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There’s a New Girl in Town

Published September 14, 2011 American Art , Collections , Curatorial , Dallas Closed
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Earlier this year, the DMA was very fortunate to receive a lovely gift from SMU’s distinguished Art History professor emerita Dr. Alessandra Comini. She gave us a beautiful sculpture of Lady Godiva by one of 19th-century America’s premier female sculptors, Anne Whitney. Whitney’s work frequently reflects her commitment to social activism. In fact, before Whitney became an artist she often wrote essays and poems that were published in a contemporary periodical dedicated to women’s rights called Una. Soon she became notable for expressing her abolitionist and feminist views through both the written word and sculpture. Whitney’s sensibilities made Lady Godiva’s story particularly appealing.

Anne Whitney, Lady Godiva, c. 1861–64, marble, Dallas Museum of Art, gift of Dr. Alessandra Comini in memory of Dr. Eleanor Tufts, who discovered the Massachusetts-backyard whereabouts of this long-forgotten statue and brought it to Dallas.

Generally, we think of Lady Godiva on her legendary ride, but Whitney chose to depict a moment much earlier in the story. Godiva lived in Coventry England during the 11th century. As the story goes, she complained to her husband that the tax he levied against his subjects was excessively high. He agreed to lower them if in return she would ride naked on a horse through the streets of Coventry. Whitney depicts the moment when Godiva accepted her spouse’s challenge. Gazing heavenward, fully clothed and just starting to remove her girdle, she is about to begin protesting on behalf of Coventry’s vulnerable and oppressed.

It is especially unusual to own an artwork depicting the earlier, more poignant moment in the account of Lady Godiva’s famous ride. Moreover, owning a full-sized marble sculpture of a woman by a woman artist is quite rare. We are grateful to Dr. Comini for her generosity, and we encourage you to come see this exquisite sculpture in the DMA’s American Galleries on Level 4.

Join Dr. Alessandra Comini on Thursday, October 27 for a special lecture on women sculptors from America who descended upon the seven hills of Rome during the 1860s and beyond.  Click here for additional details.

Martha MacLeod is the Curatorial Administrative Assistant in the European and American Art Department at the Dallas Museum of Art.

Seldom Scene: Fancy Dancing

Published April 26, 2011 American Art , Education , Exhibitions 1 Comment
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On Saturday we welcomed hundreds of visitors to our Art of the American Indians Family Celebration, a day of fun activities, performances featuring the Oklahoma Fancy Dancers, art, tours, and a special sneak peek of the exhibition Art of the American Indians: The Thaw Collection. Below are a few pictures from the day. Join us on Friday, May 20, to celebrate this exhibition during Late Night.

Photos by Chad Redmon, Photographer at the Dallas Museum of Art.

Seldom Scene: Readying the Show

Published April 18, 2011 American Art , Behind-the-Scenes , Curatorial , Installation Closed

Uncrated went behind the scenes in our Chilton Galleries last week to capture the installation of our newest exhibition, Art of the American Indians: The Thaw Collection, which opens this weekend.

Photography by Adam Gingrich, Marketing Assistant, Dallas Museum of Art

All That Jazz: Meet Our Resident Jazz Legend

Published April 6, 2011 American Art , Decorative Art and Design , Education , Thursday Night Live Closed

As a special treat for our Dallas Museum of Art jazz (and other music) lovers—and in celebration of Jazz Appreciation Month—we will showcase the music of the great composer, pianist, and bandleader Duke Ellington in the Atrium (part of Thursday Night Live!) during April.

We thought that this would be a great time to spotlight Wendell Sneed, our Coordinator of Jazz in the Atrium. Wendell is a long-time employee of the DMA (18 years!), but more than that he is our own local celebrity and Dallas jazz legend! Wendell was a member of the popular 1970s Dallas funk group Soul Seven and was featured in the 2008 KERA documentary South Dallas Pop—When Funk Was King (visit this link to listen to a clip of Wendell — on drums — and Soul Seven performing with Eddie Purrell).

Soul Seven Album Cover (Wendell is the one on the far left)

I sat down to chat with Wendell about what influenced him to become a jazz musician and to get a bit more information about the great line-up for April.

Wendell Sneed, Jazz in the Atrium Coordinator

What got you interested in jazz to begin with? When did you start playing?
My high school band director, Mr. Allison Tucker, was a jazz drummer. He got me interested in music and was my first mentor. I originally wanted to be an athlete in school but hated all the running! By the late 50s I was totally hooked on the drums and jazz and was playing with several bands around town. By the time I was 17, I was touring all around the Southwest and beyond.

What was your favorite gig while you were out on the road touring?
Besides my time with Soul Seven, my favorite gig was when I was the Music Director for a group called “The Honey Combs” in the late 70s. We had a couple of singles that went “gold.” One of them was the tune “Want Ads.”

What is your favorite Duke Ellington tune?
My favorite Ellington tune is a little obscure. It’s called “Come Sunday.” It actually is one of his sacred music compositions. Of course, I like many of the more well known Ellington tunes also.

