This exhibition explores key milestones in the history of color theory through seven case studies, each centered on a single work of art from BRAHM’s Permanent Collection. Alongside these works, diagrams and historical models illustrate how color has been classified, studied, and understood over time. By examining these varied approaches, The Shape of Color invites us to consider the ways in which color influences our perception, emotions, and the visual world around us.
Daingerfield & The Tonalist Instinct explores the development of Tonalism, a distinctly American artistic movement responding to early modernist impulses in painting. Emerging in the latter half of the 19th century, Tonalism was characterized by subtle color harmonies, soft atmospheric effects, and contemplative, mood-driven scenes. Often emphasizing twilight or dawn landscapes, tonalist works evoke introspective, serene, or even ominous atmospheres, prioritizing mood and emotional resonance over detailed realism.
This exhibiton presents a selection of ceramic works and drawings by MaryLou Higgins (1926–2012), an artist active in North Carolina throughout her prolific career. Best known for her illustrative approach to ceramics, Higgins worked across multiple media, creating a body of work defined by intricate draftsmanship and a focus on the female figure.
This intimate installation of ten “memory paintings” by Arlee Mains (1935–2019) offers a vivid and affectionate portrait of early 20th-century life in the mountains of western North Carolina. A lifelong resident of Watauga County and a self-taught artist, Mains drew upon family stories, personal recollections, and regional traditions to create painted scenes of everyday Appalachian life.
At the heart of Andréa Keys Connell’s work is a question: how can the things we make help us hold time, memory, and care? Her ceramic sculptures—often fragmented, patterned, and emotionally charged—explore what it means to endure, to remember, and to repair.
All throughout September, guests are invited to join the mountain’s naturalists as they count and celebrate the annual spectacle of fall raptor migration.