Huntington's Heckscher Museum of Art exhibit highlights home
Artist Robert Carter with his work, "Mama Taught Me Piano and Much More," at the "Raise the Roof: The Home in Art" exhibition at the Heckscher Museum of Art in Huntington. Credit: Heckscher Museum of Art
Colorful scenes depicting a grandmother sitting at the piano with a child and a man reclining in his childhood house line the walls at the Heckscher Museum of Art in Huntington. In this space, visitors should feel like they’ve stepped into their own home, said curator Karli Wurzelbacher.
The museum’s latest exhibition, "Raise the Roof: The Home in Art," opened in January and will be on display through March 2024. The collection includes more than 50 pieces, and at least half of them were created by artists with connections to Long Island, said Wurzelbacher.
The exhibition was born out of the museum staff discovering a theme in their current collection, and adding even more artworks to strengthen it.
"We were looking at the collection and we were struck by the number of interior scenes, and also the number of portraits of friends and family, and still-lives, which often picture objects the artist lives with," said Wurzelbacher.
She added that since the concept of home has shifted in recent years, a new significance to the exhibition emerged.
"Most of their work was made before the pandemic, but now we’re seeing all of that work anew through the lens of quarantine and working from home," she said.
Pat Ralph's "The Visit Home" on display at the Heckscher Museum of Art. Credit: Heckscher Museum of Art
The art on display includes sculptures by Stella Waitzkin, who was inspired by the objects in her living space. She was raised in Great Neck in the 1950s, later moving into the Chelsea Hotel in Manhattan. It was there that she began creating books out of polyester resin, and melted glass into sculptures. These pieces are on display at the museum.
Among the collection there is also a ceramic piece by artist and filmmaker Courtney M. Leonard, who is a member of the Shinnecock Indian Nation. Her work often has ties to environmental issues. The museum will unveil a retrospective of Leonard’s work on June 10.
"Courtney is an example of an artist showing across the country, but we don't see her work enough on Long Island," Wurzelbacher said. "And our show will do that."
"Living Room" by Becky Suss is on display at the Heckscher Museum of Art. Credit: Heckscher Museum of Art
Robert Carter’s mixed media painting, titled "Mama Taught Me Piano and Much More," pays tribute to the role of grandmothers in a family unit.
"Some time ago, I realized that if it weren’t for grandmothers, some families would have a hard time staying together," said Carter, who grew up in Louisville, Ken. "Oftentimes a grandmother would be a very strong support system. As a youngster, I became conscious of the importance of extended family. And I hope this painting, in some way, presents that extended tie."
Stella Waitzkin's "Small Closet Library" is on display at the Heckscher Museum of Art. Credit: Credit: Heckscher Museum of Art | Permissions: Jill Rowen, 631.3
Museum visitors can contribute their own creativity to the collection, as well. With the prompt "What does home mean to you?", they are encouraged to write or draw their answers on slips of paper.
"Some of the responses are so moving, it brings a tear to my eye," Wurzelbacher said. "And others are hilarious. It’s exactly what we wanted: People looking at the art and referencing their own experiences. We’re giving people a chance to share what they’re thinking."
Rachel Weiss joined Newsday in 2016. As a real estate/living multimedia reporter, Rachel writes feature stories and contributes to and appears in on-camera video packages. She was the lead reporter on Newsday’s LI Acts of Kindness series.
