Only Two More Weeks

Cast in Bronze: French Sculpture from Renaissance to Revolution
The Metropolitan Museum of Art
Special Exhibition
Special Exhibition Space, 1st Floor
Ends May 25, 2009
















François Lespingola , Hercules Delivering Prometheus,
Probably Paris, ca. 1675–1700,
Bronze group; 16 3/4 x 23 1/4 x 14 1/8 in.,
Dresden, Staatliche Kunstsammlungen, Grünes Gewölb


Approximately 125 of the finest French bronzes from the Renaissance through the reign of Louis XVI are on view at The Metropolitan Museum of Art until May 25, 2009. After this date, you will have to travel to California where the exhibit will go on view at the J. Paul Getty Museum in Los Angeles.

Right now, take the opportunity to study these superb sculptures. There are portrait busts, monuments and statuettes. The works are arranged chronologically. The installation is well-spaced and allows for close viewing. It is one of those exhibits that seem to have just enough work presented to illuminate but not overwhelm. I wager this will be the only time for decades to see such a survey.













Barthélemy Prieur,
Funerary Genius From the Tomb of Christophe de Thou,
Paris, 1583–85
Bronze statue; 29 15/16 x 42 1/8 x 13 7/8 in.
Paris, Musée du Louvre,

I have several favorites in the show but urge you to spend time here and select your own. Some of the works that caught my attention were the tomb figures after Michelangelo by Barthélemy Prieur (Berzieux, ca. 1536–Paris, 1611); the super hero Heracles Delivering Prometheus by François Lespingola (Joinville, 1644–Paris, 1705); and, the pairing of Martin Van Den Bogaert’s, called Desjardines, (Breda, 1627– Paris, 1694) unfinished bronze statuette of Louis XIV on Horseback from Copenhagen next to an example of the finished work lent by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II. The unfinished work still has the uncut sprues, channels that were used to permit the molten alloy into the mold. It also includes the pouring cup through which the thick alloy entered the sprues. The juxtaposition of the finished and unfinished gives quite a lesson in casting methodology.

Also of interest to me was an engraving of the sculptor François Girardon’s (Troyes, 1628-Paris, 1715) gallery of his great sculpture collection – several works depicted in the engraving are on exhibit here.

The show’s catalogue with over 500 pages is a tour de force of scholarship. It is a reference book worth owning.

Remember: only two more weeks. Go now for you will want to make more than one visit before these bronzes leave New York.

A Good Move for Gallery Museum 52

Gallery Interior
Museum 52 on East 2nd Street

Museum 52 has temporarily moved to the old Rivington Arms sun-filled space on East 2nd Street. Although small, the gallery allows visitors various vantage points – near, far, to the sides. Works are close enough to their neighbor to interact yet distant enough for concentrated viewing. It’s a comfortable arena for art and an improvement over Museum 52’s previous Rivington Street location which provided an awkward, uninviting, two-level exhibition area. Does space matter? You bet.

For those of you who don’t know, Rivington Arms closed in January, the owners wanting to go their own way. I have fond memories of Rivington Arms’s exhibits both on East 2nd Street as well as in the original Rivington Street gallery. There seemed always to be something interesting and stimulating on view that was enhanced by the intimate locale. I ask myself if a palimpsest of galleries exists for while at the Museum 52 exhibition, I felt the space reflecting its history.

The new show consists of eight works by four artists of merit. All are concerned with questioning the essence of their work’s basic nature and occupying simultaneous contradictory modes.













Stefan Sandner
Untitled
2008
Acrylic on canvas
39.5 x 39.5 inches

Stefan Sandner’s Untitled, 2008 canvas is both outgoing gestural and minimally contained. Up close, it moves. Further away, it's still. Personal and impersonal co-exist. His other work incorporates words that may or may not have meaning. It is abstract and empathic. Words are a concern for other artists here.

















Sarah Braman
Wrong Thing
2009
Wood and paint
48 x 51.5 x 42 inches

Sarah Braman’s sculptural and painterly constructions engage with their manipulation of painted words or implied words and fine use of color. I say “implied words” because of the incorporation of cassette players in one of her three exhibited works. We look at the object for the recording of words that can not be heard.

Ida Ekblad
Odean Sky Uncanny
2009
Oil on canvas
91 x 50 inches

Ida Ekblad stands out with her raw, exciting brushwork and hidden figurative finds. Both her 2009 Triptych, oil on wood, and her Odeon Sky Uncanny, oil on unstretched canvas, have depth, complexity and attraction. Her rich palette adds to the enjoyment.

















