Dallas | Dallas Museum of Art Uncrated

Archive for the 'Dallas' Category

Run the DMA Marathon

Published November 27, 2013 Collections , Dallas , DFW 1 Comment
Tags: Coffin of Horankh, Crawford Riddle, Dallas Museum of Art, Dallas PCS Marathon, DMA, Fernand Léger, Gerald Murphy, Mark Rothko, Pablo Picasso, Robert Rauschenberg, Rufino Tamayo, Tlaloc, Vincent van Gogh

It’s that time of year again, and the excitement of the Dallas PCS Marathon has arrived! Last year, the marathon races drew over 15,700 runners and 300,000 spectators. It’s expected to be bigger than ever this year, and the city of Dallas is pulling out all the stops. The Dallas Museum of Art is joining the city in welcoming runners and their friends, families, and fans alike!

As both a McDermott intern in the education department and a runner, I had the pleasure (and pain!) of gaining my Museum feet during the height of my training for the marathon. As I learned to navigate through the galleries, I discovered that the DMA has many things in common with a marathon: it’s huge, it’s inspirational, and there are lots of friendly staff members to support you along your journey. Therefore, I am thrilled to combine two of my passions–running and museums–in inviting you to embark on your very own DMA Marathon. I’ve highlighted some of my favorite artworks throughout the DMA’s galleries, hand-picked to motivate, inspire, and refuel you. So, what are you waiting for? Lace up your running shoes, and get ready to explore!

Registration: DMA Atrium
The DMA has free general admission (every day!), so you don’t need to pull out your wallet for this race. But please do hit up the Visitor Services Desk to sign up for the DMA Friends program. With your shiny new DMA Friends membership, you’ll be able to check in at various locations in the Museum and earn points toward exciting DMA rewards such as free parking, sneak peeks at new exhibitions, and exclusive Museum experiences. The Atrium is also a great place to grab a pre-race bite in the DMA Cafe, use the line-free bathrooms, and get in your stretches in front of Robert Rauschenberg’s breathtaking Skyway or Rufino Tamayo’s iconic painting El Hombre (Man).

Robert Rauschenberg, Skyway, 1964, oil and silkscreen on canvas, Dallas Museum of Art, The Roberta Coke Camp Fund, The 500, Inc., Mr. and Mrs. Mark Shepherd, Jr. and General Acquisitions Fund, (c) Rauschenberg Estate/Licensed by VAGA, New York, NY

Rufino Tamayo, El Hombre (Man), 1953, vinyl with pigment on panel, Dallas Museum of Art, Dallas Art Association commission, Neiman-Marcus Company Exposition Funds, (c) Estate of the artist in support of Fundacion Olga y Rufino Tamayo, A.C.

Resist Temptation and Find Your Pace: Level 4: Ancient American Art and American Art
The starting gun goes off and you head up the stairs to Level 4, where you will come face to face with Tlaloc, the DMA’s rain god. But no need to worry about rain inside the Museum, Tlaloc was also a war god and will send you off with blessings of stamina and power!

Head of the rain god Tlaloc, Mixtec, Late Postclassic period, c. 1300-1500, ceramic, tufa, stucco, and paint, Dallas Museum of Art, gift of Mr. and Mrs. Stanley Marcus in memory of Mary Freiberg

As you make your way by Crawford Riddle’s bedstead, deemed “The Big Bed” by our younger visitors, try not to be distracted with thoughts of putting your feet up so early in the race. You’ve worked hard to prepare for this moment, and this bed should serve as a reminder that some well-deserved relaxation awaits you at the end of this journey!

Crawford Riddell, Bed, c. 1844, Brazilian rosewood, tulip poplar, and yellow pine, Dallas Museum of Art, gift of three anonymous donors, Friends of the Decorative Arts Fund, General Acquisitions Fund, Discretionary Decorative Arts Fund, and the Boshell Family Foundation

Bedstead, Crawford Riddell, c. 1844, Brazilian rosewood, tulip poplar, and yellow pine, Dallas Museum of Art, gift of three anonymous donors, Friends of the Decorative Arts Fund, General Acquisitions Fund, Discretionary Decorative Arts Fund, and the Boshell Family Foundation

Also, I know how easy it is to let the excitement of the race throw off your timing. Gerald Murphy’s Watch is a great reminder to check your pace and adjust your gallery viewing speed if necessary.

