The Umstead Art Gallery
Featuring the Works of Local and National Artists
The directive of the Umstead Art Gallery is to present artwork that visually flows with the permanent art collection, aligns with our theme of art in nature and varies in medium. We look for the opportunity to surprise and delight both our guests, the local art community and collectors. Rotations happen seasonally, inviting creativity into our environment.
Alignment
By Linda Ruth Dickinson
Based in Raleigh, North Carolina, Linda Ruth Dickinson creates paintings that explore the relationship between space and perception. Working with both horizontal and vertical forms, she plays with optics to challenge the viewer’s sense of visual balance and gravitational security.
In Alignment, Dickinson considers how shifting perspectives can alter the way we understand our surroundings. Through carefully constructed lines and spatial relationships, each work becomes an attempt to make sense of the world and our place within it.
Artwork will be on display from September through the end of the year and is available for purchase through The Umstead Gift Shop.
Meet Linda and experience the collection during an evening reception with fellow art enthusiasts. Wine and passed hors d’oeuvres will be served. Reservations may be made by phone or through our Events Page below.
Inside the Curve
By Jennifer McCurdy
Ceramic artist Jennifer McCurdy has spent more than thirty years working with porcelain, creating sculptural vessels that reflect the rhythms and movement of the natural world. Her work was selected for The Umstead Hotel and Spa’s permanent collection prior to the hotel’s opening, resonating deeply with our guiding themes of art and nature.
McCurdy’s wheel-thrown porcelain forms capture subtle shifts of light and shadow, echoing the motion of waves, wind, smoke, and flame. After shaping each piece on the potter’s wheel, she manipulates, slices, and carves the porcelain to create dynamic movement within the vessel. Many pieces are fired upside down in a kiln reaching nearly 2,350 degrees Fahrenheit, allowing gravity and heat to shape the final form.
Many of her vessels are finished with gold leaf applied to the interior by her long-time collaborator and husband, Tom McCurdy. The luminous interior reflects light outward, creating a quiet warmth that feels as though each piece holds its own internal glow.
Inside the Curve will be on view at The Umstead Hotel and Spa from March 9 through the end of Summer. Please visit the Gift Shop for pricing and availability.
About The Art Gallery
The Umstead rotates new artists' work seasonally into the hotel to complement the permanent collection. The pieces featured in the collection are modern and minimalist, adding to the contemporary, clean design of the hotel.
Guests are invited to take self-guided tours of the hotel's collection with the guidance of an art brochure that’s available at the concierge desk.
For upcoming art gallery openings, please visit our event calendar.
