Mississippi College Art Professor Stephen Cook Contributes Printmaking Demonstration to Art Exhibition at Mississippi Museum of Art

During his printmaking class on February 23, 2011, Professor Stephen Cook of the Mississippi College Department of Art carves a wood block as he discusses color woodcuts, and shows examples of print proofs from his demonstration piece now on display at the Mississippi Museum of Art. Cook created the printmaking demonstration for The Orient Expressed: Japan’s Influence on Western Art, 1854-1918. Cook’s piece will show exhibition visitors a progression of the color woodcut printmaking process.

The exhibition opened at the Mississippi Museum of Art on Feb. 19, 2011 and will run through July 17, 2011. Part of The Annie Laurie Swaim Hearin Memorial Exhibition Series, the exhibition takes visitors on a tour of Japonisme. The Japonisme art movement spread worldwide beginning around 1860 with Japanese wood block prints influencing European Impressionists. It affected virtually every aspect of the art world, and its affects are still widespread today.

The Mississippi Museum of Art has been able to collect works from important collections in the U.S. and around the world for the exhibit. These pieces all confirm the impact of Japan on Western art before the First World War. Museum officials expect the exhibition to draw more traffic than any exhibition it has previously hosted. On view will be works by noted artists Mary Cassatt, William Merritt Chase, Paul Gauguin, Utagawa Hiroshige, and John La Farge.

There will be educational programs and other special events and activities during the exhibition for visitors to enjoy. The exhibition will also travel to San Antonio, from Oct. 5, 2011 through Jan. 15, 2012. General admission prices are $12, for senior adults (60+) $10, for children 6 – college $6, children 5 and under free, Museum members free, and on Tuesdays and Thursdays, admission is free for students. Hours and admission may vary during major exhibitions.