ART LEAGUE HOUSTON PRESENTS

Museum of Unnatural History
A dioramic installation of new works by Elaine Bradford
January 9 - February 20, 2009

Main Gallery, Art League Houston
 
OPENING RECEPTION & ARTIST TALK

Friday, January 9, 2009, 6:00 - 8:00 p.m.

FREE DOCENT TOURS

January 10 and February 7th, 2:00 p.m.
 
For Immediate Release
Contact:  Michael Lynch
713.523.9530 or  alh@artleaguehouston.org
Photos and complete biography available on request
 
Houston, TX (December 10, 2008)  Art League Houston is pleased to announce the opening of Museum of Unnatural History, a dioramic installation of new works by Elaine Bradford, on view from January 9 - February 20, 2009.  Museum of Unnatural History consists of dioramic displays similar to those found in natural history museums, and which serve as "natural habitats" for the artist's fantastical crotchet covered taxidermy creatures. 
 
The opening reception for Museum of Unnatural History is on Friday January 9, 6:00 - 8:00 p.m. with an artist talk at 6:15 p.m.  This exhibition, which takes place in the Main Gallery of the Art League, opens in conjunction with our Front Gallery presentation, the Gold Key Art Exhibition, featuring the winners of The Scholastic Art & Writing Awards of the Harris County Department of Education.  As part of Museum of Unnatural History, two free docent led tours will be conducted for the public on January 10 and February 7th at 2:00 p.m. 
 
For Museum of Unnatural History, Houston-based artist Elaine Bradford has created a faux natural history museum filled with a variety of animals and specimens "discovered" by the fictitious fringe scientist Dr. Thomas Harrigan during his explorations into a dimension known as "The Sidereal".  According to the museum's pseudo-scientific text, The Sidereal is "in many ways a mirror image of our world [that] has produced a variety of species possessing adaptations wildly divergent from those we see on earth."  A visitor to Museum of Natural History will view creatures that include the Pushmi-pullyu (Tragus januali), a lichen eating two headed sheep; the longcat (Lynx metamorpha), a blue mite covered feline whose powerful limbs and body can expand up to ten times their at-rest length; and the Procyon besheret, fondly known as the "pair-bears" due to the permanent fusing of tails during a secret mating ritual.
 
The animals on view are constructed from taxidermy animals, sometimes in their original state, other times cut in half or fused with the bodies of others, which are then sheathed in outfits which Bradford carefully crochets, an art taught to her by her grandmother, when the artist was a child growing up in Alice, Texas.  Elaine did not really appreciate the calming, repetitive act of crochet, nor did she take it seriously as an art, until she was in graduate school at the California Institute of the Arts.  Here Bradford developed a project in which she crocheted individual sweaters for everything in her refrigerator, including all the baby carrots.  "I was really interested in the connotations that came along with crochet for me, ideas of comfort, warmth, and family; the absurd act of making labor intensive objects for things that have no need for them always makes me chuckle."
 
Around 2004, the artist decided to make crochet clothes for taxidermy, after sitting in her parents' house and looking up at the hunting trophies on display. Bradford remarks, "It struck me how beautiful the deer head would look in a sweater."   For the next five years she produced numerous and more and more fantastical variations on this theme. Elaine considers Museum of Unnatural History the culmination of all her taxidermy animals, as it will be the most elaborate presentation of the work to date and the last opportunity for audience members to view her crochet covered animals. 
 
ABOUT THE ARTIST
Elaine Bradford received her BFA from The University of Texas at Austin in May 2000, and her MFA from California Institute of the Arts in May 2003. She is now living and working in Houston, TX.  Her most recent work involves crocheting sweaters for taxidermied animals. She has shown extensively across the United States. Her work has recently been exhibited in group shows at Greenlease Gallery in Kansas City, MO, MassArt in Boston, MA, Bedford Gallery in Walnut Creek, CA and in the Galveston Art Center in Galveston, TX. In 2007 she had solo shows at Women and their Work in Austin, TX, Hunt Gallery in St. Louis, MO, and Cactus Bra in San Antonio, TX. Bradford is the recipient of a 2008 Individual Artist Fellowship Grant from the Houston Arts Alliance.  

RELATED PROGRAMS
While viewing Museum of Unnatural History don't miss the Gold Key Art Exhibition, featuring the winners of The Scholastic Art & Writing Awards of the Harris County Department of Education.  In our front gallery, January 9 - February 20, 2009.
 
On Saturday, January 24, 2009 from 9:00 am to noon,  Art League Houston and Target are pleased to present ArtBound!, our newest initiative designed to promote family literacy and interaction through a series of fun workshops for parents and children, ages 5-12 years old.  January's ArtBound! workshop Crazy Animal Characters , is conducted by sculptor Katy Heinlein. During this hands on event, children and their parents will make animal characters based on their own stories. Although this workshop is free, reservations are required.

