Archive for April, 2013

Untitled – Creating Art Ball 2013

Held every spring, the DMA Art Ball is one of the Museum’s largest fundraising events, and this year it exceeded all expectations! The reviews are raves for the entertainment, live and silent auctions, seated dinner in an expansive tent on the Museum’s Ross Avenue Plaza, and high-energy After Party in another tent at the Flora Street Entrance. Under the leadership of co-chairs Jennifer Karol and Catherine Rose, Untitled: Art Ball 2013 raised an impressive $2,250,000 to help the Museum in many areas, including conservation, technology, and the recent return to free general admission for all. How did we transform Ross Avenue Plaza into an elaborate venue? Watch the video below to see how the massive tent was constructed:

A highlight of the evening was the video Downtown Artsy, created as a thank you to the evening’s very generous sponsors. It featured DMA Director Maxwell Anderson as “Lord Grantham” and Mayor Rawlings as his valet, along with other local celebrities.

Debbie Stack is Director of Special Events and Volunteer Relations at the DMA.

The Spot for Art

Over the last few years, DMA visitors may have come to know the drop-in art making area in the Center for Creative Connections as the Space Bar, a name that corresponded with our Encountering Space exhibition. If you’ve come into C3 lately, you probably noticed that we like to make strong connections and keep things fresh. When it was known as the Space Bar, this area offered materials loosely based on works of art in the C3 Gallery. Every month we changed the materials to focus on a new theme related to the concept of space.

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Martin Delabano, Family Portrait 1963, 2001, Dallas Museum of Art, gift of Mr. and Mrs. Bryant M. Hanley, Jr., Lorine and David H. Gibson, and Sonny Burt and Bob Butler

Now known as the Art Spot, this area still offers art-making for anyone, anytime, but the focus is now on a specific artwork. Since November 2012, Martin Delabano’s Family Portrait 1963 has provided inspiration for our visitors. The complexity of this piece allows us to explore various themes over an extended period of time.

In November and December, we encouraged visitors to better understand the characters within the sculpture and consider the clues the artist has given us by the items associated with each family member. Visitors could use the materials provided to create their own 3D Family Portrait.

During January and February, we focused on the sculptural aspect of this piece and the assortment of materials the artist used.  Our visitors used materials ranging from buttons to wood scraps to create Found Object Sculptures.

In March and April we took a closer look at the four-legged family member, Crackers, and asked visitors to make their own pet or an imaginary Pet Pal for the Delabano family pet.

Next month our theme changes once again. This time we are taking the perspective of the artist, who in 2001 portrayed his family and himself as they were in 1963. Martin Delabano isn’t the artist at the easel, rather he’s the young boy posing like our beloved “Big Tex” from the State Fair of Texas. Come by C3 in May and June to see Family Portrait 1963 and make a Past or Future Self-Portrait of your own.

Jessica Fuentes
C3 Gallery Coordinator

Friday Photos: Featuring Texas

Today’s Friday Photos features a selection of pieces from the Dallas Museum of Art’s permanent collection that were purchased with the Texas Artists Fund. The DMA is dedicated to supporting Texas artists through acquisitions, Awards to Artists grants, and exhibitions such as the upcoming DallasSITES: Charting Contemporary Art 1963 to Present, a show that celebrates the history of the North Texas art scene and opens here at the DMA on May 26, 2013.

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Featured Works:

