VMFA Blog

Did someone say Lincoln?

2011-12-20T09:29:00.000-05:00

Somerecent rotations of work in the American Art galleries seem particularly timely,if not in the seasonal sense. From the inaugural display of our first-everAlexander Gardner Civil War photograph to the reappearance of three iconic PaulStrand urban images, this new showing of photography calls to mind not only thefinal week of the local filming of the “Lincoln” epic (desperately seekingDDL!) but also a new exhibition at New York’s Jewish Museum on the PhotoLeague, an important 20^th-century group of photographers who promotedsocial and political change through their art (Strand was a founding member).

Thisrare albumen print from the 1865 edition of Gardner’sPhotographic Sketch Book captures AbrahamLincoln’s 1862 visit with George McClellan at Antietam and the palpableanimosity that existed between them. After the bloody devastation of theMaryland battle (famously captured by Gardner’s camera), the president wasdismayed with his general’s hesitation to pursue the Confederates intoVirginia. The notable tension of the scene, with the two men in a somewhatconfrontational pose, goes beyond the inherently static characteristic of the medium.One month later, Lincoln relieved McClellan of his command. And we know whathappened to George Custer (cockily posing at far right) later on!

Thishaunting 1917 photogravure, Man,Five Points Square, New York,also marks a moment in time and reveals what made Strand a leading early-20^th-centuryphotographer and filmmaker. Going beyond mere documentation to expose thelonely desperation of America’s urban poor, Strand sensitively wielded thecamera as a reformist tool.

Othernew acquisitions and loans (paintings and works on paper) can be found in the18^th- and 19^th-century American galleries. Come see foryourself over the holidays.

-Sylvia Yount, Chief Curator and Cochrane Curator ofAmerican Art

A new tapestry in time for Christmas

2011-12-16T19:57:00.000-05:00

Conservation staff prepares a 16th century Flemish tapestry, Two Scenes from the Life of Christ, for display in VMFA's medieval galleries. Kathy Gillis, Head of Sculpture and Decorative Arts Conservation, and Jennifer Bridges, Conservation Technician, are carefully securing a backing for protection of the tapestry while on display. The installation is planned for December 15, in time for Christmas. Appropriately, the two "scenes" are "The Nativity" and "The Adoration".

Teen Stylin' Tomorrow Evening!

2011-12-06T15:00:00.000-05:00

Come join us tomorrow as we celebrate Teen Stylin’ 2011! This event will showcase the creativity and ingenuity of some of Richmond’s most exciting up-and-coming designers! Area teens have been hard at work designing a collection of show-stopping wearable art to be showcased during this annual runway exhibition. Don’t miss this opportunity to experience fresh takes on fashion as well as meet the innovative designers. (Get your autographs now, because these talented teens are headed for fashion stardom!)

Teen Stylin' Schedule:

6:30-7:30pm: Life Ever After Runway Exhibition

7:30-8:30pm: Visit designers in VMFA Galleries

8:30pm: Award Presentation

http://vmfa.museum/Teens/Stylin/

Art Direction in the 1963 epic, 'Cleopatra'

2011-12-06T13:58:00.001-05:00

This Saturday morning, 12/10/11, journalist and interior designer Cathy Whitlock will appear in-person at VMFA with a showing of the colossal 1963 motion picture, Cleopatra, starring Elizabeth Taylor. You are invited to see Ms. Taylor, a former Virginia resident and the last of the grand movie stars, in her most iconic role for a very rare showing on the big screen in a theatrical setting.

Ms. Whitlock has put together one superb book on movie art direction entitled, Designs on Film: A Century of Hollywood Art Direction (HarperCollins). This handsome volume is richly illustrated with stills and drawings from the archives of the movies’ Art Director’s Guild to which Ms. Whitlock had exclusive access. The jacket notes: “…(she) narrates the evolving story of art direction over the course of a century---from the massive Roman architecture of Ben-Hur to the infamous Dakota apartment in Rosemary’s Baby to the digital CGI wonders of Avatar’s Pandora.“

The VMFA Gift Shop will have signed copies.

The splendid and audacious all-day event has several quality components. You may choose to partake of just part of it or enjoy the entirety. $8 / $5 for VMFA members.

--Hobart Cornell, Critic-at-large

Schedule:

10:30am Ms. Whitlock’s presentation w/Q&A

11:30am break

12:15pm VMFA’s Jack and Mary Ann Frable Curator of

Ancient Art Dr. Peter Schertz will discuss authenticity issues.

12:30-5pm THE movie (over 4 hours with intermission)

http://www.vmfa.museum/Calendar_and_Events/Films/Cinema_Style__Cleopatra.aspx

http://wwwcinemastyle.blogspot.com/

Caligula 3-D: Man, Myth, Emperor

2011-11-29T17:44:00.005-05:00

Caligula Project rendering of VMFA portrait of Caligula

When Dr. Peter Schertz, VMFA Jack and Mary Ann Frable Curator of Ancient Art, arrived at the museum in 2006, he recognized the statue of Caligula as one of the highlights of VMFA’s antiquities collection.

Formally known as Gaius Julius Caesar Augustus Germanicus, Caligula was born in AD 12 and became emperor of Rome at age 25. History records his four-year reign as that of a madman who alienated the mainstays of the imperial order and was assassinated in AD 41. His reputation has been sealed in modern times by his depiction in the series I Claudius, which aired on public television in the 1970s, as well as in a film from the same period.

While many monuments honoring Caligula were destroyed after he was murdered, a number of portraits survived, though mostly busts. Of the two known full-length statues, the copy in Richmond is by far the best preserved, Schertz says. As Schertz studied this remarkable portrait he began to wonder what it originally looked like as well as how and why it was able to survive. More significantly, Schertz wondered, why don’t more people know about it?

In 2009 Bernard Frishcher, Professor of Art History and Classics at the University of Virginia, contacted Schertz. Frischer is also Codirector of the Digital Sculpture Project and Director of the Virtual World Heritage Laboratory, also at UVA. The laboratory’s mission is to create 3-D digital models of the world’s most significant sculptures and make them available on the Internet. Frischer and Schertz agreed that VMFA’s portrait of Caligula was an ideal subject for this project. Using advanced scanning technologies, a team of scholars have been able to produce highly detailed 3-D digital renderings of the statue and virtually reconstruct its missing parts, examine previous restorations (the head was reattached to the torso around 1970), and hypothesize about the statue’s original polychromy or color.

The culmination of the project is the symposium at VMFA on Sunday, December 4, 10 am–5 pm in the Leslie Cheek Theater. Scholars will review these findings and present other scholarship related to Caligula and portraiture. In addition to Schertz and Frischer, speakers include John Pollini of the University of Southern California, Paolo Liverani of the Univeristy of Florence, David Koller of the University of Virginia, Steven Fine of Yeshiva University, Maria Grazia Picozzi of the University of Rome, and VMFA Conservator Kathy Gillis. Open and free to the public, the discussion promises to be lively and stimulating.

Advance tickets are required. Call 804.340.1405 or reserve online at https://tickets.vmfa.museum/public/loader.asp?target=show_events_list.asp?shcode=936
The Caligula Project is funded by the National Endowment for the Humanities.

- Dr. Peter Schertz

“Greatest Movie Ever Made” to Play at VMFA

2011-11-17T17:15:00.000-05:00

H. Hobart Cornell, photo courtesy Jeffrey Allision

In 1963, a motion picture production ballooned into a behemoth extravaganza the likes of which filmdom had never seen. The elements were worthy of classic tragedy: overweening hubris, colossal blundering, a strong scent of scandal, an astonishing lack of shame, and somewhere in there was some astounding filmmaking.

This was the spectacle of Cleopatra made by the venerable 20^th Century Fox Hollywood studio. The movie itself was a side-show to its stars’ torrid and unabashed infatuation with each other. Cost overruns soared into the stratosphere forcing accountants and producers to ponder jumping out of their windows. Luckily, Los Angeles buildings were only 2 stories tall.

The movie shoot--in Italy, Spain, England, and even Egypt--transformed into a sort of circus bizarro designed by Narcissus featuring egos and libidos nakedly on-view. It was a planet-wide distraction that knocked cold war tensions out of the headlines and portended the burgeoning sexual revolution and extreme reality shows like Jersey Shore.

Yet there is some pathos at its core. The director, Joseph L. Mankiewicz, was sure he was achieving a cinematic marvel that would be one of the greatest movies ever made. Oh, yea, he was not alone. One of his major stars, Rex Harrison (as Julius Caesar), agreed with the director and nobly offered to forgo his own salary to help out. Just as nobly, Rex’s offer was declined.

The original Cleopatra --all 4 hours and 8 minutes--will be shown Saturday, December 10, 10:30am to 5pm, with presentations on its art direction and its authenticity issues.

---Hobart Cornell, Critic-at-large

Dress like an Egyptian - see the exhibition for free!

2011-11-14T17:47:00.000-05:00

It’s hard to imagine how we could make our new special exhibition, Mummy: Secrets of the Tomb, more fun, but we have. And you’re an integral part.

On opening day, Saturday, November 19, VMFA will offer free admission to the first 200 nonmembers that arrive at the museum in Egyptian-themed costume. It’s your opportunity to show off your inner Cleopatra, mummy, or King Tut.

Exploring the rituals of death and burial in ancient Egypt, Mummy: Secrets of the Tomb features more than 100 objects from the internationally renowned Egyptian collection of the British Museum. The exhibition also includes a 21-minute, 3D movie narrated by Patrick Stewart, showing the virtual unwrapping of temple priest Nesperennub’s mummy using the most advanced scanning technology currently available.

We hope to see lots of Richmonders in their Egyptian-inspired finest! See you Saturday.

Here’s the “fine print”:

· Your costume must Egyptian-themed and cover at least half of your body.

· No props, such as spears, staffs, or chariots, please.

· A VMFA staff member will greet visitors at the main entrance, examine costumes and award tickets to participants that meet “fine print” guidelines.

· The exhibition runs on 30-minute time slots. We will distribute 40 tickets per 30-minute time slot (10, 10:30, 11, 11:30, and noon). Once the tickets are gone, they’re gone!

· Best Café will open at 9 am and will be selling coffee, tea, muffins, and scones. Queuing for first time slot will begin at 9:45 am and museum galleries will open at 10 am. If you arrive early, we’ll be opening our doors (but not the museum) at 9 am. Visitors can wait in Best Café until 10 am.

Promotional tickets are for nonmembers. Admission is always free to members with a reserved ticket.

VMFA and Confederate History

2011-11-10T16:56:00.000-05:00

What's going on?

Confederate Memorial Chapel

In recent weeks a group calling itself Virginia Flaggers has undertaken a campaign asking that the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts mount Confederate battle flags on the Confederate Memorial Chapel. The endeavor has included demonstrations on site, blog postings, and contact with patrons, legislators, and media. The museum administration has recently met with a representative of this group to hear issues and opinions, to share its ongoing commitment to interpretation and stewardship of the Chapel, and to decline respectfully this request.

Background

In preparation for the commemoration of the Civil War Sesquicentennial, the museum undertook extensive research into the history of the grounds. A review of documents and images dating back to the time of the Soldiers’ Home (1885–1941)—and through subsequent decades after the Commonwealth assumed full ownership of the property in 1941—reveals that no flags hung from the Chapel. Battle flags were mounted on the facade when Lee Jackson Camp, No. 1, Sons of Confederate Veterans (SCV), began leasing the chapel in 1993. When renewing that lease in June 2010 and following a unanimous vote of its board of trustees, VMFA asked that the flags be removed—an effort that returned the historic structure to its original appearance.

Historic Interpretation

The museum takes seriously its responsibility, granted by the Commonwealth, to preserve the chapel and its place in postbellum history and has devoted extensive funding toward its care and maintenance. Moreover, VMFA is not only aware of the history of its grounds and period buildings (which include Robinson House and the former Home for Needy Confederate Women), but actively interprets the compelling story of the Robert E. Lee Camp, No. 1, through public tours, a link on its website, and outdoor signage.

In addition to the state historical marker and a bronze sign designating the site as the Confederate Memorial Park that VMFA placed on the grounds in the 1950s, three new illustrated signs were recently installed that mention this designation and tell the story of the Soldiers’ Home. A fourth sign near the Chapel, facing Grove Avenue, interprets the Confederate national flag. Before installation, the text and images for these panels were reviewed by leading Civil War scholars as well as representatives of Lee Jackson Camp, No. 1, SCV.

Confederate history and emblems are currently well represented at the Virginia Historical Society and the United Daughters of the Confederacy headquarters, institutions also situated on the grounds of the former Soldiers’ Home. The Confederate national flag is flown daily at the front of the United Daughters of the Confederacy building, and Confederate battle and national flags are currently displayed within the Chapel, where their historical significance is interpreted by local representatives of Lee Jackson Camp, No. 1. In direct response to requests by the Sons of Confederate Veterans, VMFA also installed a flag pole in front of the Chapel, where the Virginia state flag is flown. As is protocol for State agencies, it flies tandem with the flag of the United States of America.

In summary

As VMFA fulfills its primary mission to serve the Commonwealth as a world-class fine arts museum, it will continue to interpret the history of its grounds respectfully and accurately. With many members, patrons, trustees, and staff who share the heritage of the Old Dominion—including those with ancestors who fought for the Confederacy—we share the same interest in honoring those Virginians who gave their lives during that brutal conflict and will do our best to preserve an important part of Virginia’s history.

Cheers to Beers!

2011-10-31T16:42:00.000-04:00

Thank goodness it's finally here! Beer Week, a week we look forward to all year. Amuse is offering a special prix fixe menu for a dinner beer extravaganza featuring 5 courses with 5 beers on Tuesday, November 8, at 6:00pm.

See if you can resist:

Rappahannock Fried Oysters / Meyer Lemon Aioli
Saison DuPont Farmhouse Belgian Ale

Honey & Sesame Granola Bar Parfait / Bleu Cheese Mousse
Thornbridge Kipling South Pacific Pale Ale

House-Made Seafood Sausage / Roasted Beets & Fennel / Orange Gremolata
Ommegang Aphrodite

Pan Roasted Duck Breast / Turnips / Brussel Sprouts / Kobacha Squash Purée
The Brewery Autumn Maple

Apple & Medjool Date Tart Tatin / Homemade Vanilla Ice Cream

Aecht Schlenkerla Ur-bock Rauchbier

Price: $80.00 General / $75.00 for VMFA members

Purchase Tickets online http://tickets.vmfa.museum or at the Visitor Services Desk (804) 340-1405

- Michael Smith

VMFA's past is now present

2011-10-26T10:50:00.000-04:00

The Richmond Dispatch, 1896.

On the occasion of its 75th anniversary and the national commemoration of the sesquicentennial of the Civil War, VMFA has installed new outdoor signs on its campus that interpret the history of the Confederate Soldiers’ Home, a residential compound for poor veterans that once stood on the site between 1885 and 1941.

Established by R. E. Lee Camp, No. 1, Confederate Veterans, the site once included, among other buildings, nine residential bungalows, a dining hall, hospital, and recreation hall. At peak occupancy, the number of residents exceeded 300. Altogether, a total of nearly 3,000 veterans from 33 states called the camp home. In the mid-20th century, the Commonwealth of Virginia gained ownership of the property and designated the site as the Confederate Memorial Park.

The illustrated signs are located near three surviving buildings from the camp era: the earlier Robinson House (an antebellum farmhouse, renamed Fleming Hall and used by the camp as its administration building); the Home for Needy Confederate Women (now VMFA’s Pauley Center, housing offices and meeting rooms); and the Confederate Memorial Chapel. The museum has also launched a related link on its website, www.vmfa.museum. Under “Visit,” look for “History of the Grounds.”

The interpretive signage is part of three Civil-War themed initiatives undertaken by VMFA. Last spring the museum featured the traveling exhibition Civil War Drawings from the Becker Collection. In summer 2012, the museum will present Bold Cautious True: Walt Whitman and American Art of the Civil War Era, an exhibition that explores 1860s landscapes, genre scenes, and sculpture in relation to the work of Whitman, one of the nation’s leading scribes of the War.

- Dr. Elizabeth O'Leary, Associate Curator of American Art

Mummy love, or dress like an Egyptian

2011-10-24T16:41:00.001-04:00

Mummy of Nesperennub about 800 BC©The Trustees of the British Museum

In anticipation and celebration of Mummy: Secrets of the Tomb (Nov 19, 2011 – March 11, 2012) VMFA is sponsoring a Mummy Love program. Anyone may participate, provided they follow the guidelines below. Mummy Love will begin on October 29 at 10 am and continue through the holiday season.

On October 29 at 10 am mummies are invited to VMFA to spell out the word LOVE with their bodies, in the museum atrium in an unabashed publicity collaboration with Virginia Tourism (limit: 30 mummies). Virginia is for Lovers, you know, and mummies love Virginia, too! The photo will be posted on VMFA’s Facebook page for easy upload and sharing. Each participating mummy will receive a free ticket to the upcoming exhibition, and a complimentary beverage in Best Café. And yes, we'll have some extra muslin on hand for those who need to wrap.

On November 19, Mummies or other Egyptian costumes are welcome at VMFA and will be rewarded with free admission to Mummy: Secrets of the Tomb. The first 200 visitors in Egyptian costume (you must be at least half-costumed) will be admitted free. Limit: 40 free tickets per 30-time slot through noon, so put on those linen wrappings, kohl eyeliner and gladiator sandals early!

Other opportunities will be available for Team Mummy, starting with Halloween parties and also including appearances at the Zombie Walk on October 29, the Jefferson Christmas tree lighting on November 28, First Fridays, and more. If you provide your email address to Suzanne.hall(at)vmfa.museum you will be placed on a list for updates. And yes, there will be incentives to participate.

Mummy Love Rules

MUMMIES MUST OBEY THESE RULES TO PARTICIPATE
VMFA will not be held responsible for the actions of the program participants. By participating in this program you agree to follow these rules.

1. Except for Halloween weekend and at VMFA on opening day, mummies may not cover their faces when appearing in public. This is to comply with 18.2-422 in the code of Virginia: Prohibition of wearing masks. You are a mysterious and evocative creature of an ancient culture, not a bank robber.

2. VMFA will provide Mummy: Secrets of the Tomb information cards for distribution by mummies who have arms.

3. DO NOT attempt to scare anyone who is not a willing participant.
If your costume is upsetting to someone, turn and lurch in the opposite direction.

