Exhibitions at a Glance
Exhibitions at the Katonah Museum of Art range from realism to abstraction, from ancient artifacts to cutting edge contemporary, from traditional painting to recycled plastics. Every few months the Museum is transformed. During the school year, this diverse schedule offers educators and students multiple opportunities to explore visual history and connect their Museum experience to classroom learning. In addition, every year an exhibition of student artwork is displayed throughout the Museum.
On View October 15, 2023 – January 28, 2024
Stories of Syria’s Textiles: Art and Heritage across Two Millennia
In the Main Galleries
What can we learn from tiny textile fragments from 1800 years ago? These miraculously preserved artifacts provide a window into the lives of the people of the ancient Near East. Stories of Syria’s Textiles features ancient artifacts, Syrian garments from the 19th and 20th centuries, and photo-documentation of Syrian silk producers, weavers, and other artisans. Through careful observation and questioning of more than 30 items on view we will explore Syria’s rich cultural heritage, examine sophisticated weaving technologies from ancient through modern times, consider the impact of the silk trade routes and resulting cultural influences, and gain an understanding of enduring silk production processes. The artifacts allow us to imagine the stories of those that lived before us and consider how they set the groundwork for contemporary textile artistry. On tours of this exhibition students will think like archeologists and art historians as they investigate original source materials, maps, photographs, and artistic objects over two millennia. Current silk production and Syrian textile craft will be explored, as well as a contemporary textile installation in the Learning Center, with an opportunity to use textile materials in a creative art project.
Contact us for more information and tour inquiries.
This exhibition and accompanying catalogue were realized with generous funding from the Coby Foundation and the Nazmiyal Collection. Additional support has been provided by the Barakat Trust, the Gladys Krieble Delmas Foundation, Anne and Joel Ehrenkranz, and the Director’s Circle of the Katonah Museum of Art.
Rhonda Khalifeh: Immortal Stitch
In the Pollack Family Learning Center
Experience a unique fabric environment and experiment with various textile arts activities in the Pollack Family Learning Center. Immortal Stitch grapples with shifting notions of identity and loss of place. Using a combination of repurposed aghabani tablecloths and hand-dyed silk and wool, Rhonda Khalifeh's installation explores material heritage and her past and present relationship with Syrian craft and material heritage. Khalifeh is a Syrian-American artist, dyer, and print designer based in New York.
Contact us for more information and tour inquiries.
This work was created in part during a ChaShaMa upstate artist residency.
On view February 11 – March 3, 2024
Young Artists 2024
The work of high school seniors from over 40 local schools is featured in this annual exhibition. Students take an active role in producing the exhibition as they help to promote, curate, and install the nearly 400 artworks on view.
Contact education@katonahmuseum.org; 914-232-9555, ext. 2969 to find out how your school can participate.