Andrew Raftery's Eight-Year Garden Project Culminates in New York Exhibition
From September 10 to November 5, 2016, Andrew Raftery showcases "Autobiography of a Garden in Twelve Engraved Plates," his inaugural exhibition at Ryan Lee Gallery in New York. This display includes 12 tondo paintings alongside a collection of 12 earthenware plates that illustrate Raftery’s gardening activities throughout the year. A Professor of Printmaking at RISD since 1991, he collaborated on this project for eight years with ceramics expert Larry Bush. The plates are set against specially designed wallpaper. Drawing inspiration from his mother, an expressionist artist, Raftery delves into themes of time, labor, and regionalism, while overcoming technical hurdles related to 19th-century transferware methods. This exhibition signifies his return to painting after a 15-year break, utilizing black-and-white Flashe. Raftery and his partner Ned Lochaya also collect transferware.
Key facts
- Exhibition runs September 10 to November 5, 2016 at Ryan Lee Gallery in New York
- Features 12 tondo paintings and 12 earthenware plates with transfer prints
- Andrew Raftery is a Professor of Printmaking at RISD since 1991
- Project developed over eight years with custom ceramic production by Larry Bush
- Plates displayed against custom-designed wallpaper inspired by French "Dominos" style
- Raftery's mother, an expressionist painter, inspired the garden but is not depicted
- References Gertrude Stein's "The Autobiography of Alice B. Toklas" and Grant Wood's work
- Technical process involved reviving 19th-century transferware techniques with custom inks
Entities
Artists
- Andrew Raftery
- Mary Jones
- Gertrude Stein
- Alice B. Toklas
- Claire Leighton
- Grant Wood
- Ned Lochaya
- Richard S. Field
- Paul Scott
- Larry Bush
Institutions
- Ryan Lee Gallery
- RISD
- Wedgwood
- Spode
Locations
- New York
- United States
- Providence
- Rhode Island
- Brooklyn
- Washington D.C.
- England
- France