4. No walking out into the street or traffic. VMFA mummies use crosswalks and obey the walk/don’t walk signs.

6. No profanities
You are not only representing VMFA but the noble culture of ancient Egypt. Please behave accordingly.

7. Stay on public property
Do not go into stores or other private properties, unless you have obtained permission.

8. Have fun!
Come up with a theme and stay in character as much as possible.

VMFA Fellowships – Supporting Virginia’s Artists and Art Students Since 1940

2011-10-24T12:23:00.001-04:00

Who doesn’t love free money? That question might have been on the mind of the late John Lee Pratt when he created the Artists Fellowship Fund, but most definitely on Pratt’s mind was a dedication to supporting the artistic abilities and creative potential of residents of the Commonwealth of Virginia.

Art by Kevin Murphy, a VMFA Fellowship recepient

In 1940 Pratt, originally from Fredericksburg, created an endowment with the vision that his gift would be used to provide funding to professional artists and art students from Virginia who excel in their chosen disciplines. Today Pratt’s generosity is combined with funding from two other private sources, the Lettie Pate Whitehead Foundation, and the J. Warwick McClintic Jr. Scholarship Fund, and offered through VMFA’s Art & Education Division in the form of Visual Arts Fellowships. Since 1940, VMFA has been able to award over $4 million to over 1,100 artists from Virginia. And in addition to awards for visual artists, VMFA also offers awards to graduate students studying Art History. The Fellowship is a merit-based competition in which recipients are selected anonymously by distinguished jurors from both in-state and out-of-state. And with no application fee, it’s really a chance to win free money!

The recipients of VMFA Fellowships really do stand out in their fields as exceptional artists, and to see this all you have to do is look at the roster of recipients from the program’s 71-year history. The late Cy Twombly (of Lexington) received two Fellowships in the 1950s that helped fund travel to Europe at the start of his career, trips that undoubtedly had an impact on his journey to becoming a world-renowned artist. Noted photographer Emmet Gowin (of Danville) was also the recipient of two Fellowships in the 1960s; Gowin used his awards to fund his studies at the Richmond Professional Institute and the Rhode Island School of Design. Both Twombly and Gowin are featured in VMFA’s permanent collection.

And it’s not just recipients of the past that make headlines in the art world. R. Nicholas Kuszyk (of Richmond), recipient in 2002, continues to make a name for himself as he reinvents the concept of street art with amusing and thought-provoking graffiti that can be found throughout Brooklyn, NY. Heather Harvey (of Big Stone Gap), recipient in 2009, was featured in a solo exhibition of the same year entitled Fractious Happy at the Delaware Center for the Contemporary Arts. And if you happen to be traveling through the Richmond International Airport this month, you might notice the VMFA-managed exhibition of monumental portrait photographs on display by 2011 recipient Jason Horowitz (of Arlington); crossing into another media, Horowitz recently collaborated on the short film A B C, which was selected for this year’s DC Short Film Festival.

The names of Fellowship recipients are also popping up in popular culture. Vince Gilligan (of Richmond), a two-time Fellowship recipient, has received accolades and Emmy nominations for his work producing and directing the hit TV series The X-Files and Breaking Bad. Megan Holley (of Richmond), a recipient in 2001, wrote the screenplay for the award-winning feature film Sunshine Cleaning.

Currently VMFA offers $8,000 awards to Professionals, $6,000 awards to graduate students, and $4,000 awards to undergraduate students. So if you meet the applicant criteria, there’s nothing to lose by applying, and potentially so much to gain! Head to www.VMFA.museum/Fellowships for an application and all other information on how to apply, and don’t forget the deadline – November 10, 2011.

- Elizabeth Cruickshanks, VMFA Fellowship Coordinator

WSJ Bureau Chief Talks about Xu Bing

2011-09-28T21:58:00.000-04:00

Wall Street Journal Bureau Chief Betsy McKay traveled to Richmond to write an in depth feature on Xu Bing: Tobacco Project. Click the link below to view the interview.

Add Red Book, 2000. “Zhonghua” brand of cigarettes, rubber-stamped with English text from Quotations by Chairman Mao (Little Red Book). caption

Wall Street Journal Video on Xu Bing

National TV News Personality Eric Burns Tobacco

2011-09-20T17:23:00.000-04:00

Eric Burns will speak at VMFA Sept. 30, Friday, on the topic of his book The Smoke of Gods: A Social History of Tobacco. After his talk, there will be a book signing and then the movie Coffee and Cigarettes will be shown. This event complements VMFA’s Xu Bing Tobacco Project exhibition.

Mr. Burns was media analyst and host of Fox News Watch for 10 years cited by Vanity Fair magazine as one of only two programs on the network worth watching and he was especially commended for fairness as a moderator. As an NBC News correspondent, Mr. Burns was named by the American Journalism Review as one of the best writers in the history of television news joining such luminaries as Edward R. Murrow and Charles Kuralt.

Mr. Burns other books include The Spirits of America: A Social History of Alcohol and Infamous Scribblers: The Founding Fathers and The Rowdy Beginnings of American Journalism.

Coffee and Cigarettes (2004; b&w; 95 min) by Jim Jarmusch is a comic series of short vignettes with characters in offbeat discussions poetically linked by the sipping of coffee and smoking of cigarettes. They discuss things as diverse as caffeine popsicles, Paris in the '20s, and the use of nicotine as an insecticide. The film views our world from an extraordinary angle showing how absorbing the obsessions, joys and addictions of life can be, if truly observed. Stars Bill Murray, Cate Blanchett, Steve Buscemi, Cinque Lee, Joie Lee, Roberto Benigni, Iggy Pop, Tom Waits, The GZA, RZA, and more.

Friday, September 30, 6:30PM

VMFA Leslie Cheek Theater

$10/ $8 for VMFA members

--Trent Nicholas, Media Programs Coordinator

Xu Bing's 9/11 Commemoration

2011-09-07T22:22:00.030-04:00

Where Does the Dust Itself Collect?

An installation by Xu Bing

In this award-winning installation, Xu Bing explores the boundaries between the physical and spiritual realms, between impermanence and eternity.

On view at 7 West 22nd Street in Manhattan from September 8-10

The Bodhi (True Wisdom) is not like the tree;

The mirror bright is nowhere shining;

As there is nothing from the first,

Where does the dust itself collect?

This poetic response was written as the true expression of Chan (Zen) Buddhism by Hui Neng (638-713), the Sixth Patriarch of the Chan sect. It was intended by Hui Neng to answer the poem of another Zen monk who claimed to understand the faith in all its purity, who wrote:

The body is the Bodhi tree;

The soul is like the mirror bright,

Take heed to keep it always clean,

And let no dust collect upon it.

In the gallery space, using dust collected from the streets of lower-Manhattan in the

aftermath of the attacks on the World Trade Center, Xu Bing creates a fine blanket of dust punctuated by the outline of a Zen Buddhist poem, revealed as if the letters have been removed from under the layer. The subdued, quiet space created by this work references the thin, whitish-grey film that covered lower-Manhattan in the weeks following September 11, 2001. The dust is applied to the floor with a leaf blower and allowed 24 hours to settle over a stencil that is later removed to reveal the text “As there is nothing from the first, where does the dust itself collect?”

Upon awarding the inaugural Artes Mundi award to Xu Bing for the work, Okwui Enwezor, Chair of the Judging Panel said "One of the things the judges most liked was the way Xu Bing translates ideas and issues into visual forms that cross cultural boundaries. In the National Museum & Gallery he has created a space for reflection which is both engaging and moving. He consistently creates haunting and lasting images by capturing the fragility of human existence. Xu Bing is an artist with wit, poetry and passion."

The work "Where Does the Dust Itself Collect?" will be presented by the Lower Manhattan Cultural Council in a storefront at 7 West 22nd Street in Manhattan from September 8-10. The space will be open Tues-Sunday 12 noon until - 6:00 p.m. A panel discussion will be at the Museum of Chinese in America on the evening of September 13.

Materials: Dust collected near Ground Zero in the wake of the September 11 attacks; Chan Buddhist poem; viewing platform and process photos

Dimensions: 25 feet by 20 feet

Previously Exhibited: Artes Mundi: Wales International Visual Art Prize 2004, National Museum &Gallery, Cardiff, Wales (winner); Xu Bing in Berlin, Museum für Ostasiatische Kunst, Berlin,Germany (2004); 26th São Paulo Biennial, Pavilhão Ciccillo, San Paulo, Brazil (2004)

Note on transporting 9/11 dust: In advance of his 2004 trip to Cardiff, Wales to install this work for the inaugural Artes Mundi exhibition, Xu Bing became concerned that he would not be able to bring the fine, white dust on an international flight. In the post-9/11 security environment, it would be hard for anyone to explain away a bag of dust labeled “September 11, 2001” concealed in one's carry-on baggage. Thus, using a rubber mold based on the form of his daughter's doll, Xu Bing created a small statue, which easily passed through screening and was later ground back into powder.

Xu Bing: Tobacco Project opens at VMFA on September 10, 2011. Admission is free.

Xu Bing Studio

Brooklyn NY

www.xubing.com

Faberge Revealed with Fiber Optic Lighting

2011-08-22T13:36:00.000-04:00

Faberge Revealed is truly a spectacular exhibition of more than 500 objects, and what better way to illuminate these jewels than with fiber optic lighting systems. Fiber optic lighting, unlike fiber optics for telecommunications, transmits light from a light source at one end, through many strands of fiber, and out through focused fixtures which we then use to light art objects.

These systems are primarily installed to illuminate light sensitive artifacts because the harmful ultraviolet rays and heat is filtered out and the light emitted is much less hazardous than traditional light sources. Fiber optic lighting is also highly focusable, which allows for small spotlights to be placed on small objects, like a Faberge Egg. The Imperial Eggs, a diamond-encrusted tiara, and the Nobel Ice Egg are some of the objects illuminated with fiber optic lighting systems in Faberge Revealed. These systems were designed to illuminate the precious objects with special micro fibers and miniature fixtures allowing for very precise lighting.

Most of these small light sources are out of view but, as you can see, the jewel encrusted objects were exceptionally illuminated and completely viewable, top to bottom, and in the round. Fiber optic systems are also highly energy efficient, taking the place of dozens of incandescent bulbs, and are a testament to VMFA’s focus on energy efficient initiatives.

But most importantly the fiber optic lighting has provided the light for which we can now see every inch these wonderful objects and allow for us to marvel with new appreciation.

Lee Weaver, Exhibition Lighting Design Technican

Tristin Lowe: Mocha Dick at VMFA

2011-07-22T08:49:00.007-04:00

"When the last piece gets attached, something will click," Tristin explained to our installation team standing around the whale's naked substructure. At that point we were still focused on filtration systems in its belly, but Mocha Dick's massive musculature was already attracting a crowd at the window.

Over the course of the week, we've tied to the rope-buttressed inflatable a system of felt strips that form Mocha's barnacle covered, "white as wool" skin, just like that of the sculpture's ship-crushing albino inspiration - the whale on which Melville's Moby Dick is based. Tristin is full of stories about the history of whaling and the anatomy of sea creatures, and seems particularly fascinated by human adventurers in the hostile environment of the sea. The actual Mocha Dick terrorized ships in the early 19th century, and the sculpture is brought to life by stitched scars reflecting the 100 or so skirmishes the whale survived.

Now that we're smoothing the last wrinkles, and the final felt piece has been zippered in place, I see that something magical has indeed happened. A fuzzy white monster busts through the gallery space - it would be terrifying, if he didn't look so darn cuddly.

--Jonathon Kittrell, Art Handler

Chicken Mummification

2011-07-21T13:05:00.002-04:00

We’ve all seen a mummy before, whether it was Tjeby at VMFA, or on a late-night horror flick when we were kids. I have always been fascinated by the mummies I’ve seen on display at countless museums across the country and also the mysterious stories in books and films. I never once believed that I would come into close contact with a real mummy, let alone be the one to mummify a body, - especially a chicken body!

In the fall of 2010, I was enrolled in an Ancient Art class at Hollins University with Professor Christina Salowey. The class started off as a normal art history lecture course, with presentations on Ancient Egypt and the surrounding civilizations. We were all taken aback when, about halfway through the semester, a PowerPoint entitled “Why Mummify?” flashed in front of the class. Professor Salowey explained the reasons why Ancient Egyptians mummified the dead and why a preserved body was so important in the afterlife. We learned about the embalming process and how the body organs were removed, (not a pleasant subject to discuss after lunch), and even saw graphic examples of human and animal mummies. Then it was our turn.

On a brisk October morning it was time to meet our chickens. We were handed a pair of latex gloves, gallon-sized Ziploc bags, a roll of paper towels, a canister of salt, and a 3 pound, plucked, no-hormones added, chicken. Professor Salowey grinned as we all hesitated with chickens in hand. She immediately started drying off her chicken with paper towels, so I followed suit. The chicken was cold and surprisingly wet. I went through about half a roll of paper towels, stuffing them inside the chicken cavity and out, trying to absorb the moisture. After it was completely dry, I looked around and noticed other students grabbing different spices off the shelves. I snatched up a jar of cinnamon and ground cumin and poured both all over my chicken. It started to smell more like a cooking class than a mummification project! I placed the fragrant bird in a plastic bag and poured the whole container of salt around it. The bag was firmly sealed and placed into a storage container to begin the process.
Through the course of about 45 days, the chicken was re-salted 4 times. The first time wasn’t so bad, the chicken was just a little wet and had gotten a little smaller. Then, the smell started to sink in. Cinnamon and mummified chicken don’t go well together. I had to hold my breath while wiping the chicken down with paper towels and the salt was turning brown from all of the moisture, which didn’t help my nausea. Six weeks later, we were ready to wrap. Professor Salowey brought in old bed sheets with flower prints on them, to make our chickens beautiful for their journey into the underworld. I rubbed my chicken with cinnamon once more, and then tore the sheets into strips for the wrappings. It was a bit difficult to wrap my bird artistically, but I was finally able to place my completed mummy into its shoebox sarcophagus. My mummy was resting in style with its Styrofoam mummy mask and gold painted box, complete with a sequined eye of Horus as its look out!

Professor Salowey has been doing this mummification project for many years now, and she always says that some Ancient Egyptian king is having a feast of chickens right about now in the afterlife. I just hope my chicken lived up to kingly expectations!

-Cassie Bjerke, Hollins University, VMFA Communications Intern

Free art by a major artist!

2011-06-24T11:53:00.002-04:00

Yes, it's unabashed marketing but this month's Art in America contains a work of art by Argentinian artist Rirkrit Tiravanija. Read about this in Real Clear Arts.
Find out more

Arts blogs are always fascinating to read. We always welcome suggestions of good ones to follow.

--Suzanne Hall

It's your VMFA

2011-06-23T18:10:00.001-04:00

Perhaps this man is considering the fine art of donations!

Did you know that the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts is the only art museum in the U.S. open 365 days a year? Did you know that more than 700,000 people have come through the doors of VMFA in the last year? Did you know we have two upcoming special exhibitions, Fabergé Revealed in July and Mummy: Secrets of the Tomb in November?

Did you know that none of this would be possible without the VMFA Annual Fund? This critical fund supports excellent special exhibitions; award-winning educational programming, and enables to museum to remain free and open to the citizens of Virginia and beyond.

Did you know that you can make a difference by making a tax-deductible gift before June 30? Any amount helps. Go to www.vmfa.museum/donate to give now.

Remember, it’s your art!

--Katie Merritt, VMFA Annual Fund Manager

An Evening with Artemisia Gentileschi: a woman like that

2011-06-17T09:41:00.001-04:00

On Friday, June 17^th, VMFA will present a Virginia premiere of an unconventional and compelling documentary film/video: a woman like that (2010, 93 min). Several mysteries should be solved.

Artemisia Gentileschi (1593-1653) was one of the first female artists to achieve recognition in her own time, the Baroque era. Her work is mentioned often in the same breath as Caravaggio and even at times as surpassing him. She painted women heroically, from history, mythology, and the Bible. About 35 known finished paintings of hers exist and VMFA owns one of the finest, Venus and Cupid, on view in the European galleries.

In a woman like that, filmmaker Ellen Weissbrod pursues the truths behind the legends and mysteries of Artemisia’s compelling art and dramatic life including her “rape.” Weissbrod walks us through Artemisia’s Roman neighborhood, examines the 400 year-old rape trial transcripts, and follows Artemisia’s trail from Florence to Naples, gaining entrance to private collections, and talking with distinguished scholars and passionate fans. For effect, Weissbrod gathers Artemisia admirers who act out the paintings, read her letters and recount her influence in their own lives.

There is a mystery with the film itself. Weissbrod was denied permission to film the once-in-a-lifetime retrospective of Artemisia and her father Orazio at the Saint Louis Art Museum. Brazenly, she filmed the exhibition with a hidden camera. For the first time, Ms. Weissbrod and producer Melissa Powell will sit on the same stage with Dr. Judith Mann of the Saint Louis Art Museum to confront and discuss and explain and reveal their own truths.

--Hobart Cornell, Critic-at-large

Friday, June 17, 6:30, $8 / $5 for members

Tickets: 340-1405 or online or onsite

Harry Kollatz’ blog:

http://richmag.com/news/blogs.php?blogID=186f1626686059a0b4151058c94abaf9

The mummy returns!

2011-05-26T10:34:00.003-04:00

Practically from the moment I arrived in Richmond, people asked me “Whatever happened to the mummy?” They didn’t remember his name – Tjeby – or when he was from (First Intermediate Period) but they all vividly remembered how he was displayed: you walked up a long ramp lined with Egyptian art, turned 90 degrees and looked down into a recreation of an Egyptian tomb. Arabic music helped set the atmosphere.

A visitor peers into the "tomb" of the former Egyptian Gallery.

In telling me about the mummy, these museum-goers were telling me about a formative experience that helped create a life-long love and bond between them and VMFA. So many people told me about the mummy, that I began talking to colleagues and co-workers about why it was taken off view (our director at the time, Paul Perrot, felt it was an inappropriate display) and whether we should revisit the question of displaying what are, after all, human remains. After two years of discussion within and outside the museum, we decided that if we could find an appropriate way to display it.

Perrot’s objection to the old display was that it was more theatrical than educational, but the display was effective precisely because it was theatrical. I wanted to recapture at least a little bit of that theatricality, so one of the museum’s highly experienced designers created a dimly lit corner in the gallery with lighting in the mummy case that comes on only as you approach Tjeby (this lighting is also practical, since strong light could damage the mummy). Other material in the case gives a sense of the everyday objects that might have been found in Tjeby’s home and the labels in the case include excavation photography of the discovery of Tjeby’s tomb and explain some of the history and methods of archaeology. This seemed like both a dramatic and educational way to discuss ancient Egyptians concern for the afterlife, a central aspect of their culture.

