To Have and To Hold: May 10–June 7, 2024

Detail of an artwork by Barbara Rossi: a colorful print of a woman dancing with a strange semi-transparent creature

To Have and To Hold is an exhibition of artworks from the Carleton Art Collection, curated by museum student workers Brett Olson ’24 and Alex Tananbaum ’25.

Their display includes three recent acquisitions to the collection: twelve woodblock prints from the early 20th-century Shin-Hanga movement in Japan, a stonecut and stencil print by Canadian Inuit artist Pudlo Pudlat (1916–1992), and four prints by American artist and original member of the Chicago Imagist group Barbara Rossi (1940–2023).

Additionally, both student curators made personal selections from the Carleton Art Collection, starting with the prompt: “If you could choose just one artwork from the over 5,000 artworks in our permanent collection, what would it be?” Their final display has an emphasis on gender, personal identity, and the interplay between image and text. Many of the artist’s books included are on loan from Gould Library Special Collections, creating a conversation between two campus art archives.

The viewer looks through a doorway into a brightly lit gallery with white walls. Framed art hangs on the walls, and there are two backless black cushioned benches in the center of the room.
A brightly-lit gallery with white walls. Framed art hangs on the walls, and there are two backless black cushioned benches in the center of the room.
A wall of an art gallery. There are two glass cases containing open books. Three framed pictures hang on the wall as well, one of which depicts a naked chest with hair and breasts.
A brightly-lit gallery with white walls. Framed art hangs on the walls, and there are two backless black cushioned benches in the center of the room. Near the viewer, there are two glass cases containing open books.
A brightly-lit gallery with white walls. Framed art hangs on the walls, with some in glass cases, and there are two backless black cushioned benches in the center of the room.
A gallery wall with a large, horizontal glass case flanked by two framed pictures. The glass contains an open book. The words “To Have and to Hold” are printed on the wall to the right of the art.

Photos by Julie Johnson