Raising Renee: The Paintings of Beverly McIver
Artist Beverly McIver is fascinated with the concept of identity and how one defines oneself. While her experiences are generated from the perspective of a black woman, the issues at the heart of her paintings focus on what it means to be human and the vulnerability of the human condition. “My identity is composed of the people who are in my life: my friends and my family. I define myself in part by the characteristics I admire within my friends and family and every project I work on deals with this idea in different ways,” said McIver.
In her recent paintings McIver has focused on her relationship with her mentally disabled older sister Renee, whom she began caring for upon the death of her mother. The life changes that living with and caring for Renee have brought to McIver are part of her new identity and one she is exploring through her art and sharing as part of her artist-in-residency this winter at the Addison.
Beverly McIver
Embrace, 2005
oil on canvas
48 x 36 in.
Courtesy of the artist and Kent Gallery, New York
McIver visited the area this fall to photograph students and disabled siblings from area schools and in February, she is returning to the Addison to complete paintings of these siblings. During her two week visit, she will be working in the artist studio at Abbott Hall and will meet with classes and student clubs from Phillips Academy and Lawrence High School. Her sister Renee will be working alongside her in the studio and will teach her craft – making woven potholders – to visitors. McIver will also bring together some of her subjects and others from the community who might benefit from a dialogue about the joys and challenges of growing up and living with siblings with mental disabilities.
Beverly McIver at Lawrence High School
Through her paintings, McIver is interested in capturing the love, differences and likeness of the siblings. “My relationship with Renee has given me great pride in being her sister,” explained McIver. “I have learned a lot from her and I've learned not to take myself too seriously. I hope to give my sitters a few of the gifts I have received from having Renee in my life.”
Since its inception, the Artist-in-Residence Program, generously endowed by Edward E. Elson (PA 1952) has created meaningful interactions between thousands of students and more than fifty acclaimed artists, including photographers Robert Frank, Judith Joy Ross, Abelardo Morell, Dawoud Bey and Wendy Ewald, sculptors Robert Hudson, Richard Shaw, Nari Ward, Allison Saar, and Lee Mingwei, and painters Frank Stella, Kerry James Marshall, and Laurie Hogan. For more information on the program, please contact Julie Bernson at 978-749-4017.
