St. Lawrence University's Brush Art Gallery to Feature Edward Gorey Exhibit

CANTON, N.Y. - Jan. 12, 2016 - PRLog -- St. Lawrence University’s Richard F. Brush Art Gallery will present an exhibition of prints by world-renowned author and illustrator Edward St. John Gorey.

The exhibition will take place from Wednesday Jan. 20 to Saturday, Feb 27, with a lecture by the show’s curator James A. Edwards, professor and curator at the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth, at 7 p.m. on Monday, Feb. 8, in Griffiths Arts Center, room 123. In addition, a rough cut screening of Christopher Seufert’s film “The Edward Gorey Documentary Project” will be ongoing in the main galleries during open hours.

Gorey (1925-2000) published over one hundred titles, including The Gashlycrumb Tinies, The Doubtful Guest and The Wuggly Ump. Gorey’s illustrations have appeared in The New Yorker and The New York Times and in books by Charles Dickens, Edward Lear, H.G. Wells, and Virginia Woolf. His animated credits, created in 1980 for the PBS Masterpiece Mystery! series, introduced his work to millions of television viewers.

This exhibition presents, at its core, the image of the elephant alongside images of other earthly and fictional beasts. Elephants cavort, carry figures on their backs, shower and hold dapper canes in these enigmatic images. Prints of animated thumbs and a balletic series of an oddly endearing fantastical creature called “Figbash” are also included in the exhibition. Made in the last decade of his career, these prints reveal Gorey’s obsession with animals and all things elephantine.

Beyond his literary and artistic pursuits, Gorey was deeply invested in the protection of animals. Through the Edward Gorey Charitable Trust, numerous animal welfare organizations receive funding, including the Tufts Veterinary School in Grafton, Massachusetts, the Bat Conservation International Foundation in Austin, Texas, and the Elephant Sanctuary in Hohenwald, Tennessee.

For more information on Edward Gorey, visit the website of the Edward Gorey House at www.edwardgoreyhouse.org.

About the Richard F. Brush Art Gallery:

Named in recognition of the generosity of Richard F. Brush ’52, the Brush Art Gallery is an academic resource of St. Lawrence University. Its mission is to acquire, preserve, interpret, exhibit and otherwise make accessible works of art in support of the educational goals of the University and for the benefit of the community at large. Programs and activities are designed to balance a range of disciplinary and interdisciplinary objectives, in recognition of diverse functions and meanings of art. The Gallery is open Monday through Thursday from noon to 8 p.m., and Friday and Saturday from noon to 5 p.m. Admission is free and open to the public during the academic year. For more information, contact the Brush Art Gallery at 315-229-5174 or visit www.stlawu.edu/gallery.

About St. Lawrence University:

Founded in 1856, St. Lawrence University is a private, independent liberal arts institution of about 2,500 students located in Canton, New York. The educational opportunities at St. Lawrence inspire students and prepare them to be critical and creative thinkers, to find a compass for their lives and careers, and to pursue knowledge and understanding for the benefit of themselves, humanity and the planet. Through its focus on active engagement with ideas in and beyond the classroom, a St. Lawrence education leads students to make connections that transform lives and communities, from the local to the global. Visit www.stlawu.edu.