  • Helen Altman, Pig, 1995, Dallas Museum of Art, Texas Artists Fund and gift of Karol Howard and George Morton.
  • Kelli Connell, Giggle, 2002, Dallas Museum of Art, Texas Artists Fund.
  • James Drake, Valley of the World, 1994, Dallas Museum of Art, Texas Artists Fund.
  • Adrian Esperanza, Here and There, 2002, Dallas Museum of Art, Texas Artists Fund.
  • Patrick Faulhaber, Glo, 1997, Dallas Museum of Art, Texas Artists Fund.
  • Sam Gummelt, Jacksboro, 1971, Dallas Museum of Art, Texas Artists Fund
  • Benny Joseph, Couple Dancing, Eldorado Ballroom, Houston, negative 1962, print 1988, Dallas Museum of Art, Texas Artists Fund.
  • Barbara Maples, Plastic Boxes 2, c. 1967-1968, Dallas Museum of Art, Texas Artists Fund.
  • Nic Nicosia, Untitled (Floor Painting), 2009, Dallas Museum of Art, Texas Artists Fund.
  • John Pomara, Deadline No. 5, 2001, Dallas Museum of Art, Texas Artists Fund.
  • Allison V. Smith, Hall Pass. February 2006. Marathon, TX, 2006, Dallas Museum of Art, Texas Artists Fund.

Alex Vargo
McDermott Intern for Gallery Teaching

Culinary Canvas: Strawberry Squares

This month’s recipe was an experiment that started with a pound of strawberries and turned into a tasty breakfast treat. The inspiration, Untitled (Yellow Table on Green) by Hans Hofmann, is a wonderful abstract still life that can really only be appreciated when viewed in person. The vibrant colors and thick use of paint make the table seem so enticing, you’ll want to pull up a seat and pile your plate full of colorful eats. I imagine my strawberry creation would fit right in.

Hans Hofmann, Untitled (Yellow Table on Green), 1936, Dallas Museum of Art, fractional gift of The Rachofsky Collection in honor of Dr. Dorothy Kosinski, the Barbara Thomas Lemmon Curator of European Art

Hans Hofmann, Untitled (Yellow Table on Green), 1936, Dallas Museum of Art, fractional gift of The Rachofsky Collection in honor of Dr. Dorothy Kosinski, the Barbara Thomas Lemmon Curator of European Art

Strawberry Squares

Yields about 15 squares
Level: Easy

Crust:

¾ cup (about 7 sheets) graham crackers
¾ cup slivered almonds, toasted
3 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons butter, melted

Filling:

1 cup fresh strawberries (about 10 medium berries), hulled
8 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
1 cup sugar
½ teaspoon almond extract
1 egg
¼ teaspoon salt
¼ cup flour

Preheat oven to 350° F. Lightly butter a 9×13 baking dish.

Crust: Crush graham crackers into food processor or blender and process until crumbled. Add toasted almonds, sugar, and melted butter, and continue processing into a moist crumb. Press crust mixture evenly into dish. Bake 12-15 minutes. Remove from oven and set aside to cool.

Filling: Quarter strawberries. Add berries to blender and puree until smooth. Set aside.

Place cream cheese and sugar into the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Beat at medium speed until smooth. Mix in almond extract and egg. Add strawberry puree and continue mixing until fully combined. Sprinkle in salt and flour and mix until just incorporated.

Pour filling over prepared crust. Bake for 18-20 minutes. Cool completely and refrigerate. Serve chilled with fresh strawberries on top.

 
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Original recipe.

Sarah Coffey
Assistant to the Chair of Learning Initiatives

An American Art Education

Two of our talented McDermott Interns have been busy working on some new projects, both involving our collection of American art.

Alexandra Vargo: As the McDermott Education Intern for Gallery Teaching, I work with school tours, adult tours, teachers, and the volunteer docent corps. Currently, I’m working on a Docent Guide for the Museum’s collection of colonial to modern American art. The guide focuses on creating interactive and versatile experiences that can be presented with any number of objects and age groups. I have been testing these activities with school tours ranging from 3rd graders to high school art students throughout my internship.

The “Make Your Own Profile” exercise has been one of the most fun to create. It is based on Facebook and asks students to think creatively about a portrait of their choice within the American collection. Students use close looking and visual evidence to draw conclusions about the personality and backstory of the subject. Check out some of the examples below:

Pilar Wong: As the McDermott Education Intern for Community Teaching, I work with Go van Gogh®, our art education outreach program. I am currently working on revamping our 5th and 6th grade program titled Picturing American History. The program focuses on artworks in the DMA’s collection that reflect important moments in American history.

