News Release

A free performance of Shakespeare's As You Like It, an artist's studio reception and the debut of two simultaneous contemporary art exhibitions will mark the third annual "Summer Evening at Evergreen," starting at 5 p.m. on Thursday, July 10, at Evergreen House, 4545 N. Charles St. in Baltimore.

The evening begins with light refreshments in the Maroger studio on the grounds of Loyola College, hosted by Evergreen's 2003 artist-in-residence, New York-based sculptor Micki Watanabe. Following the reception, the museum will present the opening of two exhibitions of contemporary art, Maggie Thomas: The Evergreen Paintings and Mary Woodall: Elements and Other Work, a dual show exploring how two artists use different media to examine our encounters with the natural world. Both exhibits will be on display through Sept. 14.

California-based painter Maggie Thomas was Evergreen's artist-in-residence during summer 2002. She spent June and July 2002 photographing and sketching the Evergreen grounds, using the images to produce heavily textured paintings of the landscape surrounding Evergreen House. Thomas' close-up views of the natural world are interactive works that compel the viewer to bring his own perceptions to her images.

Baltimore-based photographer Mary Woodall explores the relationship between modern man and the landscape he inhabits. Woodall's cool, minimalist images emphasize the distance that exists between man and the natural world by focusing on the distortions that arise where the natural and the artificial meet. Her emphasis on barriers like windshields, sunroofs, and window screens result in photographs that are aesthetically and intellectually compelling.

The evening concludes with an escape into the Forest of Arden during a public dress rehearsal of As You Like It in the Evergreen meadow at 7:30 p.m. The show marks the beginning of the annual Baltimore Shakespeare Festival. Visitors are invited to picnic on the Evergreen grounds while enjoying the performance.

The reception, open studio and performance of As You Like It are free and open to the public. After July 10, admission to the exhibitions is $3. For information, call 410-516-0341 or visit www.jhu.edu/historichouses.