July 20, 2009
YORK, Pa.— York’s location was a big draw for Matthew Clay-Robison, the new art gallery director at York College of Pennsylvania. “I had just driven through York when I saw the position announcement, and the location seemed exciting because of its proximity to Philadelphia, Baltimore, and D.C., ” he said.
Clay-Robison’s curatorial plans for exhibits at the College will take advantage of York’s proximity to those three cities. He is planning a series of "emerging artist" exhibitions featuring groups of artists representing contemporary artistic trends in Philadelphia, Baltimore, and Washington, D.C. “The annual group show revolving between those three larger markets will engage and include York in the critical artistic dialog of the mid-Atlantic region,” he said.
The first in this series, “Represent Philadelphia,” will feature a solo exhibition by recent University of the Arts MFA recipient and York College adjunct faculty member JoAnne Schiavone in the Brossman Gallery, and an exhibition of three young artists representing prominent Philly artist collectives in the Cora Miller Gallery. The exhibition’s opening reception will be held in Wolf Hall on Sept. 3 following a lecture by critic/blogger Roberta Fallon at 5 p.m. in DeMeester Recital Hall.
The fall exhibition calendar also features the work of York-born, Florida-based sculptor David Engdahl, and the artist/activist Matthew Works, whose exhibition “Nowhere to Lay His Head” will coincide with a group exhibition called “Give and Take” that will explore themes of need, abundance, and excess.
Clay-Robison is also planning a show for the Minneapolis-based artist and Chair of Fine Arts at the University of Minnesota Clarence Morgan for Fall 2010. The show he is most excited about will be held in Spring 2010 and will feature recent work by the esteemed artist David C. Driskell and selections from Driskell’s collection of African-American art, including works by Romare Bearden, Jacob Lawrence, Martin Puryear, Kara Walker, and many other major artists of the last century.
“I hope to create a sense of enthusiasm and excitement for the programs I introduce,” Clay-Robison said. “In my previous position, I brought in a diverse series of exhibitions, lectures, and other events that served a broad range of the community and drew in long-time residents who had never visited the gallery before. I will strive to accomplish this at York College, too.”
Clay-Robison received a Bachelor of Fine Arts from the University of Connecticut in 1996 and a Master of Fine Arts from the University of Maryland in 2003. Before he accepted the gallery director position at York College, Clay-Robison was the gallery director at the University of North Florida in Jacksonville. He has also taught printmaking and drawing at Moore College of Art, Bloomsburg University, and the University of Maryland.
Located in southcentral Pennsylvania, York College offers more than 50 baccalaureate majors in professional programs, the sciences and humanities to its 4,600 undergraduate students. With a 15:1 student-to-faculty ratio and distinctive mentoring programs, York provides an environment that emphasizes close personal attention to students from 32 states and 30 countries.
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