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Viewing entries posted in October 2011
Fabulous Favorites!
Do YOU have a favorite work of art in the Munson-Williams-Proctor Arts Institute’s Museum of Art collection?
The Museum of Art is excited to announce that it is unveiling the list of visitors’ favorite works of art in the collection this weekend, in conjunction with the Institute’s 75th Anniversary celebration.
In anticipation of the 75th Anniversary, Director of Education April Oswald began collecting Museum visitors’ ballots for their favorite art works three years ago on World Refugee Day in Hanna Park (that was June 2008). Since then, the voting has continued in the Museum’s galleries and during special events like our summer Arts Festival.
April recently tabulated the ballots and, to no surprise, Thomas Cole’s Voyage of Life paintings are top vote-getters!
Look around the Museum buildings to find labels that identify some of the favorites. Here are a few pictures, with visitors’ comments about why these works of art are so captivating. Below you will find the entire list of 75.
# 6 Louise Bourgeois, Spider II
Emily Mulkerne: “Something so terrifying can be so beautiful.”
#8 Wassily Kandinsky, Improvisation no. 23 (Troika)
Thet Mar: “Mysterious, full of wonderful color, it reminds me of life and obstacles.”
#53, Severin Roesen, Still Life with Fruit and Champagne
L.D., age 16: “It looks like the party just got started.
The complete list, with the number of votes received at far right.
- Thomas Cole The Voyage of Life: Childhood 90
- Thomas Cole The Voyage of Life: Youth 85\
- Thomas Cole The Voyage of Life: Old Age 73
- Ferdinand Richardt Below Trenton (High) Falls, 1858 65
- Jackson Pollock No. 2, 1947
- 42Louise Bourgeois Spider II, 1995 38
- Frederic Church Sunset, 1856 36
- Wassily Kandinsky Improvisation No. 23 (Troika), 1911 32
- Joe Jones Portrait of the Artist’s Father, 1932 29
- Edward Hopper The Camel’s Hump, 1931 25
- Piet Mondrian Tree (Horizontal Tree), 1912 23
- Sanford Gifford Galleries of the Stelvio – Lake Como 23
- William Baziotes The Toy, 1949 21
James Peale Still Life: Apples, Grapes, Pear 20
Doll house, 1856 20- Andy Warhol Big Electric Chair, 1967 19
- William Merritt Chase Memories 18
William Palmer Washington Square, New York, 1928/9-32 18- Georgia O’Keeffe Pelvis with Pedernal, 1943 17
- Juan Gris No. 7, 1917 17
- Pablo Picasso Pigeon in Nest with Eggs, 1912 17
- Charles Burchfield Childhood’s Garden, 1917 17
- Cabinet (large Neo Grec) 17
Tilt-top Table (Tiffany silverplate) 17- Mark Rothko No. 18, 1951 16
- Irene Rice Pereira Vacillating Progression, 1949 13
- Maurice Prendergast Landscape with Figures, ca. 1912 13
- Raymond Han Still Life with Rose Geranium Sprig, 1980 13
Ernst Barlach Meeting Again, 1926 12- Sofa (Belter) 12
- Asher B. Durand Woodland Path, 1846 12
- Coverlet, (made in New Hartford) 12
- William Zorach Affection, 1933 10
- Thomas Cole The Voyage of Life: Manhood 10
- Norman Lewis Heroic Evening, 1963 10
- Ice bowl & tongs 10
- Jerome Witkin Division Street, 1984-85 10
- Reginald Marsh Texas Guinan and Her Gang, 1931 9
- William Harnett The Study Table, 1882 8
- Milton Avery Poetry Reading, 1957 8
- Secretary Bookcase (Quervelle), 8
- John Frederick Peto Fish House Door with Eel Basket, 1890’s 8
- Charles Burchfield Sphinx and the Milky Way, 1946 7
- Henry Moore Locking Piece, 1962 7
- William H. Rinehart Sleeping Children, 1870 7
- Soup Tureen (Gorham Martele) 7
Raymond Duchamp-Villon The Great Horse, 1914 6- Side Chair (Herter Brothers, gilded) 6
- Pat Steir Wind, Water and Stone 2 A.M., 1997 6
- Chair (Shaker) 5
- Francis Davis Millet After the Festival, 1888 5
- Alexander H. Wyant Adirondack Ledge, ca. 1884 4
- Severin Roesen Still Life with Fruit and Champagne, 1853 4
- Biscuit Box 4
- Fidelia Bridges Field of Queen Anne’s Lace, ca. 1870-75 4
- Morgan Russell Cosmic Synchromy, 1913-14 3
- Ben Shahn The Parable, 1958 3
- Robert Henri Dutch Soldier, 1907 3
Hiram Powers Bust of “The Greek Slave”, ca. 1843 3- Edward Moran Shipwreck, 1862 3
- John William Hill Fawn’s Leap, Catskill, NY, 1868 3
- Elaine Reichek I Cannot, 2000 3
- Watch (bug form) 3
- David Smith The Letter, 1950 2
- Milton Avery Pink Tablecloth, 1944 2
- George Luks Roundhouse at High Bridge 2
- George Luks Pavlova’s First Appearance in NY, 1910 2
- Henry Inman Trout Fishing, 1840-41 2
- Frederick MacMonnies Young Faun and Heron 2
- Isidro Blasco Green Hallway, 2006 2
- Philip Guston The Porch, 1947 1
- Tall-Case Clock 1
Piet Mondrian No. 7, 1937-42 1- John von Bergen Surge, 1989 1
Marcel Duchamp Boite-en-Valise, 1941 1
Happy 75th Anniversary!
