One of the things that I enjoy about being a curator is that I am always learning something. Here is one example.
In the middle of August, the Cornish American Heritage Society held their “Gathering of the Cornish Cousins” in Milwaukee. The event offered talks and workshops on all things Cornish, and one of the organizers had asked me to do a presentation on the artists of the Newlyn School.
I knew a little about Cornwall from visits to the southwestern part of Wisconsin, plus I loved pasties, but I knew nothing about art in Cornwall. A quick search told me that they were a group of artists that, in the 1880s, formed an art colony in a Cornish fishing village called Newlyn. So, I said, sure, why not?
And now, after a year of reading about the Newlyn artists and looking closely at the artwork produced by them, I’m so glad that I did!