 

ABOUT ART LEAGUE HOUSTON

Art League Houston is one of Houston's longest operating non-profit visual arts organizations and was the first alternative art space in Texas.  Founded in 1948 and incorporated as a non-profit organization in 1953, Art League Houston (ALH) was created to promote the public appreciation of and interest in the visual arts.  During the past 60 years, ALH has provided over 760 exhibitions to the Houston community, showcased the work of nearly 22,200 artists, and instructed over 35,000 students through the Art League School and Outreach Program.  To find out more visit our website at www.artleaguehouston.org.
 
OUR MISSION
The mission of Art League Houston is to cultivate awareness, appreciation, and accessibility of contemporary visual art within the community for its cultural enrichment.  Art League Houston provides an opportunity for all members of the community to experience the contemporary visual arts.  We achieve our mission through exhibitions, education and outreach programs.
 
Art League Houston is supported principally by 
Houston Endowment Inc., The Brown Foundation, Inc., City of Houston through Houston Arts Alliance, the estate of William G. Daugherty, Laurie & Kevin Foxx and Aqua Foxx Productions, JPMorgan Chase, Target, Art Colony Association/ Bayou City Art Festivals, Bridgeway Charitable Trust, The Eleanor & Frank Freed Foundation, Kat Gallagher & Michael Rudelson, John P. McGovern Foundation, Dare & Larry O'Donnell, Thomas Robinson, Jaleh & Bruce Sallee, Louisa Stude Sarofim, The Wortham Foundation, Inc. and by Andrisin Abbey, Tonya Adams & Rick Abernathy, Nora & Bob Ackerly, Susan & Jack Apple, Applied Diagnostics, Tracey & Drew Baird, the Ann Bengtson Memorial Fund, Wendy & Andy Bernstein, Kelli & Eddy Blanton, Leslie & Brad Bucher, Cantoni, Billie & Marv Chasen, CITI Smith Barney, Chris & Tom Davies, Peggy & Darrell Delahoussaye, Earth Exchange Corporation, Isaiah Fidler, Ray C. Fish Foundation, Berthica & Hugh Fitzsimons, Alice C. Boyd Gano, Michelle & David Gershenson, the Freddy Clyde Gibson Memorial Fund, Candice & Nick Goodwin, Rob Greenstein, Madeline Haenggi, Ann & James Harithas, Harris County Department of Education, Dow Hickam, Richard Humphreys, International Bank of Commerce, Inversion Coffee House, Kinder Foundation, Leanna Laster, Gin Ru Lee, Dana LeJune, Mangini/ Lakhia/ Delahoussaye & Associates, P.A., Elena & Kenneth Marks, Gretchen & Mark Mazziotti, Debbie McNulty, Moody Gallery, Sara & Bill Morgan, National MS Society Lone Star Chapter, Zamara & Mark Nitcholas, Crystal & Don Owens, Cara Pauloski, Ethna & Richard Piazza, Russell H. Pitman, Peggy H. Port, Redbud Gallery, River Oaks Dental Arts, Michael G. Rudelson & Co., Bob Sanford, Scurlock Foundation, Tahamia Spain, Susie & Steve Streller/ Charter Custom Homes, Texas Art Supply, Texas Commission on the Arts, The Oshman Foundation, The Search Center, Inc., The Woodlands Development Company, Kathryn Sherman Ttee, Vinson & Elkins LLP, Gayle & Steve Waldman, Jane Edmond & Randal Weber, Sharon & Stephen Weiss, Fabené Welch, William Reeves Fine Art LLC, Carol & Fred Williamette and all of our sponsors, members and volunteers. 

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UPCOMING EVENTS AT ALH    

 

ArtBoud: Crazy Animal Characters!

Target and ALH Family Workshop

Katy Heinlein

Saturday, January 24

 

Museum of Unnatural History

Exhibition

Elaine Bradford 

January 9 - February 20 (Opening 6-8 PM, Jan 9)

Sculpture/ Installation 

 

Goldkey Scholastic Art Exhibition
Exhibition of winning high school student's artworks from the Scholastic Art Competition

January 9 - February 20

 

Celebrating African American Heritage - JPMorgan Chase Heritage Hall downtown

JPMorgan Chase and ALH Exhibition

Curated by Beth Secor
February 1 - February 28 (Opening 6-8 PM, Feb 1 at JPMorgan Chase Heritage Hall)

 

New Works by Sarah Sudhoff

Exhibition

March 6 - April 17 (Opening 6-8PM, March 6)

Photography, video