Gifts to the Tsars

Today’s article is another in the series on art exhibitions I wished I could have attended. The exhibition, Gifts to the Tsars 1500 – 1700 – Treasures from the Kremlin, was organized by the Indianapolis Museum of Art and the State Historical-Cultural Museum Preserve, Moscow Kremlin. This exhibition took place in Indianapolis in 2001 and 2002.

A point of interest about this exhibition is that it was as much as a history and cultural lesson about a far away country as it was a presentation of great art. The show included gifts of the sixteenth and centuries, European decorative arts, and ambassador gifts which included masterpieces of silver.

This exhibition not on presented treasures in the form of objects from a very unique museum as well as rare documents. Jewelry, gemstones, silver and gold vessels, plates, cups and other items were included in this exhibition. Many of the items in the exhibit were from other countries but some were items created in the Kremlin workshops.

Smithsonian Libraries Exhibition

Today’s I am continuting the series on art exhibitions I wished I could have attended. The featured exhibition is An Odyssey in Print – Adventures in the Smithsonian Libraries. This exhibition was held at the Grolier Club in New York in 2001 and the Smithsonian in Washington D.C in 2002 - 2003.

The Smithsonian Institution Libraries in located in numerous places throughout the United States and the Republic of Panama. The Smithsonian Institution Libraries in the center of the world’s largest museum complex. The museum contains over 1.5 million books and manuscripts.

The exhibition organized as a 3-part adventure through the magnificent collection. Part 1, Journeys over Land and Sea, concentrated on works that demonstrated how the world was seen and recorded by Europeans and Americans. Part 2 Journeys of the Mind, explored how scientists have provided information that helps us understand the world. The final part, Journeys of the Imagination, presented work created through the imaginations of artists, architects and book designers.

It’s hard to imagine that this exhibition did not include something for nearly every one. If you are a lover of books and libraries, this would have been an excellent exhibition to attend.

Art Exhibition - Munch and Scandinavian Art in Late 19th Century

Today’s article is about an exhibition on late 19th century Scandinavian art. The exhibition, Munch and the Spirit of the North – Scandinavian Art in Late 19th Century, took place in September 25, 2010 to March 6, 2011 in Italy. This show was an exhibition within an exhibition. The larger show featured great artists of the North in the late 19th Century. The smaller exhibition presented work by Edvard Munch. The exhibition presented thirty paintings and 10 works on paper by Munch. This exhibition was the most extensive showing of work by the Norwegian artists. The show focused on his early works and many were landscapes from Norway, Sweden, Finland and Denmark. More recent exhibitions have focused on the darker periods of Munch. A lot of attention in recent years has been directed to Munch’s “Scream” paintings. This was an exhibition that celebrated Edvard Munch’s early work without visiting his depressive nature. You can find a great collection of art books and exhibition catalogs at Nella’s Books and Collectibles.

Art Exhibition - American Watercolors

The exhibition chosen for today’s article is American Watercolors from The Metropolitan Museum of Art. This exhibition was organized by the Metropolitan Museum of Art and The American Federation of Art. This exhibition of 150 works took place at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in 1991. Two selections of 75 water colors each were on national tour. This exhibition featured landscapes, topographical views, architectural studies and still lifes painted over a period of almost 150 years. The pieces were carefully chosen and represented the best of the bests. Many of the artists included in this exhibition are some of my favorite painters. Among my favorites are John Singer Sargent, John Marin, John La Farge and Childe Hassam. There were, however, a number of painters with work included in this exhibition that were unknown to me. A few of the artist with work in this show there were previously unknown to me were: James David Smillie, William Stanley Haseltine and William Guy Wall. Visiting the Metropolitan Museum of Art is always exciting and viewing American Watercolors from the Metropolitan Museum of Art would have made the experience one that I would have treasured forever. You can find a great collection of art books and exhibition catalogs at Nella’s Books and Collectibles.

Art Exhibition of Betye Saar

Today I continue my series of articles on art exhibitions I have chosen an artist that does not create the ordinary. The American artist is Betye Saar. The exhibition, Betye Saar Cage – A New Series of Assemblages, was held at the Michael Rosenfeld Gallery in New York on November 6 – January 15, 2011.


The exhibition presented Saar’s mixed media creations: installations, assemblages, and collages using the motif of cages. She is thought to be a master of assemblage. This artist typical uses culture and politics with her creations and most of her work in this exhibition included objects that she collected. The art work presented in this exhibition was created after years of collecting cages from yard sales and various other places. She also used scrap metal, artificial hair and feathers.



