Cross Pollination: Heade, Cole, Church, and Our Contemporary Moment takes flight from the influential series of paintings The Gems of Brazil (1863-64) by Martin Johnson Heade but expands outward to explore pollination in nature and ecology, cultural and artistic influence and exchange, and the interconnection between art and science.
In addition to nineteenth-century American artists Martin Johnson Heade, Thomas Cole, and Frederic Church, the exhibition also features contemporary artists such as Paula Hayes, Maya Lin, Richard Estes, Juan Fontanive, Roxy Paine, Rachel Sussman, and Vik Muniz.
Explore your own connections between art and nature on visits to the estate's greater and formal gardens, which include birding and nature trails, and see if you can spot the objects and specimens featured in the exhibition.
Cross Pollination was created by The Olana Partnership at Thomas Cole National Historical Site, Olana State Historic Site, and Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art, Bentonville, Arkansas. Its tour is organized by Crystal Bridges.
Support for this exhibition and its national tours is provided by Art Bridges. Additional major support has been provided by the Henry Luce Foundation.
Reynolda thanks Major Sponsors Patty and Malcolm Brown, The Charles H. Babcock, Jr. Arts and Community Initiative Endowment, and Mercedes-Benz of Winston-Salem; Contributing Sponsor The Ecology Wildlife Foundation Fund; and Exhibition Partner Parsec Financial.
