Exhibition: The Art of Leisure

Noonan Gallery
April 12, 2025 – June 15, 2025
Spanning over 125 years of American history, The Art of Leisure explores how both artists and the public have depicted travel, relaxation, and fun through a variety of mediums. Beginning in the mid-nineteenth century, increasing access to public spaces, recreational activities, and faster, more affordable methods of transportation changed the way Americans thought about and experienced leisure. This exhibition speaks to the immense impact of these revolutions on generations of artists, including James Augusts Van Der Zee, Jane Peterson, Edward Henry Potthast, and Emma Amos, as well as unknown craftspeople and Waterbury locals.