Williamstown, MA—Williams College Museum of Art (WCMA) presents Perfect Isolation: Williamstown in the Nineteenth Century, a small exhibition in honor of the 250th anniversary of Williamstown. Six paintings, drawings, and photographs, dating from the beginning to the end of the nineteenth century, show the town growing from a tiny hamlet to a typical American small town. The exhibition will be open through the end of 2003.

"We get a fascinating glimpse of Williamstown's past in these townscapes," says Eugénie Prendergast Curator Nancy Mowll Mathews, who organized the exhibition. "We are delighted to be able to show them all together during Williamstown’s anniversary year."

Views of the "Unruffled Calm" of Williamstown

In each work, the beauty of Williamstown's remote mountain setting is celebrated, and, true to the documentary mission of nineteenth-century "views," the town is laid out like a scientific specimen. Each building, whether private house or college hall, is carefully described as a separate entity in the individual works. The humble roads and walking paths are like delicate incisions barely disturbing the grassy land. All the elements of the townscape are shown in their own perfect isolation as if to match the spirit of the "unruffled calm of our valley life." The collection demonstrates that the "perfect isolation" of Williamstown is an aesthetic principle.

Perfect Isolation is a reflection on the planning and history of Williamstown. Offering historical anecdotes and insights into the past, the exhibition is a captivating look into the growth of a town little disturbed by the outside world and guarded by its own mountain barriers.

Publicity Image Available

A copy of View of Williams College Looking East is available for use. Publicity images for Perfect Isolation and other exhibitions can be found at www.wcma.org/press.

The Williams College Museum of Art is open Tuesday through Saturday, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., and Sunday, from 1 to 5 p.m. Admission is free and the museum is wheelchair accessible.

Contact: Jonathan Cannon, Public Relations Coordinator
413.597.3178; WCMA@williams.edu