Gerald Murphy, Watch, 1925, oil on canvas, Dallas Museum of Art, Foundation for the Arts Collection, gift of the artist, (c) Estate of Honoria Murphy Donnelly

Dodge Obstacles and Find Inspiration: Level 3: Arts of Africa, Asia, and the Pacific, The Wendy and Emery Reves Collection
Head down the stairs to Level 3, where you will come face to face with sculptures, jewelry, and artifacts from Africa, Asia, and the Pacific. You may want to pick up the pace when you spot the coffin of Horankh in the Ancient Egyptian gallery. We have several Egyptian coffins (including one with an actual mummy inside!), and although they are beautiful, they are rumored to look a little too alive at times!

Coffin of Horankh, Late Period, c. 700 B.C., Thebes, Egypt, wood, gesso, paint, obsidian, calcite, and bronze, Dallas Museum of Art, the Cecil and Ida Green Acquisition Fund

Coffin of Horankh, Egypt, Thebes, Late Period, c. 700 B.C., wood, gesso, paint, obsidian, calcite, and bronze, Dallas Museum of Art, the Cecil and Ida Green Acquisition Fund

Before you leave the third floor, loop around to the Wendy and Emery Reves Collection for some inspiration. Vincent van Gogh’s Sheaves of Wheat is a breathtaking sight that should not be missed!

Vincent van Gogh, Sheaves of Wheat, July 1890, oil on canvas, Dallas Museum of Art, The Wendy and Emery Reves Collection

Beat “The Wall”: Level 2: Ancient Mediterranean and European Art
Trot down the stairs to Level 2, where you will glide between athletic bodies featured in the Greek and Roman statues, busts, and antiquities. Pat yourself on the back; after this race, you will be able to rank yourself among these talented athletes!
At this point in the race, it is common to hit “the wall,” and you may be starting to feel like the characters in Fernand Leger’s Divers or Picasso’s Guitarist in the European galleries, but keep going–you’re almost to the end!

Fernand Léger, The Divers (Red and Black), 1942, oil on canvas, Dallas Museum of Art, Foundation for the Arts Collection, gift of the James H. and Lillian Clark Foundation, (c) Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York/ADAGP, Paris

Pablo Picasso, The Guitarist, 1965, oil on canvas, Dallas Museum of Art, The Art Museum League Fund, (c) Estate of Pablo Picasso/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York

The Light at the End of the Tunnel: Level 1: Contemporary Art
Your heart is pounding as you head into the final stretch of the marathon. Your final leg will take you back up the Museum Concourse to the finish line in the contemporary art galleries. You can hardly believe your eyes when you catch a glimpse of Mark Rothko’s Orange, Red and Red and wonder if you are seeing a mirage. But it is real, and the finish line is surrounded by gorgeous contemporary works. Take in the sights as you relish this moment–you did it!

Mark Rothko, Orange, Red and Red, 1962, oil on canvas, Dallas Museum of Art, gift of Mr. and Mrs. Algur H. Meadows and the Meadows Foundation, Incorporated, (c) 1998 Kate Rothko Prizel & Christopher Rothko/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York

It’s been my pleasure to take you along on the DMA Marathon. We hope that you are able to join us during marathon weekend and experience the Museum firsthand! Best of luck to all of my fellow runners; see you at the finish line!

Amelia Wood is the McDermott intern for family & access teaching at the DMA.

State of the Arts: Rising Talent—Three Artists/Three Questions

Published November 20, 2013 Dallas , DFW Closed
Tags: Bruce Wood, Bruce Wood Dance Project, Dallas Museum of Art, Dallas Theater Center, DMA, Sarah Jaffe, Second Thought Theater, State of the Arts, Steven Walters

This Thursday, November 21, at 7:30 p.m., the Dallas Museum of Art will feature three local artists in conversation about the art scene in the Metroplex. We asked them each a question about their work before they take the stage on Thursday!