The true test of the display came when Paul Perrot paid a visit to the museum and asked for a tour of the Egyptian gallery. I was nervous; after all, he had decided that we should not display the mummy. To my great relief, however, he gave our new display the nod of approval and told me that if we had displayed the mummy in this manner in the past, he would have had no problem with it.

I must confess a secret, though. While it is true that nothing inspires like a good mummy, what most intrigues me about the current installation of the mummy are the objects on the back wall: a pair of wooden sandals and a bronze razor. Imagine, a four-thousand year old razor!

-- Dr. Peter Schertz, Jack and Mary Anne Frable Curator of Ancient Art

Chaplin’s Circus synonymous with cinema

2011-05-25T17:31:00.000-04:00

Image: Janus Films/ Warner Bros.

If there is one iconic image that signifies “Cinema” it is Charlie Chaplin in his Little Tramp costume shuffling down the road into the sunset. It is a form that has taken on logo status as an all-telling symbol of motion pictures. This figure, spanning many generations, means MOVIES.

As the first international super star of filmdom, Chaplin’s contributions to the art of cinema were incalculable. Never heavy on obtrusive visual style, his compositions were functional in capturing his expressive face, amazing athleticism, and skills with props. Chaplin understood the intimacy of the camera lens and used it to figuratively put his arm around the viewers and bring them warmly in to the comic-tragic world of the noble Tramp.

This Friday, VMFA will be screening The Circus from 1928. It is Chaplin’s most underrated classic. And it is the Chaplin film that plays the most with his trademark tension between melancholy and ebullience. It is the movie into which he as artist reflexively poured his soul out onto the canvas, exposed vulnerability, self-doubts, and examined his professional and personal challenges. To note, silent movies were fast being replaced by the “talkies” as The Circus was being made and Chaplin firmly believed that cinema, a visual medium, was meant for pantomime. Despite all this, The Circus contains many of Chaplin’s best and strongest comic sequences. And through it all, the Tramp maintains nobility and vigilance.

Enjoy it at VMFA’s Leslie Cheek Theater Friday, 6:30PM, $7 / $5 for members.

The mummy returns

2011-04-28T17:00:00.001-04:00

The art handlers and exhibit designer were slightly disturbed by my seemingly morbid interest as I pestered them week after week asking: “So, when’s the mummy going to be installed?!”

I can’t help it… my interest in mummies stretches as far back as I can remember. Children seem to be so fascinated by mummies, but my fascination has continued on into adulthood.

In 2009, I was awarded the Maha Shawky Whitfield Research Grant in Egyptian Art from VCU which allowed me to travel to 7 different countries in Europe, visit over 20 museums where I met with various curators, and studied the ways in which these museums displayed their Ancient Egyptian collections. Through some of these interviews with the curators, I realized a major issue they must deal with when deciding on how to display Egyptian art is what to do about the mummies. It is a difficult issue since mummies are a most attractive feature in a gallery (especially to kids) but are also remains of human beings who once treaded this earth just as we do today.

Once back in the States, I interned with Peter Schertz, VMFA’s Ancient Art Curator, and helped write some of the labels for the soon-to-be reinstalled Egyptian galleries. My favorite label, of course, was the one about mummification!

I also discussed with him at length the ways that European museums displayed their mummies and was happy to learn about Peter’s vision for the reinstallation of VMFA’s mummy, Tjeby.

In order for visitors not to be confronted by the mummy right away, Peter decided to dedicate an entire corner of the gallery to the mummy and mummification related materials that would be somewhat closed off from the rest of the space. This means visitors have the choice of whether or not they want to view the mummy in the first place. The lighting in Tjeby’s case is much darker than anywhere else in the gallery and only brightens up when the motion sensors detect a visitor’s presence as he/she approaches the case. This is a great way to make the visitor aware of the space he/she is entering and to accentuate the fact that within the display lies the mummified remains of Tjeby, a human being, just like us. A being who should remain respected, just as we would respect any tomb in today’s cemeteries.

How exciting it was to be able to watch the installation of this case with my own two eyes! Having seen so many mummy cases throughout Europe already installed, it was quite a treat to watch the installation in progress. It was a rather complicated affair – precise measurements had been made so that the coffin would fit in just right. The superb team of VMFA art handlers skillfully, and patiently, lifted Tjeby’s coffin up into the case and scooted it around (but carefully!) until he was positioned perfectly. They removed the little packs that were helping to absorb moisture – and soon the room was filled with the oh-so interesting smell of this 4,000 year old mummy!

Along my travels in Europe, one curator in particular, at the Rijksmuseum van Oudheden in Leiden, mentioned that the Egyptians had a prayer that went something like this: “If you pronounce my name, I will live forever.” While much debate surrounds the display of mummies, I feel that as long as the mummy is in the proper coffin he/she was buried in (as is Tjeby), and as long as the mummy’s name is clearly displayed next to the case, then we are fulfilling the Egyptians’ wishes. Just think! Thousands of museum visitors, of all shapes and sizes, will visit this gallery and as they gaze in wonder at this mummy, will pronounce Tjeby’s name and satisfy his request to live forever!

--Jessica Ferey, Administrative Assistant, Curatorial and Exhibtions

Picasso Served Up in Rich Cinematic Terms

2011-04-27T13:13:00.003-04:00

What is it about Merchant Ivory films that make them so handsome and erudite and yet so entertaining and giving? It is the touch that the team of Producer Ismail Merchant, Director James Ivory, and Screenwriter Ruth Prawer Jhabvala has treated audiences to for decades. This critic grieves that there be no one in this crass world to replace them in making motion pictures of these highest standards.

The Virginia Museum of Fine Arts offers one such fine Merchant Ivory experience this Friday at 6:30 on the big screen in VMFA’s Leslie Cheek Theater ($7/ $5 for members). Surviving Picasso (1996) provides a look at Pablo Picasso’s private life from 1943-1953 dwelling on the relationship he had with aspiring painter Francoise Gilot.

Anthony Hopkins delivers an uncannily convincing portrayal of the supreme genius of 20th century world art. He captures the charismatic and at times clownish side of Picasso while hinting at that moribund, cat-about-to-strike side that we have seen in some photos and films. Natascha McElhone is splendid as the sturdy young woman who endured Picasso’s overweening confidence and capriciousness towards lovers.

An authentically detailed period piece, Surviving Picasso rises above situations that in the hands of lesser filmmakers could be mawkish or stooping to soap operatic depths. This motion picture is for adults in the best sense. Come and enjoy and leave refreshed and enriched.
--H. Hobart Cornell, Critic-at-large

Julian Schnabel & Pablo Picasso

2011-04-26T09:55:00.002-04:00

Julian Schnabel, known for films like Basquiat and The Diving Bell and the Butterfly, will be discussing his own art and Picasso’s, both currently on display at the museum. Describing himself as primarily a painter, Schnabel has followed Picasso’s example, establishing himself in the art world by intelligently reinterpreting the old masters and confidently asserting his artistic abilities. The artist is one of the most famous artists from the 1980’s and part of a movement classified as Neo-Expressionism. This style embodies the decade with its enormous scale and theatricality. Schnabel has gained a reputation for his larger than life personality and elusive aesthetic. He paints the way that the brain works—with layers, ambiguity, emotion and memory.

Currently on display in the exhibition Apocalypse: Monumental Paintings of the 1980s, Schnabel’s Understanding Self-Hate serves as a fantastic example of his work. The piece, painted on velvet, is emotional and cryptic. A friend, walking through the exhibition with me, stepped away from it to take in the entire piece. Then, as she began to notice the faces, layered upon one another, she pointed them out and animatedly compared them to celebrities, friends, and other characters. Stepping closer, she noticed that it was made of velvet, and reached out to touch it. Stopping herself, she turned back to me to say “I don’t understand modern art,” but her interaction with the piece demonstrates Schnabel’s ability to engage each viewer in a different way through texture, memory and scale. The painting pushes you away, pulls you closer and draws upon your knowledge to create meaning.

Schnabel’s diverse mediums and emotional range parallel Pablo Picasso’s and these connections, combined with Schnabel’s penchant for the dramatic, make his lecture and his unique take on Picasso an event you won’t want to miss.

Tickets and more info

-Laura Keller, Curatorial Intern, Modern & Contemporary Art

African-inspired fashion show at VMFA

2011-04-22T16:04:00.000-04:00

Last night was a packed house full of style and excitment with beautiful models and artful fashions inspired by Africa. In honor of the newly installed African collection and the extraordinary exhibtion Dynasty and Divinity: Ife Art of Ancient Nigeria.

VMFA’s Past is now Present

2011-04-14T16:38:00.001-04:00

I'm excited about the installation of permanent outdoor signs on VMFA’s campus that interpret the history of the Confederate Soldiers’ Home—a residential compound for poor and infirm southern veterans that once stood on the site between 1885 and 1941. Established by R. E. Lee Camp, No. 1, Confederate Veterans, the camp included, among many buildings: nine bungalows, a large barracks, dining hall, hospital, recreation hall, and a park-like commons. At peak occupancy, residents numbered just over three hundred; altogether a total of nearly three thousand veterans from thirty-three states called the camp home. Today, three buildings survive from the camp era: the earlier Robinson House (known then as Fleming Hall), the Home for Needy Confederate Women (now VMFA’s Pauley Center), and the Confederate Memorial Chapel. In the mid-20^th century, the Commonwealth of Virginia gained ownership of the property and designated the site as the Confederate Memorial Park.

We’re hoping that our visitors—including those coming during the city-wide “Civil War and Emancipation Day” commemoration on April 16^th—will find the history of the museum grounds as compelling as we do. In researching the story, I learned about Anthony Robinson Jr., who built the ca. 1855 farmhouse that still stands, now just opposite the museum’s new entrance. As we celebrate the emancipation of enslaved people, my thoughts go to the African Americans listed as property in Robinson’s 1861 will—people who undoubtedly toiled upon this land.

And in remembering the Civil War, the site brings a somber recognition of national schism, war, and the physical and mental toll upon its survivors. But it also reminds us of post-war healing and reconciliation, as the camp was built and supported with funds donated by former Confederate and Union soldiers alike.

During “Civil War and Emancipation Day” on April 16^th, sponsored by the Future of Richmond’s Past, other VMFA activities will include a 1:30 tour of the former Home of Needy Confederate Women and self-guided viewing of Civil-War related artworks within the museum, including the iconic Burial of Latané by William D. Washington (1864, lent by the Johnson Collection). Free shuttle buses will be available through the day to transport visitors to the multiple historic sites in Richmond commemorating the 150^th anniversary of the Civil War and the end of American slavery. For more information about the day, go to http://civilwar.emancipationday.net/.

--Elizabeth O’Leary, Associate Curator of American Art

A student visits Picasso

2011-04-14T14:05:00.000-04:00

While attending a Picasso exhibition in Paris during the summer of 1955, Frederick Baldwin--a young American journalism student from Columbia University--asked: why not visit the artist instead?

“I wanted to see Pablo Picasso. I don’t suppose that anybody felt less qualified or had less of an excuse than I did. But to me he was a compelling, attractive imaginary companion who had coached many of my dreams about creativity…. Mainly Picasso represented freedom that had nothing to do with the practical office-bound issues that I would soon have to face. This was my temporary, self-issued license to burst unannounced into Picasso’s life.”

Frederick Baldwin speaking with Pablo Picasso.

Access to Picasso, who lived in his mansion the Villa la Californie in Cannes, was challenging but Baldwin persisted; he lived off of pocket change and camped out in his car while sending in messages with the maid. His perseverance paid off when Maya, Picasso’s daughter, ushered him into the mansion. There, sitting in a wicker chair among the African sculptures and abstract portraits of Jacqueline, was one of the greatest artists of the 20^th century – Pablo Picasso.

This fascinating encounter resulted in a series of candid images generously on loan to the Freeman Library by Richard Mumma, a peer of Baldwin’s at Columbia University who graciously lent his camera for the European expedition. The display is titled Dear Monsieur Picasso and is on view until May 15, 2011. Accompanying the show is an amusing memoir written by Baldwin, which is also available online at http://zonezero.com/exposiciones/fotografos/baldwin/. While visiting VMFA to view Picasso: Masterpieces from the Musee National Picasso, Paris, stop in and enjoy a rare glimpse of the artist filtered through the lens of a young photographer. The library is currently open to the public Monday-Friday, 12-5PM.

-Allison Frew and Michelle Hevron, Library Assistants

Photo by Frederick Baldwin, courtesy of Richard Mumma.

Guitar music inspired by Picasso

2011-04-07T11:40:00.001-04:00

Richmond Guitar Quartet and special guest Adam Larrabee

The Richmond Guitar Quartet and special guest Adam Larrabee will preform a FREE guitar concert featuring new compositions of pieces by composers such as Ravel, Satie, and Severac as well as contemporary compositions such as Chick Corea’s "Spain."

Advance tickets are required and can be reserved
by calling Visitor Services at 804.340.1405 or buy online.

A Picasso-inspired musical performance

2011-04-07T10:43:00.000-04:00

The Cochrane Atrium is the setting for this free concert

The Richmond Symphony is offering a free concert in April 14 at 7 p.m. in the Cochrane atrium. The program celebrates the wealth of creative activity that marked Paris in the early 20^th century. Using the Picasso exhibition as the beginning of a colorful journey, the Symphony will perform music by composers whose works were commissioned by Sergei Diaghilev and his Ballet Russes, which took Paris between 1909 and 1929. Picasso provided set and costume designs for numerous Ballet Russe productions, including two of the pieces on the program, Stravinsky’s Pulcinella and Satie’s Mercure. Ravel and Milhaud were actually commissioned for other pieces, but their works performed on this program are from the same period and styles. Prior to moving to the United States and becoming Vernon Duke, perhaps best known for his popular song “April in Paris,” Vladimir Dukelsky also provided music for the Ballet Russes.

With the musicans stages on the landing with the Large Leaping Hare, the experience will be a wonderfully informal, colorful and exciting evening to be able to hear the Richmond Symphony perform in the beautifully contemporary Cochrane Atrium.

The evening's program:

Stravinsky Pulcinella Suite (excerpts)

Ravel Pavane

Satie Les Aventures de Mercure (excerpts)

Vernon Duke April in Paris

Milhaud Le beouf sur le toit

- Suzanne Hall

James River Film Festival this week at VMFA

2011-04-05T14:06:00.000-04:00

It started 18 years ago as the brainchild of Mike Jones, VCU film teacher and former owner of the legendary Biograph Theater here in Richmond. It was conceived as a non-profit showcase for very significant film-related events drawn primarily from the world of independent and avant garde cinema, and has certainly lived up to the promise. Through the years, guests at this “Little Film Festival That Could” have included William Wegman, Stan Brakhage, The Quay Brothers, Charles Burnett, Yoko Ono, Jonas Mekas, and Albert Maysles.

To this day, not one staff member gets paid a salary including Jones and James Parrish who signed on a few years back to work as co-directors. It is an all-volunteer project made of dedicated cinephiles. Consistently, it has given Richmond and region a treasure trove of fine, prestigious film offerings for free or very reasonable prices.

Go to: http://www.vmfa.museum/Films/ to see the events proudly being held at VMFA this coming Friday and Saturday. And for events during the entire festival around Richmond, go to

http://jamesriverfilm.com/

-H. Hobart Cornell, critic-at-large

Septimius Sevrus film nominated for award

2011-04-05T10:03:00.002-04:00

In 1967 the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts acquired a monumental statue of the Roman emperor Septimius Severus. The statue had once belonged to the famous 17th-century Italian collector Vincenzo Giustiniani (1564–1637), who displayed it with his extensive collection of ancient art. But in the late 1960s, scholars questioned whether any or all of the statue had actually been carved in antiquity. Eventually, VMFA took the statue off public view and placed it in storage. In 2007 the museum undertook a comprehensive research campaign using scientific and art historical methods to determine whether or not the statue is a work of ancient art. In addition to the extensive research and testing that was carried out, the statue was cleaned, conserved, and restored before being placed in the museum’s Tapestry Hall.

The 44th Annual WorldFest-Houston, the 3rd oldest international film festival in North America, has nominated the film documenting the conservation of this statue "Solving an Art Historical Puzzle, The Statue of Septimius Severus" for a platinum, gold, or silver award. Details will be posted on www.worldfest.org on Monday April 18.

This collaborative project was made possible through the generous support of the Richard Gwathmey and Caroline T. Gwathmey Memorial Trust. It called upon the expertise of multiple disciplines, including VMFA’s departments of Sculpture and Decorative Arts Conservation, Ancient Art, European Art, and Education.

Watch the video

Learn more

- Suzanne Hall

Prints for Cat Lovers

2011-04-01T15:29:00.004-04:00

Images of cats are plentifully in evidence in VMFA’s exhibition: A Celebration of Print: 500 years of Graphic Art from the Frank Raysor Collection. The exhibition runs until May 22nd in the Mellon Focus Galleries. Admission to the exhibition is free.

Here are three of my favorite cats from the show:

Cornelis de Visscher Dutch, 1629–1658

Large Cat, 1657

Etching

The Maxine Hornung Collection Promised Gift of Frank Raysor,

L.149.2010.1

Visscher’s Large Cat is one of the most famous images of animals from the 17th century. It impresses the viewer with not only its anatomical realism but also its dramatic sense of anticipation for what will happen when the mouse captures the attention of the dormant cat. Though subject to allegorical interpretations (such as representing Vigilance), this image of domesticity must also be appreciated for its naturalistic detail.

Francisco de Goya Spanish, 1746–1828

The Claws of a Cat, but the Dress of a Devotee (Unas de Gato y Habito de Beato), from Los Proverbios, ca. 1824

Etching and aquatint

The Maxine Hornung Collection Promised Gift of Frank Raysor, L.149.2010.123

This plate from Goya’s Proverbs illustrates his anticlericalism, the product of his hatred of the Spanish institution of the Inquisition. However, typical of the broad range of Goya’s satire, this print also exposes the folly of all who seek to hide viciousness behind a façade of virtue.

Gerhard Marcks German, 1889–1981 Dignitaries, 1923 Woodcut

The Maxine Hornung Collection

Promised Gift of Frank Raysor, L.139.2010.129

Marcks began his career as a sculptor and ran a ceramics workshop associated with the Bauhaus school. Although his early sculpture and ceramics adhered to classical forms, his woodcuts, inspired by the German artist-illustrator Lyonel Feininger, were highly expressionist. Here Marcks displays the biting satire that characterized the German expressionist movement during the Weimar period. The preening cats are anything but dignified, proudly holding forth while occupying the lowly gutter. In addition to prints of cats a small selection of cat sculptures and decorative arts representing cats will be on show outside the gallery beginning this Saturday.

