Opening Reception: Thursday, August 1, 5:00 – 7:00 pm

Blanche Lazzell: Becoming an American Modernist explores the pioneering artist’s lifelong pursuit of translating Modernism into an American art form and celebrates her largely unsung achievements in championing abstraction in the United States through painting and printmaking. This exhibition surveys the full career of American modernist Blanche Lazzell (1878–1956). Celebrated for her masterful white-line woodblock prints, Lazzell considered herself a painter first and foremost—from her early days studying in West Virginia, New York, and Paris through Depression-era Federal Art Projects and as a longtime resident of Provincetown’s vibrant art colony.

Born and raised in the small community of Maidsville, West Virginia, Lazzell graduated from West Virginia University with a degree in fine arts in 1905. Seeking further instruction, she first enrolled in the Art Students League in New York City and then went on two extensive trips to Europe. There she immersed herself in the studios of avant-garde artists who explored abstraction through the new movements of Fauvism and Cubism. Lazzell embraced these influences in her own work, creating some of the first non-objective prints and paintings seen in this country. She eventually settled in the artist colony of Provincetown, Massachusetts, where she worked with Hans Hofmann, co-founded the Provincetown Printers, and became a leading figure in white-line color woodblock printmaking.

Including more than 60 works drawn primarily from the Art Museum of West Virginia’s permanent collection, the exhibition explores the artist’s lifelong dedication to her craft and celebrates her achievements as a champion of modernist abstraction in the United States. All of the interpretive materials in the galleries will be available in English and Spanish. The exhibition also includes a short documentary video, produced by the Academy, with bilingual English and Spanish captions.

Throughout the run of the exhibition, a mobile art cart will be activated every Thursday for drop-in artmaking with a Teaching Artist, who will show visitors how to create collages inspired by Lazzell’s artwork. This program will be offered in Spanish on August 22, September 19, and October 17. Visitors with disabilities may request a session adapted to their accessibility needs.

Blanche Lazzell: Becoming an American Modernist is organized by the Art Museum of West Virginia University and generously supported by Art Bridges.

EVENTS

Floral Design and Print Workshop 
Weekend Session: August 10, from 2 – 4pm (Floral Session) & August 11, from 10am – 12pm (Print Session)
Weekday Session: Sept. 10, from 5 – 7pm (Floral Session) & Sept 12, from 5 – 7pm (Print Session)
FREE

Join your fellow art and flower lovers for a two-day workshop on floral design and printmaking organized in conjunction with Blanche Lazzell: Becoming an American Modernist. On Day One, Participants will learn about Lazzell’s interest in flowers and their place in her work. Lydia Woolever, owner of Easton’s own Little Fields Floral, will demonstrate the artistic process of floral design and help students make their own arrangements.On Day Two, Museum Teaching Artist Sheryl Southwick will discuss Lazzell’s white-line printmaking process and show participants how to make their own print.

Lazzell Art Cart
Dates: Thursdays, 5 – 7  pm, August 1 – October 17
Spanish Instruction: Thursday, 5 – 7 pm, August 22, September 19 and October 17
FREE

Lecture: Blanche Lazzell and the Provincetown Print
with Fred Dylla, artist and physicist
Thursday, August 22, 6 pm

Learn more about Blanche Lazzell, the subject of the current exhibit at the Museum! Lazzell was a key member of the “Provincetown Printers,” who invented a unique American artform– the white-line woodcut print — in the opening decades of the 20th century. The popularity of the Provincetown Print flourished for a short time, following an initial group exhibition in New York City and Provincetown in 1916, but then largely was forgotten — except for the work of Lazzell who continued her print making until her death in 1956. Those works are now highly sought after by collectors and museums.