BUFFALO, N.Y.– Fifty-eight artists, including 17 from Toronto and Southern Ontario, have been selected to exhibit at Beyond/In Western New York 2005, the expanded biennial exhibition founded by the Albright-Knox Art Gallery in 1977 as In Western New York.

The expanded exhibition, to unfold in spring 2005 across 12 different venues in Western New York, will celebrate many of the top artists in the bi-national region of Southern Ontario, Canada, and Western and Central New York (primarily the Toronto, Buffalo and Rochester areas).

"All of the participating local art organizations are excited that we will be able to showcase artists from Toronto – Canada's major art center and a truly international city," said Albright-Knox Director Louis Grachos. "Of course, they will be joined by outstanding artists from Western and Central New York, an increasingly recognized region for producing noted artists.”

The 58 artists’ works span a spectrum of art practices, from traditional drawing, prints, painting, sculpture, and photography to video and 16 mm film, performance, and multimedia installations.

After reviewing more than 700 submissions and over 14,000 slides (three elimination rounds), curatorial teams from the 12 participating local arts organizations made on-site visits to 86 artists’ studios. After the studio visits, the curators had a roundtable discussion to determine the final selection and the venue for each artist’s work.

Eleven local visual arts institutions have joined forces with the Albright-Knox Art Gallery in this new endeavor, which grew out of an even older tradition and history based on the Gallery’s dedication to regional art.

Big Orbit Gallery, Buffalo Arts Studio, Burchfield-Penney Art Center, Carnegie Art Center, Castellani Art Museum, Niagara University, CEPA Gallery, El Museo Francisco Oller Y Diego Rivera, Hallwalls Contemporary Arts Center, Langston Hughes Institute, Squeaky Wheel, and University at Buffalo Art Galleries, are both co-organizers and co-curators, and will provide venues for Beyond/In Western New York, the new region-wide invitational exhibition.

Like the Albright-Knox Art Gallery, these institutions are strongly committed to the art and artists of Western New York. This collaboration will propel In Western New York, which was limited to celebrating the accomplishments of artists residing in the eight counties of Western New York, into the 21st-century.

“This larger biennial offers curators the opportunity to take a closer look at the work being produced in the region, resulting in an exhibition that will provide a broader and more in-depth look at the vibrant artistic community that makes up the Lake Erie, Lake Ontario, and Southern Ontario regions,” said Albright-Knox Art Gallery Director Louis Grachos. “The vitality and creativity of this new work is outstanding.”

Beyond/In Western New York 2005 will premiere at staggered openings at each of the institutions during the weekends of April 15-16, April 22-23, and April 29-30, 2005, and will remain on view at all venues through Wednesday, June 19, 2005.