The Wellin Museum of Art at Hamilton College will host an exhibition called “Menagerie: Animals in Art” from September 7, 2024, to June 7, 2025. This exhibit will showcase hundreds of artworks featuring animals from ancient times to today. It will explore how people have used animal images in art for various reasons, including symbolism, culture, ceremonies, and decoration. The exhibition includes images of insects, fish, birds, and mammals, highlighting their roles in power, virtue, decoration, and myth.
The exhibition’s opening reception will be held from 4 to 6 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 7. The exhibition and reception are free and open to the public.
Wellin Museum’s Collections Curator Elizabeth Shannon explained, “The persistent presence of creatures in art throughout time and across cultures reflects the diverse roles that wild and domesticated animals play in our lives. A dog might be a dangerous threat, a symbol of protection, or a beloved family member, while an insect in its natural habitat may be perceived as a pest if humans encroach on its environment.” Menagerie is curated by Shannon.
The exhibition also draws attention to the scope of the Wellin Museum’s collection. Selections include objects from ancient Egypt, Greece, and Rome; Mesoamerican and Andean artifacts; artworks from Medieval, Renaissance, and 19th century Europe; prints, drawings, and textiles from East Asia; Persian illuminated manuscripts; and global modern and contemporary art.
Menagerie encourages viewers to consider the scope, meaning, and value of their interactions with animals, and, most importantly, to recognize their implicit interdependence. While the exhibition primarily focuses on nonhuman creatures, every object on view is the result of human creative effort and the depiction of each animal is filtered through its maker’s consciousness.
The objects in Menagerie reveal the complex, and sometimes volatile, interconnection between animals and humans. Moreover, some of these artworks illustrate the considerable stress humans have placed on our shared ecosystem. In examining the enduring bond between people and animals, Menagerie not only provides an avenue for imagining a sustainable future, but one in which humans and the natural world might find balance.
WellinWorks
WellinWorks is an interactive environment related to the current exhibition and designed to inspire creativity within the museum. This iteration of WellinWorks was prompted by an aspirational question that emerged during the development of the Menagerie exhibition: When you leave the museum, will you look at the world in a different way than when you entered?
Designed by Hamilton students and Wellin staff to consider the many ways that humans, animals, and the natural world interact, the space provides opportunities for hands-on artmaking and tools to foster contemplation. A wildlife display board tracks local sightings of animals that live in our region. Areas for reflection on the cultural and symbolic meanings of animals are designed to encourage conversation around human relationships with animals. Also on view is a video illuminating how Hamilton faculty engage with and enrich our knowledge of objects in the museum’s collection.
Programming
Friday, September 6, 1 p.m.
Virtual Tour of Menagerie: Animals in Art from the Wellin Museum
Exhibition Curator Elizabeth Shannon will lead a virtual preview of the exhibition on Facebook Live. More information: https://www.facebook.com/events/732832665704810/?ref=newsfeed
Saturday, September 7, 4 to 6 p.m.
Opening Reception for Menagerie: Animals in Art from the Wellin Museum
Join us for an in-person celebration at the Wellin Museum.
Wednesday, September 18, 4:30 p.m.
Artists in Conversation: Alexa Hatanaka
For this in-person gallery talk, artist Alexa Hatanaka will discuss her work on view in the exhibition Menagerie: Animals in Art from the Wellin Museum.
The Wellin Museum of Art hours are Tuesday through Sunday, 11 a.m. – 5 p.m. Parking and admission are free of charge. For further information, please contact the Wellin Museum of Art at 315-859-4396 or visit the website.