Photo by Michael A. Muller

Sarah Jaffe, musician
What is your favorite venue to play at in the Metroplex and which performance there stands out in your mind?
I have a few that I’m quite partial to. I love Sons of Hermann Hall. I haven’t played there in quite some time but played a lot of memorable shows there. I’m partial to Club Dada as well because I played my very first shows in that club. But my favorite venue is The Granada. I remember the very first time I played that theater almost eight years ago. Then I remember six years later selling it out for my first time. It was an incredible night for me and my band members. The crowd was full of energy. It was a celebratory night.

Steven Walters, actor, Dallas Theater Center, and founder, Second Thought Theatre
You’ve been working in the Dallas theater scene for a while now, including founding Second Thought Theatre. How has Dallas and the local community influenced your work?
I truly love this city. I cut my teeth here. Dallas is a city of “Doers.” From my point of view, it’s a fundamental part of the culture of the Big D—we get stuff done. Sometimes though, in the process of getting things done and driving toward our goals, we Dallasites don’t take the time to stop and take stock. Second Thought Theatre was founded, in part, in response to this characteristic. STT’s mission essentially says, Stop what you’re doing for an hour or two, and let us tell you a story. We’ll make you think about your life and your community. Sometimes we’ll make you laugh, and other times we’ll make you question your ideas. But it’ll always be a changing experience. And after the show’s done, you can take it with you into your day to day life, or you can leave it at the theater until the next time you come see us. I’ve always been in a dialogue with this city through my work at Second Thought Theatre.

Bruce Wood, founder, Bruce Wood Dance Project
You draw inspiration from many avenues, and Texas has influenced you in many ways and is seen through many of your pieces, including “Dust” and “Texas.” Can you tell us a bit about how Texas has influenced your artistic vision?
I grew up in a part of Texas where you could see twenty miles in any direction. I think of it as beautiful. I consider that my land. I know it has shaped my aesthetic, because it shaped me. My work is spare and free from artifice. I love empty space in a dance. I don’t feel compelled to fill all of the space with dance. It’s okay to leave some room for the dance to breathe. I am also okay with stillness, which is ironic considering the form is about movement, but stillness gives movement importance. If you want to make a movement important, you surround it by stillness. I’m from Texas. I have found that I grow better in empty spaces with big skies; bright, dazzling, relentless sun; and winds that just rip across the land. I wouldn’t be the same and the work would not be the same. It’s really that simple.

Join us on Thursday evening to learn more about our guests and perhaps draw a little inspiration.

Note: Some answers have been edited for space.

Liz Menz is the manager of adult programming at the DMA.

Creating the DMA Conservation Studio

Published November 18, 2013 Behind-the-Scenes , Conservation , Dallas , DFW Closed
Tags: Conservation Studio, Dallas Museum of Art, DMA, Mark Leonard, Painting Conservation

In the summer of 2012, the Dallas Museum of Art began making plans to renovate the former Seventeen Seventeen Restaurant space and transform it into a new Paintings Conservation Studio as part of the Museum’s initiative to establish a more comprehensive in-house conservation program. Construction began in the fall of 2012, and the studio is now complete, as is the adjacent Conservation Gallery. This time-lapse film captures the building process, as seen from the vantage point of what is now a public gallery space.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ukVtdkC-hEA&w=560&h=315]

The Paintings Conservation Studio features state-of-the-art technology—including a digital X-ray system—and will serve as a center for the study and treatment of works of art, as well as research into cutting-edge conservation methodologies. Brightened with natural light from new skylights and enclosed by glass walls, the studio’s design will allow visitors to observe daily activity, providing audiences with a singular behind-the-scenes experience. Activities in the studio also will be visible from both the Conservation Gallery and the adjacent outdoor Rose Family Sculpture Terrace.

The first exhibition in the gallery, Behind the Scenes, highlights the artists’ original materials and techniques, as well as the conservation histories of the works on display, exploring the various treatments they have undergone. This adjoining gallery will regularly rotate works, providing a space to explore the conservation process in greater detail through visual representations.

Mark Leonard is the chief conservator at the DMA.

#DMAGiveMore

Published November 4, 2013 Center for Creative Connections , Dallas , DFW , Education , Exhibitions Closed
Tags: Community Exchange, Dallas Museum of Art, DMA, DMA Give More, Jim Hodges: Give More Than You Take

The Center for Creative Connections (C3) has taken the Jim Hodges exhibition title, Give More Than You Take, as a call to action. Hodges gave the exhibition this title after reflecting on what it means to be an artist and have a voice in our community. Inspired by this idea of the power of our individual voices, we are offering visitors a chance to consider how they might use their voices in creative and positive ways.

