Artwork Spotlight: A Closer Look

Take a closer look at Bo Bartlett’s monumental painting, Madre del Nenê in this engaging Spotlight program designed for curious visitors of all backgrounds. Through guided observation and lively discussion, we’ll explore the artwork’s visual details and themes, exploring the choices the artist made and the questions the work invites us to consider. No prior art knowledge is required. Just bring your curiosity and a willingness to look closely.

 

Born in Georgia, Bo Bartlett is an American realist painter. At nineteen years old, he travelled to Florence, Italy to study under the artist Ben Long. Upon returning to America, he began living in the Philadelphia area, attending art courses at the University of the Arts, the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, studied under the master painter Nelson Shanks, and took anatomical study classes at the Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine. Bartlett’s artwor can be found in the collections of institutions across the country and has exhibited internationally. He has won numerous awards, including the Ursinus College Distinguished Artist Award (2005); several awards for his documentary on Andrew Wyeth, Snow Hill (1996); and the Pew Fellowship in the Arts (1994).