Piero Fornasetti, Richard Ginori Porcelain, Le retour (The Return) plate from the "Man in Space" series, designed 1966, porcelain, transfer-printed, Dallas Museum of Art, gift of Michael L. Rosenberg

The Return plate from the Man in Space series, Piero Fornasetti, designer, Richard Ginori Porcelain, manufacturer, designed 1966, porcelain, Dallas Museum of Art, gift of Michael L. Rosenberg

After discussing the five artworks, students make commemorative plates that capture a modern-day current event or social issue. This activity is based on The Return, a plate from the Man in Space series that commemorates the Space Race between the United States and the former USSR. Check out some of the kids’ responses below:

Projects like these provide valuable contributions to our ongoing educational work at the Museum and remain in use long after our McDermott Interns have left the DMA.

Alexandra Vargo is the McDermott Education Intern for Gallery Teaching and Pilar Wong is the McDermott Education Intern for Community Teaching at the DMA.

What the NAEA Means to ME!

The Mission Statement:
“The National Art Education Association (NAEA) advances visual arts education to fulfill human potential and promote global understanding.”

“Founded in 1947, The National Art Education Association is the leading professional membership organization exclusively for visual arts educators. Members include elementary, middle and high school visual arts educators, college and university professors, researchers and scholars, teaching artists, administrators and supervisors, and art museum educators, as well as more than 45,000 students who are members of the National Art Honor Society or are university students preparing to be art educators. We represent members in all fifty states plus the District of Columbia, U.S. Possessions, most Canadian Provinces, U.S. military bases around the world, and twenty-five foreign countries.”

[quotes from the NAEA Website]


The NAEA Student Chapter

I joined the National Art Education Association in 2007 when I was an art education student at the University of North Texas and was instantly welcomed into a membership of 17,170 art educators who would mentor me along my educational journey. Membership and attendance to the national conventions truly made an impact on who I am today. By constantly being filled with current research, discovering the various ways to put educational theory to practice, giving presentations, hosting students, having numerous networking opportunities and by creating countless friendships—I became a stronger art educator. As I became more active in the organization, I was granted the opportunity to hold two leadership roles within the NAEA structure and just recently concluded my term as the NAEA Student Chapter President this past March at the 2013 Annual Convention in Fort Worth.

As of June 2012, 2,633 members classified themselves as students and testified to the need for an active voice in the organization. It was my duty over the past four years to serve the university student population to make their voices heard to the board of directors and to be an advocate for pre-professionals.

NAEA Governance Structure

NAEA Governance Structure

At the beginning of the 2013 NAEA Convention, Past-President Dr. Bob Sabol addressed the Delegates Assembly to propose a change to the current governance structure.  That change was voted on unanimously and can be seen in the following video. Some new and exciting things are in the works, and Bob can express it better than I can. I am still speechless!

NAEA from amanda Batson on Vimeo.

Don’t miss out on an opportunity to be a part of the NAEA and the 2014 National Convention in San Diego, CA. The NAEA is currently accepting applications for proposals. See you there!

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Amanda Batson
C3 Program Coordinator

Cindy Sherman Transformed

On Friday, DMA Late Night visitors stopped by the Tech Lab to dress up and pose in a Cindy Sherman-like scene. Check out their transformations in these photographs taken by Greenhill School photography students and visit the Cindy Sherman exhibition to find the inspiration for the backdrops in the photos below. Stop by the Tech Lab during the Late Night on May 17 to participate in a Body Beautiful-themed Late Night Art Bytes, in celebration of our exhibition The Body Beautiful in Ancient Greece: Masterworks from the British Museum.

Because so many visitors stopped by the photobooth, we are still editing images. Check the DMA’s Flickr page throughout the week to see new additions to the group.

Transform yourself at home into Cindy Sherman to earn the DMA Friends Super Fan: Cindy Sherman Badge! Find out how on the DMA Friends Highlights page.

Jessica Fuentes is the C3 Gallery Coordinator at the DMA.