Throughout the run of the exhibition Jim Hodges: Give More Than You Take, we are hosting a Community Exchange in C3. You can make a button with a personal, positive motto that you want to share with the community. Then leave the button you create on our Community Exchange wall and take someone else’s button from the wall.

Wear the button you take out into the community to share a positive message. Document your button’s journey by tagging photos with #DMAGiveMore (check out our #DMAGiveMore on the DMA’s Instagram).

Want to truly give more than you take? Make a positive gesture by giving your new button away to someone else.

Jessica Fuentes is the C3 gallery coordinator at the DMA.

Honoring Luc Tuymans and TWO x TWO

Published October 25, 2013 Collections , Contemporary Art , Dallas , DFW , Fundraising Closed
Tags: Dallas Museum of Art, DMA, Luc Tuymans, TWO x TWO for AIDS and Art

This year marks the 15th anniversary of TWO x TWO for AIDS and Art, the annual contemporary art auction held at The Rachofsky House benefitting the Dallas Museum of Art and amfAR, The Foundation for AIDS Research. As a part of TWO x TWO for AIDS and Art 2013, the renowned Belgian artist, Luc Tuymans, will receive the amfAR Award of Excellence for Artistic Contributions to the Fight Against AIDS this weekend, in recognition of his generosity and support of amfAR’s programs. In 2009, the Dallas Museum of Art presented Tuymans’ first retrospective of paintings in the United States, and he has since become one of the most significant artists of his generation with work represented in the world’s most important public and private collections.

Tuymans’ work draws on the historical traditions of Northern European art, as well as photography, television, and cinema, to capture the human condition of the late 20th and 21st centuries. Tuymans is best-known for examining the memory traces of trauma, specifically focusing on politically-charged topics like, the Holocaust, the American response to 9/11, and Belgium’s controversial role in post-colonial Congo.

Luc Tuymans, The Man From Wiels II, 2008, oil on canvas, The Rachofsky Collection and the Dallas Museum of Art through the DMA/amfAR Benefit Auction Fund

In The Man From Wiels II, Tuymans explores issues of history and memory, as well as the relationship between photography and painting. This painting was purchased in 2009 with funds from the DMA/amfAR Benefit Auction and is currently on view, along with Tuymans’ Mirror, at the DMA.

Meg Smith is the contemporary art curatorial administrative assistant at the DMA

Artist Talk: Jim Hodges

Published October 2, 2013 Behind-the-Scenes , Contemporary Art , Dallas , DFW , Exhibitions Closed
Tags: Contemporary Art, Dallas debut, Dallas Museum of Art, DMA, Jim Hodges, Jim Hodges: Give More Than You Take, U.S. premiere

With quiet determination, artist Jim Hodges has, over the past twenty-five years, produced one of the most affective bodies of sculpture, drawing, and installation of any artist of his generation. Jim Hodges: Give More Than You Take brings together works in all media–from modest objects to room-sized installations that engage the viewer in sensory experiences–to fully reveal the breadth and complexity of Hodges’ inventive vision.

Comprising over eighty objects produced from 1987 through the present, the exhibition also includes works never before seen in the United States, along with a major new piece, Untitled (one day it all comes true), created especially for this exhibition.

I’m proud to have worked so closely with Jim Hodges and Olga Viso, executive director of the Walker Art Center, to bring this remarkable exhibition to fruition, and I invite you to be among the first to see it at its US premiere in Dallas, before it travels to Minneapolis, Boston, and Los Angeles. Please join me in the Horchow Auditorium for a conversation with Jim Hodges tomorrow evening, October 3, at 7:30 p.m., and join us for a sneak peek on Saturday, October 5, a day before the exhibition opening.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vIdx_cHxrSA&w=560&h=315]

Jeffrey Grove is the senior curator of special projects & research at the DMA.

