Gallery r presents Hunter/Gatherer – Rochester Connections: Works from the Gerald Mead Collection, on view November 4-20, 2016.  This survey exhibition consists of over 40 artworks in all media by Western New York artists selected from the substantial art collection of Gerald Mead, and focuses on artists with current and historical ties to the Rochester community, whether current residents or with connections to RIT, Visual Studies Workshop, the George Eastman Museum, Nazareth College and more. The selection of work is a testament to Mead’s extensive passion for the art communities of Western New York, and to Rochester’s place within it.

Artists on display include: Richard Aerni, Nancy Belfer, Roberley Bell, Eric Bellman, David Buck, Wendell Castle, Carl Chiarenza, William Ehrichs, Greg Erf, Courtney Grim, Greg Halpern, Biff Henrich, Joyce Hill, Richard Hirsch, Robert Hirsch, Nate Hodge, Deborah Jack, Nancy Jurs, Norman Kent, William Keyser, Bethany Krull, Joan Lyons, Nathan Lyons, Thomas Markusen, Scott McCarney, Amanda Means, Stephen Merritt, Robert Muffoletto, Barbara Murak, Gary Nickard, Kevin Noble, Albert Paley, James Pappas, John Pfahl, Peter Pincus, John Prip, Geoffrey Alan Rhodes, Christy Rupp, Kathleen Sherin, Richard Sigafoos, Peter Stephens, Michael Taylor, Carol Townsend, Jesse Walp, Joseph Whalen, Frans Wildenhain and Joe Ziolkowski.

This exhibition is presented along with Hunter/Gatherer – Regional LGTBQ Artists from the Gerald Mead Collection which features another unique iteration of Mead’s collection relevant to the LGTBQ community, also opening November 4 in Gallery Q, part of the Rochester Gay Alliance and next door to Gallery r.

Gerald Mead is an award winning artist, educator, arts writer and independent curator who is a leading authority on Western New York art and serves on the boards of several arts organizations in Buffalo. Since 1987, he has assembled a collection of over 1,000 artworks by artists associated with this region by birth or residency. 

Thematic exhibitions from the Gerald Mead Collection have been presented at numerous college galleries and other public venues, most recently at SUNY Fredonia and the Springville Center for the Arts. He has also lent works from his collection for major exhibitions at the Albright-Knox Art Gallery, Burchfield Penney Art Center, Castellani Art Museum, University at Buffalo Art Galleries, Buffalo Arts Studio, CEPA and Hallwalls and frequently lectures on art and collecting.