The Hearnes have a deep familiarity with components of the visual arts, the literary arts, and the vast art market including relationships with a wide-reaching network of artists, other dealers and collectors, curators, academics, related art fairs, markets, historic material, auction houses, and the internet.
In Baum’s third and more intimate gallery, “Source of Light” finishes with a modest selection of powerful works by Louise Mandumbwa, a 2020 Bachelor of Fine Arts graduate and current Master of Fine Arts student at Yale University. Mandumbwa has been mentored and represented by Hearne Fine Art since 2017. This body of work reflects the artist’s deeper exploration into large-scale digital portraiture and has been featured in several solo and group exhibitions at Hearne Fine Art and across the country. Mandumbwa has enjoyed time at the Chautauqua School of Art Residency and the Sam and Adele Golden Foundation Residency, both in New York.
The UCA College of Arts Humanities and Social Sciences (CAHSS) will also host a Ten After program in celebration of this exhibition on Wednesday, Feb. 15, at 6:10 p.m. Ten After programs emphasize creativity, critical thinking and cultural understanding of the ten academic areas in CAHSS in an after-hours atmosphere.
Support for this exhibition has been generously provided by the Department of Art and Design Department, the CAHSS and the Conway Convention and Visitors Bureau (CVB). The CAHSS artists-in-residence program is funded by the UCA Student Arts Fee.
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