Upcoming exhibition

William Congdon: The Sabbath of History
Knights of Columbus Museum, New Haven, Connecticut
February 22–September 16, 2012

“But ours is the long day’s journey of the Saturday. Between suffering, aloneness, unutterable waste on the one hand and the dream of liberation, of rebirth on the other” (George Steiner)

Next spring, on the centennial of Congdon’s birth, The Sabbath of History exhibition will highlight Congdon’s artistic legacy by featuring fifty of his most renowned paintings from private collections and museums in Italy, Great Britain and the United States together with five meditations on Holy Week by Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, now Pope Benedict XVI.

The Sabbath of History will provide a comprehensive view of Congdon’s oeuvre and offer the American public a unique opportunity to rediscover the extraordinary works that the artist created over the course of his prolific career. It will be an extraordinary event not only for those interested in the relationship between art and religion, but also for all those who wish to explore the spiritual meaning of twentieth century (American) art.

Aim of the exhibition is to set up a true dialogue between two different and independent voices, a sort of cross-examination of history through two different channels and expressive media that focus on the same fundamental question: the “Saturday”(Sabbath), the day of “an immensity of waiting”, between desolation and hope, the destiny of contemporary man.
Congdon’s art, although only marginally devoted to openly religious subjects, was born of a profound spiritual meditation, that found an unexpected  consonance with the meditations of Joseph Ratzinger. From this “encounter” stem the theme, the title and the structure of the exhibition, The Sabbath of History, indicating the fil rouge of Congdon’s long career and Ratzinger’s  theological reflections.

Curated by the William G. Congdon Foundation, Milan, and organized by the Knights of Columbus Museum, New Haven, William Congdon: The Sabbath of History will open in February 2012. The exhibition is co-curated by independent curator and writer Daniel Mason.  

The exhibition will be divided into two main parts: one devoted to Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger’s meditations and the second one to William Congdon’s paintings:
•    two initial sections will be devoted to the relationship between the artist and history
•    a central section will be devoted to the theme of Christ Crucified,
•    two final sections will be devoted to the artist’s relationship with nature.

Click here to see the Knights of Columbus website announcement