Joe Bradly
Bax
2009
Grease pencil on canvas
50.5 x 40 inches

The only piece by Joe Bradley, Bax, nicely framed by the brick wall separating the gallery’s two exhibition rooms, offers contemplation and associations. His grease pencil marks on canvas both describe and negate meanings.

There is much to hold your attention in this probing show. You leave wanting to see more.

Museum 52
4 East 2nd Street at the Bowery
Gallery Hours: Wednesday – Saturday 12 – 6 pm
Exhibition through 23 May 2009

Coming Soon: A Gallery Makes A Good Move

Ida Ekblad
Åpent brev til: # 1,2,3
(Triptych: kjemisk port i muren/einsam flyger dunkel viten/Oseanet flyter i våre årer)2009
Oil on wood
36 x 25 inches

Women

Amedeo Modigliani
Nu Couché au coussin Bleu
1916
Oil on canvas
23 5/8 x 36 1/4 in. (60.1 x 92.1 cm)

Don’t miss Women, a loan exhibition from the Steven and Alexandra Cohen collection taking place at Sotheby’s. Fifteen paintings, two photographs, one exposed blueprint paper work and two bronzes make up this remarkable show based on the theme of women. There are small groups of supine women with arms raised; women sitting in chairs; women in movement; women standing; women confronting the viewer.












Vincent Van Gogh
Portrait of a Young Peasant Girl
1890
Oil on canvas
36 1/4 x 28 3/4 in. (92 x 73 cm)

The paintings are gorgeous and the majority are exhibited without protective glass. The enjoyment is enhanced by the spacious gallery whose walls are painted two shades of gray. Works are so well illuminated the details of brushstrokes and colors take your breath away.

The artists are blue-chip: Pablo Picasso, Pierre Matisse, Paul Cezanne, Vincent van Gogh, Edvard Munch, Andy Warhol, Willem de Kooning and more. I spent time with three paintings depicting women lounging on their backs and wondered how they appeal – one to bed, one to stare at longingly, one to sink into and caress. Their Matisse bronze sister placed before them invited another response – a dare or challenge? Go to the exhibit and see for yourself.

Women: A Loan Exhibition from the Collection of Steven and Alexandra Cohen
From April 2 through April 14, 2009
Open daily 10:00 AM to 5:00 PM
Exceptions: Sunday, April 5, 1:00 PM to 5:00 PM
and Sunday, April 12, closed
Sotheby’s, 1334 York Avenue at 72nd Street,
New York, 10th Floor

Visiting an Unfamiliar Museum - The National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne, Australia

NGV International,
Melbourne, Australia


Visiting a museum for the first time invariably presents a wonderful opportunity for exploration and discovery even to a relatively knowledgeable and experienced museum goer. However, given the unfamiliar terrain, it is important to do some preparation in order to make the best use of one’s limited time and derive the most pleasure from experiences that would create enriching memories.

People in Australia, or as we would call the “Down Under”, have their own terminology where the word “gallery” denotes what we would describe as an art museum. The use of “museum” in Australia is commonly associated with places that preserve and display antiquities and historical artifacts such as a Museum of Natural History. Art works, for example paintings, sculpture, prints, photography, are housed in Australian galleries.

On a recent visit to Australia with my husband, I had the opportunity to spend several hours enjoying the art riches of the National Gallery of Victoria (NGV) in Melbourne, Australia.

I have found it advantageous to start an initial visit to a museum with the Museum's Gift Shop followed by a brief chat with the staff at the Information Desk. The Museum Shop’s display of postcards and publications are good indicators of the gallery’s holdings which the Museum (Gallery) considers important and interesting.

A Museum's Information Desk, in my experience, is generally staffed with people who take pride in the Museum’s collections. They are likely to be very patient and helpful to the visitors in learning about the Museum, its holdings and special exhibits.


There are two parts to the National Gallery of Victoria. These are housed in two separate buildings. The Ian Potter Center: NGV Australia is an excellent repository of Australian art from colonial times to the present and includes both indigenous and non-indigenous artists. The other part, called NGV International, displays international art that includes works from Europe, Asia and America, and covers the entire spectrum from old masters to contemporary painters.












Pierre Bonnard, Siesta, 1900,
oil on canvas, 109.0 x 132.0 cm
© 2009 Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York / ADAGP, Paris





My day began at the NGV International for a personal reason. The Gallery’s collection included a Pierre Bonnard painting, Siesta, that I had seen in New York at The Museum of Modern Art's Bonnard retrospective of 1998. I particularly liked the image and wanted to see again.

