R. Lukasiewicz Gallery & Lobby

Unbroken Circle: The Musical Threads of Art Rosenbaum

April 3, 2025 - June 14, 2025

Art Rosenbaum’s paintings and drawings are more than visual expressions—they are vibrant echoes of a life devoted to storytelling, tradition, and human connection. Unbroken Circle: The Musical Threads of Art Rosenbaum takes its name from the iconic folk and gospel song "Will the Circle Be Unbroken", a piece rooted in Appalachian and Southern gospel traditions that speaks to themes of continuity, unity, and the enduring bonds of family and community. These same threads are woven throughout Rosenbaum’s life and work, reflecting his deep commitment to preserving cultural and musical heritage.

A colleague once remarked that the pursuit of art is more about building a life than a living. Art Rosenbaum embodied this truth. His art was not confined to the canvas—it extended to the songs he collected, the communities he documented, the students he mentored, and the music he performed. Whether capturing the spirit of rural musicians in Georgia, creating sweeping murals, or recording field hollers and ballads passed through generations, Art wove his passions into a rich, interconnected tapestry. In following what he loved, he built not just a career, but a life rooted in creativity, authenticity, and a profound respect for the stories and voices that shaped him.

This exhibition at the Lukasiewicz Gallery at the Lyndon House Arts Center showcases Rosenbaum’s visual art as one strand in a larger circle—one that includes his work as a folklorist, musician, teacher, and community builder. His legacy is a testament to the idea that art is not just about what is made, but about the lives it touches, the histories it honors, and the unbroken connections it fosters across time and place.

This exhibition is curated by Joseph Peragine, Professor of Drawing & Painting and Director of the Lamar Dodd School of Art at the University of Georgia.

Opening reception Thursday, April 3, 2025, from 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.

Free life drawing session with live musicians on Thursday, May 15, 2025, from 5:30 p.m. to 7 p.m.

Art Rosenbaum (1938–2022) was a distinguished painter, muralist, illustrator, and passionate collector and performer of traditional American folk music. He earned an AB in Art History and an MFA in Painting from Columbia University. Rosenbaum’s academic career also included a Fulbright in Painting in France and a Fulbright Senior Professorship in Germany. His work was featured in exhibitions such as the New Orleans Triennial and the Corcoran’s 41st Biennial of American Painting. His pieces are held in prominent collections, including the New Orleans Museum of Art, the Columbus Museum of Art (GA), the Georgia Museum of Art, and the Smithsonian National Museum of American Art.

Rosenbaum’s work has been reviewed in Art in America and was featured in a solo exhibition during the 2004 Liverpool Biennial at the Liverpool College of Art and Design. A major retrospective, “Weaving His Art on Golden Looms: Paintings and Drawings by Art Rosenbaum,” was held at the Georgia Museum of Art in 2006. Rosenbaum completed mural commissions for the UCLA School of Law, the Willson Center for Humanities and Arts, and the Russell Special Collections Library at the University of Georgia.

Rosenbaum was a dedicated educator, teaching studio art at the University of Iowa before becoming a long-time faculty member at the Lamar Dodd School of Art at the University of Georgia, where he was named the first Wheatley Professor in Fine Arts.