Ram fever, available for purchase at VMFA

2011-03-29T15:02:00.001-04:00

You asked and we heard! In honor of our mighty VCU Rams, the VMFA shop has several collectable items for sale for those with Ram Fever, each uniquely appropriate to the museum's collection and to Virginia.

Marvel at this Faberge-inspired ram locket with ram charm. Every Imperial egg in VMFA's collection has a surprise inside, which is also the case with this precious locket in the form of a Faberge egg. A tiny ram's head can be concealed inside the locket or can hang down beneath it on a tiny chain.The egg is in VCU colors and comes in sterling silver or vermeil (18k gold over sterling silver). $130 plus shipping.

For your favorite Ewe.
But wait, there's more! The rich tradition of sporting art at VMFA is supported by a collection of stirrup cups, named for the pre-hunt refreshments offered after the riders are in the saddle. This is for a quick drink in a cup not made to be set down, which could also be called a shot glass in the sporting tradition. Ram's head stirrup cups come in black or white porcelain and are priced at $32.95.

To order call 804.340.1525 or come to the VMFA shop, which is open 365 days a year, 10 am - 5 pm and Thursdays and Fridays until 9 pm.

Go Rams!

The Ides of March

2011-03-15T15:19:00.015-04:00

“Beware the Ides of March,” so says the soothsayer in Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar. Little did visitors to the VMFA this morning realize that it was they who needed to beware. Innocently coming to the museum, perhaps for a bit of Ife, perhaps for a bit of Picasso, perhaps just to enjoy our permanent galleries (for example, the Greek, Roman, and Etruscan gallery; Egyptian art coming soon!), staff members (and their more exhibitionist friends) regaled our visitors with a reading of Caesar’s death scene and Marc Antony’s funeral oration.

The bridge in the Atrium proved a perfect venue for performance, and Jessica slew them with the dying throes of Caesar. Oddly, a surprising number of staff members volunteered to take part in this scene once they learned who would play Caesar. She always seemed such a nice girl, too.

If Caesar’s enemies feared that in life he aspired to be king, they never thought that in death he would become a god. At the celebration of Caesar’s victories soon after his death, a comet appeared in the skies over Rome and Romans said it was Caesar joining the gods. From then on, Caesar became Divus Julius (the divine Julius), and declaring himself Filius Divi (“son of the divine”), Caesar’s nephew and adopted son brought down the fragile Roman republic and established the principate, the imperial system based in Rome that endured for centuries.

-Dr. Peter Schertz, Jack and Mary Ann Frable Curator of Ancient Art

New Pedestals in the Classical Gallery

2011-03-08T14:27:00.002-05:00

Three new pedestals have magically appeared in the Classical Art Gallery, each holding magnificent examples of Greek art. Together with a case featuring Geometric and Archaic art, these pedestals give the gallery a chronological spine in the form of a survey of Greek pottery from the 8^th through the 4^th centuries BCE.

Pan leading Dionysos

The first pedestal holds work from the initial phase of Black Figure pottery, when artists were especially active in centers such as Corinth, Laconia, and Rhodes. One of the many star pieces in this case is a wine pitcher from Rhodes in the wild-goat style featuring a frieze of – you’ll never guess – WILD GOATS!

The second pedestal highlights one of the great moments in Western art – the period from about 580 – 430 BCE, the high point of Athenian vase production. In the 6^th century BCE, Attic artists refined the Black Figure technique to create monumental scenes, such as the warrior departing for battle on an amphora in this case or a delicately rendered, small-scale panther by one of the “Little Masters.” By the end of the 6^th century, most Attic artists worked in the Red Figure technique. One of the most accomplished artists in this technique was the Berlin Painter , who depicted isolated figures on a ground line. On one side of VMFA’s Berlin Painter amphora, the god Apollo holds a lyre and pours a libation over an altar – you can even see the stream of purple wine as it falls from his phiale (cup); on the other side, Artemis, Apollo’s twin sister, holds a pitcher and strides forward, perhaps to refill the phiale.

The third pedestal features works created in the Greek colonies of South Italy, a region often called “Magna Graecia,” literally “Big Greece” because it was larger and wealthier than the Greek mainland. The case has one of my favorite vases in the collection, a work that charmed me while I worked on my dissertation. It was created in the city of Paestum in the 4^th century BCE and on it shows a small, rather stout, Pan (a demi-god follower of Dionysos, not the Great God Pan) carrying an aryballos on his head (with a ring on his finger!) and a situla – a pail – in his other hand. Dionysos, the god of wine, theatre, and untamed nature follows the pan, holding a thyrsus (a staff surmounted by a pine cone and tied with fillet; Dionysos and his followers often carry such staffs, which they occasionally used as weapons) and a phiale.

- Dr. Peter Schertz, Jack and Mary Ann Frable Curator of Ancient Art

Illustration: Pan leading Dionysos, red-figure bell-krater, ca. 330 BC, attributed to the PYTHON PAINTER. Greek (South Italian, Paestan). Terracotta. Adolph D. and Wilkins C. Williams Fund, 82.15

Septimius Severus

2011-03-07T17:19:00.001-05:00

VMFA's newly conserved Septimius Sevrus

There is a very interesting story behind Septimius Severus—both the man himself and the statue of him at VMFA. What some people don’t know is that this Roman emperor was born in Lepcis Magna, North Africa, and so was sometimes referred to as the “African Emperor.” When Severus was 18, he moved to Rome to pursue a public career, and was appointed senator by Marcus Aurelius shortly after. He later ruled as emperor from AD193 to 211, bringing stability and reform to the Roman Empire after a period of civil war. During his reign, Septimius Severus instituted many military campaigns, including a major one in North Africa, which helped to greatly expand and fortify Roman Africa.

You can now see why the statue of Septimius Severus has been placed in Tapestry Hall at VMFA. This is the hall that connects the ancient art galleries to the newly installed Africa art gallery, alluding to the emperor’s ties to both ancient Africa and ancient Rome. I think this is so clever! A lot of questions were raised by scholars about whether the statue itself was actually made in antiquity. So, in 2007, VMFA conducted extensive research on the statue and found out some very interesting information about it. It was concluded that the head and torso were made in antiquity, but belonged to two separate works of art—the head was from a statue of Septimius Severus, and the statue that the torso was from is unknown. These two statues were damaged over time, and in the 17^th century, the head of Septimius Severus and the portion of the torso were combined and then added on to, completing what is now the statue of Septimius Severus that VMFA owns. Stop by Tapesty Hall and see the newly-restored statue—He’s definitely worth seeing!

-Amy Nicholas, VMFA communications intern

Prints, Literacy, and Freedom

2011-03-04T13:06:00.003-05:00

As we continue to explore selected works from the VMFA’s exhibition A Celebration of Print: 500 Years of Graphic Art from the Frank Raysor Collection, the "democracy" of the print medium becomes apparent.

As something becomes cheaper and more widely available, more people will see it and own it. Prints often allowed a broader demographic of society to engage with the power and information of images, because the comparative affordability (and therefore accessibility) of the print vs. an oil painting or a work of sculpture has historically allowed for a larger consumer audience. This is as true in our own day as it was for a devout German in Dürer's time.

The notion of a democracy of visual and cultural accessibility has deeper contexts in a print of an important American painting, Winslow Homer's Sunday Morning in Old Virginia, painted in 1877. Homer produced this scene of post-Civil War African-American life shortly after several visits to the area around Petersburg, Virginia.

The year 1877 was crucial for Americans, as it marked the end of Reconstruction, an extremely turbulent period both socially and politically. After the Civil War, the federal government had enacted new laws and constitutional amendments that forever changed the nature of American citizenship, with a significant aspect of Reconstruction being the full enfranchisement of black Americans in both the North and the South.

Homer's painting of that same year projects the idea of nascent black autonomy by presenting an African-American family reading the Bible. The older children read to the younger children, perhaps teaching them as they read, while an older family member listens, seated at the far right. The sparsely decorated and clearly run-down domestic space is meant to communicate that while these people may have nothing of material value, they are still rich with the possibility of cultural mobility—they are reading and educating one another. Quite understandably, literacy was seen as perhaps the most important key to equality and democracy, and there were many images from this period that show African-Americans reading, an activity that would have been forbidden under slavery. The more picturesque and "progressive" images usually involved children reading to adults, as we see in Homer’s Sunday Morning.

While the 1877 oil painting is now in the collection of the Cincinnati Art Museum, viewers to the VMFA’s exhibit are able to enjoy the 1890 photogravure print of Sunday Morning. Homer gave permission to have the work reproduced using the exciting new photogravure technology, which was deemed appropriate for "fine art" reproductions. Homer was but one artist who allowed his work to be mass-produced in such a way; by the late 19th century people of relatively modest means could own and enjoy photogravure prints of all manner of paintings, whether they were works by Old Masters such as Rembrandt, or contemporary academic artists like Gérôme. This was high art for the masses, meant to be enjoyed in the middle-class home, and was in this instance executed by the French firm Goupil & Cie, published in America in 1890 by D. Appleton & Co. The new technology was a transfer process, and it allowed for rich expression of light and tone. Homer’s economy of means is particularly effective here; the intense shadows of his painting translate well to the photogravure process, and the contrasts craft a serious message from an otherwise quiet family moment. The figures in Sunday Morning would have been understood to be post-plantation freed slaves who were elevating themselves through intellectual activity.

The development of print processes such as this meant that more people could see and own such an image, but there was still an inherent hierarchy in a work such as this; Homer's intended audience was likely progressive Northern white audiences, rather than the Southern blacks he portrayed in Sunday Morning in Virginia. Homer’s works from this period and similar images by other artists may be considered ideological, in that they were consumed by white audiences trying to reconcile who black Americans "were" in the post-Civil War period. 1877 was a critical moment: federal troops were withdrawn from the South, and paramilitary groups like the White League were attempting to undo the political strides made by Southern blacks. The emphasis on literacy seen in Homer’s work was a positive message in support of the greater social and political participation of blacks, although some of Homer’s work and others like it tended to present the African-American identity as childlike or not fully developed, an unfortunately common device in the 19th century.

There was intense interest in works such as this, and not only in the United States. The painting Sunday Morning in Virginia was shown at the Paris Exposition in 1878, and then returned to the US in time to be seen at the National Academy of Design in 1880. It is no surprise that the D. Appleton publishing house would select this image for a mass-produced photogravure print; they had a progressive and Republican-leaning roster of book publications, and Homer’s image of African-Americans was sentimental and picturesque. Ironically, by the time this print was published in 1890, progressive images such as Sunday Morning in Virginia were giving way to more negative images of African-Americans; only 6 years later, the political strides toward equality that were made during Reconstruction were severely damaged in the Supreme Court decision Plessy v. Ferguson.

About the author: Sara Moriarty is a Curatorial Intern, Paul Mellon Collection and Department of European Art, and a Doctoral Candidate in the Department of Art History, Virginia Commonwealth University

Illustration: after Winslow Homer (American, 1836–1910) Sunday Morning in Old Virginia, 1890, Photogravure, Promised Gift of Frank Raysor, L.139.2010.67

Film Director and Legendary Movie Star to Appear

2011-02-28T17:07:00.003-05:00

At this Friday Films, March 4, 2011, VMFA will present film director Tim Reid with his guest Richard Roundtree showing Reid’s 1996 motion picture directorial debut, Once Upon a Time…When We Were Colored, in which Roundtree plays the sturdy ice man, Cleve. Afterwards they will be joined by Tim’s lovely wife, actress Daphne Maxwell Reid, to give insight and Q&A about the movie.

Once Upon a Time…When We Were Colored is a beautiful and evocative depiction of a 1940s-1950s African American community in Mississippi. The complex weaving of several characters stories together with elegance and warmth elevates this movie to a truly rewarding experience for all.

Most any sharp student of pop culture knows who Richard Roundtree is but, in case you missed the bus, he had the dream role in the hippest movie of 1970, SHAFT. The Gordon Parks directed film has come down the ages as a fixture in Americana. Roundtree was chosen to play John Shaft because he was perfect for the hippest, coolest, baddest private eye in Manhattan comparable to Sean Connery’s absolute quintessential James Bond portrayal. The equally legendary Isaac Hayes won the Oscar that year for the theme music.

Join us for a once in a lifetime night! http://www.vmfa.museum/FridayFilms/

- Trent Nicholas, VMFA Coordinator of Statewide Media Resources

photo. Tim Reid (Millennium Studios, 2011).

Claude

2011-02-28T15:05:00.002-05:00

“The finest landscape etching in the world.”

This is the fifth in a series of blog posts discussing highlights of the exhibition A Celebration of Print: 500 Years of Graphic Art from the Frank Raysor Collection currently on display in VMFA’s Mellon Focus Galleries. Admission to this exhibition is free.

Claude Lorrain is best known today as a painter of austerely beautiful classical landscapes. However, he was also active as an etcher, particularly in his early years before his rise to fame. Here he shows a gentler side as a pastoral poet of nature. The subtle lighting effects he was best known for are especially evident in this highly nuanced print.

According to Philip George Hamerton, the 19th century print historian, Claude Lorrain’s The Cowherd was “For technical quality of a certain delicate kind …the finest landscape-etching in the world” In Hamerton’s opinion “One merit of [Claude Lorrain] is not common in his modern successors - the extreme modesty of his style. No etcher was ever less anxious to produce an impression of cleverness and his only object seems to have been the simple rendering of his ideas. He sincerely loved beauty and grace and tried innocently for these till his touch became gentler than that of a child's fingers yet so accomplished that the stubborn copper was caressed as it were into a willing obedience.”

Please come see this subtle and beautiful etching for yourselves – and let me know via blogback if you agree with Hamerton…

Dr. Mitchell Merling
Paul Mellon Curator / Head of the Department of European Art

Illustration: Claude Lorrain (French, 1604–1682), The Cowherd, 1636, Etching, Promised Gift of Frank Raysor, L.139.2010.8

Achieving Gradations in Etching and Drypoint

2011-02-24T15:22:00.014-05:00

This is the fourth in a series of blog posts discussing highlights of the exhibition A Celebration of Print: 500 Years of Graphic Art from the Frank Raysor Collection http://vmfa.museum/Exhibitions/A-Celebration-of-Print/ currently on display in VMFA’s Mellon Focus Galleries. Admission to this exhibition is free. In this post collector and donor Frank Raysor contributes to our knowledge of the various techniques in the exhibition

My collection has many examples of the various printmaking methods that have been used by artists over the centuries. But it also contains within those defined techniques, different approaches that produce dramatically different visual results. These distinctions can be found among both etchings and drypoints.

Stopping-out involves covering over with protection, lines that are intended to be lighter, like the background of a landscape, and then subjecting the plate to further acid baths to strengthen the lines that the artist wants to be darker.

A perfect example of this is the Ruisdael, which was probably treated with only two acid applications - one for the background, which was then "stopped out," and a further one for the foreground, which has the visibly stronger lines. Such a simple approach could be almost child-like in other compositions, but here is works well, because the emphasis in on the tree. By contrast, Hollar's "Prague" must have had numerous stoppings-out, because the gradations among lines in the fore-, middle- and backgrounds are very nuanced, and it's impossible to tell how many acid treatments were applied. For other examples of skillful stopping-out, consider the Claude, the Kolbe, any of the Bracquemonds or Meryons, and the Corot (where we know that Bracquemond assisted his friend Corot with the biting). Finally, for a example of an effective etching that did not involved stopping-out at all, examine the Blaine, where all the lines are of equal weight.

In drypoint, where acid is not employed, similar effects can be achieved by the artist's use of different pressures of the tool upon the metal, to create deeper or shallower lines. Good examples of superb drypoint skills are found in Haden's "By-Road," Bone's "Building," and especially in the Cameron. By contrast, the Avery displays equally strong drypoint lines, because the artist wanted a flat aspect to this modernist composition.

--Frank Raysor, guest blogger

Illustrations:

Jacob van Ruisdael (Dutch, 1628/1629-1682), The Great Beech, with Two Men and a Dog, ca. 1651-55, Etching, Promised Gift of Frank Raysor, L.139.2010.12

Nell Blaine (American, born Richmond, Virginia, 1922-1996), Window Still Life, 1986, Etching, Promised Gift of Frank Raysor, L.139.2010.78

The power of line

2011-02-11T14:49:00.009-05:00

This is the third in a series of blog posts discussing highlights of the exhibition A Celebration of Print: 500 Years of Graphic Art from the Frank Raysor Collection currently on display in VMFA’s Mellon Focus Galleries. Admission to this exhibition is free.

One of the pleasures of A Celebration of Print http://vmfa.museum/Exhibitions/A-Celebration-of-Print is the wide range of style and subject matter. Each work of art in the exhibition, which covers 500 years, has the power to move the visitor, but some works are especially striking.

This is certainly the case with Henri Matisse’s Madonna and Child from around 1949-51. Connected to a series of studies for murals and decorations Matisse made for the Chapel of the Rosary in the French Riviera town of Vence http://www.ville-vence.fr/the-rosaire-chapel?lang=fr, Matisse transcended the historical subject of the Virgin and Child to create a timeless expression of a mother’s love. Though he was best known for his vivid use of color in his paintings, Matisse, with only a single exception, produced black-and-white prints throughout his career. In this radically simplified composition, Matisse has synthesized the forms to their most basic linear qualities.

To appreciate Matisse’s radicalism, it helps to look back at the comparison I made in previous blog posts between the early German Christ as the Man of Sorrows and Dürer’s Christ Crowned with Thorns Dürer’s innovation in that work consisted in using the engraver’s line to add volume and mass to his depiction of the suffering Christ. He thus eschewed the language of powerful simplicity of the early German work. Though it is doubtful Matisse had in mind early woodcuts when producing his lithograph, both works share a belief in the power of line to convey visual and emotional truth.

--Mitchell Merling, Paul Mellon Curator/Head of the Department of European Art

Full caption: Henri Matisse (French, 1869–1954) Madonna and Child, ca. 1949–51, Lithograph, Promised Gift of Frank Raysor, L.139.2010.44

A giant leap forward

2011-02-05T13:42:00.002-05:00

This is the second in a series of blog posts discussing highlights of the exhibition A Celebration of Print: 500 Years of Graphic Art from the Frank Raysor Collection currently on display in VMFA’s Mellon Focus Galleries. Admission to this exhibition is free.

Christ Crowned with Thorns

One of the great pleasures of A Celebration of Print is that the exhibition’s range over 500 years makes possible comparisons between various epochs and different media. One such dramatic and momentous contrast is that between the early German woodcut discussed in my previous post and this image: Albrecht Dürer’s Christ Crowned with Thorns.

