2012 Core Exhibition

2011-12 Core Program Artists and Critics Present New Work in Highly Anticipated, Annual Exhibition at the Glassell School of Art

Opening Reception Friday, March 16, 2012, from 6 to 8 p.m. at the Glassell School of Art of the MFAH

Annual Long Prize to be announced at Glassell Benefit and Auction on Friday, May 11, 2012

Houston—March 2012—The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston’s acclaimed Core program awards residencies to emerging visual artists and art scholars. Overseen by the Core Program’s associate director, Mary Leclère, the Core fellows present an exhibition each spring that showcases work made during that year’s residency. This year’s edition opens Friday, March 16, 2012, with works on view in the Laura Lee Blanton Gallery at the Glassell School of Art through April 20, 2012.

The 2012 Core Exhibition features work by artists-in-residence Miguel Amat, Anthea Behm, Lourdes Correa-Carlo, Fatima Haider, Jang Soon Im, Gabriel Martinez, Nicole Miller and Clarissa Tossin. Core critical studies residents Sally Frater, Philip Kelleher and Massa Lemu contribute essays based on their independent research to the Core 2012 Yearbook publication that accompanies the show. For more information about the residents, please visit the website: http://www.mfah.org/fellowships/core-program/

“The Core residency program is a wonderful forum for emergent artists and critics to discuss and develop their work and, in turn, strengthen the Houston arts scene,” said Glassell School director Joseph Havel. “We hope people will come to the opening reception March 16 to meet and support the 2011-12 artists and critical studies residents.”

“This year’s exhibition is strong in photography, décollage and video work,” added Core Program associate director Mary Leclère. “Essays in the accompanying Core 2012 Yearbook explore everything from the alternative Houston art space, the joanna, to the soundscape work of Nigerian artist Emeka Ogboh.”

Each nine-month fellowship (renewable for a second year) gives the eight artists and three critical studies residents studio space or an office, a stipend and access to the school and museum. These resources allow the fellows to further their practices within a dynamic arts community guided by Glassell School of Art director Joseph Havel, and to engage in creative dialogue with each other and with a host of visiting artists and critics. Since the 1980s, Core fellows have been a vibrant presence within the Houston art scene through teaching, engaging in community projects, interacting with other artists, and sometimes making a permanent home here. The Core program has also established itself as an internationally regarded platform, and Core fellows have gone on to show at such prestigious, international venues as the Venice, Whitney, Istanbul, and Lyon biennials or to assume positions at prominent national art publications, among other achievements.

Opening Reception
From 6 to 8 p.m. on Friday, March 16, 2012, the Glassell School of Art will host an opening reception. The evening is free and open to the public, and the Core residents will be in attendance.

Long Prize Award Ceremony
Since 2008, the $10,000 Long prize, named for Meredith J. Long, has been given annually to an outstanding, second-year Core fellow. Past prize winners include Mequitta Ahuja (2008); Kara Hearn (2009); Lily Cox-Richard (2010); and Steffani Jemison (2011). This year’s awardee will be announced in a special award presentation during the benefit (Friday, May 11, 2012).

The Glassell School of Art
The Glassell School of Art is the teaching wing of the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston.  Established in 1927, it was renamed in honor of Alfred C. Glassell, Jr., in 1979, in recognition of his generous gift. The school has a reputation for outstanding training in the fine arts, and offers a wide variety of programs and classes for adults and children through its Studio School and Junior School.  The Glassell Community Outreach Program serves more than 2,000 individuals, including hospitalized children, and hearing and visually impaired people.

The Glassell School of Art is located at 5101 Montrose Boulevard, and is open Monday through Thursday, 9 a.m. to 10 p.m., and Friday through Sunday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Call 713-639-7500 for more information.

Upcoming Exhibitions at the MFAH

• Elegance and Refinement: The Still-Life Paintings of Willem van Alest
  March 11–May 28, 2012
• Rembrandt, Van Dyck, Gainsborough: The Treasures of Kenwood House, London 
  June 3–September 3, 2012
• Unrivaled Splendor: The Kimiko and John Powers Collection of Japanese Art 
  June 17–September 23, 2012
• Duncan Phyfe, Master Cabinetmaker in New York
  June 24–September 9, 2012

For more information, please contact:

MFAH Communications
713-639-7554