Betye Saar’s art work this exhibition was influenced by many things as most of her art work has over the years. The exhibition encouraged viewer to think differently about common objects and to have deeper thoughs about many things in life that are often ignored. This exhibition said to be very thought-proving.



You can find a great collection of art books and exhibition catalogs at Nella’s Books and Collectibles.

Norman Rockwell - Art Exhibition for the American People

Today I am continuing the series of articles on art exhibitions I wished I could have attended with one of America’s most popular artist and illustrator, Norman Rockwell. The exhibition, Norman Rockwell – Pictures for the American People toured several seven cities in the U.S. from January 2000 to March 2002. The national tour began at the High Museum of Art in Atlanta and ended at the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum in New York.
The two organizing institutions, The Norman Rockwell Museum of Art and the High Museum of Art clearly made this exhibition unlike any other. If has been referred to as a landmark exhibition. Great care was taken to make sure American history portrayed in Rockwell’s art and history of yesteryear was prevalent in this exhibition.
The exhibition contained all the familiar Rockwell images that many of us have seen through the years. There were also some not so familiar Rockwell paintings in this exhibition. Images from magazine covers, original paintings from private collections and familiar illustrations from books were included.
If you are like me and never tire of viewing the art work of Norman Rockwell, this is one exhibition that would have been a joy to attend. You can find a great collection of art books and exhibition catalogs at Nella’s Books and Collectibles.

Willem de Kooning - His Greatest Art Exhibition

Today's art exhibition that I wished I could have attended is the Willem de Kooning exhibition held at the Museum of Modern Art in 1969. The exhibition was also at the Art Institute of Chicago and the Los Angeles County Museum of Art as well as out of the U.S. At the time, this was the most comprehensive showing of de Kooning’s work. The show presented de Kooning in mid-career, beginning with his first works in the 1930s and ended with a large picture finished in November 1967. Willem de Kooning selected some pictures for this exhibition that he thought best represented his work and he wrote a chronological commentary to go along with the exhibition. Some of the pictures used in the exhibition had seldom been shown in public prior to this show. There have been subsequent showings of de Kooning’s work, but the 1978 exhibition created a lot of excitement in the art world and was well received by the admirers of one of the most important artists of the 20th Century. You can find a great collection of art books and exhibition catalogs at Nella’s Books and Collectibles.

Art Exhibits I Wished I Could Have Attended

Today begins a series of articles on art exhibitions I wished I could have attended. There are many reasons why I was unable to attend the exhibition. Some of the exhibitions took place in far away destinations; some were local and not so far away. Another thing all the exhibitions have in common is that they are not currently showing. They were held in the past. I love attending art shows at museums and galleries and I believe there is no better way to learn about an artist. Today’s featured exhibition is Paul Gauguin – The Breakthrough into Modernity The exhibition was held at the Cleveland Museum of Art and the Van Gogh Museum, Amsterdam. A point of interest about this exhibition is that it was an exhibition about an exhibition. In 1889 Paul Gauguin had some of his work displayed at a café in Paris near the exposition grounds. The work is referred to is the Volpini Suite. This was the first close examination of the Volpini Suite prints. The Volpini Suite consists of ten zincographs in a folder plus a frontispiece attached to the cardboard cover. Sixty works by Paul Gauguin including the Volpini Suite and related works were shown at this exhibition. You can find a great collection of art books and exhibition catalogs at Nella’s Books and Collectibles.

William Sydney Mount American Genre Painter

Today’s featured artist is William Sydney Mount. Like other artists in this series, Mount is not a new artist but one I have recently discovered. William Sydney Mount is considered one of the early American painters. His work is considered to be primarily genre painting. He also painted portraits. Mount’s work is included in the category that reflects scenes of everyday life and includes history, literature and other subjects. He is not only known for his pure paintings but also storytelling reflected in his work. Mount was born on Long Island in 1807. He studied at the National Academy of Design in New York where he studied European painting. His paintings were usually monochromatic and he used muted colors. Some of his noted paintings are The Long Story, The Painter’s Triumph and the Power of Music. Mount died in 1868. His work can be seen Museum of Fine Arts in Boston and other major museums. www.nellasbooksandcollectibles.com

Fitz Henry Lane and the Sea

The artist I have chosen to write about today is Fitz Henry Lane. This artist is not a new artist but recently discovered by me. I discovered Lane while reading a guidebook on masterworks of American Art.






