Archive for the 'Education' Category



Farewell to Florals

For the past several months, the Rachofsky Quadrant Gallery on the Museum’s first level has been occupied by seven large paintings spanning half the gallery, nearly floor to ceiling. Installed on a lilac-colored wall, the framed canvases contain figures posed with flowers, rendered in eye-catching pastel hues, and surrounded by alternating sections of black and gold leaf.

These paintings are Edward Steichen’s In Exaltation of Flowers, a commissioned series that the artist completed in 1914 for the home of New York financier Eugene Meyer and his wife, Agnes. Never installed in the space for which they were created, the majority of the panels were kept in storage for the past century. Last summer, the DMA’s conservation team unrolled the canvases, stretched and framed them, and completed conservation treatment so the series could go on tour. Newly conserved and reunited in one exhibition, In Exaltation of Flowers is a time capsule of Edward Steichen’s life and the lives of his close friends on the eve of World War I.

On Thursday, April 26, from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m., we will say goodbye to In Exaltation of Flowers with a soiree that will include a complimentary reception with drinks and small bites inspired by the paintings, a tour about flower symbolism with Dallas Arboretum VP of Gardens Dave Forehand, and a talk by art historian Dr. Jessica Murphy.

Reception
6:00 p.m., Check in at Will Call, Horchow Auditorium, Level 1
Arrive early for a complimentary reception featuring beer, wine, and small bites inspired by In Exaltation of Flowers and Edward Steichen’s French country garden. Hors d’oeuvres will include:

FRESH PEA AND MINT SHOOTER
butter-poached shrimp and hibiscus crema

DRIED FIG AND BRIE CROSTADA
balsamic glaze

GRILLED QUAIL AND SUNDRIED CHERRY SALAD
chive crepes and saffron aioli

ROASTED RED & GOLDEN BEETS WITH TEXAS GOAT CHEESE
arugula and orange-tarragon dressing

PARSLEY CHICKEN IN PHYLLO
romesco sauce

ROSE AND WHITE CHOCOLATE MOUSSE
candied rose petals and toasted almonds

Tour: In Exaltation of Flowers
6:30 p.m., Meet at the Flora Street Visitor Services Desk, Level 1
Edward Steichen was an avid gardener who exhibited his celebrated delphiniums in New York’s Museum of Modern Art. For Steichen and much of society at this time, flowers were more than just beautiful objects; they took on human character traits and the giving or receiving of flowers served as a kind of subtle language. Each of the sitters for In Exaltation of Flowers is paired with specific flowers that relate to their personalities or the nicknames given to them within their friend group. Join Dave Forehand of the Dallas Arboretum for a tour of In Exaltation of Flowers focusing on the types of flowers Steichen included in his paintings and what they might have communicated to a viewer in 1914.

Exhibition Talk: Murals from a “Magic Garden”: Edward Steichen’s “In Exaltation of Flowers”
7:00 p.m., Horchow Auditorium, Level 1
In Exaltation of Flowers captures a very particular moment in Edward Steichen’s career, in the history of art, and in the lives of a circle of friends on the eve of the World War I. A very personal project for the artist, the murals include portraits of close friends, either painted from life or from photographs, alongside flowers inspired by his garden at the French country home where he hosted lively parties. Steichen’s careful portrayal of his subjects reveals the nuances of their personalities and relationships within the social group. Best remembered as a photographer, Steichen had a somewhat rocky relationship with painting and ultimately destroyed much of his painted work. His approach to this series shows a nod toward the Symbolist movement, with its emphasis on flatness, invariable color, and in some sections abandonment of realism. Jessica Murphy, Brooklyn Museum’s Manager of Digital Engagement, will bring to life these and other stories behind Edward Steichen’s murals and the people who inspired them.

Don’t miss your chance to spend an evening in 1914 with Edward Steichen and his closest friends before In Exaltation of Flowers leaves the DMA in early May. For more information, visit DMA.org or click here to purchase a $5 ticket.

