'Avant Colony': Celebrating the history of avant-garde art-making in Connecticut

By Katie Pellico,

Catherine Shen

Published March 18, 2024 at 8:37 AM EDT

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Poised atop spools of thread, Leo Jensen's frogs are at each end of Willimantic's Frog Bridge.

Mark Mirko / Connecticut Public

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Leo Jensen with the model for the Thread City Crossing frog sculpture at his Ivoryton workshop, 1995.

William Grover / Provided / Florence Griswold Museum

On display at Leo V. Jensen (1926-2019) Reclining Torso, 1959 elm William Kent (1919-2012) Squid (Cephalopod #12) 1958 red oak William Kent (1919-2012) Cuttlefish (Cephalopod #3) 1956-58 limestone, poplar, walnut

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"Squid (Cephalopod #12)" (foreground) by William Kent is on displayed in "Avant Colony: Unearthing the Westbrook Gallery." The exhibit is open now and running through March 31, 2024 at Ely Center of Contemporary Art in New Haven.

Eric Litke / Ely Center of Contemporary Art in New Haven

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Avant Colony: Unearthing the Westbrook Gallery at Ely Center of Contemporary Art in New Haven, on view through March 31. (From left) Leo V. Jensen (1926-2019) Bird Totem, 1959, Everdur bronze. Aage V. Hogfeldt (1925-2014) untitled [“Oceanic Voyage”] ca.1960, oil on Masonite David T.S. Jones (1926-1996) untitled [abstract form] c.1950-55, limestone w/ traces of paint William Skardon (1923-1983) untitled ['Dime Store figure'] c.1960, ink on board

Eric Litke / Ely Center of Contemporary Art in New Haven

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"Avant Colony: Unearthing the Westbrook Gallery" is on display at Ely Center of Contemporary Art in New Haven through March 31.

Eric Litke / Ely Center of Contemporary Art in New Haven

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"Fun & Games," at the Florence Griswold Museum in Old Lyme, is one of two local exhibits celebrating the works of Connecticut pop artist Leo Jensen.

Amy Kurtz Lansing / Florence Griswold Museum

This hour, we preview several historical exhibits spotlighting local artists, many of whom were touched by the Pop Art Movement percolating just over the border in New York City. This includes prolific artist couple Leo Jensen and Dalia Ramanauskas. We'll explore what it means to be an artist in community — in Connecticut or New York — and how Pop Art changed that.

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The exhibit "Avant Colony: Unearthing the Westbrook Gallery" is currently running through March 31 at Ely Center of Contemporary Art in New Haven

Eric Litke / Ely Center of Contemporary Art in New Haven

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Saturday Night: New London, ca 1935, is on view in "Beatrice Cuming: Connecticut Precisionist," through May 26 at Lyman Allyn Art Museum.

Provided / Tanya Pohrt / Lyman Allyn Art Museum

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Bell Buoys on the Dock, ca. 1937, is on view in "Beatrice Cuming: Connecticut Precisionist," through May 26 at Lyman Allyn Art Museum.

Provided / Tanya Pohrt / Lyman Allyn Art Museum

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Leo Jensen (1926–2019), Baseball Machine, 1963. Painted wood, mixed media kinetic sculpture, 90 x 76 x 23 in. Collection of the Artist.

Provided / Florence Griswold Museum

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Leo Jensen (1926–2019), The Lure of the Turf, 1963. Wood, steel, 90 x 63 x 22 1/2 in. Collection of the Artist.

Provided / Florence Griswold Museum

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Leo Jensen (1926–2019), Secrets of a Home Run Hitter, 1964. Polychromed wood and mixed media assemblage (electric), 39 x 40 x 8 in. Collection of the Artist.

Provided / Florence Griswold Museum

February 4 – March 31: Avant Colony: Unearthing the Westbrook Gallery at the Ely Center of Contemporary Art in New Haven

February 10 – April 14: Art in Play: Leo Jensen at the Lyman Allyn Art Museum in New London

February 20 – May 19: Fun & Games? Leo Jensen's Pop Art at the Florence Griswold Museum in Old Lyme

"Dalia Ramanauskas: As We Embark" just wrapped up at the Mattatuck Museum in Waterbury, and an exhibit dedicated to William Kent is in the works at the New Haven Museum.

GUESTS:

Eric Litke: Museum Assistant, Yale University Art Gallery
Amy Kurtz Lansing: Curator, Florence Griswold Museum
Tanya Pohrt: Curator, Lyman Allyn Art Museum

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