The NGV International Information Desk proved helpful as expected. I obtained a map of the Museum and directions to the Bonnard painting. As serendipity would have it, en route to the Bonnard painting, I came across a special exhibition in the Fashion and Textiles Gallery. This is an area that I would not normally visit. However, the exhibit looked appealing. The NGV has an extensive and rare collection of Pierre Cardin’s toiles. I learned that toiles are clothing designs made of inexpensive cotton fabric. These are used as models in the preliminary stages of fashion creation and to ensure that the final garments are manufactured correctly and meet the couture’s exacting standards. The NGV toiles were used by Pierre Cardin in the 1960’s to manufacture clothing for the Australian market. The exhibition compared these construction models to the finished products, which were either actually on view or displayed in fashion photos. The exhibit gave me an insight into the creative process of garment making, transformation and the development of a new aesthetic.









Amedeo Modigliani,
Portrait of the painter Manual Hubert.
1916, oil on canvas, 100.2 x 65.5 cm








Pablo Picasso, Weeping Woman, 1937,
oil on canvas, 55.2 x 46.2 cm
© 2009 Estate of Pablo Picasso / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York













(L)Nicholas de Staël, Still life, 1953,
oil on canvas, 65.0 x 81.2 cm
© 2009 Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York / ADAGP, Paris



(R)Mark Rothko, No. 27 (Red), 1956,
glue, oil, synthetic polymer paint and resin
on canvas, 209.5 x 125.3 cm
© 1998 Kate Rothko Prizel & Christopher Rothko / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York

The Bonnard painting was exhibited in the 19th- and mid-20th-century painting and sculpture section. The gallery space was comfortable and well-proportioned for viewing what were primarily small paintings. There was an Amedeo Modigliani male portrait next to a Pablo Picasso Weeping Woman. On another wall, a Bridget Riley op-abstraction in white and grey picked up the tones of the adjacent Amédée Ozenfant still life whose forms and spatial ambiguity related to its Giorgio Morandi neighbor. The objects depicted in the Morandi painting corresponded to those in the Nicholas de Staël still life that followed. The red in the de Staël work matched the hues in neighboring Mark Rothko canvas that in turn connected with a dominant color in a nearby Howard Hodgkin painting. The totality of my observations was stimulating and elicited many thoughts.










Balthus, Nude with cat,
1949, oil on canvas, 65.1 x 80.5 cm
© 2009 Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York / ADAGP, Paris













Robert Delaunay, Nude woman reading,
1915, oil on canvas, 86.2 x 72.4

Édouard Manet, The Melon, c. 1880,
oil on canvas, 32.6 x 44.1 cm

Throughout my NGV International exploration, I was struck by a sense of respectful intelligence that characterized the gallery installations. Works were hung in a way that enhanced the enjoyment of viewing. Paintings complemented one another other. I found myself comparing and finding more to see. Baltus’s Nude with cat, hung next to Robert Delaunay’s Nude woman reading. A luscious, sensual Édouard Manet, The Melon, was near a Chardin-like Antoine Vollon, Eggs on a pan, c. 1885-90. Three lovely 19th-century water scenes by Albert Marquet, Maurice de Vlamick, Felix Vallotton shared another wall creating a refuge of tranquillity.

St George Hare, The victory of faith,
c. 1890-91, oil on canvas, 123.3 x 200.0 cm

In another 19th-century painting and sculpture gallery I noticed Briton Rivière’s A Roman Holiday, 1881, hung above St George Hare’s The Victory of Faith. In the Rivière, a dying gladiator makes the sign of the cross in the sand turning the scene into a Christian martyrdom while in the Hare painting, two nude woman, Christian martyrs, lie waiting their sacrifice to the lions. Both works display thinly disguised eroticism. Both painters were new to me.

John Constable, Study of A boat passing a lock,
c. 1823-1826, oil on canvas, 102.2 x 128.0 cm

Works by J. M. W. Turner and John Constable filled another room. I focused on Constable’s specks of white paint that animated his Study of A boat passing a lock. This painting, by the way, was a large study for one of Constable's great paintings depicting the lock near his father’s mill.

Hubert Kovarik, Autumn and Summer,
c. 1910-15, earthenware

For a change of pace, I visited the 18th- and 19th-century collections of European Decorative Arts. There were examples of Wedgwood pottery, Vienna ceramics and Bohemian earthenware. A pair of figures denoting Autumn and Summer by Hubert Kovarik, reminded me of a Jeff Koons.