Jessie Carrillo is Manager of Adult Programs at the DMA.

 

Arturo’s Wrinkle in Time

Spring break at the DMA is not about WHERE you go—it’s WHEN you go! We’re creating a makeshift time travel machine, and you’re invited to take a ride. With four floors of art from across the globe and throughout time, it’s not too difficult to imagine a wrinkle in time that allows you to jump across continents and centuries. Arturo volunteered to take the maiden journey and show us just how easy it is!

From a quick stop in ancient Egypt…

To searching for animals in modern Nigeria…

To kicking up dust in Depression-era Texas…

To saying hello to Mr. President…

To hiking through the Andes for ancient royal treasure–the DMA is everyWHEN you wanna be!

Want to go on your own time travel adventure? Join us every day during the week of spring break, March 13-16 for free family fun. But remember to watch out for wormholes!

Leah Hanson is the Manager of Family and Early Learning Programs at the DMA

Flower Power

Edward Steichen: In Exaltation of Flowers is in bloom until May 13, so while we still have these colorful, one-of-a-kind murals on our walls, we hosted a workshop all about florals. The program began with a tour in the exhibition where the group learned more about Steichen’s social scene and the friends that he immortalized in this artwork. Participants saw how Steichen used flowers as symbols for the different people in the murals and how his passion for horticulture lent itself to extremely realistic depictions. After the tour, everyone chose their own flowers to create their personal still life. The group then learned watercolor techniques from local artist Carol Ivey, who paints minutely detailed still lifes. By the end of the workshop, everyone had bloomed into new watercolor painters and departed with their finished work and brushes to continue practicing.

If you missed the workshop but want to learn more about Edward Steichen, his murals, and his love of flowers, join us on Thursday, April 26, at 7:00 p.m. for an exhibition talk by Jessica Murphy, Manager of Digital Engagement, Brooklyn Museum.

 

Katie Cooke is Manager of Adult Programming at the DMA. 

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You can’t spell DART without art

Prior to moving to Dallas, I found myself doing a lot of research about how to navigate the city. As a person that doesn’t have a car or know how to drive, I knew without a doubt I would be depending on the DART system. As my bus moves down Ross Ave in morning traffic, I can take time to look out the windows and get glimpses of Dallas, soaking in the details that might be missed otherwise.

The study of public transportation can show how cities both shape and are shaped by these models. While public transportation attempts to create access for ever growing cities, the nature of this large scale building has seen its share of highs and lows throughout its long history. Although DART is fairly new to Dallas (1980s), we can see the way neighborhoods around stops have changed and developed as lines have been added. Trains and buses have been of interest to artists around the world, and the DMA has a number of works that explore their many facets.

Lothar Baumgarten, Missouri-Kansas-Texas Railroad, Katy Yard, Continental Viaduct, Dallas, Dallas County, Texas, negative 1989, gelatin silver print, Dallas Museum of Art, gift of the artist and Marian Goodman Gallery, 2004.41.2, © Lothar Baumgarten / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York / VG Bild-Kunst, Bonn

In 1989, German artist Lothar Baumgarten dedicated six months to following America’s railroad tracks to create the series, Carbon. This image shows the Katy, also known as the Missouri-Kansas-Texas Railroad. Today this railyard has been replaced by the American Airlines Center. The Katy was the first railroad to connect Texas to the rest of the United States in the late 1800s, and  it served as a way to transport goods such as cotton across the United States. Baumgarten addresses the irony of the beautiful landscapes that were made available for public consumption as tracks were laid across fields, but also the destruction that comes with it. In addition, he looks at the human accomplishment of settling the land that carried with it the cost of displacing communities. Finally, this work addresses the decline of the railroads themselves as they became industrial transportation.

