You might not associate psychology lectures with pieces of art, but former Duke professor Irwin Kremen has brought both to the University.
The first retrospective of the works of Irwin Kremen, a local artist who has been featured in nearly 40 shows internationally, opens today at the Nasher Museum of Art.
Irwin Kremen: Beyond Black Mountain (1966 to 2006) features over 160 works-collages, paintings and sculptures-from Kremen's 40 years as an artist.
"We wanted to do this exhibition because Irwin Kremen is a very important artist, yet his work is under-recognized," said Kimerly Rorschach, the Mary D.B.T. and James H. Semans Director of the Nasher Museum. "Because his works-collages, works on paper-are fragile and cannot be on view for long periods of time, the public does not know his work as well as they might."
Over the course of his career, Kremen came to develop his own collagist method-affixing materials with paper hinges instead of the traditional glue-but his portfolio includes more than just collages. Paintings as well as sculptures made of various metals and woods will also be on display.
Notably, the show features several monumentally-sized works Kremen made along with William Nolan, a professor in the Department of Art, Art History and Visual Studies.
The three Kremen/Nolan collaborations-"still [untitled]," "[III]" and "Too"-are "open composition" works that include large open spaces allowing the viewer to not only see the work from the outside, but also move within it.
The exhibition is curated by Sarah Schroth, the Nancy Hanks senior curator at the Nasher.
"It's amazing that Irwin Kremen was able to accomplish what he did-21 solo exhibitions in 30 years-while working outside the mainstream of contemporary art," Schroth said in a press release. "His collages are stunningly beautiful and mysterious; his art speaks in another language, one with very ancient roots, and mystical in an abstract way."
Though Kremen's work has been featured in a total of 37 solo and group exhibitions, he never intended to become an artist.
After working in publishing in Greenwich Village, Chicago-born Kremen earned a Ph.D. in clinical psychology at Harvard and ultimately joined the Duke psychology faculty in 1963. Three years later, at the age of 41, Kremen put together his first work.
Originally, Kremen's pieces were meant for him and his family. Of course, his passion eventually carried his art far outside the walls of his home.
"Once I started making a few works, it touched some deep vein within me," Kremen said in a press release. "As I continued to work, it took on the deepest and most profound meaning for me-and that's what kept me going."
Kremen's works will be on display in the Johnson Pavilion and will be arranged loosely in chronological order; several of his works, including the "open composition" sculptures, will be exhibited in the Mary D. B.T. Semans Great Hall.
The "Re'eh Series," featuring works inspired by the Holocaust, is walled off from the other works in the Johnson Pavilion.
The "Reva K. Series" is also on view apart from the other works. The series is named after the artist's late mother.
"This exhibition is referred to as a retrospective, meaning it covers much of what I've done in the way of art," said Kremen who at 82 still lives in Durham. "It's a very moving experience for me to see, all together, in one place, what I've done over the past 40 years. I'm very grateful for the opportunity to have it."
Irwin Kremen: Beyond Black Mountain (1966 to 2006) will be on display at the Nasher from March 22 to June 17, 2007.
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