Miami-Based de la Cruz Collection Art Exhibit at Nova Southeastern University

“Cult of Personality” on view March 18-May 28, panel discussion featuring Rosa de la Cruz, Bonnie Clearwater and artist Christian Holstad on April 8

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

FT. LAUDERDALE/DAVIE, Fla. – Renowned throughout South Florida and internationally, the de la Cruz Collection presents the Cult of Personality, on view March 18 through May 28 at the Adolfo and Marisela Cotilla gallery, second floor, Alvin Sherman Library located at 3100 Ray Ferrero, Jr. Blvd at Nova Southeastern University’s (NSU) Fort Lauderdale-Davie campus.

A reception and panel discussion featuring Rosa de la Cruz, Bonnie Clearwater, director and chief curator of the NSU Art Museum Fort Lauderdale, and Christian Holstad, the exhibition’s artist, will be held on April 8 at 2:00 pm in the Adolfo and Marisela Cotilla Gallery.

This exhibition is the third in an annual series curated and organized by the de la Cruz Collection to benefit the students of Nova Southeastern University.

The exhibition’s title, Cult of Personality, arises from the term, which describes an individual’s use of mass media, propaganda, or other methods to create an idealized, heroic, and at times worshipful image. In the beginning, Cult of Personality had no political connotations but was closely related to the “Romantic Cult of the Genius”, which originated in Europe toward the end of the 18th century. It was characterized by a belief in the importance of the individual, the personal and the subjective. Sociologist Max Webber developed a classification where the Cult of Personality shared a similarity with charismatic authority.

Christian Holstad (born 1972, California) is an American artist based in Brooklyn, New York. He received his BFA from the Kansas City Art Institute in 1994. Holstad’s art practice reflects his interest in crafts, handmade objects, textiles, and his appreciation for American Culture and history. His work embodies a Camp aesthetic sensibility. With references to Kitsch, Camp was very much part of the 1960’s – 1970’s culture, and is often associated with filmmakers, artists and performers like John Waters (his films Pink Flamingos, Hairspray, and Polyester), Andy Warhol, Divine, Liberace, and Marilyn Monroe.

Admission to the exhibition and panel discussion is free and open to the public.

To register for the panel discussion, please click here.

For more information on the exhibit, please click here.

For general information contact, Nora Quinlan at 954-262-4613 or nora@nova.edu

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About the Alvin Sherman Library: Nova Southeastern University’s Alvin Sherman Library, Research, and Information Technology Center—one of the largest library buildings in the state of Florida—is a unique joint-use facility serving the residents of Broward County as well as NSU students, faculty, and staff members. Thanks to an agreement between the Broward County Board of County commissioners and NSU, the Alvin Sherman Library offers traditional public library services as well as the full academic resources of one of the nation’s major independent universities. For more information visit http://sherman.library.nova.edu/

About Nova Southeastern University (NSU): Located in beautiful Fort Lauderdale, Florida, Nova Southeastern University (NSU) is a dynamic research institution dedicated to providing high-quality educational programs at the undergraduate, graduate, and first-professional degree levels. A private, not-for-profit institution, NSU has campuses in Fort Lauderdale, Fort Myers, Jacksonville, Miami, Miramar, Orlando, Palm Beach, and Tampa, Florida, as well as San Juan, Puerto Rico, while maintaining a presence online globally. For more than 50 years, NSU has been awarding degrees in a wide range of fields, while fostering groundbreaking research and an impactful commitment to community. Classified as a research university with “high research activity” by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching, NSU is 1 of only 50 universities nationwide to also be awarded Carnegie’s Community Engagement Classification, and is also the largest private, not-for-profit institution in the United States that meets the U.S. Department of Education’s criteria as a Hispanic-serving Institution. Please visit www.nova.edu for more information about NSU and realizingpotential.nova.edu for more information on the largest fundraising campaign in NSU history.

About the de la Cruz Collection: Completed in December of 2009, the de la Cruz Collection is privately funded by Carlos and Rosa de la Cruz. This space serves as an extension of their home, where for over 25 years they have shared their collection with the public. The primary purpose of this space is to provide education and awareness in the visual arts. Educational programming includes lectures, artist-led workshops, docent-led tours, scholarship opportunities and student travel initiatives. In order to serve our local schools, a series of workshops and classes were established in collaboration with Dade County Public Schools to serve both teachers and students. These programs offer to give our local students the opportunity to learn of different approaches to the creation and presentation of contemporary art. Students are encouraged to visit the space and library throughout the year, as well as, apply for internship positions. Yearly exhibitions are organized to highlight artists in the collection. A lending program supports national and international institutions with loans from the collection.  http://www.delacruzcollection.org 

March 20, 2017

Contact:
Vera Mandilovitch | Office of Public Affairs
954-262-5309 (office) | 954-882-3570 (cell)
vmandilovitch@nova.edu