(NEW BRUNSWICK, NJ) -- The Zimmerli Art Museum at Rutgers invites the public to attend exclusive programming at Art After Hours: First Tuesdays on March 3 from 5:00pm to 9:00pm. The evening features curator-led tours of “It makes me think of that awful day…” The Natural World in the Anthropocene and A Celebration of the Children’s Books of Vladimir Radunsky, as well as a performance by violinist Suliman Tekalli, the State Theatre New Jersey Artist-in-Residence, in partnership with the Center for Musical Excellence. In addition, Mason Gross jazz students Vaughn Stavropoulos (keyboard) and Ian Young (bass) perform throughout the evening. Art After Hours is free and open to the public, with complimentary refreshments.

Curator-led tours of “It makes me think of that awful day…” The Natural World in the Anthropocene begin at 5:30pm and 7:00pm. Artists have long trained their eyes on the natural world, creating art that offers visions of nature and humankind’s place within it. For contemporary practitioners, this means grappling with an environment deeply marked by human intervention. Rapid climate change, mass extinction, and ecological shifts brought on by the burning of fossil fuels and disruptive development have led some to term our current geological epoch the Anthropocene, or age of man. While the term is flawed – for example, it implies that all people are equally responsible for the current crisis – the overarching idea of a new set of environmental realities resonates with many artists. The works featured in this exhibition suggest that there is no such thing as an untouched, unmediated natural world.

Curator-led tours of A Celebration of the Children’s Books of Vladimir Radunsky begin at 5:30pm and 7:00pm. The exhibition captures the creative narration, innovative design, and pervasive wit of the author and illustrator. More than 50 original gouache, photo collage, and paper collage illustrations from four books are on public view for the first time, with labels in English and Spanish. With his own writings, Radunsky invented new stories and drew upon favorites from his childhood, including The Mighty Asparagus (2004), a reimagining of a famous Russian folktale, combined with the culture of his adopted homeland, Italy. For two of his collaborations, he joined other figures in the Russian expatriate community. Discovery (1999) features Radunsky’s expressionist forms that complement Nobel Prize-winning poet Joseph Brodsky’s text to encourage young readers to seek out their own American experience. In Because . . . (2007), dancer Mikhail Baryshnikov tells a story of radical self-acceptance that encourages all of us to share our unique talents with the world. Radunsky’s longest creative partnership was with two-time Caldecott Medal winner Chris Raschka. Their final book, Mother Goose of Pudding Lane, offers a unique look into the life of this beloved figure. Radunsky’s work also bridges the Zimmerli’s diverse holdings of children’s literature illustrations, the George Riabov Collection of Russian Art, and the Norton and Nancy Dodge Collection of Nonconformist Art from the Soviet Union.

Violinist Suliman Tekalli, a Center of Musical Excellence Artist and the current Artist-in-Residence at State Theatre New Jersey, performs from 6:00pm to 7:00pm. He has established a unique voice as an exciting and versatile soloist, chamber musician, and composer, performing with orchestras throughout the world. Deeply committed to making classical music accessible to all, Tekalli has shared his talent by teaching and performing in classrooms and a variety of community settings. A native of Daytona Beach, Florida, Tekalli attended the Juilliard School, Cleveland Institute of Music, and Yale School of Music. He also frequently performs with his sister, pianist Jamila Tekalli, as the Tekalli Duo. Tekalli’s residency culminates in a free concert with violinist George Meyer on Sunday, May 17, at the United Methodist Church, located at 323 George Street in New Brunswick. The event is free, but tickets are required. For more information, visit www.stnj.org.

“It makes me think of that awful day…” The Natural World in the Anthropocene is organized by Austin Losada, Mellon Post-Graduate Intern, and Hannah Shaw, Graduate Curatorial Assistant at the Zimmerli. It is on view through May 17.

A Celebration of the Children’s Books of Vladimir Radunsky is organized by Nicole Simpson, Assistant Curator of Prints and Drawings, and Julia Tulovsky, Curator of Russian and Soviet Nonconformist Art. It is on view through March 8. To schedule a class or group tour, please contact the Education Department at least three weeks in advance. This exhibition and brochure are made possible by the Avenir Foundation Endowment Fund. Special thanks to Eugenia Radunsky and Chris Raschka.

The Jane Voorhees Zimmerli Art Museum houses more than 60,000 works of art, ranging from ancient to contemporary art. The permanent collection features particularly rich holdings in 19th-century French art; Russian art from icons to the avant-garde; Soviet nonconformist art from the Dodge Collection; and American art with notable holdings of prints. In addition, small groups of antiquities, old master paintings, as well as art inspired by Japan and original illustrations for children’s books, provide representative examples of the museum’s research and teaching message at Rutgers. One of the largest and most distinguished university-based art museums in the nation, the Zimmerli is located on the New Brunswick campus of Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey. Established in 1766, Rutgers is America’s eighth oldest institution of higher learning and a premier public research university.

Admission is free to the Zimmerli Art Museum at Rutgers. The museum is located at 71 Hamilton Street (at George Street) on the College Avenue Campus of Rutgers University in New Brunswick. The Zimmerli is a short walk from the NJ Transit train station in New Brunswick, midway between New York City and Philadelphia.

The Zimmerli Art Museum is open Tuesday through Friday, 10:00am to 4:30pm, Saturday and Sunday, noon to 5:00pm, and select first Tuesdays of the month, 10:00am to 9:00pm. The museum is closed Mondays and major holidays, as well as the month of August.

PaparazZi Café is open Monday through Thursday, 9:00am to 4:30pm, and Friday, 9:00am to 2:00pm, with a variety of breakfast, lunch, and snack items. The café is closed weekends and major holidays, as well as the month of August.

The Zimmerli’s operations, exhibitions, and programs are funded in part by Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, and income from the Avenir Foundation Endowment and the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation Endowment, among others. Additional support comes from the New Jersey State Council of the Arts, as well as donors, members, and friends of the museum.