Peninsula Gallery to host Dane Tilghman art exhibit opening Feb. 12
Peninsula Gallery will celebrate Black History Month with a solo exhibition by acclaimed African American artist Dane Tilghman, on display Saturday, Feb. 12 to Sunday, March 27.
Tilghman is a premier painter of African American culture whose work is in numerous universities and major sports arenas, in addition to being collected by celebrities like Nelson Mandela. For the third year in a row, he brings his larger-than-life artwork to the Peninsula Gallery walls, giving Lewes residents and visitors the opportunity to bask in the grandeur of his impressionist-style paintings.
A reception will be held from 5 to 6:30, Saturday, Feb. 12, and attendees will have the opportunity to mingle with Tilghman during the evening. Masks are required.
The ethos of Tilghman’s work is to bring awareness and attention to the lost history of African American communities throughout the United States. Tilghman embraces an extravagant style and color palette to make Black life and culture from the early 20th century the centerpiece of artistic admiration. He isn’t confined by artistic rules or forms, opting to combine qualities of cubism, impressionism and realism with palette knife work and various mediums to create textural pieces that come to life on the canvases.
His powerful, yet poignant works remind viewers of the importance of caring for people of all colors and creeds, not only in history but in the present and the future.
Tilghman grew up in West Chester, Pa., and has been a professional artist for nearly 40 years. His family was originally from Tilghman Island in the Chesapeake Bay before migrating to Dover and finally settling in Pennsylvania.
He is inspired by historic black-and-white images, transforming a once static and unidimensional photograph into a vibrant and profound painting. For this show, Tilghman and Tony Boyd-Heron, Peninsula Gallery’s exhibition curator and co-owner, visited the Delaware Public Archives to find photographs depicting Black life from the early 1900s. “We were disappointed by the little material showing the candid life and spirit of the African American communities in the archive,” said Boyd-Heron.
”Black people played just as much a role in the lifeblood of Delaware as anywhere else. The working-class individuals depicted in my work, whether they be working on the sea or on a farm, were family-oriented; they had a purpose and were here to make a mark – even if that was just to make sure there was food on their table. But I believe everybody has a purpose. These individuals probably didn’t think they would be immortalized on canvas, but they lived and served history just like anyone else,” said Tilghman.
To preview works from the show, go to peninsula-gallery.com. All are available for presale. To learn more, call 302-645-0551 or email peninsulagallery1@gmail.com.
The gallery is located in the Shops at the Beacon, 520 East Savannah Road, Lewes.
