FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
January 26, 2016
Lyman Allyn Art Museum
Press Contact: Rebecca Marsie, Communications Associate
860.443.2545 x112 / [email protected]
LYMAN ALLYN ART MUSEUM PRESENTS TWO EXHIBITIONS FROM THE OCEAN EXPLORATION TRUST
New London – The Lyman Allyn Art Museum, in collaboration with Dr. Robert Ballard and the Ocean Exploration Trust, present Dark Water, Deep Treasures and Beyond Three Hundred Fathoms. Both exhibitions will be on view February 5 through May 15, 2016.
Dark Water, Deep Treasures: The Art of Discovery features 21 paintings from the private collection of oceanographic explorer, Robert D. Ballard, Ph.D. who discovered the wreck of the RMS Titanic in 1985. Dr. Ballard’s collection contains original works by National Geographic illustrators, Davis Meltzer and Robert Hynes; and California artist Ken Marschall whose paintings of Ballard’s discoveries have been used in numerous books. On display will be illustrations of deep water environments – hydrothermal vents, the Mid-Atlantic Ridge, as well as paintings of the USS Yorktown, PT-109, USS Quincy and other WWII battleships along with several paintings of the RMS Titanic. This is the first time that these unique works of art have been on display to the public.
In a second gallery, 25 high definition underwater photographs taken by Ocean Exploration Trust’s robotic underwater vehicles will be on display, as well as underwater video of marine life. Beyond Three Hundred Fathoms: Life at the Extremes looks at the amazing creatures found in the deep sea, oftentimes living at extreme depths and harsh environments. These stunning photographs document that life, beautiful and brilliant, exists in eternal darkness hidden from human eyes.
About Dr. Robert Ballard and the Ocean Exploration Trust
Dr. Robert D. Ballard is one of the world’s most iconic ocean explorers alive today. His 40 year career highlights such well-known discoveries as chemostynthetic life forms living at extreme ocean depths, proving the theory of plate tectonics, WWII warships in Guadalcanal, and his most well-known discovery, the RMS Titanic. He spent 20 years at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution where he also spearheaded the design of deep submergence technology in the form of unmanned submersibles allowing scientists to remain on a support ship while deep-water robots explored the unknown 24/7 sending video and still images back to the control room in real-time.
In 2007, he founded Ocean Exploration Trust Inc. (OET) which is based in New London, CT and dedicated to STEM educational outreach via NautilusLiveTM. OET’s Community STEM Program — which was launched in New London County in June 2014 and is now in communities across the United States — utilizes research conducted aboard Exploration Vessel (E/V) Nautilus, the ship’s associated technologies, and shore-based facilities at the University of Rhode Island Graduate School of Oceanography to guide young students to early career professionals through a series of educational programs focused on STEM disciplines and vocational skills. Cadets from the Coast Guard Academy and students from the Science & Technology Magnet High School participated in our 2015 explorations in the Gulf of Mexico, Galapagos Islands, and Pacific Ocean. The Community STEM Program allows communities to engage community members in all of the educational and outreach programs OET offers and forges relationships across community partners with the common goal of increasing STEM literacy and proficiency.
The Exhibition Opening Reception will be on Thursday, February 4th from 5:00 – 7:00pm.
Lyman Allyn members are free, non-members are $10.
Check the museum website at www.lymanallyn.org and Facebook page for updates and additional programming.
Tours of the exhibition are available for groups. To schedule tours, call Director of Education Mollie Clarke at 860-443-2545, ext. 110 or e-mail [email protected].
For more information or images, please contact Rebecca Marsie at 860.443.2545 x112 or at [email protected].
About the Lyman Allyn Art Museum
The Lyman Allyn Art Museum welcomes visitors from New London, southeastern Connecticut and all over the world. Established in 1926 by a gift from Harriet Allyn in memory of her seafaring father, the Museum opened the doors of its beautiful neo-classical building surrounded by 11 acres of green space in 1932. Today it presents a number of changing exhibitions each year and houses a fascinating collection of over 16,000 objects from ancient times to the present; artworks from Africa, Asia, the Americas and Europe, with particularly strong collections of American paintings, decorative arts and Victorian toys and doll houses.
The museum is located at 625 Williams Street, New London, Connecticut, exit 83 off I-95. The museum is open Tuesday through Saturday, 10:00 am – 5:00 pm, Sundays 1:00 – 5:00 pm; closed Mondays and major holidays. For more information call 860.443.2545, ext. 129 or visit us on Facebook or the web at: www.lymanallyn.org.