Bristol Art Museum and Rogers Free Library Present a New Community Exhibit Inspired by the Literary Classic, Moby Dick

BRISTOL, Rhode Island - In collaboration with the spring 2024 Bristol Bookfest, The Bristol Art Museum and Rogers Free Library announce a new juried community exhibit - Hold Fast; Stay True - through which artists visually interpret the substance and themes of Moby Dick. The exhibit will showcase a collection of visual art inspired by the timeless literary narrative and be on display in the Community Gallery of the Library from Thurs., Mar. 28, to Wed., May 1.
Art historian and the Douglas and Cynthia Crocker Endowed Chair for the Chief Curator and the Director of Museum Learning at the New Bedford Whaling Museum Naomi Slipp served as juror for the exhibit. 
Organizers of the 2024 Bristol Bookfest selected the American classic Moby Dick, written by Herman Melville, as their literary selection. According to the Bristol Bookfest, founders Joanna Ziegler and Charles Calhoun believed that the town of Bristol would enjoy a new community event during the late winter and early spring period. The organizers share that the Bookfest is not simply a book club, but rather an opportunity for individuals to gather and engage with college faculty with expertise in a particular field of study.
“The Bristol Art Museum and Rogers Free Library are pleased to offer this juried community exhibit to complement the wonderful work of the Bristol Bookfest,” explained Vicky McGrath, Bristol Art Museum Board Member. ”This exhibit encourages a reflection on the primary themes of Moby Dick. We are proud of the response to the call for art for this exhibit which includes artistic interpretations of whaling, sea life, and all things nautical.”
As an accomplished art historian and Bristol native, Slipp's expertise lies in American art and the global circulation of knowledge. She holds a doctorate from Boston University and a master’s from the University of Chicago. Her impressive resume includes roles at the Philadelphia Museum of Art, MFA Boston, Roger Williams University, Terra Foundation for American Art, Harvard Art Museums, and a tenured Associate Professor of Art History at Auburn University at Montgomery, AL. Her curator credits at the Whaling Museum include notable exhibitions such as Turn the Tide: Courtney Mattison (2021) and Re/Framing the View: Nineteenth-Century American Landscapes (2022).

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