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State Street, NL exhibition wins state award
Downtown New London, 1907. Photo courtesy of New Haven Colony Historical Society.
March 03, 2006
An exhibition spearheaded by a professor and created with students, currently being shown at Lyman Allyn Art Museum to document the architectural and social development of New London's major commercial avenue, has earned an Award of Merit from the Connecticut League of History Organizations (CLHO).
The exhibition, "Commerce and Culture: Architecture and Society on New London's State Street," is on display at the Lyman Allyn Art Museum, located at 625 Williams St. in New London, through April 10.
Abigail Van Slyck, the Dayton Associate Professor of Art History and director of the college's Architectural Studies Program, coordinated and served as guest curator of the exhibition. The exhibition grew out of a project in Van Slyck's senior seminar last year and relates the specific details of New London architecture to larger trends in American architecture and urbanism.
The exhibition features period photographs, historic maps, postcards, paintings and architectural drawings.
According to a recent article about the exhibition in the Hartford Courant: "The only thing missing is the honking of horns, the sound and smells of the sea, and the clatter of streetside conversations by the throngs once drawn to this richly compelling place."
In addition, Van Slyck's students have conducted walking tours of State Street, based on information from the exhibition. Upcoming student-led walking tours will take place on Saturday, March 4, and Sunday, March 5, at 3 p.m., starting at Union Station.
The award will be presented at the CLHO annual meeting, to be held in June. The CLHO, based in Hamden, presents Awards of Merit in recognition of outstanding institutional and individual contributions, in keeping with current professional standards, that enhance and further the knowledge and understanding of Connecticut history. The purpose of the Awards of Merit is to recognize the care, thought and effort invested in these contributions and to inspire and encourage others by acknowledging exceptional contributions to state and local history.
The CLHO presents Awards of Merit in four categories: project; publication; educational program, and individual comprehensive work.
Lyman Allyn Art Museum is open Tuesday through Saturday, 10 a.m.- 5 p.m., and Sunday 1 p.m. - 5 p.m. It is closed Mondays and major holidays. The museum was established in 1926 by Harriet Upson Allyn in memory of her father, Lyman Allyn, as a place for local citizens to learn about art and culture. Housed in a handsome Neo-Classical building designed by Charles A. Platt, the permanent collection includes more than 10,000 paintings, sculpture, drawings, prints, furniture and decorative arts, with an emphasis on American art from the 18th through 20th centuries.
For more information, call 860-443-2545 or visit the museum on the Web at http://lymanallyn.org.
For media inquiries contact: Amy Martin (860) 439-2526; a.martin@conncoll.edu