Willard Watson, Untitled, 1985, drawings, Dallas Museum of Art, gift of the Friends of Willard Watson, 1985.181.4 © Estate of Willard Watson

Willard Watson, “The Texas Kid,” reminisces about when his family moved to Texas from Louisiana in his series of drawings, Life Story. Watson’s family were sharecroppers, a system where the landowner allows a tenant to use the land in exchange for a share of the crop. However, this system often kept tenant farm families severely indebted, with many laws in place to favor the landowners position. This particular image shows the way railroad travel could be empowering, as Watson writes at bottom, “when we were coming across this bridge going to Dallas, Daddy said we were home free.”

Just as these artists were inspired by their experiences with transportation, the DART Student Art Contest invites students to create works of art inspired by DART. Come visit the DMA to get inspiration for your DART contest submissions, which are due February 28. I can’t wait to see the Best of Show winner across the DART bus on my daily commute, along with all the other finalists on view at the DMA in April!

Olivia Feal is the McDermott Intern for Interpretation at the DMA

Have a PAWsome New Year!

Friday is Chinese New Year and we invite you to start the New Year with us as we celebrate the Year of the Dog during our monthly Late Night. Throughout the night, you can experience lion dances, watch Chinese martial arts demonstrations, have your name written in Chinese calligraphy, and listen to traditional Chinese music in our galleries. There will be dog-themed tours, of course, but you can get a jump-start learning about the dogs in our collection with two previous blog posts here and here.

While dogs take precedence this year, be sure to check out these works of art from China on Level 3 that feature other animals from the Chinese zodiac:

Funerary plaque, China, Western Jin dynasty, 219-316 CE, limestone, The Cecil and Ida Green Acquisition Fund, 2016.33.a-b

This tomb marker features two of the four “spiritually endowed” directional deities – the tortoise and the dragon. The other two deities are the phoenix and the unicorn. While not one of the animals represented in the Chinese zodiac, the tortoise is important in Chinse Buddhist belief because it symbolized longevity.

Pair of Lokapala (Heavenly Guardians), China, Tang dynasty, 1st half of 8th century, pottery with colored lead glazes, The Eugene and Margaret McDermott Fund, in honor of Ellen and Harry S. Parker III, 1987.1-2.MCD

Learn more about these heavenly guardians, which often featured lions and tigers on their armor and showed triumph as guardians by balancing on the figure of a bull (or ox), on our 6:30 p.m. spotlight tour with DMA Teaching Specialist Jennifer Sheppard.

Rectangular box, China, mark and reign of Emperor Wanli (r. 1573-1619), dated in inscription to 1595, cinnabar lacquer over wood core, Dallas Museum of Art, gift of Mr. and Mrs. George A. Shutt

The cover of this box features two symmetrically opposed imperial five-clawed dragons chasing the flaming pearl of wisdom.

Polo horse tomb figure, China, attributed to Tang dynasty (A.D. 618-907), ceramic, Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Arthur Rothwell, 1960.167

This horse is a mingqi or “spirit object” that was buried with the deceased in underground tombs. With the accession of the emperors of the Tang dynasty, the number of funerary objects placed in tombs increased, as funerary art became a means to display your wealth publically.

Friday’s Late Night will also feature a talk by DMA curator Dr. Anne Bromberg who will discuss our new installation Asian Textiles: Art and Trade Along the Silk Road which features these two coats from China:

Short coat: dragons and auspicious symbols, China, late 19th century, silk with metal-wrapped yarn, Gift of Betty Ann Walter and Ruth Walter Benedict in memory of Ethyl Walter and Gladys Walter, 1993.70

Woman’s semi-formal court coat, China, 19th century, silk and metal-wrapped yarns, Gift of Mrs. Beatrice M. Haggerty, 1995.40

So if January wasn’t all you thought it would be, start fresh this Friday and join us as we kick-off a PAWsome new year!

Stacey Lizotte is Head of Adult Programming and Multimedia Services

The Game is Afoot!

Calling All Junior Detectives! There’s a mystery afoot, and we need every Sherlock min-fan and Nancy Drew-in-training on the case! After years of hosting the popular Museum Murder Mystery Game here at the DMA, we’ve decided it’s finally time to give the kids a chance to step into the role of detective. Our kid-friendly version is the perfect mash-up of Night at the Museum and the game of Clue, featuring plenty of fun and games . . . without the murder.

