Forty-five lithographs, drawings, pastels, and watercolors by George W. Eggers (1883-1958) will be exhibited at the Fredonia Technology Incubator (FTI) Art Gallery from Aug. 22 through Sept. 30.
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A Dunkirk native, Eggers’ success went beyond his talent as an artist. He was also a respected arts administrator and directed three major museums throughout his career — Art Institute of Chicago, Denver Art Museum, and Worcester Art Museum.
The gallery, located at the incubator at 214 Central Ave., Dunkirk, is free and open to the public, Monday through Friday, from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. There is ample parking accessible from Washington Avenue.
“We are delighted to feature a local artist that connects history and art” said Incubator Program Manager Monica Kemp. “As a mixed-use business incubator focusing on arts- and technology-based businesses, featuring talented artists at our facility adds great value to the community and our business clients.”
An exhibition reception is scheduled for Friday, Sept. 16, from 5:30 to 6:30 pm. Following the reception, James A. Welu, director emeritus of the Worcester Art Museum, will present the lecture, “George W. Eggers: Artist, Educator and Museum Director,” in the incubator’s large conference room. Those interested in attending the reception and lecture can register at http://welulectureoneggers.eventbrite.com or call 716-680-6009. The registration link is also on the FTI homepage.
“Collaborating with the Dunkirk Historical Society to display the Eggers collection and feature Mr. Welu as a guest lecturer at the Incubator adds great value to our facility and mission,” said Ms. Kemp. “The exhibitions along with our other programming helps bring together entrepreneurs, students and community leaders and highlights the business aspects of the creative economy.”
"The Historical Society of Dunkirk is proud to hold this event on behalf of the City of Dunkirk, and we are thrilled to partner with Fredonia in doing so. We need to be reminded more often that our city possesses a rich heritage of art and history, and that those elements of our community enhance its prestige,” said Dunkirk Historical Society President, Diane Andrasik.
Today, Eggers artwork can be found in many public collections, among them: Buffalo’s Burchfield Penney Art Center, Los Angeles County Museum of Art, New York Public Library, and the Art Institute of Chicago.
The local exhibition brings Eggers’ work back to his hometown, and not far from where he took his first art lessons. According to family members, Eggers would bicycle from Dunkirk to Chautauqua Institution for lessons. He later received his formal training at Pratt Institute in Brooklyn and studied lithography with master printer Bolton Brown.
Bernard Karpel, a former student and associate of Eggers and former chief librarian at the Museum of Modern Art, wrote that Eggers’ sketches were “like an early film of casual days and perceptive moments...The lakes, freighters, and docks, Niagara and Chautauqua, recorded into his late teens show how deeply he was rooted in the landscape of Western New York…The vision of his youth shaped the iconography of his mature work.”Curated by Diane Andrasik from the Historical Society of Dunkirk, the Eggers exhibition at the incubator includes a collaborative lithograph by Eggers and Brown, 15 additional lithographs, early 20th century drawings of Dunkirk, portraits and self-portraits of Eggers, and several personal items. The collection of drawings demonstrates Eggers’ skills in a variety of mediums: charcoal, pen and ink, colored pencil, pastel, Conte crayon, and graphite. Also included are photographs of Eggers by his father and prominent Dunkirk photographer, George A.H. Eggers (1850-1938).
The incubator staff acknowledged Cathy and Jesse Marion Art Gallery Director Barbara Racker for managing the exhibition. The incubator is part of Fredonia’s Division of Engagement and Economic Development (EED), established in 2013 to facilitate and support university-community collaborations that enhance the intellectual, cultural, artistic, and economic vibrancy of the region.