Autumn in the Arts District

Published September 25, 2013 Arts District , Dallas , DFW , Guest Blog Post , Late Nights Closed
Tags: AT&T Performing Arts Center, Booker T. Washington High School for the Performing and Visual Arts, Crow Collection of Asian Art, Dallas Arts District, Dallas Black Dance Theatre, Dallas City Performance Hall, Dallas Museum of Art, Dallas Symphony Orchestra, Dallas Theater Center, DMA, Klyde Warren Park, Nasher Sculpture Center, Shakespeare Dallas, The Dallas Opera

This October is going to be one of the most exciting I can recall – from the 15th anniversary of the Crow Collection of Asian Art and 10th anniversary of the Nasher Sculpture Center to the U.S. premiere of Jim Hodges: Give More Than You Take at the DMA, and even (dare I say it?) the unveiling of a new Big Tex at the State Fair. Having spent most of my life in the Dallas Arts District thanks to my mom, Susan (a DMA docent since 1976), I am thrilled to serve my first year as executive director of the Dallas Arts District during the inaugural year of the Perot Museum of Nature and Science, Klyde Warren Park, and the Dallas City Performance Hall, and in the first year of DMA Friends (the DMA’s free membership program) and free general admission.

Image source: dbdt.com

With the end of summer, the Dallas Arts District is in full swing again, beginning with a day of activities on Saturday, October 5. The Dallas Black Dance Theatre will kick off its 8th annual DanceAfrica marketplace and festival at Strauss Square with a pedestrian parade of dancing in the streets from the DMA to the AT&T Performing Arts Center. CBS Radio’s Fall for the Arts will have free family activities and three stages of performances from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. You can also catch a sneak peek of Jim Hodges: Give More Than You Take at the DMA that day, before the exhibition officially opens. Additionally, the Crow Collection of Asian Art will celebrate its 15th anniversary with the grand reopening of its sculpture garden, which will include kids events and food truck lunch service.

Jim Hodges, and still this, 2005-2008, 23.5K and 24K gold with Beva adhesive on gessoed linen, The Rachofsky Collection and the Dallas Museum of Art through the DMAamfAR Benefit Auction Fund , © Jim Hodges

The Crow isn’t the only institution celebrating a milestone anniversary this fall. The Nasher Sculpture Center is celebrating its 10th anniversary with Nasher Xchange, a three-day weekend of free festivities culminating in a ten-hour celebration on Sunday, October 20. Friday, October 18, will also include a free afternoon concert and tour at the Meyerson Symphony Center, TEDxSMU at the Dallas City Performance Hall, and the Arts District Fall Block Party. The Nasher, DMA, and Crow Collection of Asian Art will stay open until midnight for our fall Arts District Block Party, and light-based, site-specific new media and immersive art installations can be explored district-wide as part of Aurora’s Light of Convergence, presented by the Dallas Morning News.

Image source: dallasaurora.com

A new class of first year students has begun their academic semester at Booker T. Washington High School for the Performing and Visual Arts, and a new crop of leaders is starting a new chapter in the neighborhood as well. Dr. Scott Rudes is Booker T.’s new principal; Tara Green started this summer as president of Klyde Warren Park; Doug Curtis is the AT&T Performing Arts Center’s new president and CEO; and The Dallas Opera welcomes its new music director, Emmanuel Villaume. Maestro Villaume will begin his inaugural season with Carmen on Friday, October 25, at the Winspear. The performance will be simulcast free in Klyde Warren Park – complete with a costume contest and singalong. Park visitors can also enjoy food and drink from the Park’s new restaurant, Savor, and their grab-and-go kiosk, Relish – both opening soon.

Courtesy of Dallas Opera

There’s far more to share, including new seasons of the Dallas Theater Center, Dallas Symphony Orchestra, and Shakespeare Dallas, as well as newcomer Oral Fixation’s true storytelling series. You can enjoy a Pearl Cup Coffee or free Patio Sessions concerts in Sammons Park. To stay up-to-date on all the goings-on in our neighborhood, “Like” Dallas Arts District on Facebook, follow @DalArtsDistrict on Twitter, and subscribe to our weekly e-blast here.

Thanks for supporting our new collaborative and inclusive programming, and I hope to see you soon in the Dallas Arts District!

Catherine Cuellar is the executive director of the Dallas Arts District.