Dürer was the greatest virtuoso artist of the Northern Renaissance, and the greatest printmaker of the 16^th century. He excelled in painting and drawing as well as printmaking and was an accomplished theoretician. This tiny (4 9/16” x 2 7/8”) plate from his Engraved Passion series shows the artist’s superb ability to delineate narrative and emotion. Note that Dürer shows Christ’s tormentors in contemporary dress, thus conveying to his audience the urgent relevance of Christ’s sacrifice.

Here, Dürer demonstrates his astonishing talent in engraving: a much more demanding medium than woodcut. More surprising is his mastery of anatomy and the history of art - the body of the tormented Christ is based on the ancient prototype of the Belvedere Torso http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Belvedere_Torso.

Such sophistication must not have been easy to accomplish and is worlds away from the visual language of the early woodcut. Come admire the difference for yourself – the two works are installed in close proximity in the gallery.

But stay tuned here, my next blog post might surprise you!

-- Mitchell Merling, Paul Mellon Curator and Curator of European Art

Full caption: Albrecht Dürer (German, 1471–1528), Christ Crowned with Thorns, from The Engraved Passion, 1512, Engraving, Promised Gift of Frank Raysor, L.139.2010.2

Powerful Prints

2011-02-04T17:51:00.006-05:00

This is the first in a series of blog posts discussing highlights of the exhibition A Celebration of Print: 500 Years of Graphic Art from the Frank Raysor Collection currently on display in VMFA’s Mellon Focus Galleries. Admission to this exhibition is free.

Christ as Man of Sorrows

The Frank Raysor collection spans 500 years, from the late 15th to the early 21st centuries. This is the earliest item in the collection and it inspires me with its simplicity and earnestness.

Religious woodcuts were among the earliest printed communications in Europe. Meant to inspire popular devotion, these sometimes crude-seeming artworks often reach to the very core of faith. Here we are not presented with the narrative of Christ’s Crucifixion but rather his embodiment of man’s pain and suffering. Such humble yet heartfelt efforts were soon superseded in artfulness by Dürer and others – yet they still have the power to move emotionally and aesthetically.

This is the first in a series of posts where I hope to cover some of my favorite images from the exhibition A Celebration of Print – 500 Years of Graphic Art from the Frank Raysor Collection, now on view in the Mellon Focus Galleries and free of charge.

--Mitchell Merling, Paul Mellon Curator and Head of the European Art Department

Full caption:

Christ as Man of Sorrows, (German), late 15th century woodcut. Promised gift of Frank Raysor, L.139.2010.1

My favorite work in the ancient collection

2011-01-28T18:03:00.002-05:00

Aryballos, 62.1.12.

As an intern in the ancient art department in 2008, I grew attached to a few artifacts in the Greek collection that have enchanted me with their beauty. Now that I’ve returned to volunteer in the department and the ancient art galleries are open, I have an opportunity to once again work closely with the objects I’ve come to love. Out of the entire collection, there is perhaps one tiny item that I admire more than any other: the aryballos in the shape of a warrior’s head from Rhodes.

An aryballos is a vessel for holding oil or perfume, and this particular object has so much personality. At once, I can imagine the man who owned it. Perhaps he himself was a warrior, perhaps it was a gift, perhaps it was a small purchase from the agora in Rhodes; maybe he chose this particular mustachioed one because he himself wore a mustache. I can picture someone using it after an athletic contest or a bath, picking it up and remembering something personal about it as one does with household objects. Just imagine any random object in your home and picture your own personal story behind it, and you can understand how I feel about this aryballos.

By no means a brilliant work of craftsmanship (the potter probably made dozens of similar warrior-headed vessels every day), I still appreciate the minor details like the wispy flourish on the helmet front, the floral accents on the cheeks, the well-trimmed, manly ‘stache, and the steely gaze of the eyes. Objects like this remind me of how we have so much in common with the ancient world.

--Michael Moore, VMFA Curatorial volunteer

Impressions in black and white

2011-01-27T17:52:00.003-05:00

This is the first in a series of blog posts discussing highlights of the exhibition A Celebration of Print: 500 Years of Graphic Art from the Frank Raysor Collection currently on display in VMFA’s Mellon Focus Galleries. Admission to this exhibition is free.

As we celebrate VMFA’s 75^th anniversary, we must consider this year one of the most important in the institution’s history because of the promised gift of approximately 10,000 prints from Richmond-raised collector Frank Raysor. This most generous promised gift will increase VMFA’s collection by over a third – a stunning leap forward for the museum which also has never had a very strong print presence. This will change when in the next few years we will inaugurate a new Center for the Study of Works on Paper.

Fireworks at Hemissem

We inaugurate the collection with an exhibition of a selection of 100 highly important prints from the Raysor collection in the Mellon Focus Galleries. It opens Saturday and continues through May 22^nd. Don’t miss this opportunity to explore a whole world of graphic art ranging from a late 15^th century religious woodcut to a 2001 abstract serigraph by contemporary artist Richard Prince. The exhibition includes both great names such as Dürer, Rembrandt, Goya, Tiepolo, Turner, Whistler, and Matisse as well as more specialized and highly prized artists such as Wenceslaus Hollar, Charles Meryon, and Félix Bracquemond.

Please visit this free exhibition early and often – a whole world of prints for you to enjoy.

-- Mitchell Merling, Paul Mellon Curator and Curator of European Art

Full caption: Fireworks at Hemissem, ca. 1650–51,Wenceslaus Hollar (Bohemian, 1607–1677), Etching. Promised Gift of Frank Raysor, L.139.2010.10

Revised Sign Plan for VMFA

2011-01-27T14:56:00.002-05:00

Sketch of Phase I of VMFA's revised sign

The Virginia Museum of Fine Arts will be developing its Boulevard sign in phases. An institutional identifying sign will be installed first, which will be composed of a stainless steel armature with a panel of frosted acrylic to complement the building materials of the McGlothlin Wing. The letters VMFA and Virginia Museum of Fine Arts will be mounted on the frosted panel and will be lit from behind in the evening to create a halo effect around the letters. Perpendicular to the street, Phase I of the sign will be approximately 8’-6” high and will be set back from the sidewalk 15’, as opposed to the originally planned 12’ distance. Phase I will be installed by early February.

A decision about the changing exhibitions component of the sign will be considered in Phase II and includes a variety of solutions such as duratrans and high resolution imaging.

Director Alex Nyerges said:

Support structure being installed today. Fabricated at 15', the
it will be cut to 8'-6".

"We appreciate the engagement of the greater community in this dialogue. Strong endorsements of the museum’s aesthetic standards, as well as concerns about the proposed sign have been appreciated. Interestingly, they have been close to equal in number. I want to thank the Art and Architecture Review Board as well as the Virginia Department of General Services for their advice and support on this matter. We are proud to be an agency of the Commonwealth and are fortunate to have their counsel. The Virginia Museum of Fine Arts is a landmark institution in this neighborhood and a well-recognized top ten art museum in the nation. When VMFA’s ‘Picasso: Masterpieces from the Musée Picasso, Paris’ exhibition opens on February 19, we expect many first-time visitors and we want to welcome them to Richmond with an easy-to-find museum.”

-- Suzanne Hall

Jun Kaneko in the snow

2011-01-25T11:57:00.002-05:00

Our friend Greg Holzgrefe at the Department of Conservaion and Recreation stolled the sculpture garden during our recent snow and shared this evocative photo.

Enjoy these works by Jun Kaneko now, becuase this temporary exhibtion will close in February!

The Sesquicentennial of the Civil War and Emancipation

2011-01-20T20:35:00.009-05:00

I firmly believe there is still a great deal to be learned about the crisis of the Civil War, its causes and consequences. As a fine-arts museum, VMFA has chosen to focus its sesquicentennial programming on art of the period that sheds new light on and encourages fresh interpretations of the dramatic events that divided and defined our nation. For example, the newly opened exhibition (shared with the University of Richmond Museums), Civil War Drawings from the Becker Collection, features eyewitness sketches of artist-reporters embedded with the Union troops. These little-known drawings, which in many cases were translated into engravings for wide distribution, challenge general perceptions of war, journalistic documentation, and artistic intent—going far beyond what photography could capture in those years.

Similarly, an exhibition we will open in summer 2012—Bold Cautious True: Walt Whitman and American Art of the Civil War Era—is a thought-provoking look at the layered meanings and moods of 1860s American painting and sculpture viewed against the poetry of Walt Whitman, one of our chief “scribes” of war. VMFA’s striking painting by Eastman Johnson, A Ride for Liberty—The Fugitive Slaves, March 2, 1862, is a centerpiece of that exhibition.

As a cultural historian, I feel it’s important to emphasize the role art plays in society, not only reflecting culture, but shaping it as well. I am also a firm believer in curatorial responsibility—that is, being aware of current debates and interpretations and bringing those to public attention in the museum—even, or especially, if they challenge accepted notions. As one never stops learning from the past, I feel we should all embrace a historical consciousness, whatever our professional practice. This approach informs my work with both the museum’s permanent collection as well as special exhibitions.

In 1961, VMFA presented a centennial exhibition entitled Home Front, 1861, which examined the tastes and fashions of antebellum art and design. While this resonated with the museum at that time, we are always interested in exploring new subjects and approaches for the benefit of our increasingly diverse audiences—thus, our decision to mark the sesquicentennial with the Becker and Whitman shows. I hope you will make a point of visiting.

-Sylvia Yount, Chief Curator and Louise B. and J. Harwood Cochrane Curator of American Art

An alternative sign for VMFA?

2011-01-11T07:47:00.008-05:00

An irreverent friend sent this suggestion for an alternative sign in front of VMFA. I think it's time for a good laugh and a moment of reflection on this historic nod to Americana.

But seriously, we hope to hear from all sides of our sign issue at the public forum Tuesday, January 11 at 6 pm. There will be a sign in sheet for those who wish to comment. Our guests will include Rich Slilowski, Director of the Department of General Services and Brian Olinger, former chair of the Art and Architecture Review Commission.

Suzanne Hall

VMFA Flash Mob Pilliow Fight by Copeland Casati

2011-01-02T21:53:00.002-05:00

Virginia Museum of Fine Arts Flash Mob Pillow Fight! from Copeland Casati on Vimeo.

Starting the year with random fun

2011-01-02T14:56:00.001-05:00

VMFA has lots of friends and followers on social media. Over 9000 friends on Facebook almost 5500 followers on Twitter stay in conversation with VMFA with these dynamic communications tools.

As we approached the magical 1.1.11 the date seemed too auspicious to ignore. So on New Year's eve we announced a Flash Mob in the VMFA plaza. With a flash mob, folks who learn about the event only through social media show up, participate in a random event and that's that. This was a massive pillow fight occurring at 1:11 pm and lasting (of course) 1 minute and 11 seconds.

Between 40 and 50 families participated, and it was loads of fun. Many folks stuck around and went inside to enjoy art, have a late lunch and luxuriate in their art museum. Widely documented by viral videos and CBS-6 and NBC-12, it was a fun way to enjoy the day.

What should happen at 11:11 on 11.11.11? We'll use crowd sourcing, another social media tool to decide! So let us know your thoughts.

VMFA hosts public forum about digital imaging sign

2010-12-30T16:44:00.001-05:00

VMFA invites Museum District, Fan District, and Boulevard Associations

The Virginia Museum of Fine Arts has heard both negative and positive comments from the community about the digital imaging sign that is planned for the museum’s front yard on Boulevard. I have invited neighborhood association members to a public forum at 6:00pm on Tuesday, January 11, in the Reynolds Lecture Hall to view our plans first-hand and to share comments with the museum leadership.

I have also invited Richard Sliwoski, Director of the Department of General Services, the state agency which staffs the board of Art and Architecture Review. Brian Olinger, AARB former chair, will also be present. As you know, our process has always been to share the Museum’s plans with the community after approval from our state oversight boards.

As with the parking deck and the many particulars associated with the McGlothlin wing, we want to share the details of our plans. We will look to our neighbors for input on the planned sign at VMFA.

Thank you for your continued engagement and support, and we look forward to the dialogue on January 11.

Sincerely,

Alex Nyerges
Director

Tourists voice need for VMFA sign

2010-12-27T10:22:00.000-05:00

We received the following unsolicited email recently:

My wife and I recently visited the VMFA and were thoroughly
impressed. What a beautiful campus! Such gorgeous galleries
and collections!

We have visited most of the grandest art museums in the US
and the VMFA is up there with the best of them, including
the Met Museum in our hometown of New York City, LACMA in
Los Angeles and the Cleveland Museum of Art.

About the only fault we found in Richmond was the lack of
signage. We arrived there on a Thursday night after driving
for hours and it was very dark. The museum had no signs, no
lights, no directions... we mistook the Historical Society
for the VMFA, then passed by the museum itself without
noticing it. We could not find parking either... it was
difficult! But once we were inside the campus, the beauty
and richness of the museum was immensely rewarding.

The next morning, sipping on coffee at a local store in
Richmond, I read in a local paper that the VMFA plans on
putting a big sign on North Boulevard and some neighbors
oppose the measure. What a coincidence! Of course, and as
you can imagine, I say, "go for it"! The museum is among the
best in the nation, but it is harder to find than most...
this situation sure does need to change. We welcome that
"big bright sign".

My best and thank you for a beautiful museum!

High Def Sign at VMFA

2010-12-23T22:26:00.001-05:00

You may have heard that we are planning an electronic sign in front of VMFA. Richmonders have watched the careful construction of this world-class museum for the past four years, and have witnessed its metamorphosis into the vital and welcoming museum that it is today. The Art and Architecture Review Board, the state authority which has approved all phases of VMFA’s design, indicated that this contemporary sign is in keeping with the architecture of the McGlothlin wing. Constructed of stainless steel and glass, it echoes our new building materials, and will include a high-resolution digital graphics panel. Some neighbors have expressed concern about this plan; others have assured us of their confidence.

VMFA will carefully manage this information source and moderate its intensity so that it serves as a contemporary and attractive medium to indicate the beautiful art inside VMFA. The sign will be perpendicular to the street so that it is visible primarily to motorists. A green solution to ongoing information needs, it will be tastefully and respectfully executed in accordance with our high aesthetic values.

- Suzanne Hall

Mon Oncle: Both a Scathing Critique and Fanciful Delight

2010-12-06T16:52:00.005-05:00

Friday Films is presenting yet another movie milestone this week at 6:30. Winner of a Best Foreign Language Film Oscar, Jacques Tati’s Mon Oncle (1958) will screen in VMFA’s grand Leslie Cheek Theater. Tati’s reputation as a darling of world art house cinema pretty much rests on his career output of 5 precious feature films (and a few smaller projects) thus VMFA is showing 1/5 of his oeuvre.

Modernism was sweeping mainstream design and thought by the 1950s. With Mon Oncle, Tati leapt into the vanguard of a seminal postmodern backlash against a perceived Modernist hegemony, and this was over two decades before Tom Wolfe’s popular tract, From Bauhaus to Our House (1981).

In his two most ambitious cinematic masterpieces, Mon Oncle and Playtime (1967), Tati launched salvos at the rising Modern movement. His recurring character, the soft spoken and gently deferential Mr. Hulot, personifies the old way of quirky charm that flies in the face of a Paris being overrun by a cold Modernist rationalism and logic. He paints Modernism as a syndrome of obsession with counterintuitive behavior that ultimately is anti-humanistic, anti-ergonomic, and downright anti-pleasure.

Tati is not given to vile bitterness and tends to make whimsical fun out of society’s perverse Modernist impulses in the tradition of Charles Chaplin’s Modern Times (1936). And, like the Chaplin movie, Mon Oncle is, at least in-part, a silent film with clever sound effects and a feast for the eyes.

Do come see Tati’s warm and at the same time edgy take on the mid-20th century’s runaway age of reason.

---H. Hobart Cornell, Critic-at-large

Bystander

2010-11-10T13:14:00.003-05:00

VMFA guest, Carolyn Gabb, was recently inspired during one of our Jazz Café evenings and composed this poem describing her fifty-five year relationship with the museum.

BYSTANDER
Carolyn Gabb

In a chair by the window,
Glass of wine in hand,
I watch the band.
Reflectively…
in a pane of glass across the room.

Tens of circular tables capture
conversations and stories,
lives of individuals,
a core collection of beings and doings.

Almost like bees in a hive,
there is a buzz of voices,
with modulating speech melodies
comprising what others might well call the “din” of the room.

Fifty-five years, on and off, of being in this place.
Where the sculpture, the paintings, the art house my friends.
My dearest love in the Flemish collection finally
Waiting for me as I walk into the baroque gallery.

Economic and intellectual factors of this crowd
undetermined as I do my bystanding, my watching.
Yet, surely the range of ethnicity and age
a good sign of change after years of exclusivity.

Art belongs to all of us…
I feel a new age of giving as Museum doors open again.

Inspiring, fantastic film is an intelligent delight

2010-08-23T17:42:00.003-04:00

Do you like your fantasy movies serving-up the same old, tired routine? Over-bearing CGI effects? Loud, distorted, blaring music? Explosions? Mechanical monsters smashing into each other? Silly and utterly contrived arrays of phony-baloney characters and super heroes who stretch the imagination and plausibility only as far as a juvenile on an amped-up energy beverage?

OR

Do you like your fantasy movies to treat you as a mature human being? To exercise your mind intellectually? To give you food for thought? And do you crave to trust in the director and actors to take you along for a ride to a far-off adventurous shore, to wade into deeper waters, and yet to safely deliver you back on solid ground?

If so, Orlando is the movie for you. As the latest installment in Friday Films’ tribute to Great Women of the Screen, Orlando features the sparkling Tilda Swinton. Swinton has risen to prominence with acting genius and out-of-mainstream roles. To boot, she is the actress to love for her sweetly quirky manner and lifestyle.

Photo by Jeffrey Allison

The film itself is like a mystical convergence of Fellini, Merchant-Ivory, 2001: A Space Odyssey, and Virginia Woolf, on whose novel the film is based. And with Quentin Crisp playing Queen Elizabeth I, how can you lose?

Originally released in 1992, Orlando has just been re-released by its studio and Friday Films is proud to have it. Join me for a thoroughly superb and elegantly eccentric experience in VMFA’s Leslie Cheek Theater this Friday, 8/27, at 6:30.

-- H. Hobart Cornell, Critic-at-large

Cool off with "Some Like it Hot!"

2010-08-11T14:52:00.004-04:00

Some Like It Hot will “run wild” at the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts this Friday at 6:30PM and in glorious black & white. If you are searching for the perfect summer entertainment -- and who is not? -- this part gangster picture and mostly hilarious comedy is the movie to see.

