Violet Oakley Exhibit to Open at LVC's Suzanne H. Arnold Gallery

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Violet Oakley's "Penn's Vision"

ANNVILLE, PA (10/08/2010)(readMedia)-- Violet Oakley: Painting a "Palace of Art" at the Pennsylvania State Capitol will be on display at the Suzanne H. Arnold Art Gallery at Lebanon Valley College from Oct. 29 through Dec. 12, 2010. Violet Oakley (1874–1961), a Philadelphia-based artist, was commissioned to paint a series of murals in the Governor's Reception Room at the Pennsylvania State Capitol in Harrisburg in 1902, an unusual yet extraordinary honor for a woman in the early 20th century.

The series, titled The Founding of the State of Liberty Spiritual, depicts the events of religious intolerance that led to William Penn's departure from England to America, and includes images of Penn as a student at Oxford, his arrest and condemnation, and finally his vision for the new world and his first sight of the shores of Pennsylvania. Upon their completion, the paintings were well received and Oakley was subsequently asked to paint the Senate Chamber and Supreme Court Chamber murals. Joseph Miller Huston, the Capitol's architect, was determined to create a "Palace of Art," and Oakley's murals in all three rooms contributed to this ambitious project. Oakley created hundreds of preparatory studies for the murals that reveal her rigorous working methods and her careful planning of the mural compositions.

This exhibition includes Oakley's oil studies for the Reception Room, on loan from the Pennsylvania Capitol Preservation Committee, as well as a number of studies in oil, watercolor, charcoal, and other mediums for the Senate and Supreme Court Chambers, on loan from the State Museum in Harrisburg.

In conjunction with the exhibition, Patricia Likos Ricci, associate professor of the history of art at Elizabethtown College, will present a lecture on Violet Oakley's murals on Wednesday, Nov. 17, at 5 p.m. in the Zimmerman Recital Hall of the Suzanne H. Arnold Gallery. Ricci is a specialist in 19th century architecture and mural painting, and has published and lectured extensively on the works of Violet Oakley. The lecture is free and open to the public.

Actress Heather Jannetta will perform Cindy Dlugolecki's play, "Violet Oakley Unveiled," on Saturday, Nov. 20, at 7 p.m., in the Leedy Theater of the Mund College Center. The play recounts Violet Oakley's remarkable commission to paint the murals at the Pennsylvania State Capitol, and provides insight into the private life of this artist, feminist, and political activist. Tickets are $7 for gallery members and LVC faculty and staff; $12 for general public and free for LVC students.

An opening reception will be held on Friday, Oct. 29, from 5–7 p.m. Admission is free and open to the public. Gallery hours are Wednesdays from 5–8 p.m.; Thursdays and Fridays from 1–4:30 p.m.; Saturdays and Sundays from 11 a.m.–5 p.m.; and by appointment for groups. Schools and other organizations are encouraged to contact the Gallery for a guided visit. For further information, please contact gallery@lvc.edu or 717-867-6445.