Rembrandt Harmensz. van Rijn,
Two old men disputing, 1628,
oil on panel, 72.4 x 59.7 cm

Rembrandt Harmensz. van Rijn,
Portrait of white-haired man, 1667,
oil on canvas, 109.9 x 92.7 cm

My next sojourn was the Dutch and Flemish masters from the 17th- and 18th-centuries. I looked at two Rembrandts hung side by side: Two old men disputing and Portrait of a white-haired man. This juxtaposition gave viewers the opportunity to contrast a youthful work with one done just two years before the artist’s death. The NGV also has a collection of Rembrandt prints, several of which were on view in the adjoining gallery.












Johann Zoffany, Self-portrait as David with head of Goliath, 1756, oil on canvas, 92.2 x 74.7 cm

I viewed more 17th- and 18th-century paintings in other galleries. These included a Banquet of Cleopatra, 1743-44, by Giambattista Tieopolo and a show-offy self-portrait by Johann Zoffany, Self-Portrait as David with head of Goliath, which was painted by the artist when he was in his early twenties.

Visually tired, I thought a trip to Asia would revive me. I looked at the collection of Indian art which was not very large. Two 2nd century A.D. Bodhisattvas caught my attention with their sensual depiction of supple flesh. I followed this by a quick viewing of some 15th-and 16th-century European polychromed wood sculptures and a panel painting, c. 1431, St. George Slaying the Dragon, attributed to the Florentine master Paolo Uccello.










Louise Bourgeois, Cell (glass spheres and hands),
1990-1993, 219.5 x 218.8 x 220.0 cm
Art (c) Louise Bourgeois/Licensed by VAGA, New York, NY

On my way out, I walked through the Roman Antiquty area and the 20th-century art galleries where I saw works by Bill Viola, Yayoi Kusama, Thomas Struth, Linda Benglis, Eva Hesse, Helen Frankenthaler, Louise Bourgoise and Lee Krasner. Notably, women artists far out numbered males.

My overall impression of the NGV International was quite positive. Although the NGV International had a relatively limited number of objects that may be considered major masterpieces, it nevertheless owned many superior works, some surprises and fine examples of those artists deemed famous.

Ian Potter Center: NGV Australia
Melbourne, Australia

When it comes to art, gallery and museum viewing, I am like an Eveready Energizer Battery advertisement and can keep going. Having fortified myself with freshly brewed Australian coffee, I proceeded to the Ian Potter Center: NGV Australia. Although I know it is not true, I imaged that my so-called fame preceded me. Immediately upon my arrival, I was greeted by a docent in the lobby, who took me on a private tour. It was a bit of a rush but inspiring. Australian indigenous and non-indigenous art is a rich and fascinating adventure. It deserves time and attention and must wait discussion for another time. I don’t recommend doing both parts of the NGV in one day.

You now have a sample of how I go about visiting an unfamiliar museum. My one day whirlwind tour may sound like a daunting experience but think that it could also be exhilarating. Try a visit to an unfamiliar museum. I promise you will have a good time.

What should I look At?

Camille Pissarro,
Boulevard Montmartre, morning,
cloudy weather, 1897,
oil on canvas, 73.0 x 92.0 cm,
National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne, Australia

I am often asked, “What should I look at?” You are going to a museum you have never been to and do not know where to start, what to do?

What do I do?

Given the best of all worlds, before visiting a museum, I go to the museum’s Web site and review their collections. Then, I make my choices and take notes. I also go over the current exhibitions and write down what is of interest to me. My notation may be a painting I want to see or a particular collection.

Whether I have done previewing or not, when I arrive at the museum, I go to the gift or book shop and take a look at the postcards and museum guide or catalogue. This gives me an idea of the works considered important or the ones the museum is particular proud of. Often I buy postcards of the things I like to compare to the actual object when viewing. I also use the postcards to record my observations and comments.

Many museums have introductory tours but I tend to stay away from them. I’d rather have the chance encounter with works of art by walking about the galleries on my own, often in a random way. I do pick up a gallery map at the information counter and inquire about locations and special exhibitions. I begin with the things I have noted and spend time looking.

I like to read labels to learn about dating and any other information they may impart. I am interested in when the museum acquired the work because I like to know about collection patterns. Sometimes label annotations refer to another painting in the collection and it is fun to go and see the actual work mentioned.

When viewing a specific work, I look at how it connects to the other work in the gallery. I think about the subject –such as portraits next to one another – or the composition – such as the positions of the main components – or the colors – such as relating a primary color used in one painting to colors in the painting adjacent to it. I ask myself if the work I am looking at “talks” to another in the room. By “talks” I mean link in a meaningful way so that the works are enhanced by the juxtaposition. I think about how the paintings relate to the gallery’s wall color or treatment. I look at the gallery’s space. Is it big or small? Are the ceilings high or low? I ask myself if the physical environment affects the works either to the good or bad.

