SAN DIEGO (Press Release) – The artwork, lives, and Jewish heritage of three San Diego artists are explored in a new fine art exhibition Art & Heritage opening January 28 at the San Diego History Center in Balboa Park.
The works of featured artists Belle Baranceanu, Maurice Braun, and Harry Sternberg will complement a major exhibition coming in March – Celebrate San Diego! The History & Heritage of San Diego’s Jewish Community.
“Baranceanu, Braun, and Sternberg are bound by their Jewish commonality,” said History Center Curator Tara Centybear, “yet each embodies a uniquely personal artistic path and divergent experiences within the Jewish faith.”
Through the artists’ exhibited works, visitors can explore the influence and interlinking of religion, family tradition, and devotion to their artistic practice.
Featured works include two large murals by Baranceanu (Portola’s Departure and Building Mission Dam) created during the Works Progress Administration (WPA). Also on view, a collection of earlier Baranceanu portraits and landscapes, giving visitors a more personal view into her family life.
Maurice Braun’s work is represented in an inspiring body of landscapes, ranging from 1910 to the 1930s, portraying American coastal scenes including San Diego. Centybear said the landscapes capture ‘Braun’s deep love of nature and his acute ability to capture its serene essence through a bold palette and beautiful texture’.
Prolific artist Harry Sternberg is the third maker in the exhibition with a career spanning eight decades. The exhibition will feature a selection of Sternberg’s prints from a portrait series of his artist friends while living in New York.
“Belle Baranceanu, Maurice Braun, and Harry Sternberg all significantly impacted and contributed to the arts in San Diego during their time here.” Centybear stated. “This exhibition will also explore their immense and long lasting impact on our cultural community and celebrate them as some of the founding San Diego artists.”
Art& Heritage will remain open through the year as an accompaniment to Celebrate San Diego! The History & Heritage of San Diego’s Jewish Community, a major exhibition opening March 11 and continuing through January 2018. The exhibition will showcase the arrival, contributions, and experiences of Jews in San Diego from the mid-19th century through present day.
Art& Heritage is presented in part through the generous support of Sandra and Bram Dijkstra and the J.W. Sefton Foundation through the Art for the Next Century Initiative of the San Diego History Center.
The San Diego History Center is located at 1649 El Prado in Balboa Park. For more information about this exhibition, go to the History Center website http://www.sandiegohistory.org/
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Preceding provided by the San Diego History Center