Albany Institute of History & Art

The other day we visited the Albany Institute of History & Art. I been to the museum before, but I didn't see the exhibits, they instead took us back stage for the class. So even though I been to the museum before, this would be my first time actually going to the exhibits. There were so many things I enjoyed in the exhibits. Historic and art archaeology ranged from paintings to books and mummies from ancient Egypt (which were my favorite by the way) and the contemporary art exhibit upstairs.
I liked the contemporary art exhibit because it was interesting seeing various kinds of art that reflected the modern era and what it means for something to be contemporary. My favourite contemporary art piece was a multi-coloured cube done by Dennis Byng in 1974. It was so awesome and I really enjoyed the contrasts he used between the colored cubes to create reflective dimensions. The picture is shown below:

Dennis Byng "Untitled" Sculpture

I enjoyed most of the paintings that I had seen, even the botanical art even though that wasn't part of the exhibit, it was just a bonus. The paintings of the Hudson River School are insightful and inspiring. It makes you think of how influential the Hudson River and the landscape had an impact on the economical and the artistic community in Albany and Troy. There's something beautiful about capturing the beauty of the American landscape and applying it aesthetically to art as a form of romanticizing with the land.

One particular artist caught my attention because they were from my hometown Rhode Island. Henry Ary was born in 1807 in Rhode Island but relocated to Catskill, New York. Most of paintings were influeced by the works of Thomas Cole. One of his paintings that was in the museum was "View of Hudson, New York"  in 1852 done on oil on canvas. The painting was really nice, I like the detailed he put on the trees and the grass and how the sky softly contrasts with the river and the land. I really like how the dark clouds slowly fade into white clouds across the sky, it looks subtle and nicely done. And since Henry was from Rhode Island, I felt connected with his painting and his works.

Henry Ary "View of Hudson"