Each year, the Racine Art Museum welcomes the newest gifts of artworks to its permanent collections with a debut exhibition. Open through January 17, 2010, New and Novel 2009: Recent Gifts to RAM's Collection unveils some of the recent gifts from long-term museum supporters in the form of a special exhibition that focuses on the field of ceramics.

The galleries feature functional and sculptural works in clay that have arrived this past year including works by Ralph Bacerra, Edward Eberle, Terry Marsh, Elsa Rady, and Esther Shimazu and are joined by other masters including Robert Sperry, Robert Turner and Beatrice Wood. A particularly magnificent acquisition is a terra cotta sculpture of two female figures by the American artist, Elie Nadelman. Nadelman sometimes worked in clay and plaster along with other sculpture media.

RAM is known to have one of the most significant collections of contemporary ceramic teapots of any US art museum. The museum currently owns over 450 examples created by artists from around the world. This exhibition also debuts new gifts of teapots by internationally recognized figures like Robert Arneson and David Regan. RAM will also debut a teapot sculpture by artist Red Weldon Sandlin, who creates stacked towers of faux books, made of carved and painted wood, alternating with teapots illustrating characters from famous works of adult and children's literature.

The museum, long known for its support of artists working on paper in graphics and photographs, is also continuing to add works in these media by artists with national and international reputations. Scheduled to be installed on September 20, 2009, New and Novel 2009 will also feature selections from a group of late-20th century photographs donated by Karen Johnson Boyd. These figurative photos are primarily portraits, capturing the images of well-known individuals such as James Dean, the Beatles, James Joyce and Elvis Presley. Photography representing recognized masters in the field, with international reputations, including Helen Leavitt, Bert Stern and Jerry N. Uelsmann.

These selections will be displayed together with the exhibition, Collection Focus - Michael Lucero at RAM when RAM presents a career survey of the works of this internationally recognized ceramic sculptor. Michael Lucero at RAM is the third in an ongoing series of exhibitions that feature promised gifts and works already in the permanent collection. By combining these new gifts with works already in RAM's collection, the exhibition highlights Lucero's career development and aesthetic explorations in ceramics between 1983 and 2007. A collection study is available and is free to RAM members. Copies may be purchased in the RAM Museum Store for $5.

ARTISTS IN EXHIBITION: Kate Anderson, Robert Arneson, Ralph Bacerra, Fred Bauer, Linda Bills, Karl F. Borgeson, Val Cushing, Edward Eberle, Carol Eckert, Leopold L. Foulem, Babs Haenen, Mary Heilmann, Sergei Isupov, James Makins, Bodil Manz, Tony Marsh, John McQueen, Richard Milette, Elie Nadelman, Gustavo Perez, Elsa Rady, David Regan, Red Weldon Sandlin, Jane Sauer, Adrian A. Saxe, Joseph Seigenthaler, Kay Sekimachi, Esther Shimazu, Anna Silver, Robert Sperry, Cathy Strokowsky, Lenore Tawney, Matteo Thun, Robert Turner, Beatrice Wood