Mattatuck Museum Arts and History Center
Encyclopedia
The Mattatuck Museum Arts and History Center is a cultural institution based in Waterbury, Connecticut
.
. Its collection spans the 18th, 19th and 20th centuries, and the artists represented in the museum's collection include Abe Ajay, Alexander Calder
, Frederic Church, Erastus Salisbury Field, Arshile Gorky
, John Frederick Kensett
, Peter Poskas, Kay Sage
, Yves Tanguy
and John Trumbull
.
The museum also highlights the commercial and cultural achievements related to the city of Waterbury. This includes a collection of 15,000 buttons, which was donated to the museum by the now-defunct Button Museum operated by the Waterbury Button Company. In 2008, the museum began offering self-guided tours of downtown Waterbury that highlight the city’s distinctive architectural achievements. The museum also features a regional history exhibit that uses interactive displays, oral histories and historic movie clips to trace the past and present of Waterbury and the surrounding areas in New Haven County, Connecticut
.
The museum supports ongoing artistic achievement with its Connecticut Biennial, a competition that is open to artists who maintain a residence or a studio within the state. The biennial competition awards include products and gift certificates from local businesses.
However, a later investigation by the African-American Historic Project Committee determined the skeleton belonged a black slave named Fortune, who died in 1803. The museum created a special exhibit in honor of Fortune that detailed the lives of African-American slaves in the early part of the 19th century.
Waterbury, Connecticut
Waterbury is a city in New Haven County, Connecticut, on the Naugatuck River, 33 miles southwest of Hartford and 77 miles northeast of New York City...
.
Collection
The Mattatuck Museum is unique because it focuses on the work of painters and sculptors who were born and/or based in ConnecticutConnecticut
Connecticut is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, and the state of New York to the west and the south .Connecticut is named for the Connecticut River, the major U.S. river that approximately...
. Its collection spans the 18th, 19th and 20th centuries, and the artists represented in the museum's collection include Abe Ajay, Alexander Calder
Alexander Calder
Alexander Calder was an American sculptor and artist most famous for inventing mobile sculptures. In addition to mobile and stable sculpture, Alexander Calder also created paintings, lithographs, toys, tapestry, jewelry and household objects.-Childhood:Alexander "Sandy" Calder was born in Lawnton,...
, Frederic Church, Erastus Salisbury Field, Arshile Gorky
Arshile Gorky
Arshile Gorky was an Armenian-born American painter who had a seminal influence on Abstract Expressionism. As such, his works were often speculated to have been informed by the suffering and loss he experienced of the Armenian genocide.-Early life:...
, John Frederick Kensett
John Frederick Kensett
John Frederick Kensett was an American artist and engraver. He attended school at Cheshire Academy, and studied engraving with his immigrant father, Thomas Kensett, and later with his uncle, Alfred Dagget...
, Peter Poskas, Kay Sage
Kay Sage
Katherine Linn Sage , usually known as Kay Sage, was an American Surrealist artist and poet.-Biography:...
, Yves Tanguy
Yves Tanguy
Raymond Georges Yves Tanguy , known as Yves Tanguy, was a French surrealist painter.-Biography:Tanguy was born in Paris, France, the son of a retired navy captain. His parents were both of Breton origin...
and John Trumbull
John Trumbull
John Trumbull was an American artist during the period of the American Revolutionary War and was notable for his historical paintings...
.
The museum also highlights the commercial and cultural achievements related to the city of Waterbury. This includes a collection of 15,000 buttons, which was donated to the museum by the now-defunct Button Museum operated by the Waterbury Button Company. In 2008, the museum began offering self-guided tours of downtown Waterbury that highlight the city’s distinctive architectural achievements. The museum also features a regional history exhibit that uses interactive displays, oral histories and historic movie clips to trace the past and present of Waterbury and the surrounding areas in New Haven County, Connecticut
New Haven County, Connecticut
New Haven County is a county located in the south central part of the U.S. state of Connecticut. As of the 2010 Census, the county population is 862,477 making it the third most populated county in Connecticut. There are 1,340 people per square mile...
.
The museum supports ongoing artistic achievement with its Connecticut Biennial, a competition that is open to artists who maintain a residence or a studio within the state. The biennial competition awards include products and gift certificates from local businesses.
The remains of "Larry"
In 1999, the museum received national attention regarding one of its exhibits: the skeleton of a man that was discovered in 1910 in the boarded-up closet of a Waterbury building that was undergoing renovation. The skeleton was believed to date from the late 18th century and was dubbed "Larry," as that name was written on its skull. The skeleton was on display in a glass case until 1970, when it was removed from public viewing.However, a later investigation by the African-American Historic Project Committee determined the skeleton belonged a black slave named Fortune, who died in 1803. The museum created a special exhibit in honor of Fortune that detailed the lives of African-American slaves in the early part of the 19th century.