Jersey City – The Saint Peter’s College Art Gallery will open its annual art exhibition to the public on Thursday, April 17, 2008. Entitled “La Forme Humaine,” the show features nearly one hundred pieces celebrating the nude form. Ranging from the first century A.D. through the twentieth century, the works will be displayed in the College’s Art Gallery on the Jersey City campus through May 5 of this year.
An array of mixed media, the oils, drawings, marble, bronze, terra cotta and photography are the creations of noted artists such as Raffaele Carelli, Pierre Lehoux, Ernst Deger, Felix Fossey, Felician Rops, Emile Levy, Wayland Gregory, Cy Fried, John Lear and Paul Cadmus. This exhibition was curated by Gallery Founder and Director Oscar Magnan, S.J., who opened the first exhibition on the Jersey City campus in 1976.
“I wanted to expose the college community, their friends and the people in the local area to the trends in the arts – contemporary and ancient art,” explains Father Magnan. An artist himself, whose works are in the permanent collections of distinguished museums such as the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Museum of Modern Art, the Smithsonian and the Guggenheim, Father Magnan is a Professor of Fine Arts at Saint Peter’s College.
The Jesuit has presented a variety of exhibition themes since the Gallery’s opening in 1976, including abstract art, Oriental art, Orthodox religious art and portraits from the second century onwards. Referring to the success of the Gallery, Father Magnan credits collectors, as well as Jesuits, students and friends, for donating their pieces.
Located in the O’Toole Library, the Gallery will be open to the public on Mondays, Tuesdays, Fridays and Saturdays from 11:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. and on Wednesdays and Thursdays from 11:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. Admission is free.
Saint Peter’s College is the Jesuit College of New Jersey. Founded in 1872, Saint Peter’s has an enrollment of approximately 3,000 students in undergraduate and graduate programs. The main campus is located in Jersey City. The College has a branch campus for adults in Englewood Cliffs, NJ and also offers courses at various corporate sites at the Jersey City waterfront and in South Amboy, NJ.