On Friday, March 9th our first ever Family Mystery Night will make its debut, and we’re looking for the brightest junior detectives to help solve the case. Actors will bring the art to life, and kid detectives can interview the suspects, search for clues in the galleries, sniff out the crime scene, and hopefully solve the mystery by the end of the evening.

We polled a few prospective detectives on what the mystery could be and got some very devious ideas (maybe we should watch our backs?!).

From Caleb, age 7:

“I think maybe one of the paintings is a map to the emperor’s treasure, I don’t know where, maybe in a dojo!”

From Lucia, age 14:

“If I had to guess, there are a bunch of art pieces who aren’t happy because they don’t get enough attention, so they decide to steal/kidnap another work of art who is very popular. This art was supposed to travel somewhere, but because they stole it, everything got delayed, so now we have to find the missing painting so it can get to its destination.”

From Naomi, age 9:

“Somebody’s head got chopped off! A kidnapping! A painting is rogue!”

To get the dirt on the real story, find all the details here and purchase your tickets today. Happy sleuthing!

Leah Hanson is the Manager of Family and Early Learning Programs at the DMA

What a year!

What a year 2017 was at the DMA! Below is a brief look back on some of our memorable moments.

January
The launch of the C3 Visiting Artist Project.
The DMA Teen Advisory Council organized and debuted their Disconnect to Reconnect program.
The launch of Sensory Scouts, a monthly program designed for teens and tweens on the autism spectrum.
The 26th season of DMA Arts & Letters Live kicked off on January 14 with Zadie Smith.
The DMA welcomed Anna Katherine Brodbeck as The Nancy and Tim Hanley Assistant Curator of Contemporary Art.

February
The DMA launches its first ever crowdfunding campaign, Destination Dallas: Bringing México 1900–1950: Diego Rivera, Frida Kahlo, José Clemente Orozco, and the Avant-Garde to Dallas, bringing in more than $100,000.
The DMA’s Speakeasy was the bee’s knees, celebrating the Shaken, Stirred, Styled: The Art of the Cocktail exhibition.

March
México 1900–1950: Diego Rivera, Frida Kahlo, José Clemente Orozco, and the Avant-Garde opens at the DMA on March 12, presenting a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to experience the greats of Mexican modernism in Dallas.
The first of a total of 12 DMA Family Days launched on Sunday, March 26, with a total of 39,778 visitors on those days, with almost half being first-time visitors.

April
The 52nd Art Ball raises more than $1.3 million.
The DMA is proud to be the recipient of the second annual Dallas Art Fair Foundation Acquisition Program, which included the addition of work by Justin Adian, Katherine Bradford, Andrea Galvani, Matthews Wong, and Derek Fordjour.
The Keir Collection of Islamic Art Gallery opens to the public, marking the largest public presentation of the collection to date.

May
Aruto’s Nest got a new look.
Visions of America: Three Centuries of Prints from the National Gallery of Art and Iris van Herpen: Transforming Fashion open, kicking off our summer fun.

June
Works of art centered around the idea of communication went on view in C3.
Twenty-four DISD students with vision impairment participated in the DMA’s first indoor touch tour of the Museum’s European sculptures.
Six hundred and fifty sleuths help solve our sixth annual Museum Murder Mystery evening.
President and Mrs. Bush explored México 1900–1950 with DMA Director Agustín Arteaga.

July
More than 1,000 people participated in our Guinness World Record attempt on what would have been Frida Kahlo’s 110th birthday during the DMA’s Frida Fest, with almost 6,000 visitors in attendance.
México 1900–1950 welcomed 125,894 visitors before it closed on July 16.
Visitors went gaga for our Iris van Herpen-themed Late Night featuring a Lady Gaga costume contest.

