RIDGEFIELD, CONN.- The Aldrich Contemporary Art Museum is presenting The Aldrich Decennial: I am what is around me, the debut of a recurring survey, taking place every ten years, featuring artists who live and work in Connecticut. As the state’s only institution exclusively dedicated to contemporary art, this series spotlights current artists and practices emerging from Connecticut. None of the featured artists have had a solo museum exhibition in Connecticut, and all works have been created within the last decade. The Aldrich Decennial: I am what is around me will be on view at The Aldrich from June 7, 2026, to January 10, 2027, and is accompanied by a catalogue.
Connecticut has been the home to many goliaths of art history, including Anni and Josef Albers, Kay Sage and Yves Tanguy, Louise Bourgeois, Alexander Calder, Jasper Johns, Barkley Hendricks, and Sol LeWitt. Spanning the full footprint of the Museum’s 8,000-square-foot galleries and recently renovated three-acre campus and Sculpture Garden, this survey explores the varied artistic expressions of generations of artists who have chosen to live and work outside major art centers. The Aldrich has a long history of supporting Connecticut artists through solo, group, and invitational exhibitions since its inception. In alignment with the Museum’s mission to support artists at pivotal points in their careers, this exhibition features an intergenerational roster of artists emphasizing breakout debuts and rediscoveries.
“While The Aldrich's expansive mission highlights the work of living artists from around the United States and the world, over the past 60 years the Museum has also had an enduring interest in artists living and working in Connecticut,” said Cybele Maylone, Executive Director of The Aldrich Contemporary Art Museum. “With the debut of this inaugural series we are so proud to spotlight the immense talent in our small but mighty state.”
Modeled after other major museum series, this exhibition showcases the breadth of artists’ practices and present an opportunity for artists at varying stages of their careers within the state. The dynamism of Connecticut’s landscape has long provided a respite for artists who have chosen to work outside the pressure and expense of major metropolitan art centers like New York or Boston. As rents continue to increase, this trend has accelerated. Diana Bowes Chief Curator Amy Smith-Stewart and Assistant Curator and Publications Manager Caitlin Monachino conducted over 100 studio visits to understand the tenor of creation across the state.
“Connecticut has always been a site for visionary artists and daring ideas,” says Amy Smith-Stewart, Diana Bowes Chief Curator. “This survey spotlights artists who call this place home—artists whose work is deeply rooted in the Museum’s community yet resonates far beyond it. It’s an honor to share their powerful voices with the world through this new exhibition series.”
The exhibition’s title, I am what is around me, is excerpted from the American poet Wallace Stevens’s poem “Theory,” 1917. Stevens lived in Hartford, Connecticut, for 40 years and many of his poems were inspired by the city.
The typeface for the exhibition design is DROIT, designed by the artists Christopher Sleboda and Kathleen Sleboda, based in Guilford, Connecticut.
Conceived of and led by the Museum’s Diana Bowes Chief Curator Amy Smith-Stewart, the first edition of the series will be curated by Smith-Stewart and Assistant Curator and Publications Manager Caitlin Monachino.
The exhibition will be accompanied by a significant publication featuring an essay, plates, installation views, and artist biographies.
