HUNTINGTON, NY.- Universal Limited Art Editions (ULAE) is a renowned American institution located in Bay Shore, Long Island. Beginning on January 10, 2009, The Heckscher Museum of Art will celebrate this important Long Island establishment with a new exhibition of works titled Robert Rauschenberg and His Contemporaries: Recent Prints from Universal Limited Art Editions. Robert Rauschenberg was a central figure at ULAE from its early years until his death in May 2008, and this exhibition serves as homage to him.

The exhibition will feature examples from Rauschenberg’s last print series, titled The Lotus Series, with imagery drawn from contemporary China, a favorite destination of the artist. Jasper Johns’ enigmatic style will be represented by many recent examples of his work. Two beautiful recent lithographs by Helen Frankenthaler will also be included. A photogravure by Chuck Close and a lithograph by James Rosenquist will be featured as well. Joining the work of these modern American masters will be cutting-edge graphics by other important artists including Cecily Brown, Enrique Chagoya, Carroll Dunham, Ellen Gallagher, Orly Genger, Jane Hammond, Rosa Loy, Susan McClelland, Elizabeth Murray, James Siena, Kiki Smith, Richard Tuttle, Terry Winters, and Lisa Yuskavage. This selection of works will show the diversity of the workshop’s production, including both well known and emerging artists, abstract and figurative imagery, and a range of print types (etching, aquatint, mezzotint, lithography).

Admired by specialists in the art world as a leading publisher in the United States of fine art prints, ULAE was founded in 1957 by the Russian émigrée Tatyana Grosman upon the advice of MOMA Curator William Lieberman. In 1964, just seven years after the institution’s founding, ninety-seven ULAE editions were chosen for exhibition to inaugurate MOMA’s new graphic galleries. At that point, the museum established a standing order to acquire one of every print that ULAE produced.

Printer Bill Goldston came to ULAE in 1969, armed with a dedication to technical experimentation. Grosman was impressed with Goldston’s knowledge and skills, and encouraged him to run both the studio and business under her tutelage when her husband died in 1976. Upon her death in 1982, Goldston assumed full responsibility for the business. He decided to expand the business and bring in a younger generation of artists, who will be well represented in the exhibition.

Special programming for the exhibition will include a talk by artist Jane Hammond offered in the Voices & Visions series on Thursday, February 19, 2009, at 7:00 p.m. Major support is provided by Suffolk County under the auspices of The Office of Film and Cultural Affairs, Steve Levy, County Executive.

The Heckscher Museum of Art engages visitors through stimulating and inspiring exhibitions, programs, and educational offerings dedicated to a full understanding of the visual arts. Industrialist August Heckscher founded the Museum in 1920, and the collection is focused on 19th to 21st century American and European and art. The Heckscher is located in Heckscher Park, on Main Street (Route 25A) and Prime Avenue in Huntington Village, NY, on Long Island’s north shore. The Heckscher recently completed its Historic Building Restoration Project, and now offers an enhanced visitor experience. For further information, log on to: www.heckscher.org, or call 631.351.3250.