August
Guerrilla Girl Käthe Kollwitz discussed the groups iconic work during the August Late Night
The Junior Associates celebrated the last days of summer during their August 25 Kickoff Party.

September
The DMA celebrated the first anniversary of Agustín Arteaga’s tenure as The Eugene McDermott Director.
DMA Members got to be the first to step into infinity during two weeks of preview days for Yayoi Kusama: All the Eternal Love I Have for the Pumpkins.
More than $17,000 was gifted to the DMA during North Texas Giving Day.
The Dallas Cultural Plan held a kickoff event at the DMA to help shape the future of arts and culture in Dallas.

October
Yayoi Kusama officially opened and immediately became an Instagram sensation.
Truth: 24 frames per second, the DMA’s first time-based media exhibition, opened.
TWO x TWO for AIDS and Art, benefiting amfAR and the Dallas Museum of Art, raised over $7.3 million.
It was Potter-mania during a spellbinding Second Thursday with a Twist.

November
The second annual Rosenberg Fête featured an evening themed around François Lemoyne’s The Bather from the Rosenberg Collection.
More than 7,000 visitors took part in our three-day Islamic Art Festival: The Language of Exchange celebrating the Keir Collection of Islamic Art.

December
Asian Textiles: Art and Trade Along the Silk Road goes on view in the Museum’s Level 3 gallery.
We traveled to a gallery far, far away during the final Second Thursday with a Twist inspired by Star Wars
The DMA reflects upon a year of amazing art, events, and visitors!

Home Is Where the Art Is

“Now this is the good stuff,” notes Leon Pollard, an artist from the Stewpot Art Program, as he settles in front of Jean Baptiste Marie Pierre’s The Abduction of Europa. We’re exploring flowers in the DMA’s collection, and Leon, who was recently commissioned to paint a mural for his church, immediately points out how Pierre skillfully guides the viewer’s eye across the expanse of the oversized 18th-century canvas. He breaks into a characteristic grin and says, “I really look forward to coming every month. It’s always an education—an inspiration.”

Leon sharing his work in the Sculpture Garden

This summer we marked the one-year anniversary of our monthly gallery teaching program in partnership with The Stewpot, a community outreach program that serves homeless and at-risk populations here in Dallas. Beyond addressing basic survival needs, The Stewpot offers enrichment opportunities for healing, financial support, and personal growth. The Stewpot Art Program offers class time and art supplies to individuals looking to express themselves creatively, grow as artists, and support themselves through the sale of their work. Thanks to Tanya Krueger, one of our DMA docents who also volunteers for The Stewpot, we were able to connect and coordinate a monthly visit for Stewpot artists here at the DMA. Visit by visit, we’ve gotten to know each other and the artists have grown more comfortable in the Museum. A favorite memory of mine is when one of the artists, Donald of Dallas, dropped by to visit during a rainy day, knowing he was welcome at the DMA.

Working with the Stewpot Art Program has been an eye-opening introduction to the realities of homelessness in our community. Our diverse group includes former teachers, first responders, and veterans. Importantly, there is no single narrative of homelessness, and we should never assume that homelessness reflects the consequence of an individual’s poor decisions. Over the past year, I’ve gained a deeper appreciation for the importance of building relationships and inviting our community into the Museum. This point was driven home when Leon observed, “I used to sleep in the Arts District because it’s peaceful and you can sometimes hear music. I never knew this was here! Now I learn something new every visit by looking at the art.”

Luis with David Alfaro Siqueiros’s Self-Portrait (The Great Colonel) in the México 1900–1950 exhibition earlier this year

Words cannot express how grateful and thankful I am to work with this group and get to know the artists. Together, we’ve seen art come alive through our participants’ experience and interpretations. We’ve shared moments of joy and gratitude—such as when one of the artists, Luis, broke into applause in front of David Alfaro Siqueiros’s Self-Portrait (The Great Colonel), which was on view in the special exhibition México 1900–1950: Diego Rivera, Frida Kahlo, José Clemente Orozco, and the Avant-Garde—and we’ve encouraged each other to take risks and try new styles and subject matter when we sketch in the galleries. We’ve celebrated graduations, new jobs, and a participant receiving a new set of dentures. We have even taken solace in the timeless beauty of the Keir Collection following the unexpected loss of a participant. Our experience illustrates that art is for everyone, and that studying art helps us understand the human experience and enriches our lives. Looking back, especially during the Thanksgiving season, on our time together sharing gallery discussions, art making, and an appreciation for art and each other’s company, I am deeply thankful for the opportunity to work with the amazing Stewpot artists.