Getting Ready to Give More

Published September 23, 2013 Behind-the-Scenes , Dallas , Exhibitions , Installation Closed
Tags: Artist Talk, Contemporary Art, Dallas Museum of Art, DMA, Jim Hodges, Jim Hodges: Give More Than You Take, U.S. Premier

We have just under two weeks until we open the U.S. premiere of a major traveling exhibition, Jim Hodges: Give More Than You Take . The exhibition is an exciting one not only because it is the first comprehensive retrospective of Hodge’s career in the U.S. but also because it is co-organized by the Museum and the DMA’s senior curator of special projects & research, Jeffrey Grove.

The nearly eighty works on display in the exhibition consist of hundreds of items, from brass chains to denim, from napkins to head scarves, from silk flowers to light bulbs. If you passed by the DMA’s Barrel Vault during a recent visit, you may have seen some of the detailed installation, which began in early September. Get an up-close look at the installation below, and mark your calendars to meet Jim Hodges on October 3 during a special Artist Talk at the DMA!

Frozen in History

Published September 4, 2013 Behind-the-Scenes , Dallas , DFW , Exhibitions Closed
Tags: Dallas Museum of Art, David Lubin, DMA, Hotel Texas: An Art Exhibition for the President and Mrs. John F. Kennedy, President John F. Kennedy, Wake Forest University

We are in the final two weeks of the DMA-organized exhibition Hotel Texas: An Art Exhibition for the President and Mrs. John F. Kennedy, but there is still time for you to visit this free exhibition and learn more from historians. This Thursday at 7:30 p.m., Dr. David Lubin, author of Shooting Kennedy: JFK and the Culture of Images and Charlotte C. Weber Professor of Art at Wake Forest University, will examine iconic photos of the Kennedys’ visit to Texas and discuss his book. Below, learn more about the history of the installation in Suite 850 from Hotel Texas catalogue contributor Scott Barker.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GZ5ADYDCczo&w=560&h=315]

Kimberly Daniell is the public relations manager at the DMA, and Ted Forbes is the interactive media developer at the DMA.

Go van Gogh, Past to Present

Published August 28, 2013 Archive , Behind-the-Scenes , Dallas , DFW , Education , Go van Gogh 1 Comment
Tags: art education, Dallas Museum of Art, DMA, Go van Gogh, Go van Gogh van, Henri Matisse, School, school outreach

Go van Gogh, the DMA’s elementary school outreach program, is celebrating its 35th anniversary this year. Before we pack up the Go van Gogh van and head out to schools across the city, we thought it would be fun to take a look through all thirty-five years of the program.

1992 Go van Gogh program led by DMA educator Phil Collins

Below are a few fun facts about Go van Gogh through the years.

The first Go van Gogh van was actually a bus!

First Go van Gogh vehicle, 1978

When the program began at the then Dallas Museum of Fine Arts in Fair Park in 1978, school outreach presentations could be given in classrooms or on the Museum Outreach bus itself.

DMFA teaching staff member Roberta Mathew conducting an outreach program in the Go van Gogh bus in fall 1979

DMFA education staffers Susan Geyer and Roberta Mathews conducting an outreach program aboard the Go van Gogh bus in fall 1979

Go van Gogh vans (and buses) have always been easy to spot on the freeway.

Go van Gogh van in 1981

Go van Gogh van, c. 1988

Go van Gogh program, c. 1988

Bright and colorful, Go van Gogh vans often feature artworks from the Museum’s collection in painted or vinyl designs. The Go van Gogh van from the late 1990s included a design from Henri Matisse’s Ivy in Flower.

Go van Gogh van in the 1990s

Today’s Go van Gogh van

Go van Gogh programs have always included a visual presentation of artworks from the Museum.

Go van Gogh program using a slide projector, 1980s or 1990s

Through the years, we’ve made many updates in the technology we use to bring these artworks to life. What began with projectors and large printed posters led to overhead transparencies and laminated images.

Go van Gogh program with 4th graders at Reilly Elementary School

Later this school year, Go van Gogh will go digital: using iPads and projectors to bring images of artworks to life in the classroom.

Looking ahead to fall, we are excited to unveil a new facet of Go van Gogh outreach–a program designed for Special Education classrooms called Color My World. To learn more about the program, visit our website.

Amy Copeland is the Manager of Go van Gogh and Community Teaching Programs at the DMA.

« Previous Page — Next Page »

Dallas Museum of Art Uncrated