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Born in Greensburg, PA, USA


1964: MA, New York University, New York, NY

1953: BFA, Carnegie-Mellon University, Pittsburgh, PA


"My first New York exhibit was called 'Elegy to Nature,' and since then I have been painting and drawing the many diverse aspects of the landscape. I am fascinated by our complex love yet exploitation of nature.

For me, painting is an affirmation of my concern and sense of awe for my subject, the natural world and its creatures.

I grew up in a small town in Western Pennsylvania where canoe trips, hikes in the woods and climbing every tree in the field was as exciting as trips to the cultural centers in Pittsburgh. A family vacation to Sag Harbor imprinted me with the vastness of the sands and ocean, which is probably why I eventually came back to this island area to live and try to paint its extraordinary beauty.

Aftrer high school I attended Carnegie-Mellon University and studied painting and drawing. I had a passion for exploration too, and hitchhiked with a friend out West where the landscape of red mountains, wild pines and fragrant sage came as alive as the legends of the West. However, I came to New York City to live because it was the art center of the world.

Over the years I showed work in a number of venues, having four one-woman shows on both coasts, and in many other group and museum exhibits.

A high point in my life was camping and sailing through the Galapagos Islands with the Friends of the Earth and painting this last Primordial Place. We retraced the trail of Darwin and reread the poetic stories of Melville. From this I developed a series of mural-sized 'burst ink' drawings of animals. Other series of paintings were inspired after taking trips to Africa and Alaska, and rafting down the Grand Canyon and the Usamicinta River. The history, legends and visual power of these place continue to influence my work and increase my commitment to art and to the necessity for a greater ecological balance for our world."

Janet Culbertson, March 2001

  • Selected Solo Exhibitions (since 1990)
    • 1999:
        University of Bridgeport, Bridgeport, CT, Industryscapes

        Telfair Museum, Savannah, GA

    • 1998:
        National Academy of Sciences, Washington, DC, Industrial Park

        University of Alaska, Anchorage, AK, Dystopian Visions

    • 1997:
        Atelier A/E Gallery, New York, NY, Mythmaker 1975-1996

        Hoyt Museum, New Castle, PA

        Port Washington Library Gallery, Port Washington, NY, After Eden

    • 1996:
        Stone Quarry Hill Art Park, Cazenovia, NY, Vital Signs II

        Suffolk College, Riverhead, NY, From Sea to Shining Sea

        Ashawagh Hall Art Park, Springs, NY, Hangtough

    • 1995: Fine Arts Museum of Long Island, Windows Gallery, Hempstead, NY

    • 1992:
        Islip Museum, East Islip, NY, Featured Artists of the Permanent Collection

        Acme Art Co., Columbus, OH

    • 1991: Carnegie-Mellon University Gallery, Pittsgurgh, PA

    • 1990: East End Arts Council, Riverhead, NY, Faces of the Peconic, 25-year Invitational


  • Selected Group Exhibitions (since 1990)
    • 2001: The Dolan Center Gallery, Locust Valley, NY

    • 2000:
        The Parish Museum, Southampton, NY, Domesticated Landscape

        The New Jersey Center for Visual Arts, San Jose, CA, Portrait Invitational

        The Harn Museum, Gainesville, FL, The Swamp: On the Edge of Eden

        The Cummer Museum, Jacksonville, FL

    • 1999:
        Museums at Stonybrook, Stonybrook, NY, Treasures of Long Island

        University of Wyoming, Laramie, WY, Invitational

        Seton Hall University, South Orange, NJ, Revelations in Rubble

    • 1998:
        Nassau County Museum, Roslyn Harbor, NY

        Armory Art Center, West Palm Beach, FL, Lest We Forget, Gulf War

    • 1997:
        University of Oregon, Eugene, OR, Art for Environmental Advocay

        Atelier A/E, New York, NY, Our Essential Images

    • 1996:
        Islip Museum, East Islip, NY, The First Ten Years

        Millennium Gallery, East Hampton, NY, In the Mind's Eye

    • 1995:
        The Hoyt Museum, New Castle, PA, 14th Annual

        Anita Shapolsky Gallery, New York, NY, Animals, Animals

    • 1994:
        Babcock Galleries, New York, NY, (traveling exhibition) The Artist as Native

