Selections from the Collection Inner Visions of Beverly Stearns Bernson '55 Selections from the Collection Inner Visions of Beverly Stearns Bernson '55 OCTOBER 12 - DECEMBER 10, 2017 The Bill and Sonja Carlson Davidow '56 Gallery Center for Art + Design Colby-Sawyer College New London, New Hampshire Introduction Joy can be hard to find. As I write this, in a precarious Most artists I know are studio nest builders. The environment colleagues in the Department of Fine and Performing Arts I would also like to thank Professor Craig Greenman, former time for the arts in America, I feel this more acutely. Yet it they create in their work spaces reflect and enhance for their support, and especially to Chairman and Professor chair of the Cultural Events Committee, and the committee is joy that most often compelled the creation of the works their efforts. The work embraces its surroundings and fits Jon Keenan, who has been instrumental in the realization members, for their support of the catalog’s production. Their in this exhibition, and joy that I felt when I first saw Beverly into an interior whole cloth. My only regret in mounting of our new facility. This catalog would not exist without ongoing engagement in the college’s cultural and artistic life Bernson’s amazing collection, which fills every wall, nook this exhibition is that we were unable to include the complete the stewardship of Professor Hilary Walrod, head of our is deeply appreciated. and cranny of her home. The expressive power of making has Bernson collection, which would have allowed viewers to Graphic Design Program. Her design acumen, organizational Most of all, I wish to express my heartfelt gratitude to Beverly driven the artists in her collection to create objects of wonder experience the relationships among all the works that Beverly skills and dedication have been essential to this publication. Bernson, whose passion and enthusiasm for the Inner Visions and mystery. Over the past 50 years, Outsider Art has become has acquired over the years. I have selected works that I Kimberly Swick Slover’s contributions as the catalog’s artwork is matched only by her kindness and generosity an integral part of the current highly charged and market- hope reflect her passion for and understanding of the artists writer and editor have been crucial, and her patience and of spirit. It has been one of my greatest joys as an artist and driven art world. As noted in Lorri Berenberg’s excellent whose work she has collected. Every time I visited her home thoroughness are greatly appreciated. John Sherman owner gallerist to work with her in constructing this exhibition. essay in this catalog, its history is fairly recent, although this I discovered another treasure and had to stifle the urge to of John Sherman Photography, Hartford, VT, superbly I have learned not only about art and artists engaged in this type of work has existed since our human ancestors adorned add yet another wonder to this exhibition. The interview I documented all the objects selected from the collection that “outsider” world, but also about how one can live a life of their caves. conducted with Beverly in April of 2017 serves to illustrate appear on these pages. commitment and dedication to the creative enterprise of her journey and enthusiasm for this work. I had the great good fortune to receive a wonderful education A principal mission of the college is to offer our students expressive making. Beverly Bernson lives that life, and we are in art and architecture. I am aware of art history and have It is fitting this inaugural exhibition in the The Bill and real-world opportunities to creatively apply their educational all deeply enriched by it. Thank you, Beverly, for sharing your been influenced by those who came before, as well as by my Sonja Carlson Davidow ‘56 Gallery of the new Center for Art experiences. Matthew Nosal ’17 researched and wrote the passion and your extraordinary collection with us. contemporaries, my colleagues and my students. Whether + Design should bring work to the campus and community first drafts of all the artist biographies in the catalog, and I driven by inner visions, inner voices, or inner demons, the that is “outside the box.” As educators we strive to engage our am grateful for his thoughtful insights and his patient work. works in this exhibition—through obsession, color, students in creative thinking and to examine and illuminate John Fownes’17, BFA Graphic Design, was selected to design assemblage, and often undefined techniques—express what the world outside of the academy. These works ask viewers to this catalog in his senior year. John has worked tirelessly to all of us academically trained artists hope to achieve: a challenge their notions of the beautiful and the sacred and to produce this excellent publication, and his talent and energy personal, undeniable truth. When I first encountered be open to the unexpected. are on full display in these pages. All of us in the Fine and Outsider Art I knew it was work impelled by internal forces Performing Arts are grateful for his professionalism and An exhibition of this nature has many moving parts and Bert Yarborough and the pleasure of making. It was not a matter of education, dedication to this project. comes together through the efforts of a host of talented people. Curator of the Exhibition in the traditional sense, or the desire to participate in the We are especially grateful to William and Sonja Carlson The exhibition program at Colby-Sawyer is student driven. professionally acknowledged art world; rather, it came from Director, Davidow for their tremendous support of the new Center for I am fortunate to work with talented and dedicated students “outside” of the mainstream, from a place of absolute necessity: The Bill and Sonja Carlson Davidow ‘56 Art + Design and for their generosity that allows us to name who assist in all aspects of exhibition management and fresh and unencumbered by pretense or artifice. The sad & Marian Graves Mugar Art Galleries the new art gallery in their honor. I am deeply grateful to installation through their enrollment in the Exhibitions reality is that many of these artists suffered from hard labor, the Office of Advancement and its former director, Kathy Foundation class offered each term. My gallery intern, Xu Sonja C. Davidow ‘56 Endowed Chair racism and poverty all their lives. Their art allowed them to Bonavist, and especially to former Gift Officer Allison Zou, has helped organize and train student workers and in the Fine & Performing Arts transcend their hardship and freely express their inner vision. Faccone, who introduced me to Beverly and shepherded provided invaluable assistance with all aspects of this project. Colby-Sawyer College this enterprise from the beginning. I am indebted to my Beverly Bernson When I opened my gallery of contemporary folk and self- as the world around them. They most often create in isolation, other found objects until they emerged as human forms, taught art in Boston, there was a question that I continually either by choice or circumstance, including limited education tall figures and faces with a powerful presence of their own. and Outsider Art encountered. It wasn’t the where, what, when and why that I and resources, rural lifestyles, institutionalization, religious Mose Tolliver painted with house paint on pieces of wood had expected. Instead, it was always some variation of, “Do callings, and physical or psychiatric illnesses. from old crates, discarded furniture and virtually any you know Beverly Bernson?,” as though self-taught art in abandoned object, developing his own iconography of figures, The majority of the artists in this exhibition did not identify Boston was synonymous with her name. I was introduced to animals, fruit, trees and erotica. James Castle, deaf from birth, themselves as artists or consider their creations to be works Beverly while attending the Outsider Art Fair in New York began making art at a young age and continued throughout of art. For others, their art served as a primary vehicle for in 1998. Beverly was working in the booth of New Orleans his life. Castle fashioned his own drawing implements from communication and connectedness with the world. Many of art dealer, Richard Gasperi. There she appeared completely sticks and found objects and used soot and spit as a medium the artists were highly prolific as the compulsion to create in her element, surrounded by the work of some of the most to create ephemeral images drawn from everyday life. was, for them, all-consuming. Reverend Howard Finster was renowned contemporary folk artists. It wasn’t until months repairing a bicycle when a vision of a face appeared on his The drawings, paintings, sculptures and ceramics in Beverly later, when I visited her home, that I realized how truly in paint-covered fingertip. He interpreted this as a command Bernson’s collection demonstrate the diversity of these her element she had been. Entering Beverly’s house was like to spread the word of God through his paintings, of which artists’ visions, ranging from the whimsical to the profound. stepping through the looking glass of folk and self-taught art. there are tens of thousands. Martin Ramirez spent more The images communicate with a power and directness that My eyes could not wander without encountering a magnificent than 32 years confined to state psychiatric hospitals. In the engage the viewer and invite them to experience a private work of art—on the walls, on the stairs, on the shelves, in last 15 years of his life he produced hundreds of drawings on world.