Follow two hapless Chicago musicians who change their identities -- to put it mildly -- while on the lamb from mob bootleggers in 1929 wintery Chicago who end up in sunny Miami playing with an all-girl band. Whether it is your first time or the twentieth, this one never runs out of steam. Some Like It Hot will deliver the wit, cleverness, and belly laughs you so richly deserve.

It is a thoroughly quality production with director, Billy Wilder, coming off big hits such as Double Indemnity, Sunset Blvd., and Seven Year Itch. Tony Curtis was a hot property after The Sweet Smell of Success. Oscar winner Jack Lemmon was rising to great heights of acting repute in drama as well as comedy.

Photo by Jeffrey Allison

And, last but not least, Hollywood’s most sensational and unpredictable leading lady, Marilyn Monroe tops off the bill. She was the supreme movie star of movie stars, the authentic blonde bombshell, who was too often imitated but never duplicated. In 1959 this sizzling picture was adults only! Do come into our modern air conditioned Leslie Cheek Theater and cool off with Some Like It Hot. See you there!

- H. Hobart Cornell, Critic-at-large

For tickets or more information on Friday Films at VMFA, visit www.vmfa.museum/fridayfilms.

Blue Star Voices

2010-08-05T12:35:00.001-04:00

Blue Star Voices

Learn behind-the-scenes insights at Friday Films

2010-07-21T17:12:00.002-04:00

Tim Reid and Daphne Maxwell Reid

Actors Tim Reid and Daphne Maxwell Reid, accompanied by their colleague, producer Hugh Wilson, will appear and screen three of their favorite episodes of "Frank’s Place" for VMFA’s ongoing Friday Films. VMFA is proud to invite you to attend this Friday at 6:30PM in the Leslie Cheek Theater for a very unique and special event.

The innovative 1987-88 television series was co-created by Tim and Hugh with Tim and Daphne starring. The three will discuss the show’s history and provide behind-the-scenes insights.

"Frank’s Place," set in a New Orleans restaurant/bar, lasted but a season on CBS but is fondly remembered among fans everywhere. It had a good-natured, slice-of-life sort of approach every week. Whimsical but thought-provoking situations would be presented with warmth and naturalism. Conversations and quips were often dropped in as if being overheard by the audience. A low key, atmospheric mood sometimes blended with comedy but the show avoided crass gags, facetiousness, and cheap jokery.

This approach was unique for the time and most any time. The show even fore went a laugh track—horrors! Amazing, they actually trusted the audience’s intelligence and ability to accept it as imminently entertaining.

The show’s setting was imbued with an appealing brand of deep Southern-ness particular to the city of Mardi Gras, Creole, jambalaya, Bourbon St., and hot jazz & blues. The icons are there but not milked to death nor reduced to silly clichés and stereotypes.

Many of you will remember Tim Reid from his days in the smash hit TV series, WKRP Cincinnatti (1978) as the hip and handsome “Venus Fly Trap,” but he has appeared extensively in an array of starring and supporting roles for over 35 years.

His first taste of the limelight came around the turn of the 70s when he met an insurance agent named Tom Dreesen, and the two of them decided to form a nightclub act called "Tim and Tom." This innovative comedy duo pioneered a black-guy-playing-off-a-white-guy-and-vice-verse humor and was a big step in a show business that was undergoing so many changes right along with the world.

His biggest break came after nabbing the "Venus Flytrap" role on "WKRP." It is this radio disc jockey character for which Tim is still best known. Other TV series came his way, including "Simon and Simon" (1981) as Lt. Marcel "Downtown" Brown.

Once firmly established, Tim started taking more control over his career. After fronting a number of series including "Frank’s Place" (1987), "Snoops" (1989) and, most notably, "Sister, Sister" (1994), he and wife, Daphne Maxwell Reid, co-founded their own production studio (New Millenium Studios), the first built in his native state of Virginia.

Over the years, Daphne has been a frequent partner to Tim both in front and behind the camera lens, as actress and co-producer. Besides having an impressive résumé packed with roles in television and film, Daphne’s mellifluous voice can also be heard regularly narrating VMFA’s "Art on the Air" on WCVE, 88.9, Richmond’s local NPR radio station.

Please make plans to be on hand to welcome these very accomplished and charming friends of both VMFA and our region in general for a chance to learn directly about the wonder and workings of big time "sho biz" and the art of creativity.

- Trent Nicholas, VMFA Coordinator of Statewide Media Resources

For tickets or more information on Friday Films at VMFA, visit www.vmfa.museum/fridayfilms.

Hollywood actor appearing at VMFA Friday, July 2

2010-06-28T09:09:00.006-04:00

Don’t miss a very special event next Friday when veteran Hollywood character actor Raynor Scheine appears in-person at the Virginia Museum of Fine Art’s theater to speak and answer questions about his key role in Fried Green Tomatoes (1991), the first movie to be screened for VMFA’s new Friday Films series. Be there at 6 p.m. for clips of some of Mr. Scheine’s major parts in familiar Hollywood movies with the most recognizable stars, then settle in for Fried Green Tomatoes. Afterwards, enjoy a very rare and fine opportunity for a Q&A session with Mr. Scheine, a true professional who’s role in the movie as Sherriff Curtis Smoote from Georgia is pivotal.

Originally from Emporia and a graduate of VCU, Mr. Scheine made his way to the New York theater scene, appearing off- and on- Broadway. Then his career fired-up as he began the coast-to-coast life of a movie star playing in major productions for the big time studios of Hollywood, California. By now, Mr. Scheine has appeared in over 50 feature motion pictures including My Cousin Vinny (1992) with Masrisa Tomei, Ghost Dad (1990) with Bill Cosby, Ace Ventura, Pet Detective (1994) with Jim Carrey, The Quick and the Dead (1995) with Russell Crowe and Sharon Stone, and The Rookie (2002) with Dennis Quaid, and too many more to list. Mr. Scheine’s TV show roles include ER, Law & Order, and Deadwood to mention only a few. He even played live on VMFA’s theater stage in Joe Turner’s Come and Gone by August Wilson.

Already a classic, Fried Green Tomatoes is a visually splendid film, beautifully lit and filmed with an expertise that makes it stand out from the crowd. Two story lines are deftly woven: a modern and an old set in 1930s Alabama. To sum it up, Fried Green Tomatoes is an exquisite work about everyone getting along but avoids the sappy clichés. Full of surprises, warmth, humor, tension, and intrigue, this film truly keeps the audience tuned-in from start to finish. Plus, it can not be stressed enough how fantastic the cast is: Mary Stuart Masterson, Mary-Louise Parker, Kathy Bates, Jessica Tandy, Stan Shaw, Cicely Tyson, and of course, Raynor Scheine, who crafts his relatively modest role to loom large and powerful.

If you have seen Fried Green Tomatoes before, do re-visit it viewing the crisp and bright new image on the screen in our Leslie Cheek Theater and take advantage of a very personalized chance to learn about a movie’s workings as you never have. And if you have never seen Fried Green Tomatoes, this is absolutely a MUST -- a full and unique experience as only happens once in a blue moon.

- Trent Nicholas, VMFA Coordinator of Statewide Media Resources

For tickets or more information on Friday Films at VMFA, visit www.vmfa.museum/fridayfilms.

Reflections from the front lines

2010-06-25T12:39:00.003-04:00

I’ve only been working at VMFA for two months now, yet in such short time an intimate relationship has developed. A casual appreciation for “beauty” has begun to blossom into a deeper understanding of history, art, and even people. See, while many flow through the museum each day, I have one job: Watch.

I watch the art, I watch the building, and I watch the patrons. I am just one of several museum associates keeping an eye on things. Associates are found sprinkled around VMFA -- recognized by our matching black polo shirts and eagerness to help you. We range from students attending VCU to retired state employees. But Associates all share an ever-growing appreciation of our museum’s collection.

As a museum associate, I can lose my entire day in one gallery. While there, I’ve attended several docent tours, absorbed countless critiques, and let my gaze linger over every brush stroke. Many patrons tell me I have a great job -- spending so much time with amazing works. It really is true, but I have to say…

From my post on the sidelines, I have heard a toddler identify 20th-Century artists by their works alone, saw a woman cry out in front of Tiffany’s church windows, and observed as a couple shared their first dance as man and wife under our “Large Leaping Hare”. Spending so much time with the art is an experience, but it will never be the only thing in our museum that amazes me.

- Nathan Wood, VMFA Museum Associate

Celebratory ritual objects help celebrate VMFA reopening

2010-05-02T12:38:00.005-04:00

Thanks to the generosity of The Jewish Museum in New York, VMFA is able to present a pair of Dutch 17th-century silver Torah Finials in the European Galleries as a long-term loan.

These artifacts are the first examples of Judaica ever to be displayed in the permanent galleries of VMFA. Made at a time – the 17th Century – when Jews were officially tolerated in the Dutch republic (think of Rembrandt’s house in the Jewish quarter) these Torah finials (made to decorate a Bible scroll) also exemplify the Baroque style with their stepped back curves. Each finial is fitted with over a dozen tiny bells which would have made a joyous sound as the scroll of the bible was carried in procession around the synagogue. Though they are silent in their case we can imagine the beautiful noise they must have made – and they delight our eyes as well.

Not only do they remind us of a faith heretofore not represented in the museum, they remind me also of the diversity and majesty of the many faiths we celebrate in this great, newly reopened museum.

- Dr. Mitchell Merling, Paul Mellon Curator / Head of the Department of European Art

(Image: Torah Finials, Pieter Van Hoven, active 1680-1735, Amsterdam (Netherlands), 1705, Silver: cast and chased, Each: 17 15/16 x 4 7/8 in. (45.5 x 12.4 cm), The Jewish Museum, New York, Gift of Dr. Harry G. Friedman, F 2827a,b)

Furniture inspired by the collection

2010-05-01T13:00:00.005-04:00

Over the past fifteen years, I've had the wonderful experience of getting to know the museum's collections. Each time I visit the galleries or storage looking for the next product idea, I'm always amazed by the wonderful works of art that Virginians have available to them.

For some time, I've been in search of a partner to reproduce furniture from the museum's collections. Then, I decided to stop in Owen Suter's hand-crafted, fine-furniture store to inquire if they might be interested. Fortunately for VMFA, Debbie Suter was delighted to discuss the project. Happily that led to a series of meetings with Debbie and Owen, a tour of the VMFA furniture collection, a licensing agreement and furniture selections available when the new museum shop opens on May 1.

After the initial selections, Owen and John Robinson came to the museum to painstakingly measure each piece of furniture: two small tables, one cellaret, a three drawer chest, and a chest on chest. Once the first piece was ready to be unveiled, the Suters called to see if I would stop by to see if they were headed in the right direction. I cannot tell you how excited I was to see the first piece. It was beautiful and I knew that VMFA had found the right partner. That day, Owen allowed me to visit the carpentry shop on West Broad Street in Richmond. It was wonderful to see that fine craftsmanship is still alive and well in Virginia.

After seeing this first piece, it was time to share the furniture with our curators for their review. Susie Rawles and Mitchell Merling obliged and both were pleased. It is clear that Owen and his staff have taken great pride in making the pieces that will be available for order in our shop and theirs. Today, it is a luxury to partner with a Virginia company for reproductions inspired by furniture in the VMFA collection. I invite you to stop by Owen Suter or VMFA and share our excitement.

- Sara Johnson-Ward, VMFA Product Development

Behind the scenes, shooting a VMFA TV spot

2010-04-30T12:22:00.001-04:00

On Thursday, April 8, a large TV production crew descended on the museum to film two new TV spots. After several weeks of anticipation, we had access to Splotch 22, Sol LeWitt’s famous and colorful sculpture, newly installed in the Atrium. In the afternoon, we shot our second spot with Kaufmann’s “Cornelia, Mother of the Gracchi, Pointing to Her Children as Her Treasures,” in the Vaulted Gallery.

After a rousing crew breakfast at 7:30 a.m. (mostly coffee) we started deploying people and equipment, moving through two elevators, the “secret tunnel,” and several twists and turns. With the greatest of care, and the support of the museum’s registrars, curators, electricians, art handlers, security and many others, we brought in lights, stands, cameras, lots of cable, and carts full of reflectors, filters, and other arcane pieces of filming equipment.

Filming TV spots such as ours are not linear affairs. The director works from a storyboard that depicts the flow of the script, but new shots and ideas reveal themselves during the shoot. The creative process includes the director, advertising agency representative, and client (in this case, me) often seeing something new during the shoot that may get explored. The team on this shoot was impressive. Different versions of lighting, camera angles, script changes, and timing were part of the process of getting the best footage.

Despite the ongoing construction, movement of museum staff and other activities that were critical to the completion of VMFA’s expansion, we ended the day with great footage. The efforts in the edit sessions of the next couple of days resulted in the terrific spots now airing. These spots present a message that will be relevant beyond our opening May 1st.

I hope you enjoy!

- Bob Tarren, VMFA Director of Marketing

Art, or art handler?

2010-04-14T13:06:00.009-04:00

I was once duped by a Hanson. A group of students were packed into the foyer of the Lewis house, waiting to get a tour. While wedged, my eyes flittered about wildly, scanning the art-crammed architecture, bouncing from work to work, from face to elated face of fellow students bearing art-shot expressions of awe. I hesitated as the last few students filed out for the tour. Had I missed anything? A solitary figure in the periphery remained motionless. The group partially cleared and I became aware of a worker in uniform, awaiting a package, on the ready with a hand truck. When the foyer emptied completely, (ha!) it was sculpture.

Hanson’s sculptures combine strategies of Greek figurative tradition with Pop concerns from the more recent history of art. There’s also a social realist’s agenda going on in the look on the faces peering out from behind the uniforms. Ancient Greek artisans used tactics of realism like surface coating sculptures with polychrome skins and garnishing them with real clothing. Updated with a postmodern lunchbox of readymade Coke and Lay’s, Hanson’s “Hard Hat Construction Worker” has been an apt mascot for VMFA during its expansion phase website construction, not only for its connection to such sculptural strategies of various eras, but for its popular appeal and the irony of its uniform.

Depicted “on break,” spaced out and wearied by menial labors, the face of the Hard Hat figure, like the faces on the figures of other Hanson works of the same period, is imbued with a pathos of exhaustion to engage viewers on an emotional level. I felt anything but exhaustion, camera in hand, making my way back from a tour of the VMFA’s expansion wing the day this photo was shot. I was exuberant; intoxicated by the thought that all the art I had helped tuck deep into storage would finally be making its way to new and fantastic spaces, to be seen again.

It is a lot of work, putting VMFA back together again.

- Justin Brown has, by virtue of his current employment as an art handler by VMFA, been granted permission to touch. He enjoys each workday for its “hand’s on” opportunity to experience the VMFA’s collection.

(Image: "Hard Hat Construction Worker" is a 20th century sculpture by Duane Hanson. Gift of The Sydney and Frances Lewis Foundation.)

Insight into Insights Student Symposium

2010-04-06T12:57:00.010-04:00

It’s a strange thing to be a student in an MFA program for creative writing, to be faced by raised eyebrows, prolonged pauses (as if waiting for the punch-line), and genuine disbelief when you confess: yes, part of your graduate curriculum is making one word almost rhyme with another. And it can be an isolating experience, because outside the umbrella of the university, it’s not uncommon to go months without seeing any evidence that the poems and stories you’re spending days, weeks, and months crafting are, in fact, actually being read by someone. It can sometimes feel as though you’re writing into a vacuum. You wonder if perhaps you should have listened to your high school guidance counselor. You consider becoming a reality-TV star.

But you don’t. It only takes one trip to Richmond, one day of artistic affirmation to remind you that those days, weeks, and months of crafting were not for naught. That’s the gift that the VMFA’s Insights Graduate Student Symposium gives, or rather, the gift it gave me and my fellow presenters last spring: an attentive, knowledgeable, and generous audience. The gift of being well-heard, the reminder that Art (that’s right, with a capital ‘a’) can still accomplish what it has since Horace first stated his artistic ideal: Art can still teach, can still delight, thanks to places like the VMFA, and to events like the Insights Symposium.

Last spring, after driving over the Blue Ridge Mountains on my way from Roanoke and my MFA program at Hollins University, not only was I greeted by historic Monument Avenue as I made my way into Richmond, but once I arrived at the museum I encountered a hive of artistic interest. There were poets and fiction writers from other Virginia MFA programs (UVA, George Mason, and VCU), art history scholars and graduate students, museum administrators, and community members; all of them open ears, all of them interested in the ways in which our disciplines intertwined, all of them deeply invested on the art in the air and on the walls.

After the readings, the presentations, the questions and occasional answers, our group moved across the street for a reception. Drinks were poured. Finger-foods were consumed off of very small decorative plates. Winners were named. But even though there was just a single winner in each category, it was clear to everyone there that no individual would leave the museum feeling as though they had lost, for in reality, they hadn’t. Reality TV had lost. Art—and anyone who had ever tilted their head after reading a poem or story, anyone who has stood in front of a painting for half-an-hour without knowing exactly why—had won. I’m honored to have been a part of the first Insights Symposium and hopeful that the event will continue for years to come. It’s a heartening and necessary day, not only because it showcases the wonderful artwork in the VMFA as well as the writing taking place in and around Virginia, but because it celebrates the creation and appreciation of Art as an act of community, as something that should be shared with others. Certainly, that’s worth celebrating, and maybe, just maybe, better than reality TV.

- Luke Johnson earned his MFA from Hollins University. His poems have appeared in 32 Poems, Beloit Poetry Journal, Greensboro Review, Passages North, and Best New Poets 2008. His manuscript, After the Ark, was recently named a semi-finalist for the Walt Whitman Award. He teaches at Oak Hill Academy in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia. Read his blog at http://proofofblog.blogspot.com/.

Another new, light-infused state art museum

2010-03-22T11:39:00.009-04:00

Last week our director Alex Nyerges coordinated a field trip to our neighboring peer museum, the North Carolina Museum of Art. As the two of the largest and most comprehensive state art museums, we have lots in common – including upcoming grand openings within a week of each other.

NCMA’s entire permanent collection is being moved to the new wing, a dazzling modern building designed by Tom Phifer. Set in a 164-acre park with paths, plazas fountains and an amphitheatre, the new building is set apart from the original museum, a low brick structure. Two spectacular sculptures in the park are a stainless steel tree by Roxy Paine and a hewn cedar sculpture by Ursula von Rydingsvard.