What is your favorite work of art in the DMA’s collections?
Leadbelly, by Michael G. Owen, Jr., in the American sculpture collection is my favorite. I think about Mr. Owen creating this work and wonder what it was like to talk to Leadbelly himself as he worked on it. Leadbelly’s music became a very important influence on many musicians from many different genres—from blues, to folk and even rock. I wonder sometimes why Mr. Owen chose to portray Leadbelly in this light—solitary and without his guitar in sight.

Michael G. Owen Jr.'s Leadbelly (1943)

Tell us a bit more about the acts you have booked for the April Ellington Showcase.
We will kick off the month on April 7 with the UNT Repertory Ensemble, which is a group dedicated to playing and preserving the art of “classic jazz.” Next, on the 14th, we have pianist Dave Zoller and his group Daybreak Express. They specialize in doing exclusively Ellington material. On the 21st, we will feature the top student jazz band from Carroll Senior High School. They were the finalists for the Essentially Ellington Competition, founded and judged by Wynton Marsalis at Lincoln Center in New York City.

I am most excited about the performance planned for April 28. We will feature Shelley Carrol, who was a member of the Ellington Orchestra for many years after graduating from the University of North Texas. He will be joined by a very special guest, Duke Ellington’s grandson, Paul Ellington. Paul will share stories of Duke and his compositions that Shelley and his quartet will perform.

Viktor Schreckengost and the Cowan Pottery Studio's Jazz Bowl (c. 1930 -1931)

In addition to the acts Wendell mentioned, on April 14 and 21 we will offer tours of jazz-related artworks in the DMA’s collections, including the Jazz Bowl (pictured above), led by curators and other staff.

Denise Helbing is Manager of Partner Programs at the Dallas Museum of Art.

Deep in the Heart of Texas

Published March 3, 2011 American Art , Collections Closed
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Are you ready for a picnic, fireworks, and to “remember the Alamo”?  It’s time to celebrate Texas Independence Day!

One hundred and seventy-five years ago, on March 2, 1836, Texas declared its independence from Mexico when Sam Houston and fifty-seven other men formed the Republic of Texas by signing the Texas Declaration of Independence. The Lone Star State’s triumphant struggle for independence ended a few days later at the siege of the Alamo. Among the approximately 250 brave men who died there were William R. Travis, Jim Bowie, and Davy Crockett.

A sketch of this legendary battle by Robert Jenkins Onderdonk (father of the Texas impressionist painter Julian Onderdonk) is part of the DMA’s collections. This preliminary drawing depicts Crockett in the center wearing his trademark coonskin cap. He swings a flintlock overhead, about to club advancing Mexicans who have broken through the building’s south gate.

Robert Jenkins Onderdonk, American 1852-1917, "Sketch for 'Fall of the Alamo,'" , c. 1901, Oil and pencil on paper board, Dallas Museum of Art, gift of Eleanor Onderdonk, 1960.185

Davy Crockett was a celebrated 19th-century American folk hero, frontiersman, soldier, and politician. He moved from his native Tennessee to serve in the Texas revolution and died at the Battle of the Alamo. A notable work in the DMA’s collections is William Henry Huddle’s portrait of the courageous young hero who made the ultimate sacrifice for the young Texas Republic. Best known for painting scenes from the Texas war of independence, Huddle also completed a series of portraits of Texas governors. In the DMA’s painting, Huddle depicts the hero wearing his hunting clothes with his trusty rifle by his side. Although historians debate many of the details surrounding Crockett’s death, they all agree that he died on March 6, 1836, on the last day of the siege of the Alamo.

William Henry Huddle, American, 1847-1892, "Davy Crockett," 1889, Oil on masonite, Dallas Museum of Art, The Karl and Esther Hoblitzelle Collection, gift of the Hoblitzelle Foundation, 1987.47

The DMA owns some lovely images of this treasured building. One by Plano, Texas, artist Frank Klepper is quite different from Onderdonk’s combative scene. By depicting the building on a tranquil, starry night, Klepper turns the battleground into a hallowed shrine that is the pride of every Texan.

Klepper, The Alamo

Frank Klepper, American, 1890-1952, "The Alamo," early 1930s, Oil on canvas, Dallas Museum of Art, gift of the History Club, 1933.7

Martha MacLeod is the European and American Art Curatorial Administrative Assistant at the Dallas Museum of Art.

Seldom Scene: A Fond Farewell to Dorothy Austin

Published January 31, 2011 American Art , Behind-the-Scenes , Collections 4 Comments
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Texas sculptor Dorothy Austin passed away last week at the age of 100. Her work Slow Shuffle was featured in the 2009 Dallas Museum of Art exhibition All the World’s a Stage: Celebrating Performance in the Visual Arts, and this past year her sculptures Noggin and Male Torso were included in the exhibition Texas Sculpture. We were fortunate to have Dorothy Austin visit us in October 2009 with her family and wanted to share those memories with you.

Sculptor Dorothy Austin with her family on a visit to the DMA in October 2009.

Dorothy Austin and DMA Senior Curator Olivier Meslay

Dorothy Austin, Noggin, 1933, white pine, Dallas Museum of Art, gift of an anonymous friend

Dorothy Austin, Male Torso, late 1930s-early 1940s, white pine, Dallas Museum of Art, gift of Dr. and Mrs. Robert W. Webb

Dorothy Austin, Slow Shuffle, 1939, carved plaster, Dallas Museum of Art, Texas Art Fund and Early Texas Art Fund

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