The Ellarslie Open Returns to the Trenton City Museum
(TRENTON, NJ) -- The Ellarslie Open will return to the Trenton City Museum June 26 with its largest exhibition to date. Sidelined in 2020 by the pandemic, the Museum’s annual juried show will fill five galleries with 137 artworks of varying styles in categories from paintings and sculpture to digital and fiber arts. It will remain on view in person and online through October 3, 2021.
Juror William R. Valerio, Director of the Woodmere Art Museum in Philadelphia, selected the show’s pieces over the course of two jurying rounds that began with a record 619 artworks by 316 artists. The result is a layered mix of bold colors and larger-than-life depictions that play off intricate detail and delicate textures to create a layered and surprising exhibition. “It is a visual feast,” said Ellarslie Open Chair Joyce Inderbitzin.
The Ellarslie Open goes on view Saturday, June 26, with a VIP Opening Day Reception from 1:00pm to 5:00pm. (prizes announced at 4:00pm) and a public reception June 27 from 1:00pm to 4:00p.m. Both events will take place on the grounds of the Museum’s Ellarslie Mansion in Cadwalader Park. It will remain on view in person and online through October 3, 2021, with related artist and curator talks to be announced in the summer and early fall. For the accepted artist list, show details, signups, and VIP Reception reservations, click here or call 609-989-1191.
Juror Dr. William R. Valerio: Director of the Woodmere Art Museum since 2010, Dr. William R. Valerio has led the Philadelphia museum into its increasingly vital presence in the cultural life of the region. As the museum’s Patricia Van Burgh Allison Director and CEO, Dr. Valerio has overseen the organization of nearly one hundred exhibitions while expanding and digitizing its collection. Efforts to elevate the visibility of Philadelphia’s artists and the shared appreciation of the city’s unique art and history have led to the Woodmere’s dramatic growth of diversity in program and audience and its steady expansion of attendance, membership, and community involvement.
Dr. Valerio graduated Cum Laude and Phi Beta Kappa from Williams College in 1985. He earned his MA in Art History at the University of Pennsylvania in 1987 and his PhD in Art History at Yale University in 1996. After working as Curator at the Queens Museum of Art in New York, he attended the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, earning his MBA in 2004 with a double major in Strategic Management and Marketing. Dr. Valerio has received numerous awards and fellowships, including the Rome Prize of the American Academy in Rome.
The Trenton City Museum is housed in Ellarslie Mansion, an 1848 Italianate Villa in the heart of Trenton’s historic Cadwalader Park, which was designed by Frederick Law Olmsted. Current and rotating exhibits reveal and celebrate Trenton's historic and cultural past, while art exhibitions showcase the finest in contemporary regional painting and sculpture.
Museum hours are Fridays and Saturdays from 12 noon to 4:00pm and Sundays from 1:00pm to 4:00pm. The museum offers timed entry for visitors. Parking is available. There is no admission charge, but donations, which support the museum’s mission and programs, are appreciated.
IMAGES: (TOP) I Got My Eyes On You - Morris Docktor (MIDDLE) Seamstress II - Anne Bascove (BOTTOM) Wellfleet Late Afternoon - Helene Condouris