The new building is all about light. Anodized aluminum alternates with floor-to- ceiling windows, topped by an undulating roof, which translates to a modernist coffered ceiling inside. Iconic oval orifices in each ceiling cell emit clear, diffused light. We watched staff installing a vast El Anatsui tapestry made with pieced tiny metal labels and caps from thousands of liquor bottles from his home country of Ghana. His art always make me think of the steady work he must provide for trash pickers. The Rodin sculpture collection is grouped in a light-infused gallery, which opens onto a sculpture terrace with large scale Rodins and reflecting ponds.

The galleries look great. I will look forward to returning when it is completely finished. Maybe I can be there to see the Paper Hand Puppets, a legendary regional performance group.

- Suzanne Hall, Chief Communications Officer, VMFA

Restoring a piece of history

2010-03-01T15:13:00.013-05:00

(Photos provided by Andrew Baxter)

The massive conservation project for the 19th-century Indian Pavilion at the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts came to me in a phone call from Kathy Gillis, VMFA Chief Conservator of Sculpture & Decorative Arts. During that call she gave me an overview of the project, indicating the structure weighs around 27 tons. Faxes were sent with an inventory of the numerous parts, as well as photos of the Pavilion in India.

The many lists, dimensions, and drawings indicated that we were dealing with a massive and complex jigsaw puzzle. Looking at the jumble of crates in storage led us to the same conclusion.

Our bid for conservation treatment was selected in 2005 and re-building began in our Fredericksburg studio. After becoming familiar with how the structure worked as a whole, the assemblage process started to make sense. Hundreds of restorations were made to the intricate floor. Then the work went vertical.

As the Pavilion took shape, it became incredibly rewarding to realize what a magnificent and sophisticated creation in stone that we were a part of. The amazing relationship of the naturalistic flowing carved arches and columns combined with the tight geometric pattern of the floor evolved, and the effect was astounding.

We were only able to erect one quarter of the structure at a time in Fredericksburg, so the final installation at VMFA has been a revelation. Conservation technicians Scott McKee and James Robertson have shown their excellent and diverse technical abilities and dedication throughout the project.

The process has been a once-in-a-lifetime privilege for the three of us.

Andrew Baxter, President, Bronze et al, Ltd.

Related content: View a video of the Indian Pavilion installation on VMFA's YouTube channel. Learn more about the project in an article from the Feb. 28 Richmond Times-Dispatch.

Spinning a yarn

2010-02-01T15:21:00.005-05:00

(VMFA photos by Jeffrey W. Allison)

They say olfactory senses are the most powerful for memory. That was certainly the case when I entered the Pauley Center parlor on January 22 and smelled raw fleece. I majored in textiles in art school and spent several years after graduation teaching traditional textile arts. Spinning wool and flax on a variety of spinning wheels was a perennially popular practice.

I still learned a lot from the recent lecture by fiber artist Judith Towner of Clotho's Children Handspinners. She demonstrated fiber spinning techniques to an attentive crowd, mesmerizing us with exotic drop spindles from many cultures and with skeins of yarn spun from wool, cotton, flax, alpaca, angora and even Lhasa Apso. It’s easy to imagine spinning enough yarn for sweaters and blankets, but think about ship’s sails!

Judith mentioned the Fall Fiber Festival, which will be at James Madison’s Montpelier October 2-3. It’s a lovely day full of beautiful handspun yarn, every kind of weaving, spinning, and knitting demonstrations as well sheep shearing and the ever-popular sheep dog trials. They have various breeds of sheep on display and – of course – sell raw fleece, redolent with the natural lanolin which coats very fiber to make a sheep water resistant.

I’ve marked my calendar, yet again inspired by VMFA!

Suzanne Hall, Chief Communications Officer, VMFA

A paean to paper

2010-01-19T09:00:00.001-05:00

I’ll be the first to admit that when I was first told I’d be learning to make paper I was … well …a bit disenchanted. I had just arrived in England, and though I didn’t understand what people were saying to me half the time, I thought at least I knew what a piece of paper was. As I stood in that cold, damp paper studio beating pulp for hours and pulling sheet after sheet of paper, I had nothing else on my mind but a cup of hot tea (it was England after all) and dry socks. It wasn’t until I removed my first handmade sheets of paper from the felts a few days later that it started to dawn on me just how singularly incredible the act of creating a sheet of paper was.

My paper was a disaster.

It had permanent buckles on the edges and perfectly circular holes where water drops had shattered the fiber pattern. They were either mushy sheets as thick as felt with not enough sizing or brittle films that might have been more sizing than pulp.

Over the next few months, I learned what I was doing by making hundreds of sheets of paper. I started studying up on the moulds and deckles -- the tools of the papermaking trade. I learned patterns of pulling the fibers of the pulp in varying directions to layer stronger sheets. A few months beyond that and I could pull a sheet of abaca so thin and strong that I could print etchings on both sizes of the page and the images would merge. I started collecting printing papers, watercolor papers and drawing papers and began compiling my own paper-sample drawers.

That was the beginning of my appreciation of paper. No other material has such a dichotomy of potential and worthlessness -- so valued in our civilization’s history and at the same time disposable without a thought. It takes its place in museums in the form of treasured documents and as a part of priceless works of art. I can also shove a paper receipt in my pocket to remind me of how much I spent at Target.

When the museum asked me to write this, I chuckled to myself at the irony of blogging about paper. I started wondering what will happen to its place in our culture. Then I went digging around my studio to find my first wrinkly attempts at paper: My feet instantly felt cold again, I could smell pulp being beaten and I heard a teakettle humming. I had an uncontrollable desire to create something -- anything. I knew paper was going to be just fine.

R. Sawan White
Artist

Related event:
On Tuesday, Jan. 26, the VMFA Book Club presents Pulp Non-Fiction: The Making of Paper with R. Sawan White at 6 pm in the Pauley Center.

The still life in photography

2010-01-08T12:18:00.015-05:00

Generally speaking, there are two approaches to photography: take a picture or make a photograph. Artists and commercial photographers do the latter, while those of us collecting images of birthdays and travel usually do the former. Traditionally, those “taken” pictures have represented a sort of truth associated with the production of the documentary photograph. Perhaps the photograph most “made” is the still-life or, in more contemporary terms, “constructed” image. Rather than selecting the shot through the viewfinder, the artist stages the image. In these photographs, the conceptual engineering of the artist is clearly at hand.

The first surviving Daguerreotype, created in 1837 and appropriately titled “Still Life,” was completely staged by the photographer, Louis-Jacques-Mandé Daguerre. A brightly lit window illuminates a bas relief, several cherub-like plaster casts, a ram’s head, a framed picture and some fabric – all items that related to Daguerre’s fame as the premier stager of dioramas in Paris. Given the long exposure time required to produce an image, the still life was the perfect pictorial mode for this early photographic process.

Times have changed, but the still life as subject endures – as seen in the upcoming VMFA exhibition The Constructed Image: Christa Bowden and Robert Sulkin. The meanings behind these images veer away from calling cards of the photographer, turning towards allegory, myth and narrative.

The contemporary constructed photograph asserts its independence from the outside world, as it no longer exists as an image of something but becomes an aesthetic object with a unique character of its own.

Jeffrey W. Allison, Paul Mellon Collection Educator
VMFA Education & Statewide Partnerships

Related events:
Hear the stories still-life photographs tell in Jeffrey Allison’s lecture on Saturday, Jan. 30, and see the exhibition The Constructed Image: Christa Bowden and Robert Sulkin, on view in the VMFA Pauley Center Feb. 5 to June 6.

21 years of Jumpin’ music to begin again in June 2010

2009-12-28T11:08:00.002-05:00

I find it amazing that so many people still come up to me in the grocery store, the drugstore, clubs and restaurants to ask about Jumpin’ and when it’s coming back to the museum. I’m happy to learn that Richmonders have fond memories of VMFA’s outdoor, summer multicultural music series.

After 21 years of interesting esoteric roots music, Jumpin’ has been on hiatus since August 2004 due to our construction. The museum’s grand opening will be on May 1, 2010. Following that, Jumpin’ will find its way into our new Robins Sculpture Garden in June with acts that will totally reaffirm all the good press from past years. This first post-construction year will be a shortened season, or a “taste of things to come,” due to the fact that we will resume moving and arranging art into the garden in July.

When Jumpin started in 1984, it was an outdoor summer series featuring popular music. Multi-cultural roots music came into the mix via my first trip to the Jazz and Heritage Festival in New Orleans in 1987. Thereafter, the premise of the series changed to bringing national and international multicultural roots music that you wouldn’t ordinarily see in Richmond.

I remember that first year I went to the Jazz and Heritage Festival and what a cultural-gumbo pot that was. One, I might add, I was oh-so-willing to jump into. There I was in a city with great music, fabulous food, the lure of decadence, and the mystery of voodoo still apparent in the shadows of French Quarter alleys. On the way to the fairgrounds, we stopped on Bourbon Street to take a look around Chicken Man’s House of Voodoo – you never know when you might need a little mojo hand working for you in the city where Marie Laveau reined for a while, so long ago. And if that doesn’t work, there are always little mementoes to St. Jude all along Ramparts Street to fall back on if you need a back-up.

At the fairgrounds, I was lucky enough to be standing beside some people from Mississippi who came to Jazz Fest every year. They were well into their 20th or so beer by the time we got to talking music. At the first sound of a guitar chord from the stage, the foot stomping began and the dust from the ground started churning, sending up huge, choking clouds into the air. Wayne Toups and Zydecajun blew onto stage like a French hurricane hitting the delta with Toups leading the way punching the buttons on his diatonic accordion like he was working a rock-and-roll jackhammer. This was my first time to see live Cajun/zydeco music. After that very first moment, that was it for me. I was hooked!

Immediately after their set, I heard bluesy rock and roll coming from the gospel tent. It was John Mooney and Bluesiana backed by a full gospel choir with a sound so incredibly full that it threatened to blow the top off the tent. If you weren’t a believer in something going into that tent, you surely were one coming out.

All during the week I spent at Jazz Festival, I keep thinking about music. Then food and dancing seeped into my brain. I thought about how people in Richmond should get a chance to experience this first hand. I ruled out the obvious – I couldn’t bring Richmond to the Jazz Fest. But, I could bring acts from Louisiana to Richmond. I started making contacts, looking up bands (I even put my card on band vans with a scribbled “call me and let’s talk performance”), taking phone numbers. The following summer, Wayne Toups and Zydecajun hit the stage at Jumpin’ with that very same frenetic Louisiana energy. They were the first Cajun artists to perform in Richmond.

I kept on going to New Orleans and southwest Louisiana every chance I got for several years after that, making friends and learning more about the music, people and culture. Then I decided it was time to branch out.

My next stop was San Antonio, a city as exotic in its own right as New Orleans, with its distinct music, culture, food and language. I loved the sounds of conjunto, norteno, tejano, Tex-Mex, Chicago rock and roll and the music of San Antonio’s own Doug Sahm, patron saint of West Side soul. I went to the Tejano Conjunto Music Festival in Rosedale Park and listened to music I’d never heard before. It seemed to me that accordion was king in this genre. The accordion players who were fronting their bands – Flaco Jiminez, Nick Villarreal, Antonio Valerio Longoria, Mingo Saldivar, Santiago Jiminez, David Lee Garza, and Esteban “Steve” Jordan – were the rock stars of the festival. They were doing some incredible things with an “oom pah” sound. Bending and twisting it, you could almost see the music billowing out of the park and taking over the west side of the city. Once again, I was hooked on anther city, another type of music and culture. Not only the music, but Texas had definitely taken a firm hold on me. This time it took me a while, but in 1993, Esteban “Steve” Jordan played Jumpin’ and was one of the first Tex-Mex performers to appear in Virginia.

The more I traveled listening to different music, the more the world opened up to me. The more great stuff I heard and the more great people I met, the more I wanted to bring them to Richmond.

So, here it is in late December 2009, and I’m looking for acts for this summer’s Jumpin’. In keeping with those first few tentative steps into other types of music, worlds and ideas, I thought it would be natural to bring a couple of acts from the places I’ve mentioned above. I feel certain they’re going to capture the audience’s attention in the same way they’ve done mine.

More on the bands coming up in a later blog…

Patricia Jagoda, VMFA Manager of Performing Arts & Production

The restoration’s on the wall

2009-12-22T15:17:00.019-05:00

Carolyn Frisa (left), Contract Paper Conservator, and Heather Logue, VMFA Conservation Technician, apply a new Japanese paper lining to the back of a lincrusta wall frieze. (Photo © Virginia Museum of Fine Arts)

One of the many new exhibits that will be on display in VMFA’s new McGlothlin Wing is the Worsham-Rockefeller Bedroom – an aesthetic-movement interior originally located in the residence of Richmond native Arabella Worsham, on West 54th Street in New York City. The fully furnished bedroom dates to the early 1880s.

One of the bedroom’s distinguishing original components is the “lincrusta” wallpaper and frieze. Lincrusta wallpapers were first made in 1877 in England by the same company that invented linoleum. Like linoleum, lincrusta contained linseed oil, which was mixed with paper pulp and embossed to form ornate three-dimensional patterns. The pattern was painted to emphasize the design and was sometimes even gilded, as is the case with the Worsham frieze.

When they arrived at VMFA, the lincrusta wall-coverings were dirty and in unstable condition. They were covered in a heavy layer of surface dirt and lined on the reverse with three layers of material: acidic brown paper, an old cloth backing, and then a third layer of acidic brown paper. There were tears and breaks in the wallpaper and frieze, as well as areas of separation between the lincrusta and backing layers. Losses to the lincrusta were also present, which is to be expected in wall-coverings in use for more than a century.

The primary goal of the conservation effort was to carefully clean and stabilize the wall-coverings so that they could be safely installed in their new location. Three VMFA Conservation Technicians – Talitha Daddona, Heather Logue and Sarah McIlvaine – worked under my supervision to perform the majority of the conservation treatment. The project began in September, and we expect to complete the work by the end of December.

The lincrusta had become brittle with age, resulting in flaking paper and pigment. Therefore, the first step in the conservation treatment was to re-adhere these lifting areas. The next step involved removing the dirt and soot. This was done by applying moisture with cotton swabs or cosmetic sponges. After we stabilized and cleaned the front, the lincrusta coverings were turned over to remove the acidic-paper backing. The cloth backings were removed from the friezes so that they could be re-lined with more stable Japanese paper. However, the cloth backings were left in place on the wall fills, as the lincrusta was too fragile to be safely removed without causing extensive damage. Losses to the lincrusta were infilled with Japanese paper toned with watercolor and gouache to match the surrounding areas.

Once conservation is complete, historic wallpaper professionals will hang the wall-coverings in their new location. When VMFA opens this May, make sure to visit the Worsham-Rockefeller Bedroom for a glimpse of this 1880s interior. And when you see the room’s walls, you’ll know a little more about the process of cleaning and restoring the lincrusta.

Carolyn Frisa, Contract Paper Conservator

Lincrusta wall fills during treatment: The acidic paper backing is being removed from the piece at the top. The wall fill at the bottom of the photo has been consolidated and partially surface cleaned. (Photo © Virginia Museum of Fine Arts)

An inside look for a memorable occasion

2009-12-07T17:56:00.012-05:00

On Friday, Nov. 20, I was privileged to be invited to the dinner at VMFA in honor of Frances Lewis. Before dinner, Mrs. Lewis had a personal tour of the new Lewis Decorative Arts installation by curator, Barry Shifman. At Barry's request, I accompanied them through the gallery tour in my role as the Conservator of Sculpture and Decorative Arts.

We arrived in front of the bay with the Jean Dunand red lacquer cabinet – one of the many artworks conserved for the reinstallation. Mrs. Lewis asked if we could open it. Although we initially told her we could not, I thought it would be worth a try to comply with her request on this special occasion. The latch on the cabinet is metal – one of those materials not to be handled by bare hands in a museum. Since I had no cotton gloves with me, I went in search of some kind of cloth. I found a clean, unused napkin and returned to the galleries and offered Mrs. Lewis and her guests the opportunity to see the interior of the cabinet.

One of the special privileges of being an art conservator in a museum is we are among the few trained and allowed to handle the art when necessary. I removed my shoes, carefully entered the display area and opened the cabinet to show the interior, which contains rows of lacquered drawers with lettered tabs. The cabinet may have been some sort of index card filing cabinet, although the records don’t tell us that for sure.

I asked Mrs. Lewis what she kept in the cabinet when it was in her home. She replied that she didn’t believe she kept anything in it. That may be one reason the interior remains in such pristine shape.

Mrs. Lewis and her guests were obviously delighted to get a peek inside this cabinet. Barry suggested we might have special days in the future, when the entire museum reopens, where cabinets and desks might be propped open temporarily to give visitors a rare look inside. What do you think?

Kathy Z. Gillis, Conservator, Sculpture and Decorative Arts

Behind the scenes

2009-12-04T13:05:00.012-05:00

(VMFA photos by Bob Tarren)

Twenty graduate students from VCU’s BrandCenter and I tracked through the dusty floors and galleries of the new McGlothlin Wing construction recently. The students are from Professor Mark Avnet’s Creative Technology class, and are working with me and the museum’s marketing department on our social media strategies.

Led by Courtney Delk of VMFA’s architecture & design department, we went on a fact-finding and immersion tour. Did I say dusty? And loud? There was an army of workmen inside and out, including construction workers, electricians, drywall specialists, painters, lighting experts, tile and brick workers, and more. We walked around ladders, ducked under scaffolding, around stacks of construction materials, and tried to stay out of the way of the workers and moving equipment. Hard hats were mandatory.

The objective was to give the students an up-close view of the museum’s transformation, and in particular, the social aspects of the new spaces. They were shown the visitor ‘lounges’ overlooking the Boulevard, the new Best Café and it’s outside patio, the expansive new galleries, and the impressive atrium, or ‘Main Street.’ We talked about WiFi in the new Sculpture Garden, the upcoming music events, and how the museum will be a great place just to ‘be,’ to hang out with friends. They asked great questions, and, as to be expected from the BrandCenter, approached the project as professionals. Sharp thinking, challenged assumptions, and strategic ideation were already evident. I’m sure their work will help us in our mission to introduce new audiences to VMFA. Right after they brush off the dust.

Bob Tarren, VMFA Director of Marketing

Art in the service of art

2009-10-16T12:30:00.005-04:00

John Balasa works on marbleizing columns at VMFA (Photo by Travis Fullerton, © Virginia Museum of Fine Arts)

Marbleizing, wood graining and other decorative finishes have been around since early civilization. Examples can be seen in great palaces, cathedrals, museums and government buildings.

My current project of eight columns will enhance the museum’s original 1936 structure, which will house VMFA’s collection of tapestries when it re-opens in May 2010. I am painting the columns in the Great Hall to imitate sienna marble, which is precious and limited in nature, quarried back to the Roman era. In addition, the 22-karat gold leafing on the column capitals will help to bring a more classical look to this gallery.