Happy 75th Anniversary to and from Munson-Williams-Proctor Arts Institute.
The Museum of Art staff is working diligently on the upcoming celebratory exhibition, Enhancing a Legacy: Gifts, Promised Gifts, and Acquisitions in Honor of the Museum of Art’s 75th Anniversary. It opens with a reception on Saturday, October 29.
The show features new pieces from each of the Museum’s three curatorial departments: 19th-Century Decorative Arts, 19th-century Fine Arts, and Modern and Contemporary Art. Some of the recent acquisitions will be familiar to regular visitors to the Museum, but others are being unveiled for the first time, very exciting.
Here is a sneak peak of what you will see.
This fabulous wicker chair was produced by Heyward Brothers & Co., Gardner, Massachusetts, in 1890:
Reception Chair, 1890, Heyward & Bros., Gardner, Massachusetts
Carrie Mae Weems’s provocative photograph:
Carrie Mae Weems, Untitled (from the Kitchen Table Series)
And Jane Edden’s mysterious video installation:
Jane Edden, Colony, 2004
Picture captions:
Reception Chair, 1890, Heyward Brothers & Co. (active 1826-97), , Gardner, Massachusetts, wood and rattan, 44 x 33 x 20 in., 75th Anniversary Acquisition. Museum purchase, by exchange, with funds from Gregory Smith in memory of Margaret Skinner Smith, and from the Estate of Sarah T. Norris, 2009.3.
Carrie Mae Weems (American, born 1953), Untitled (from the Kitchen Table series), gelatin silver print, 28 x 28 in., 75th Anniversary Acquisition. Museum purchase, 2010.37
Jane Edden (British), Colony, 2004, video installation, 75th Anniversary Acquisition. Gift of Richard Blumental & Linda Morgan, 2010.41.
The Museum of Art thanks the Community Foundation of Herkimer and Oneida Counties, Inc., our, 75th Anniversary Partner.
Forever Wild
This past weekend I enjoyed a wonderful hike with 24 fellow MWPAI members through the Hudson River School Art Trail and visited the Thomas Cole National Historical Site in Catskill, NY. This great program organized by Barb Kane, MWPAI’s Public Programs Coordinator, allowed us to follow the footsteps of great American artists such as Thomas Cole, Frederic Church, Asher Durand, Jasper Cropsey and Sanford Gifford.
In this picture, Sarah, one of our tour guides presented the background information about the Catskill Mountain House. On this site stood a popular 19th century hotel built on the edge of a sheer drop called the Escarpment; a few of us were brave enough to look over the edge.
Thomas Cole, A View of the Two Lakes and Mountain House, ca 1844, Brooklyn Museum
This is one of the older dates I found carved into one of the rocks at the edge of the house site. Looks like A.M.S 1838 to me.
We couldn’t have asked for better weather for our walk and while stopping for a break on Artist’s Rock we happened upon some present day artists capturing the magnificent views.
The program description of “moderate hike” was joked about throughout our walk as our tour guide, Sarah, laughed and reminded us that “It’s all a matter of perspective” which we understood once we reached our final destination of Sunset Rock. Breathtaking views!
View from Sunset Rock
Our tour guide explained that many of the trails are “forever wild,” meaning the paths are minimally maintained.
Finally at the end of the hike, we were treated to a tour of Thomas Cole’s Catskill home, ending in the artist’s studio, which took on a familiar air as we were surrounded by prints of the Voyage of Life. The original version in MWPAI’s permanent collection was painted in that very studio.
Thomas Cole, Voyage of Life, Childhood, 1839-40
To find out more information about the Thomas Cole National Historic Site and the Hudson River School Art Trail please visit their website at http://www.thomascole.org/
Party Like It’s MWP!
October 5 is a great night for all things black and white at Munson-Williams-Proctor Arts Institute.
Ansel Adams, Eagle Peak and Middle Brother,
Yosemite National Park, California,
c. The Ansel Adams Publishing Rights Trust
In honor of the current exhibition Ansel Adams: Masterworks and the film Guy and Madeline on a Park Bench, dress in your best black-and-white attire to celebrate art and meet friends (or make new ones) at the mwpARTy 5 to 7 p.m. Wednesday, October 5 in the Museum of Art.
You will be entertained by the John Piazza Jr. Trio and there will be refreshments, including complimentary desserts, snacks and coffee, as well as a cash bar for wine, beer and soda. Enjoy a children’s black-n-white photo activity in the Art Odyssey Gallery; hear a short introduction to the Ansel Adams exhibition by Curator Mary E. Murray; or chat with PrattMWP Photography Professor Keith Sandman, who is planning a photo op just for you.
At 7 p.m. we can all move to the Museum of Art Auditorium (don’t forget to buy your ticket!) for Guy and Madeline on a Park Bench in glorious black and white.
MWParty is free to Institute members, just $5 for the general public (sign up for membership at the party and save). FYI: there is an separate admission for the Adams exhibition and the film series.
