Beyond thirst Show at Bowdoin College explores the art, history of beverages

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One of my favorite parties of all time was an election night in New York City. It was the Gore-Bush presidential race, and as many like-minded people as possible were stuffed into a miniature apartment in Upper Manhattan. There was plenty of food and drink, so much so that guests didn’t mind crowding onto the couch, sharing the chair or congregating cross-legged on the floor. The night was restive and rousing. And, it must be said, slightly drunken. The following day, the older couple next door indicated they had heard the festivities through the wall. We were duly contrite, but the husband interrupted us quickly with a smile. “At least the cheers came at the same time as ours,” he said.

I was reminded of that night recently when I saw an engraving called “An Election Entertainment,” by the 18th century satirist William Hogarth. Set in a raucous pub with a celebratory band of live musicians and the remnants from a night of political fight and fury, the scene makes our party a few years ago look downright monastic. The first rays of morning light stream through the windows while patrons swig away from glasses and jugs. Some have collapsed in their seats. Others are having gin poured ministeringly on head wounds. But most are engaged in lively conversation, also known as drunken debauchery. It’s a loud, smelly moment, filled with recovery and release.

Hogarth’s high (in more ways than one) spirited work underscores the libationary topic of “Beyond Thirst: The Dimensions of Drink,” an art show on view through July 6 at Bowdoin College of Art. It is an exposition of what might be called beverage art with the stimulation of caffeine and the exaltation of alcohol as a particular focus. The works on paper and decorative arts objects, such as an American silver tea service and a British decanter with wine glasses, are largely from Bowdoin’s 18th-20th century permanent art collection, which curators Christine Paglia and Caitlin Nelson studied before coming up with an organizing theme that appealed to them.

“We bounced around the idea of combining two-dimensional works with decorative arts,” said Nelson, a graduate of Colby College and a native of Topsfield, Mass. “We liked the idea of images interacting with objects.”

The show has a deeper political meaning for these two young curators, who are not so far out of college that they’ve forgotten the importance of coffee or a cocktail in the greater sociological experience of food and drink and fun. But their particular eye is turned toward history. Where do Hogarth and the French photographer Brassai intersect artistically? What does a 19th century blown-glass wine bottle have to say to Fairfield Porter’s “Portrait of Richard Freeman,” a 1974 oil painting of a man and a teapot? And isn’t it instructive to see Winslow Homer, freshly into his 20s, crafting patriotic engravings on paper?

But somehow it all makes sense as a grouping – whether it’s Honore Daumier’s left-wing cartoons, a Tiffany wine coaster, Danny Lyon’s documentary biker photos, a pre-Revolutionary mahogany tea table, or miniature etchings by Ashcan School master John Sloan. There are also quiet jewels in this show, two works by Whistler – the moody “Tete a Tete in the Garden” and the ennui-filled “Afternoon Tea.” Both are masterpieces of image and atmosphere.

Seven works of Hogarth, the king of detail, will occupy any viewer for a good portion of the visit. How long, after all, can you study a teacup or sugar spoon in a glass case? But there’s real reason to linger over Sloan’s “Nude and Breakfast,” which is sinewy and sensual, and John Leach’s “Table Top Gossip,” a scene brimming from the pages of Jane Austen. Larry Clark’s portrait of a woman with a Schlitz beer can and a modified beehive hairdo captures what may well be the first get-outta-my-face smirk of the 1960s.

In the end, “Beyond Thirst” is more artifact than commentary. It’s offers an elegant view of upper-class accoutrements and luxury, as well as political perspectives and depictions of peasant- and working-class partying and oppression. Since this relatively small show may leave you, as it did me, with a yearning for a cup of coffee and the promise of an evening tankard of beer, here’s a partial list of popular places the curators recommended for satiety in Brunswick. Choose the coffee if you’re headed back to Bangor. Go to the tavern if you’re staying in town overnight. Either way, think about the people around you, consider the role of the beverages they imbibe, and revel for just a moment in the insightfulness and inspiration of the drink, the thirst and the artist in life.

“Beyond Thirst: The Dimensions of Drink” is on view from 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Tuesday-Saturday and 2-5 p.m. Sunday through July 6 at the Bowdoin College Museum of Art in Brunswick. Admission is free. For information, call 725-3275.

Having a drink in the Brunswick area?

Dunkin’ Donuts

168 Maine St.

and 163 Pleasant St.

Joshua’s Restaurant and Tavern

121A Maine St.

Wild Oats Bakery and Cafe

149 Maine St.

Bohemian Coffee House

111 Maine St.

Sea Dog Brewing Co.

1 Main St.

Topsham

Pedro O’Hara’s

Irish Pub and Mexican Cantina

1 Center St.

The Cafe

Smith Union

Bowdoin Campus

Jack Magee’s Grill

Smith Union

Bowdoin Campus