Fitz Henry Lane lived from 1804 – 1865. Fitz Henry Lane was known as Fitz Hugh Lane for several years. There was an error in recording his name was discovered recently. Lane was a self-taught American artist. He was a printmaker and marine painter. He worked as an apprentice at a Boston Lithographic firm.



After working in Boston for a short while where he established himself as a printmaker, he returned later to Gloucester where he was born. Lane spent most of his life in Gloucester, Massachusetts. He entered many exhibitions and was commissioned to do seascapes and ship portraits.



Lane produced many beautiful marine paintings during his life time. Some believe the reason his paintings were so popular was because of his great sense of light and his attention to detail. His paintings reside at several major museums including the Timken Museum of Art in San Diego as well as the Boston Museum of Art.

Discovering Joshua Johnston

 

I have added Joshua Johnston to my list of newly discovered artist.   Joshua Johnson is known as America’s first recognized free African American visual artist.  He was born in the West Indies about 1765 and received his freedom in 1790.

Johnston focused on portrait painting to wealthy plantation owners.  The aristocratic landowners and merchants in Maryland and Virginia during this time desired their portraits to reflect their English heritage.   His work has been compared to Charles Wilson Peale.  Johnston’s work clearly showed to popular eighteenth-century British styles. 

Joshua Johnston’s paintings from the early days have survived over the years.  Johnston painted portraits until his death in 1830.   There are more than 80 paintings by Johnston exists today  in private collections or museums and galleries.

Discovering Cornelia Kuemmel

The newly discovered artist I am writing about today is Cornelia Kuemmel. While Ms. Kuemmel is not a new artist I have just been made aware of her paintings. Cornelia Kuemmel was born in 1863 in a small town in Missouri.  She took art lessons at Pritchett Institute in Glasgow, Missouri.  She taught art from 1883 to 1891 at Pritchett Institute.   She attended Washington University School of Fine Art in St. Louis in 1891 to 1895.  Cornelia Kuemmel died in 1938.

Cornelia Kummel was inspired by literature, fashion and nature.  One of my favorite paintings by the artist is Pandora’s Box.  Her oil paintings reflected the outdoors.  She loved the woods and his and she created many nature scenes of using vibrant colors.  Kuemmel’s paintings have been exhibited in several museums and galleries.

Although not very well known, Cornelia Kuemmel’s paintings that are available to view today provide us with beautiful scenes of natural settings of a Midwestern life and the people that lived during her time.

Versatile Daria Dorosh

The newly discovered artist today is Ukraine born artist, Daria Dorosh. This artist was discovered while looking at an exhibition catalog displaying digital prints and ceramic constructions.  Like other artists I have written about recently, Dorosh is not a new artist but her work is new to me.  Daria Dorosh has called an artist, educator and activist.

Daria Dorosh lives and works in New York City.  She studied at the Cooper Union School of Art and Architecture and the Institute of Technology. She has held many exhibitions and is a professor at the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York.  Dorosh was a co-founder of A.I.R. gallery, the first professional gallery in the country to show work of women artist.

What is most interesting about this artist is that she has produced a variety of work.  Dorosh uses a variety of materials.  I believe her photo-based work is her most successful.  Dorosh used digital prints to capture history as well as certain memories.

Discovering Bill Jensen

I recently discovered the artist Bill Jensen. Although Jensen is probably known to many, I first had the opportunity to few some of his work while browsing though an old magazine. Bill Jensen is an abstract painter and has combined the Western abstract style with an Asian esthetic. He was born in Minneapolis, Minnesota in 1945.




After completing school Jenson moved to New York where he found success with his abstract paintings. His abstract paintings often contrasted light colors with dark and included bold images throughout the 1980’s Jenson was part of the Five Painters of New York. His work was widely exhibited and he received the National Endowment for the Arts Fellowship.



One interesting point about Jensen’s paintings is that he makes how own paint. This enables him to use a broad spectrum of colors and deep saturation. A painting that I find interesting is Kuroscuro I. This oil on linen painting was created 1999 – 2001. This painting is a classic example of Jenson’s unusual abstract style.



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Discovering Carleton E. Watkins

My newly discovered artist today is 19^th century photographer, Carleton E. Watkins. Watkins was born in 1829 in upstate New York.  He eventually moved to California to live in the 1860’s. There he fell in love with the western landscape.