Friday Photos: Eccentric Silver

One of my favorite games to play is “Guess the function of a decorative arts object!” This Friday, I’ve included some of the most eccentric tableware pieces in the DMA’s silver collection, like this epic pickle jar, stand, and tongs!

James W. Tufts Co. (manufacturer), Pickle jar on stand with tongs, c. 1885, Dallas Museum of Art, gift of W.C. and Sally Estes in memory of Dr. and Mrs. T.G. Estes

Click on an image to uncover the unique purpose for which it was originally intended.  Enjoy!

Pilar Wong
McDermott Intern for Community Teaching

You Will Not Want to See This

The Story pirates logoIn 2003, the Story Pirates started as a twelve-person group who wanted to bring quality education to under-resourced public schools. Today, the organization puts a unique spin on children’s literature by putting words into action. That is, the Pirates act out stories onstage, bringing life to educational ideas such as plotline and story development. When they are not cutting it up on the stage, the pirates lead programs for teachers across the US. The group also works with low-income schools to establish acting and writing programs.

The Pirates encourage originality by having students submit their creative writing with the possibility of being chosen as the main stage event. They use puppets, song, dance, and sketch comedy to illustrate these kid-created stories. Every once in a while, they take random suggestions from the audience or pull an unsuspecting viewer onstage.  The Pirates have become so popular that they have even appeared on NBC Nightly News.

And guess what?  The Story Pirates are coming to the DMA!  They will be performing Pseudonymous Bosch’s Write This Book: A Do-It-Yourself Mystery on Sunday, April 28 at 3:00 pm in Horchow Auditorium.  Bosch’s newest mystery is the culmination of his five part Secret Series, a group of thoroughly entertaining, read-if-you-dare stories.  Write This Book:  A Do-It-Yourself Mystery encourages readers to write their own ending with interactive puzzles, games, and choose-your-own-adventure scenarios.  The elusive Mr. Bosch will sign books following the event.  (Disclaimer:  The author denies responsibility for any terrible tales, woebegone worries, or deadly endeavors that may result from reading his books.)

For FREE tickets, call 214-922-1818 or order online. But don’t wait! We expect this marvelously mysterious program to sell out quickly!

Emily Brown
McDermott Intern for Adult Programming

Human Heroes & The Body Beautiful

I have worked on many big, exciting exhibitions at the DMA since I came here in 1975, ranging from Pompeii AD 79 to Chola Bronzes from South India, Splendors of China’s Forbidden City, and Tutankhamun: The Golden Age of the Pharaohs, but The Body Beautiful in Ancient Greece: Masterworks from the British Museum is one of the most extraordinary. On my many visits to London, I am always amazed at the treasures in the British Museum, and now Dallas has a chance to see some of their best art at the DMA.

I still remember my first trip to Greece in 1960. My husband, Alan, and I roamed, sometimes as the sole visitors, over the acropolis in Athens, the AcroCorinth Mountain looming over the ancient city of Corinth, the temple of Apollo at Delphi, with its precipitous view straight down a mountainside to the sea, and the ruins of Olympia, where the Olympic Games began. No one was at Olympia then, except a boy herding black goats and someone playing a flute. Otherwise, the wind blew over the grasses and fallen stones. It was like visiting Pan, the god of nature, on his own turf. I fell in love with great sculptures like the youthful Charioteer at Delphi and the majestic Poseidon in Athens, feeling for the first time the stunning impact of ideal human beauty envisioned in art. Some of Alan’s photos from our trips to Greece will be part of an educational video on the sites of the Panhellenic games.

Marble statue of a victorious athlete, Roman period, first century AD, after a lost Greek original of about 430 BC, GR 1857,0807.1 (Sculpture 1754) © The Trustees of the British Museum (2013). All rights reserved.

Marble statue of a victorious athlete, Roman period, 1st century AD, after a lost Greek original of about 430 BC, © The Trustees of the British Museum (2013). All rights reserved.

