New Exhibition Reimagines the Lyman Allyn Art Museum's Collection

The Lyman Allyn presents A Tin Can on a String: Conversations from the Collection, a collaborative exhibition by artists and lifelong friends Kat Murphy and Heidi Johnson. On view from May 16 through Aug. 9, the exhibition reimagines the Museum’s collection through a contemporary lens, inviting visitors into an intimate exchange between past and present.

 Left to right: Kat Murphy, Desert X, 2023/2026, acrylic, chalk, charcoal; Amphora, Greek, ca. 610-565 BCE, terracotta. Gift of Mrs. Cornelius Rhoades, 1982.142.

Working both onsite and within the Museum’s digital archives, Murphy and Johnson engage in a dynamic creative dialogue with historical objects. Drawing inspiration from forms, textures, and narratives found in the collection, the artists translate their discoveries into new works spanning painting, collage, and sculpture. The result is a vibrant body of work that reflects an ongoing conversation, one that bridges time, material, and artistic perspective. 

A Tin Can on a String captures the unfolding relationship between artist and artifact, transforming research into connection and reflection into response. Visitors are offered a rare glimpse into the creative process, tracing how inspiration travels from the quiet depths of the collection to the expressive surface of contemporary art. 

“This project has been about reinterpreting the objects into new forms and reviving the past through my own contemporary vision,” said Kat Murphy. “The best part has been collaborating with a fellow artist and longtime friend, turning the archival revival into a lively conversation.”

Left to right: John Audubon and Robert Havell, Zenaida Dove Pl. CLXII, 1833, hand-colored engraving on paper. Gift of Henry Schnakenberg, Newtown, CT, 1952.67A; Heidi Johnson, Audubondance, 2026, oil on canvas.

Heidi Johnson added, “The natural world, with all its patterns and involved temporality, has been an infinite inspiration for my paintings. My work has become a constant inquiry into how we incorporate the natural world into our lives.”

By placing Murphy and Johnson’s contemporary works in dialogue with the Museum’s collection, the exhibition highlights the enduring relevance of historical objects while celebrating the evolving nature of artistic interpretation. 

The opening reception is Friday, May 15, from 5 – 8 p.m. Museum members are free and non-members are $10. To register, call 860.443.2545 ext. 2129 or email us at info@lymanallyn.org.

Related programming includes a Gallery Talk with Kat Murphy and Heidi Johnson on Tuesday, Jun. 23 at 5:30 pm. Members are $10, and non-members are $15. More information will be available on lymanallyn.org.

For more information or to request images, please contact Rebecca Dawson by email atdawson@lymanallyn.org.

This exhibition has been made possible with support from an anonymous foundation, and by the Connecticut State Legislature, administered by the Department of Economic and Community Development, Office of the Arts. 

About Lyman Allyn Art Museum:

Lyman Allyn Art Museum welcomes visitors from New London, southeastern Connecticut and all over the world. Established in 1926 with a gift from Harriet Allyn in memory of her seafaring father, the Museum opened the doors of its beautiful neoclassical building surrounded by 12 acres of green space in 1932. Today it presents several changing exhibitions each year and houses a fascinating collection of over 20,000 objects from ancient times to the present, including art from Africa, Asia, the Americas and Europe, with particularly strong collections of American paintings, decorative arts and Victorian toys and doll houses. 

The museum is located at 625 Williams Street, New London, Connecticut, exit 83 off I-95. It is open Tuesday through Saturday, 10 a.m. - 5 p.m. and Sundays 1 – 5 p.m., and closed on Mondays and major holidays. For more information call 860.443.2545, ext. 2129 or visit www.lymanallyn.org.