HARTFORD, CONN.- The Wadsworth Atheneum Museum of Art in Hartford, Conn., welcomes the touring exhibition, “The Human Touch: Selections from the RBC Wealth Management Art Collection,” on view from June 25–Sept. 25, 2016. In 40 paintings, sculptures, drawings, prints and photographs selected from the more than 400 works in the RBC Wealth Management collection, the exhibition celebrates the spectrum of contemporary human experience through exceptional works by renowned artists including Dawoud Bey, Chuck Close, Lalla Essaydi, Hung Liu, Carrie Mae Weems and Kehinde Wiley.

Assembled systematically over the past 25 years, the RBC Wealth Management Art Collection focuses on works of art showing the human figure as a means of understanding and interpreting the human condition from a wide variety of perspectives. In his introduction to the collection publication retiring RBC CEO John Taft writes that “RBC has collected and presented works of art that reflect the society in which we live and work, a society that has become increasingly complex, globally interconnected and diverse.” The artists themselves—many of whom are also represented in the Wadsworth Atheneum’s collections—hail from diverse backgrounds, and their works provide valuable insights into the multitude of ways individuals experience the world.

“The caliber of artists represented in the RBC Wealth Management Art Collection is impressive,” said the museum’s Emily Hall Tremaine Curator of Contemporary Art Patricia Hickson. “It is a privilege to present this important collection of artworks created by some of the most well-known contemporary artists working today, and it also offers an exciting opportunity to make connections with their counterparts in the Wadsworth Atheneum’s own collection.”

A number of highlights in the exhibition resonate with the Wadsworth Atheneum’s exceptional collections and its tradition of dynamic and innovative exhibitions. Among the works of art in “The Human Touch” is a multi-panel Polaroid portrait by Dawoud Bey titled “Sharmaine, Vincente, Joseph, Andre and Charlie” (1993). Using photography as his medium, Bey creates authentic portraits of African American subjects that have historically been denied control of their identities in the face of damaging stereotypes. Bey’s 1996 exhibition, “Hartford Portraits ’96,” was the 132nd project in the Wadsworth Atheneum’s MATRIX contemporary art series. Prominent portrait painter Kehinde Wiley also raises questions about race, power and the politics of representation, accomplished by imitating the Old Masters, but replacing the aristocratic European subjects with contemporary black sitters that Wiley meets on the street. In Wiley’s “Passing/Posing 15” (2002) we see the roots of his current work—the exemplar of older, canonized forms of image-making harnessed for the telling of our own stories today. One of Wiley’s latest works, “Portrait of Toks Adewetan (The King of Glory)” (2016), joined the Wadsworth Atheneum’s collection last month. “Baby King II” (1996) by Hung Liu exemplifies the Chinese-born artist’s technique of painting expressionistic strokes over painted portraits derived from historic photographs, calling attention to the country’s legacy of oppressive authoritarian regime. Roland Fischer’s “Untitled (L.A. Portrait)” (1994-2000) uses a backdrop of turquoise water from a swimming pool to isolate his subject’s head like a classical bust, highlighting the ethnic diversity that the German photographer observed in 1990s Los Angeles. Lalla Essaydi’s work, “Les Femmes Du Maroc #21 B” (2005) addresses the complex image of women in Islamic society.