Carleton E. Watkins is most known for his conservatory work of Yosemite Valley in California and his contribution to the establishment of National Parks.  Watkins specialized in landscape photography and often experimented in the early years of photography with new equipment.

According to many accounts, during Watkins’ lifetime he experienced a small amount of success as a photographer.  He lost his studio in the San Francisco earth quake and was poor when he died in 1926.   In recent years a photograph among an album of 51 prints, entitled Photographs of the Columbia River and Oregon, was sold an auction for $100,000.  At that time, it was the most expensive property sold at an auction. 

Willard L. Metcalf - Pioneer

Willard L. Metcalf is another newly discovered artist. Although this artist is not well known, he has been credited with being a pioneer of Impressionism.  He specialized in landscape painting.  Metcalf worked with oils, pastels and watercolors.

Metcalf was born in Lowell, Massachusetts in 1858.  He studied art in Boston and spent a great deal of time working with landscapes.   He studied in France and was influenced by Monet.  While in France, Metcalf learned to paint en plein air. After returning to America, Willard Metcalf he began merging his old with his new influences.  This resulted in what some believe is the most important framework for American Impressionism.

Metcalf’s New England landscapes are considered to be his best work.  Although I admire many of his New England landscapes, my favorite painting by Metcalf is Indian Summer, Vermont.  This oil on canvas was created in 1922 and resides at the Dallas Museum of Art.    I love the brilliant use of color and brushwork.

Willard L. Metcalf’s paintings are often exhibited in galleries. Like many great artist, his work seems to be timeless.

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Emil Bisttram

My new recently discovered artist today is Emil Bisttram. Bisttram was born in Hungry and moved to America in 1895. This artist is most noted for his work created in Santa Fe, and Taos, New Mexico. Bisttram is also credited with being one of the founding members of the Transcendental Painting Group.




Early in his career, Bisttram’s began working with spiritual, scientific, and philosophical themes. Some of his abstract creations involved the use of dynamic symmetry. He later combined this work with various spiritual systems.



Many believe Metropolis to be one of the most significant paintings by Emil Bisttram before he moved to New Mexico. The Metropolis is a large vertical oil painting on canvas.  In this painting, Bisttram used dynamic symmetry.  He included tall triangular buildings in this spectacular painting that represented skyscrapers in New York .



Emil Bisttram was thought to have played a significant role in the development of modernist forms in American art.

Frank Owen Gehry - Architect Designer

Frank Owen Gehry is another great artist I discovered while looking through an exhibition catalog.    This American artist is probably better known for being an architect.  Gehry was extremely creative and used his talents to develop innovative designs.

American architect, Frank Gehry worked with the Formica Corporation in using a new product similar to an earlier Formica called ColorCore. As Gehry experimented with this material he developed something that looked like fish scales.  Later he created lamps in the shape of a fish using this material.  From this discovery he designed Fish Lamp, 1983.

His most important commission was for the fish sculpture created for the Barcelona Olympics in 1992.   This sculpture developed from Gehry's work with the Fish Lamp.  You can also find an installation by Frank Owen Gehry at the Walker Art Center.

Architect, designer, artist, all are words that describe Frank Owen Gehry.  What makes Gehry stand out from many other architects is his design work and artistic  innovations using man-made materials.

Andre Demain - Man of Color

This article continues with my series of artists newly discovered.   The artist chosen for today’s article is Andre Derain.    As previously mentioned these are not necessarily new artist but are individuals previously unknown to me.    Andre Derain was born in Paris and lived from 1880 to 1954.

Although Derain was not as popular,  he is closely associated with Matisse.  Drain was part of the group led by Matisse Fauves.  The Fauvism movement was introduced in 1905 when a group of artists exhibited in a salon.   The work by these artists was new and different for the time and received a great deal of public criticism.  Derain like Matisse was influenced by Cezanne and Gauguin. 

What is interesting about Andre Derain is that he has been given little credit for the Fauvism movement.  Matisse is thought of more closely with this movement.  Derain’s work, however, was more Fauvist before Matisse’s.   He was also an early Cubist.

Derain’s best work was landscapes.  One of his famous paintings, “Big Ben”, depicts how the artist used bright clashing colors with expressive brushstrokes to distort reality.  The painting was created in 1905.  Derain’s work in his later years was influenced by the Old Masters and was not as exciting or colorful.