Lindsay O’Connor is the Manager of Docent and Teacher Programs at the DMA.

Ladies Night

For next week’s Second Thursdays with a Twist, we’re celebrating the powerful women who made waves in the art world with Who Run the World? Even though the night will focus on female artists in our collection, we are adding some Beyoncé and other strong women into the night as well. While we love highlighting artists from our collection, like Georgia O’Keeffe, Frida Kahlo, and Mary Cassatt, we thought for a night like this we would show off other amazing artists that you might not know that much about.

Anne Vallayer-Coster, Bouquet of Flowers in a Blue Porcelain Vase, 1776, oil on canvas, Dallas Museum of Art, Foundation for the Arts Collection, Mrs. John B. O’Hara Fund and gift of Michael L. Rosenberg, 1998.52.FA

Anne Vallayer-Coster was born into an artistic family; her mother made miniatures and her father was a goldsmith to many wealthy patrons. When she was 26 years old, she was unanimously voted into the Académie Royale in Paris. This was an enormous accomplishment because they only allowed four women in at a time. In 1780 she was named as the portrait painter for Marie Antoinette and became very popular in the court; she was known to be a confidant to the queen. In the period leading up to the French Revolution, she was critiqued harshly after an exhibition and from that point forward only painted still lifes. She mastered decadent bouquets and created beautiful, detailed works like those in the DMA’s collection.

Alice Kent Stoddard, Fisherman’s Little Sister, 1915, oil on canvas, Dallas Museum of Art, Dallas Art Association Purchase, 1917.4

Alice Kent Stoddard focused mainly on portraits, landscapes, and seascapes. Stoddard studied at the Philadelphia School of Design for Women, after which she studied under William Merritt Chase and Thomas Eakins at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts. She was a member of the Plastic Club, which was the first all-women’s art group in the United States. During World War I, Stoddard depicted the US regiments and French refugees to garner support for the war effort back in the states. That wasn’t the end of her wartime career: during World War II, she continued to serve her country the best way she could. She began working as a mechanical draftsperson for the Budd Company, a leading manufacturer of airplanes. Stoddard also served as a combat painter on the European front. She was one of the most prominent portrait painters of her time and was the first female artist to be named in Who’s Who in American Art.

Henrietta Mary Shore, Waterfall, c. 1922, oil on canvas, Dallas Museum of Art, Foundation for the Arts Collection, Boeckman Mayer Family Fund of the Foundation for the Arts, 2015.24.FA

Henrietta Shore was born in Canada and had an early interest in art. She also had a deep connection with nature, which ended up being the focus of her work. Shore moved to New York in her twenties to continue her studies in painting under Robert Henri. She eventually moved to California and painted in an artist colony in Carmel. She was able to sell paintings and gained acclaim while there, but she became increasingly frustrated with critics. They would try to connect her sexuality with her abstracted paintings of nature, even though she had not intended those connections. She said that she painted a semi-abstracted “life rhythm” and did not want to be placed in any “school” or “ism.” She did not want to be defined. Her masterful simplification of natural forms makes her one of the best artists of her time that you have probably never heard of.

If you want to know more about these and other amazing artists in our collection, come out to Second Thursdays with a Twist on November 9 from 5:00 to 9:00 p.m. You can find the full schedule of events here.

Katie Cooke is Manager of Adult Programming at the DMA.