For me, visiting a new museum is an exciting endeavor. You never really know what to expect and there are always discoveries to be made. It is like taking a trip to a new country - you may be familiar with it from your research but you never really know what it will be like until you are there. I urge you to go on an adventure and visit, what is for you, an unfamiliar museum.

What Will Endure?

Rembrandt van Rijn, Aristotle Contemplating the Bust of Homer, 1653, Oil on canvas, 56 1/2 x 53 3/4 in.,

The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York

In The New York Times, WeekendArts Fine Arts Leisure section, Friday, January 9, 2009, Holland Cotter wrote an excellent article entitled, In the Gloom, Seeing Rembrandt With New Eyes. His illuminating thoughts on Rembrandt’s work in the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Dutch painting galleries encouraged me to revisit these familiar friends. Reading Cotter made me think of Rembrandt’s Aristotle Contemplating the Bust of Homer, unmentioned in the article but a work dear to my heart. It was purchased by the Museum in 1961 for $2,300,000, at that time the highest price ever paid for a work of art. In the immediate decades after its purchase it had quite a following but now seems neglected by visitors.

I had not seen it for probably a year or more and was surprised at the painting’s emotional impact. With thoughts of our current economic collapse and financial scandals, it was almost painful for me too look at the aged philosopher. He is depicted here in deep thought, melancholic, remorseful. He seems sad and introspective – so very inwardly focused that the viewer may feel like an intruder.

To put the painting in context, a few brief words about the time of its creation is needed. The 1650’s were difficult for the Dutch Republic what with naval wars with England impacting the country’s commercial success, plagues, and floods. By 1651, Rembrandt was in financial trouble. He was deeply in debt due to his extravagant spending on collections, money still owed for his house, increased payments demanded by his former servant/mistress and loss of income. His business declined. Patrician patrons were losing interest in his style of art. Rembrandt was becoming unfashionable and commissions were not plentiful. Paintings that were colorful with clear-edged contours that looked smooth and finished were preferred to his rough, fluid, manipulated painting style. By 1656, Rembrandt was bankrupt and, lucky for us, an inventory taken during his property’s liquidation. From this, we know, for instance, that in Rembrandt’s plaster collection, a bust of Aristotle stood next to a bust a Homer, implying that the artist saw a close association between the two.

Yet, there is the theory that the image of the contemplative old man may not represent Aristotle, the teacher of Alexander the Great, but may depict the Alexander’s favored painter, Apelles. The identity of the figure as either the philosopher or artist is cogently presented by two exceptional art historians and reviewed by Simon Schama in his book, Rembrandt’s Eyes, New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1999. Although I favor the Aristotle identification, either one will do for I feel in this work, Rembrandt is talking about the fleeting values of worldly and monetary success as opposed to timeless values like those inherent in works of art. For me, the painting is the contemplation of what will endure, survive, and have value in contrast to material and public success that may come and go. Whether philosopher or painter, what we see is a man lost in thought whose lowered left hand, in shadow, touches a gold chain. A medal attached to the chain is acknowledged as a depiction of the helmeted Alexander. Such gold chains were associated with worldly rewards, usually given by monarchs as an indication of honor. The figure’s well-lit right hand is raised and rests on the head of the Homer bust. The right has a long association with goodness, “rightness” and light with illumination, knowledge. We like to touch those things we are fond of. Rembrandt signs his name and dates the painting on the bottom of the bust, thus identifying himself with the poet and his enduring qualities.

Late in life, Aristotle had a falling out with Alexander and after his death, the philosopher was exiled. Apelles also outlived Alexander and late in life the painter had to depend on uninformed, powerless patrons. In this painting, Rembrandt seems to be commenting how temporal power may come and go. What will last? The qualities that make Homer last. Think about it. Looking at the richness of this painting and noting that I have not even begun to interpret the library setting, the costume of the figure or the brushwork and painterly technique that pushes and pulls you, drawing you into the painting and the thoughts of Aristotle/Apelles. Many have experienced financial ruin today because of the ongoing economic crisis. I would like to hope, those who have, are thinking about more enduring values than wealth and goods. What will endure when your money goes? What should we value? These are questions, I feel, this thoughtful figure is contemplating. These are the questions many of us are asking now. Go visit the Metropolitan Museum of Art and spend time with Rembrandt’s Aristotole/Apelles Contemplating the Bust of Homer. It is a valuable experience.