Discovering George Grosz

The newly discovered artist I am writing about today is George Grosz. As I have mentioned in previous writings these are not necessarily new artist but are individuals previously unknown to me.  Grosz a German born artist but was also a teacher and lived during the time artists expressed their political feelings through their work.  He taught at the Art Students League in New York.

Because he disliked all forms of dictatorial authority, George Grosz left Germany in 1932 before Hitler took over.  Grosz’s work, Ecce Home, a collection of drawings created in 1923 reflected his responses during World War I.  Some would say that some of his work, although political and satirical, was often demeaning.

George Grosz was influenced by Expressionism and Futurism.  Grosz later changed his style of art and subject matter when he came to America.  After 1933, the styles of his artwork seem to soften.  He mostly painted landscapes and traditional nudes. He exhibited often and opened a studio in his home. 

Jean Simeon Chardin

As I continue to write about new artist I have recently discovered, I decided I would report on a artist that lived many years ago.   Today’s artist is Jean Simeon Chardin.  This great master of still-life painting was born at the start of the 18th century in Paris.   His work was widely distributed and he experienced success due to his work.  He has been influential on several later artists.  

What makes Chardin so interesting is that he was very elusive.   It appears he was well known for his art work but not much was known about his personal life.  Chardin had three biographers following his death but none knew much about the painter’s personality.  He was described as simple, straightforward and hardworking.

It could be said that much of Chardin’s paintings were a lot like his life was described.  His paintings were simple domestic interiors with naturalistic renderings of everyday objects.  Late in life Chardin abandoned paintings and created portraits with pastels. Some believe the self-portraits produced by Chardin before his death provided more insight into the man than all of his biographies combined.

Charles Biederman

I recently read an article about abstract painter that was probably ahead of his time.  As I continue to discover new artists (artist not previously known to me) I have chosen to write about Charles Biederman. Biederman was born in Cleveland in 1906.  This American artist originally wanted to study in Paris and to connect with the leading modern artists of his time, Picassso and Braque.  He later became one of the most well known painters of abstraction.

Charles Biederman began as a painter of figurative works in Chicago. He studied in Paris and occasionally worked with abstract art. When he arrived in New York he became friends with Matisse and other leading figures of modern art in America.  Soon after coming to New York his career took off.


You could say that Beiderman was ahead of his time. Some of his work used techniques that were more prevalent in the 1970’s. An example of this is his work, Untitled Wall Construction. Biederman died in 2004.

You can find his work today in several galleries and museums.

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The Quiet Paintings of E.I. Couse

While looking through an exhibition catalog, I found the work of Eanger Irving Couse.  As I continue to to discover unfamiliar artist this year, I was pleased to find the article about E.I. Couse.    This American artist is known for his wonderful Indian portraits painted in Taos, New Mexico.

This Michigan artist lived from 1866 to 1936. His early work included landscapes. He was drawn to the art of the Southwest and visited Taos every year from 1902 until his death.  Unlike most painters of the Southwest who painted images of the action of Cowboys and Indians, Couse studied and painted mostly quiet and serene scenes.

You can find Couse’s art work today in many museums and institutions.  The Image I had the opportunity to view is Firelight, oil on canvas done in 1902.   This is a close-up portrait of two Native Americans in front of a fire smoking a pipe.

Eanger Irving Couse is my second artist I have discovered of the New Year enjoy the work of this artist. I will look forward to perhaps viewing more of his images in the future.

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A Simple View of Nature

A few weeks ago, I was looking for a new wall calendar for my office.    I usually try to find something art-related and something I will enjoy year-round.  There were only a few 2013 calendars left in the store that appealed to me.  I was just about to give up when I spotted a Charley Harper 2013 calendar.  I was not familiar with this artist.

I was impressed with the front cover.    There was a red bird along with other wildlife creatures on the cover.  The calendar of course was sealed so I could not see all the pages but the back cover provided a sampling of what was inside. The drawings were bright and colorful, simplified but yet interesting.

I decided to purchase the calendar.   I did some research on this artist when I got home.  I learned that Charley Harper is famous for his nature paintings.  He has created prints, posters, and illustrated books and magazines. Charley Harper died in 2007.   His limited edition serigraphs and signed prints are sold today and some are very expensive. 

I love my new wall calendar.  I have discovered a new artist.    The artwork is uplifting and cheerful.  I anticipate going through the year enjoying Mr. Harper’s wildlife illustrations. 

 




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