Charcoal portrait of Robert by Henry
Hensche done in the summer of 1978
T
here is an aesthetic that was familiar to many
Americans in the late nineteenth century until the
middle of the twentieth century, in particular to many
New Englanders. One
could describe it as the
aesthetic of the heirloom.
Artist Robert Hunter and
museum director Elizabeth
Hunter reside in such an
environment.
To many contemporary
eyes this aesthetic might
appear hopelessly old. But
to this writer, the heirloom
aesthetic represents minds
open to the continuing
exploration of the world
of objects that affect,
punctuate and arise out of
the styles of each stage of
one���s life.
The aesthetic of the
heirloom, with due curatorial effort, retains, thereby
accumulating, a generation or a lifetime of poignant,
highly personal memorabilia. Several styles, themes or
types of objects and art comprise the ongoing narrative.
Modernism might be represented in art, in some instances,
HYLAND