These are the most frequently asked questions about my work on the columns:

Q: What types of materials are used?
A: I use alkyd base paint, glaze and varnishes to execute the job from start to finish.

Q: Do you use sponges, feathers, etc?
A: I strictly use brushes of varying sizes and shapes in my work. Rarely, I will use a rubber eraser, depending on a specific technique.

Q: Are you looking at a specific marble when you are imitating marble?
A: I study natural marble for color, pattern density and deposits, and overall pattern of the type selected for imitation. Then, I lock the natural image in my brain, like a computer, and the imitation process begins.

Q: Are you layering colors?
A: I am working with different transparent colors at once, which is the alla prima technique. Alla prima is Italian for “at first,” and it’s sometimes defined as a “wet-on-wet” technique. The work is done in sections that require one sitting, and then I can move on to the next area. I cannot go back to an area after it is dry. I developed this technique and it works well for me.

I look forward to sharing the new columns when the museum re-opens. It is an honor to contribute my work for the enrichment of the museum and the enjoyment of its visitors.

John Balasa, VMFA Exhibition Production

Musing on Monument Avenue

2009-10-13T11:58:00.005-04:00

Kay Remick, a member of The Council of VMFA, homeowner Walter Hooker, and LuLu, the Hookers’ dog, greeted guests at Monument Muse in the 2300 block of Monument Avenue recently. (Photo by Bill Harrison, The Council of VMFA)

Wow! The Council of VMFA sure knows how to throw a party.

Beautiful homes, fine art, wine, food and fun all came together to make Monument Muse a great success. My husband, Frank, and I joined 250 friends of VMFA and walked a block late last month to benefit the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts.

And what a walk: the 2300 block of Monument Avenue, one of the most beautiful streets in Richmond, with stately homes designed in the early 1900s by William Lawrence Bottomley, Duncan Lee and Marcellus Wright.

We were welcomed into five homes for this special evening. Inside, we enjoyed fine wines and hors d’oeuvres and were encouraged to explore upstairs and down.

Why all this hospitality? Monument Muse was a fundraiser and a fun-raiser organized by the Council, the largest group of volunteers and a major financial supporter of VMFA. Council members Deanna Brinkman and Karen Palen chaired this great party, with help from members who served as hostesses. (Council volunteers also staff the Museum Shop, lead tours as docents, volunteer in the museum library, assist in the membership office and more.)

Five vintners and five caterers provided the sumptuous food and drink. One white and one red wine were offered in each home. The best surprise for me was an overflowing bowl of colossal shrimp at the second home we visited. I could easily have spent the evening right there, but my husband and friends reminded me there were more homes to visit, more art to see, and more food – from pheasant breast wrapped in bacon to endless creamy cheeses. We pressed on.

Beautiful art was on the menu as well. Depression-era drawings and paintings as well as African sculptures graced every wall and niche of the first home we visited. (Except for the master bath, where a brightly painted ceramic cow occupied the seat in the marble shower.)

Each home featured a silent auction item: a work of art created by a VMFA staff member. My bids didn’t “win” any of these treasures, but I sure enjoyed looking.

We entered each home ready for discovery. Period and modern furnishings, personal collections and even a small, fuzzy greeter (in the form of a friendly dog) helped us peek into the personalities of the people who own and love these homes.

It was an exceptional evening.

Gail Gilmore, VMFA Council Member

Halloween head games

2009-10-04T11:12:00.008-04:00

This photo is of “Peanut Butter and Skully,” courtesy of Noah Scalin.

When I am programming for children and family events, it's easy to grump about all those administrative duties that come along with the job . . . the paperwork, reports, budgets . . . eh, let me stop there before I get in trouble!

But . . . I do get to develop educational programs that are just plain fun! Part of VMFA's mission is to support our state Standards of Learning through multi-disciplinary studies; I have the opportunity to achieve this goal by providing content in ways that are creative and inspiring within an unconventional learning environment.

For instance, "Night at the Art Museum" is a family event that I'm working on for Friday, Oct. 23, from 5 to 7 p.m. in the Pauley Center. I began by thinking about activities that would be exciting for kids to do at a spooky, fall celebration. I experimented with several ideas to be sure the projects would be educational and super-fun . . . for the kids, of course. I made ooey-gooey slime, sketched skeletons, and designed jack-o'-lantern tote bags with the most ridiculous faces.

While making a mess of the studio and realizing how many leftover miscellaneous supplies were lying around, I came up with the perfect idea. Let me rephrase: Noah Scalin actually came up with the idea, and I simply adapted it to the event -- Skull-A-Day at VMFA! If you haven't heard of Scalin, check him out online. Scalin is a Virginia artist who one day decided he was going to create a new skull every day for a year using whatever materials were available, then post the results on his blog. The concept was revolutionary, and people from around the world habitually started to check his blog for each new skull. The artist appeared on nationally televised broadcasts. After a 'heady' year, a book called "Skulls" was published. It's now being sold in bookstores across the country.

And how, you may be wondering, does this tie into "Night at the Art Museum?" VMFA kids will have an opportunity to create their own unique skulls using a wide range of materials. Their masterpieces will be photographed and posted on Noah Scalin's award-winning blog. It's a fabulous idea -- they'll have a blast learning: about anatomy, an array of art concepts, how to manipulate materials, and that it really is possible to make a career out of being an artist (who knew?)!

Aside from art activities, the event will have a "haunted" twist on our Pauley Center tour, a costume contest for those who come dressed as their favorite artist or artwork, spooky stories, ghostly games and prizes.

Obviously, I could go on forever about how amazing my job is, but I wouldn't want anyone to feel bad about theirs not being quite as fun. Kidding! Seriously though, check out the upcoming event -- you'll be thrilled you did.

Megan L. Liles, VMFA Youth & Family Programs Coordinator

A fascinating mix of sports and kitsch

2009-09-21T13:28:00.003-04:00

"The Ruffian" is a digital cotton-rag print from "Dominion Derby Girls: Glen McClure," on view now at VMFA's Pauley Center. (Photo © Glen McClure)

Roller Derby? I used to watch that when I was a kid!

If only I had a dime for every time I’ve heard that throughout my skating career! Yes, ladies and gents, roller derby is alive and well. And while it may not quite resemble the stuff you used to watch on Saturday morning television, rest assured modern roller derby still delivers the same hard-hitting action you remember.

The renaissance of Roller Derby began in 2001 in Austin, Texas, and has since spread like wildfire, first across the United States and now the globe, with leagues forming in places such as the U.K., Germany and New Zealand. Today’s derby promotes athleticism, sports”woman”ship and camaraderie. Sometimes coupled with “interesting” outfits and unique derby names, modern roller derby is a fascinating mix of sport and kitsch.

The premise of the game is simple. Roller derby matches consist of two teams; five skaters from each team take the track. A skater designated as the jammer (with the star on her helmet) scores the points; the remaining skaters are the blockers, and they form the pack. It’s the jammer’s job to get through the pack while the opposing blockers attempt to stop her. The game is a combination of speed, skill and simultaneous offense and defense.

Today’s leagues are established, organized and maintained by their members. They establish business structures, file tax paperwork and plan their league’s season schedules. Today’s derby athletes are strong, confident women who work hard for what they love.

Shannon “The Ruffian” Ruff, Skater, Dominion Derby Girls

Related events:
On Friday, Oct. 16, at noon in the Pauley Center, “How...do you roller derby?” with Shannon Ruff starts with a brief in-gallery demonstration followed by a discussion. The program is free.

On Thursday, Oct. 22, at 7 p.m., VMFA presents College Night with the Dominion Derby Girls from Norfolk and Richmond’s own River City Rollergirls in a derby demonstration.

Paris dazzled by Tiffany

2009-09-15T19:29:00.006-04:00

This is a detail of VMFA's Art Nouveau Punch Bowl With Three Ladles, made by the Tiffany Glass and Decorating Company in 1900. It will be on view in the expanded VMFA galleries opening in May. (Photo © Virginia Museum of Fine Arts)

PARIS (Sept. 15, 2009) --- A little more than a century ago, Louis Comfort Tiffany presented favrile glass, including his masterwork punchbowl, at the 1900 Paris Exposition, and was awarded gold and bronze medals. Incredibly, since then Paris has paid little attention to the work of this innovative international artist until now. Finally, to the City of Light comes the world première of "Tiffany: Color and Light," which for the past several days has been previewed by elite scholars, collectors, and international museum leadership, as well as hordes of worldwide press.

Tomorrow is the public opening of the Tiffany exhibition at the Musée du Luxembourg. Sidewalk kiosks, banners, and all the buses in Paris herald this dazzling exhibition. The museum, in Paris's verdant Jardin du Luxembourg next to the 17th-century Medici Palace, showcases many of the finest examples of Tiffany's career. Towering windows, delicate objects, and brilliant lamps fill the galleries with sparkling, colored light and graceful forms. Visitors can trace the development of Tiffany's innovative use of glass as an art form, as objêcts d'art, and on to extraordinary domestic interiors and resplendent church windows. The photographs of the exhibition are dazzling, but the payoff for us will be in Richmond, on May 29, 2010, when "Tiffany: Color and Light" comes to Virginia.

After Paris and Montreal, the tour will conclude in Richmond, its only U.S. venue. And at the close of the exhibition, many of its works will return to their home in VMFA's permanent collection, to provide inspiration and delight for generations to come.

Suzanne Hall, Chief Communications Officer, VMFA

A preview in Paris

2009-09-15T10:33:00.004-04:00

(VMFA photo by Jay Paul)

PARIS (Sept. 15, 2009) --- Color and light ... and a touch of glamour ... came here to Paris last night with the opening of "Tiffany: Color and Light" at the Musée du Luxembourg. VIPS, museum professionals and collectors from around the world -- the United States, Canada, Europe, Russia -- previewed the finest assemblage of works by Louis Comfort Tiffany in a generation. A post-preview dinner hosted by the President of the French Senate in the palatial rococo rooms of the Sénat building confirmed the importance of this exhibition as a major cultural event on the glittering Parisian art scene.

The show looked fabulous- - glowing, never-seen-before stained glass, exquisite favrile objects, mosaics, jewelry, and -- stars of the exhibition -- our own Cobweb and Wisteria lamps. And the version of this show that's coming to Richmond next May will be even better; all of the works seen in Paris, but with additional windows and objects only being loaned to us and Montreal. Trust me...it will be spectacular!

Robin Nicholson, Deputy Director for Exhibitions, VMFA

Sunday in Paris

2009-09-13T18:15:00.011-04:00

VMFA photos by Jay Paul

PARIS (Sept. 13, 2009) --- With a day before the preview of the Tiffany: Color and Light exhibition, we had time to visit top collections of Art Nouveau and Art Deco in Paris. At VMFA we are preparing the galleries to completely reinstall our own collection of Art Nouveau and Art Deco decorative arts. It's widely known that VMFA has a world-class collection, and today's visits affirmed our pride and honed our connoisseurship.

At the Musée des Arts Décoratifs, we admired elegant, sensuous line, with organic, especially floral, and other plant-inspired motifs with inspiration by Japanese design. Just as in our collection, unusual materials such as tropical wood, sharkskin, cobra and galuchat (a type of shark or stingray) further distinguish the sophisticated designs. We admired bold, dramatic furniture by Eileen Gray, Louis Majorelle, Emile Gallé, Jacques Doucet and Pierre Legrain, all familiar because of the diverse collection at VMFA.

The Musée d’Orsay was packed with admirers of Gallé, Majorelle, Champetier and Eugène Vallin. With beautifully displayed galleries, the former train station showcased some of Paris’s finest work, including some magnificent beds that were contenders for our Louis Majorelle bed -- almost. In November, VMFA members will preview the Art Nouveau and Art Deco collection, carefully collected and generously donated in 1985 by Sydney and Frances Lewis. Only members will see this preview – everyone else will have to wait for the grand opening on May 1.

Paris has great Art Nouveau and Art Deco, including some legendary Metro stops, designed by Hector Guimard. Fortunately, you can see equally fine work in Richmond, Virginia, but not at our metro stations.

Suzanne Hall
Chief Communications Officer, VMFA

Behind the scenes with father and son

2009-09-08T10:58:00.009-04:00

This video was shot and edited by Robert Nyerges, the son of VMFA Director Alex Nyerges. Robert Nyerges is a a film/video student.

It all began on a trip to Washington with Alex Nyerges, VMFA's director. He mentioned that his son Robert, a film/video student, was to be home for the summer. Robert was interning in Richmond with Dreams Factory, a terrific production shop, but he had some spare time to "shoot some b-roll" for VMFA. (B-roll is illustrative footage to accompany a story).

Robert and I met, and I was struck by his poise and professionalism, and I'm not saying that because he is my boss's son (really). I shared with him one of the many needs that our small communications office has on the brink of re-opening a major national museum. Together, we realized we had a great opportunity. VMFA has begun to explore ways to use moving images to enhance the many stories about our museum. Robert explained many aspects of technical production and asked me for my vision of behind-the-scenes tours with Alex, and I produced outlines for each segment.

We met several times to hone messaging, style, continuity, equipment, editing software and the myriad details to consider, such as animation of the myVMFA logo and the intro for each segment. We set up some shoot appointments, and that's when it became quite poignant.

Father and son worked as a seamless team, interacting with a level of engagement, familiarity and good humor, to produce three professional and informative pieces about the magic that is happening behind the construction fence. I watched a father continue to work after a long day, bantering cheerfully with his son, who gave his dad another tool to enhance his stories about VMFA.

Suzanne Hall, Chief Communications Officer, VMFA

Getting ready for the big day

2009-08-24T11:00:00.003-04:00

VMFA art handlers Justin Brown (left) and Roy Thompson hang Italian artist Artemisia Gentileschi’s “Venus and Cupid,” circa 1625-30, in the Southern Baroque gallery at VMFA. The painting was the first to be reinstalled as the museum prepares for its grand opening in May.

It's starting!

Wow! After years of planning and preparing, imagining and wishing, it finally happened. No drum rolls or fanfare - just barely time to take a deep breath in and it was already done.

Yes - painting number ONE of VMFA's total reinstallation went up on the wall on Thursday. Two hours later the entire gallery was completely hung with fabulous Baroque paintings, thanks to our installation team's skill and dedication.

What a fantastic way to begin a period that will end with the reopening of one of the country's best museums in May 2010.

We just can't wait!

Dr. Mitchell Merling, Paul Mellon Curator / Head of the Department of European Art, VMFA

Volunteers ... What would we do without them?

2009-08-05T13:27:00.009-04:00

The video interview (above) with internationally acclaimed artist Ryan McGinness and VMFA curator John Ravenal is the work of VMFA volunteer Elizabeth Warren. It provides insight into the artist behind the first work that will greet visitors in the galleries when the expanded VMFA opens in May. Elizabeth flew solo on this video project, handling all aspects of it herself, from the interviews and video of the site to the laborious editing process. It's hard to imagine what cultural institutions like VMFA would do without such dedicated volunteers who spend many, many hours working on projects that make the arts more interesting and accessible for all Virginians.

Don Dale, VMFA Writer

Attenzione!: Your life is about to change

2009-07-31T11:48:00.008-04:00

The Bridge of Sighs, Venice

How did I get hooked on Italy? In 1995, I spent the summer in Scotland with my best friend's family, who had moved there in '94. I also visited my extended family and explored my roots (my Mom is from Edinburgh). In July, my friend Ally and I travelled to Aberdeen to spend time with my Aunt Loraine and Uncle Stuart. One day my Aunt and I had the following conversation:

Aunt Loraine: "Tomorrow I thought we'd go to an Italian place for lunch."
Me: "Cool – what's it called?"
Aunt Loraine: "Venice!"
Me: "Oh, is it a themed restaurant?"
Aunt Loraine: "Nooooo. It's Venice!"
Me: "I know – cool name! Do they have gondolas as the booths or something?"
Aunt Loraine: "Celeste, I'm taking you and Ally to Venice, Italy, for the day! Happy Graduation!"

After finally getting it, I jumped up and down with excitement, then packed, and the next morning we took off from Aberdeen airport. The first Italian word I heard as I stepped off of the water taxi in Venice was Attenzione!, because, of course, I was right in the path of gondoliers transporting suitcases. I immediately committed attenzione to memory, and after a day of listening to the language, taking in the sights, aromas and culture, I decided that day to study Italian at college. Learning Italian also helped out with my art history studies, not to mention my love life: eight years later, I would return with an increased Italian vocabulary and my Italiophile boyfriend, Peter, who, in 2006, I married. Thank goodness my Aunt took me to that restaurant. Viva Italia!

Celeste Fetta, Manager of Adult and Higher Education, VMFA

Ciao! An Italian Summer, a program series organized by Celeste Fetta, concludes August 8 at 2 p.m. with a lecture on Italian wine and a wine-tasting with Peter Neff (Celeste's husband), who is the wine buyer for River City Cellars. Ticket information is available at www.vmfa.museum or by telephoning (804) 340-1405.

Triggered memories

2009-07-24T13:57:00.008-04:00

John Ravenal, VMFA's Sydney and Frances Lewis Family Curator of Modern and Contemporary Art, is shown in a VMFA secure storage vault with works from the Ludwig and Rosy Fischer Collection of German Expressionist Art. (Photo © Virginia Museum of Fine Arts)

Yesterday John Ravenal, who is VMFA’s Sydney and Frances Lewis Family Curator of Modern and Contemporary Art, and I spent some quality time in art storage with Richmond Times-Dispatch multimedia reporter Chris Young. Storage is a highly secured place that is off limits for mere mortals. Only curators, registrars, art handlers and the director have access to these vast storage areas that currently house all of VMFA’s art as we complete the construction of all the new galleries. We were shooting video of the much-heralded Ludwig and Rosy Fischer Collection of German Expressionist Art that is stored on 15-foot mesh, rolling racks.

I was reminded of the last time John and I were together in storage with these dramatic and powerful works. Immediately after the lovely memorial service for Anna Fischer at Congregation Or Ami, John and I brought Eva Marx, Anna’s daughter, her husband, Tom, and other family members to see the art that they had grown up with. Together we reminisced about memories triggered by various works and remembered the late Fred Brandt, longtime VMFA curator who introduced us to Anna Fischer and who authored our 1987 catalogue on the collection.

The direct experience with the family who lived with this collection and the scholars who provide insight is what museums are all about. We are so fortunate to have VMFA in our midst.

Watch the Times-Dispatch multimedia presentation

Suzanne Hall, VMFA Chief Information Officer