        Zimmerlie Art Museum, Rutgers University, New Brunswick, NJ, A View of One's Own

    • 1993:
        Arkansas Art Center, Little Rock, AR, (traveling exhibition), Silverpoint Etcetera

        Guild Hall Museum, East Hampton, NY, New Acquisitions

    • 1992:
        Pelham Art Center, Bronx, NY, Against the Tide

        Benton Gallery, Southampton, NY, Methods and Materials

    • 1991:
        Women's Art Caucus, Washington, DC, My Vision

        The Newport Art Museum, Newport, RI, The Lost Landscape

    • 1990:
        The Hillwood Art Museum, Long Island University, Brookville, NY, The Political Landscape

        The Henry Street Settlement, New York, NY, Vital Signs: Artists Respond to the Environment


  • Public and Corporate Collections
  • Fogg Museum, Harvard University, MA
  • University of Minneapolis, MN
  • Telfair Museum, Savannah, GA
  • National Museum of Women in the Arts, Washington, DC
  • Nassau County Museum of Art, Roslyn, NY
  • St. Petersburg Museum of Art, St. Petersburg, FL
  • Westinghouse Corporation, Pittsburgh, PA
  • Delta Airlines, New York, NY
  • Hoyt Museum of Art, New Castle, PA
  • West Publishing Co., Minneapolis, MN
  • Zimmerlie Art Museum, Rutgers University, New Brunswick, NJ
  • Guild Hall Museum, East Hampton, NY
  • Islip Museum, East Islip, NY
  • State Museum of Harrisburg, PA
  • Hecksher Museum of Art, Huntington, NY
    		•

    Selection of works from Janet Culbertson

    Read the guestbook of Janet Culbertson

    Sign the guestbook of Janet Culbertson

    • 2001: Cash Award, The Print Center, Philadelphia, PA

    • 2000:
        Cash Award, Muscarelle Museum, William and Mary College

        Cash Award, Butler Institute, Youngstown, OH

    • 1999: Tiffany Nominee

    • 1997: Purchase Award, Nassau County Museum, NY

    • 1996: Tiffany Nominee

    • 1995: Purchase Award, Hoyt Museum, New Castle, PA

    • 1994: Project Grant, New York State Council of the Arts and Hillwood Art Museum

    • 1993: Audrey Shrink Award, Painting, National Association of Women Artists

    • 1992: Mixed Media Award, Guild Hall 54th Annual, East Hampton, NY

    • 2000:
        Harrison, Helen A. "After Eden," The New York Times.

        Lippard, Lucy. Catalogue essay for The Swamp: On the Edge of Eden.

    • 1999:
        Braff, Phyllis. "Animals in Art," The New York Times, July 25.

        Harrison, Helen A. "Paper Weight," The New York Times, April 25.

    • 1998: "Losing Paradise," Terra Nova Magazine, artist profile, April.

    • 1997: Raynor, Vivien. Review of the Wave Hill Exhibit and "Drawings" at Pelham, The New York Times.

    • 1996:
        Harrison, Helen A. "From Sea to Shining Sea," The New York Times, March 31.

        Long, Robert. "Perspectives," Southampton Press, March 21.

    • 1995: Braff, Phyllis. "18 Suffolk Artists," The New York Times, March 26.

    • 1994:
        Lipson, Karin. "Image Conscious," Newsday, June 23.

        Slivka, Rose. "From the Studio" and "On Paper," East Hampton Star, May 26.

    • 1993:
        Braff, Phyllis. "Wall to Wall," The New York Times, Dec 5.

        "The Artist as Native," American Artist, Dec 1.

    • 1992: Wix, Elizabeth. "Image Conscious," Newsday, Aug 28.

    • 1991: Miller Donald. Pittsburgh Post Gazette, Aug 10.

    • 1990: Lipson, Karin. Newsday, Aug 20.