Body of work spans years

by in At the Museums dept
“Timon of Athens 1” (2009), detailed view, an oil on canvas, 72 x 108 inches. Photo courtesy of the artist Craig Drennen.

MARIETTA, GA (PNAN) – Slated to open on Saturday, September 20, 2025, with an Opening Reception, from 6:00-8:00 pm at the Marietta Cobb Museum of Art, the exhibition, “T is for Timon” will consist of a selection from Craig Drennen’s seventeen-year body of work based on Timon of Athens, William Shakespeare’s least admired play.

Focusing on the characters in the play, Drennen’s series brings together ideas that are opposite but connected: being straightforward and being talented, culture and personal experience, success and failure. These themes are explored through various forms of art, creating a dialogue between different aspects of human nature and society. Drennen’s work encourages viewers to think about how these contrasting ideas influence our lives and perceptions, often blending them in surprising ways.

Drennen’s paintings, sculptures, performance art, and installations go beyond the original story that inspired them. Each piece acts as a kind of stand-in or “surrogate,” offering a space for both the artist and the audience to confront and reflect on shared cultural backgrounds and personal memories. Through this process, the art becomes a powerful tool for understanding ourselves and the world around us.

For more information, call 770.528.1444 or see: https://mariettacobbartmuseum.org. Editor’s Note: On Saturday, November 1 from 2:00-4:00 pm, there will be an Artist Talk.

About

Craig Drennen is a painter based in Atlanta, GA and a 2018 Guggenheim Fellow.  He is represented by Brigitte Mulholland Gallery in Paris. He has had recent solo exhibitions at The Suburban in Milwaukee, Wisconsin; Freight+Volume Gallery in New York City, and the Atlanta Contemporary in Atlanta, Georgia.  His work has been included in group exhibitions at Anton Kern Gallery in New York City and the Kunstverein Langenhagen in Langenhagen, Germany.  He has been an artist in residence at Yaddo, MacDowell, and Skowhegan. His work has been reviewed in Art in America, Artforum, and The New York Times. Drennen served as dean at the Skowhegan School of Painting & Sculpture in Skowhegan, teaches at Georgia State University, and manages THE END Project Space.