The Nude Biennial: Art exhibit opening at Loudoun House

Friday’s opening of “The Nude Biennial” at the Lexington Art League finds the Loudoun House institution combining one of its iconic exhibits with its new direction.

For decades, the nude exhibit has been one of the Art League’s signature shows, taking place annually for many years before switching to every other year. While nudes challenge artists to represent one of the most intimately familiar forms in the world to viewers, there was also a sensual appeal to the show, which was sometimes played up or down.

“I’ve been telling one of our interns last week … about back in the ’70s, when they started doing this exhibit,” Executive Director Lori Houlihan says. “There’s a little book that was written about the history of the Art League that I found down in the basement. It was really, really, really racy for them to do this exhibit back the first year they did it. And the community was a little divided on the appropriateness of it.”

Since then, the show has endured for decades, audiences, Art League administrations, and directions. The version that opens this weekend will reflect the new direction of the Art League, which was crafted several years ago. Houlihan credits Matt Collinsworth, who was briefly the Art League’s interim director in 2018, with helping the organization shift its focus from contemporary art to local and Kentucky artists.

That move reflected the Art League’s original direction, Houlihan says, and geared the group toward addressing one of the local arts community’s biggest needs: more opportunities for local artists to show their work. In the last decade, Houlihan notes, several other Lexington entities have emerged devoted to contemporary art, including the 21c Museum Hotel and Institute 193.

In 2019 the Art League started setting its new path, but then the COVID-19 pandemic hit, which had a huge impact on the Art League’s staff and finances. This year, the League has reopened presenting a full slate of shows featuring local artists under the direction of Houlihan and Assistant Director Faville Donahue, with a lot of help from board members and the community.

While the organization’s focus has narrowed to Kentucky artists, Houlihan says that has expanded its view in another way, allowing for a greater diversity of artists in terms of background and experience. That shows, she says, in “The Nude.”

“The mix in every exhibit, especially the big group shows, … is that we have so many decades of ages represented,” Houlihan says. “And we have so many points of view represented. I would almost venture to say that even though we’ve made our footprints smaller, from where we’re taking that work, it’s actually expanded that pool a little bit into a more diverse group of voices.”

Art League Board Member Eli Hartgrove says, “The mission of the Lexington Art League is to empower artists residing in the Bluegrass region. ‘The Nude Biennial’ is our exhibit where Kentucky artists celebrate and explore a complex and beautiful subject. As we shift our focus away from the external issues of the world, we look internally — to our bodies and our home.

“In this show, the artwork elevates the space of the gorgeous Loudoun House. The exhibit and house itself combine marvelously into an event that is thought-provoking and symphonic.”

The opening of “The Nude Biennial” is part of November’s LexArts Gallery Hop, a bi-monthly event featuring open studio and gallery spaces in and around downtown Lexington. That finds the Art League returning to another one of its popular offerings: the opening reception, though Houlihan says the League is not going to try to return to some of the big soirees of its recent past. While she says they will work to present a nice opening night event, the staff of the League’s primary job is showing art and supporting artists.

The opening reception will reflect another new direction of the League, expanding beyond visual arts. The featured guest will be speaker and storyteller Aminata Cairo, former director of the Sabi Diri Sbi dance company in Lexington, who present her new book, “Holding Space: A Storytelling Approach to Diversity and Inclusion.”

To Hartgrove, the exhibit and opening art great ways to return to community events at the Loudoun House.

“This year we’ve been thrilled to re-engage with the community after the pandemic,” he says. “The work presented concentrates on personal expression and visual storytelling.”

‘The Nude Biennial’

What: Biennial exhibit of contemporary figurative art by Kentucky artists.

When: Nov. 19-Jan. 7; gallery hours noon-5 p.m. Weds.-Sat.

Where: Loudoun House Gallery, 209 Castlewood Dr.

Online: lexingtonartleague.org

Call: 859-254-7024

Opening event: 5-8 p.m. Nov. 19, part of LexArts Gallery Hop. Find more information at lexarts.org/discover/lexarts-hop.