The Body Beautiful in Ancient Greece: Masterworks from the British Museum displays this Greek vision of ideal human figures, particularly male nude figures. Such sculptures were admired by the Greeks because they believed that a young man who was a victor in one of the great athletic games, and who performed naked, had reached the height of glory that a man could achieve. Such victories were akin to dying heroically in battle. The same vision is best expressed in literature in Homer’s Iliad, where Achilles leads the Greeks to victory over Troy, but dies before the war is over. This ideal of human triumph is expressed in several works in the exhibition, particularly the discus thrower by Myron and the young athlete by Polykleitos. Although both of these works are shown in later Roman versions, they embody the Greek ideal of a radiant youthful victor. In a way the figures look ideal and “classical,” and in another way they are very seductive. They remind me of Keats’ description of Greek figures in Ode to a Grecian Urn: “Forever warm and still to be enjoyed; forever panting and forever young.”

Marble statue of discus thrower (diskobolos), Roman period, second century AD, after a lost Greek original of about 450–440 BC, from the villa of the emperor Hadrian at Tivoli, Italy, GR 1805,0703.43 (Sculpture 250) AN 396999, © The Trustees of the British Museum (2013). All rights reserved.

Marble statue of discus thrower (diskobolos), Roman period, 2nd century AD, after a lost Greek original of about 450–440 BC, © The Trustees of the British Museum (2013). All rights reserved.

Works like the discus thrower and several other pieces in the show come from the great villa of the Emperor Hadrian at Tivoli, built in the 2nd century AD. They are testaments to the influence and vitality of Greek art during the Roman Empire. Hadrian was a very cultivated man who collected Greek art and commissioned many artworks in the Greek tradition. He was also personally a lover of young men. His character and life are well described in Marguerite Yourcenar’s novel Hadrian’s Memoirs. Hadrian’s villa is another delightful place that Alan and I visit often: it is a gorgeous temple of art and landscaping.

Black-figured amphora, Greek, made in Athens, about 540-520 BC, attributed to the Swing Painter, probably from Etruria, Italy, GR 1837,0609.65 (Vase B182) © The Trustees of the British Museum (2013). All rights reserved.

Black-figured amphora, Greek, made in Athens, about 540-520 BC, attributed to the Swing Painter, probably from Etruria, Italy, © The Trustees of the British Museum (2013). All rights reserved.

Besides the marble and bronze sculptures, the exhibition includes numerous painted vases, which bring to life the kinds of sports performed at Greek athletic competitions, stories, and myths of gods and heroes, and many scenes of ordinary life, including erotic encounters. Alan and I have collected ceramics all our lives, including some Greek examples. Greek vase painting has a narrative appeal; many images suggest the dramatic scenes found in the Greek theater, as well as actual scenes of masked actors. The love of real life and people is as important in Greek culture as idealizing art. I always think that it’s important to remember that the Greeks were keen observers. The kind of study of living bodies that you see in Greek sculptures is similar to the understanding that led to advances in science and medicine.

Bronze statue of Zeus, Roman period, first century AD, after Greek original of about 440 BC, said to be from Greece, GR 1824,0446.16 (Bronze 910 AN381063001) © The Trustees of the British Museum (2013). All rights reserved.

Bronze statue of Zeus, Roman period, 1st century AD, after a Greek original of about 440 BC, said to be from Greece, © The Trustees of the British Museum (2013). All rights reserved.

One of the most significant figures in The Body Beautiful in Ancient Greece is Herakles, a human hero, but also the child of Zeus, king of the gods. Herakles accomplished superhuman labors triumphantly (such as killing the Nemean lion, whose skin he is shown wearing), but he also suffered greatly. Driven mad by the jealous goddess Hera, he killed his first wife and children. At the end of his life, he was poisoned in ignorance by his second wife. In great pain, he burned himself alive on a funeral pyre. Yet Zeus and the other gods accepted him after death on Mt. Olympus, the only human to achieve immortality. His splendid, but painful, life exemplifies the Greek belief that “those whom the gods love die young.” Better to go at the height of youthful strength and beauty.

Dr. Anne R. Bromberg, the DMA’s Cecil and Ida Green Curator of Ancient and Asian Art.


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