Curator: Mora Dianne O’Neill
Who was HM Rosenberg? Internationally acclaimed in his day, HM Rosenberg (1858-1947) was seen as a radical artist who defied the rules of categorization and always followed his own personal muse. During his career, HM Rosenberg found much of his inspiration with Duveneck in Munich, with Whistler and Sargent in Venice and with Gauguin in Pont-Aven, France. He came to Nova Scotia in 1896 and in 1898, became Principal of the Victoria School of Art and Design (now known as NSCAD University), where he remained Principal for 12 years.
This fascinating exhibition gives remarkable insights into the Art and Life of HM Rosenberg and features prints and drawings drawn from the Art Gallery of Nova Scotia’s Permanent Collection, a variety of private collections, the Mobile Museum of Art in Mobile, Alabama, the National Gallery of Canada and locally from the collections of the Dartmouth Heritage Museum, the Nova Scotia Museum and the New Brunswick Museum.
Although denied the mainstream of the art world, HM Rosenberg passionately investigated every possible tributary. Obsessively, compulsively, he interpreted the world around him and translated it into magnificent, luminous pictures full of beauty and power. This exhibition shines a light on Rosenberg’s place in art history and re-introduces an artist who was once a household name to Nova Scotians of his day. Let us introduce you to Reinvention: The Art and Life of HM Rosenberg.
