CORNING, NY.- The Rockwell Museum announced the opening of the Southwest Lodge Gallery – a gallery space dedicated to the works of the Taos School of Artists, the Santa Fe School, and the native Pueblo artists of this dynamic region.

The exhibit includes about 70 pieces of pottery and about 20 paintings and works on paper by legendary artists such as E.M. Hennings, Walter Ufer, E.I. Couse, W. Herbert Dunton, Joseph H. Sharp, Oscar Berninghaus, Gene Kloss, Gustave Baumann, and Ernest L. Blumenschein. The inspiration for this new gallery came from the generous loan of the Nancy and Alan Cameros Collection of Southwestern Pottery. The pottery exhibit, On Fire!, features work by the most talented American Indian artists of today and will be on view at The Rockwell through spring 2016.

“The Southwest Lodge Gallery is just the first of several exciting projects we have planned as we approach our 40- year anniversary in 2016,” says Kirsty Buchanan, Curator of Collections at The Rockwell.

In anticipation of the upcoming 40th Anniversary, The Rockwell has planned a celebratory year of re-envisioned permanent installations, nationally recognized special exhibits, and newly inspired gallery spaces for 2016. The reinterpretation of the permanent galleries at The Rockwell Museum stems from the expansion of our mission statement – Art about the American Experience – in an effort to contextualize the core collection of American and Western art.

“All the works in the exhibit hold a significant place in western art history, making them an important component of the larger American story,” Buchanan adds.

OTHER EXHIBITIONS NOW ON VIEW

· Andy Warhol Silkscreens – five silkscreen prints featuring historical figures like Annie Oakley, Geronimo and General Custer by pop-art icon, Andy Warhol

· Between the States: Photographs of the American Civil War (through August 2, 2016) -- exploring how photography was used to record the war, promote popular causes, and commemorate those who sacrificed their lives (from the collection of the George Eastman House)

· On Fire! The Nancy and Alan Cameros Collection of Southwestern Pottery -- featuring the Nation’s premier collection of pueblo pottery by the most talented American Indian artists of today

· Lock, Stock & Barrel -- historical firearms exploring the story of America from the American Revolution to the Hollywood cowboy (from the collection of Robert F. “Bobby” Rockwell, III)

· In Pursuit of the American Landscape -- featuring silver-gelatin prints by artist John Doddato so generously gifted to The Rockwell Museum by the artist