A Soiree Fit for Versailles

Next week on Thursday, November 2 the DMA is hosting a soiree fit for Versailles at the second annual Rosenberg Fête celebrating French art from the 18th century. We’ll step back in time with period music, sketching in the galleries, a sumptuous menu of French classics, and a talk on one of the Rosenberg Collection’s most exquisite paintings.

Let’s take a brief dive into the collection we are celebrating. A significant portion of the DMA’s 18th century French art holdings comes from the private collection of Michael L. Rosenberg (1947-2003), an art enthusiast and philanthropist who amassed works by some of the most influential French artists of the 18th century. Upon Michael’s passing in 2003, his collection was transferred to the the Rosenberg Foundation, which approved a long-term loan to the DMA in his memory, making our Museum the home of this stunning collection since 2004.

While each object commands a closer look, I’ve always been captivated by the two pieces that bookend the collection—the first and last of Rosenberg’s acquisitions.

The first piece that Mr. Rosenberg acquired was The Bather by François Lemoyne. It is a full length portrait of a nude woman dipping her toe into a body of water, aided by an attendant who holds her discarded clothes. Like many paintings of this period, The Bather can be described as sensuous; the scene is cast in a soft light that plays off of the pearlescent tones of the subject’s body and hair and the artist lent as much effort to the beauty of the painting as to the storytelling. A testament to the effect of the painting, Lemoyne actually created a copy of it for himself, which now hangs at the Hermitage. While he was perhaps not as famous as his protégé François Boucher, Lemoyne influenced artists for years to come, making The Bather not only a beautiful start to Rosenberg’s collection but one with great historical significance. Learn more about this painting tomorrow with Colin B. Bailey, Director of the Morgan Library Museum, who will speak about Lemoyne’s Bather in the context of other Rococo bathing scenes.

François Lemoyne, The Bather, 1724, Oil on canvas, Lent by the Michael L. Rosenberg Foundation, 29.2004.7

Mr. Rosenberg’s last acquisition was Portrait of Natalia Zakharovna Kolycheva, née Hitrovo by Elisabeth Louis Vigee-Lebrun. Vigee-Lebrun was a portrait painter to Queen Marie Antoinette and one of the few women painters of her time who was successful in an art world dominated by men. During the French Revolution she went into exile, eventually settling in Russia where she painted this and other portraits of aristocrats. At this moment in history only four women artists had been admitted to the prestigious French Royal Academy of Painting and Sculpture. With works by Vigee-Lebrun and two floral still lifes by Anne Vallayer-Caoster, also a painter to the Queen, the DMA had works by two out of four of these trailblazing women artists. In his lifetime Michael Rosenberg supported the acquisition of the Vallayer-Coster pendants, and today his legacy Foundation continues to support the museum’s expanding collection in this area, as exemplified by their generous support to acquire a portrait by Adélaïde Labille-Guiard earlier this year, so that now the DMA can boast having works by three of the four women Academicians of the 18th century.

Elisabeth Louise Vigée-Lebrun, Portrait of Natalia Zakharovna Kolycheva, née Hitrovo, 1799, Oil on Canvas, Lent by the Michael L. Rosenberg Foundation, 29.2004.13

Anne Vallayer-Coster, Bouquet of Flowers in a Terracotta Vase with Peaches and Grapes, 1776, Oil on canvas, Dallas Museum of Art, Foundation for the Arts Collection, Mrs. John B. O’Hara Fund and gift of Michael L. Rosenberg, 1998.51.FA

Anne Vallayer-Coster, Bouquet of Flowers in a Blue Porcelain Vase, 1776, Oil on canvas, Dallas Museum of Art, Foundation for the Arts Collection, Mrs. John B. O’Hara Fund and gift of Michael L. Rosenberg, 1998.52.FA

Adélaïde Labille-Guiard, Portrait of a Conventional, 1795, Oil on canvas, Dallas Museum of Art, gift of Michael L. Rosenberg Foundation. 2017.18

These are just a few of the treasures in the Rosenberg Galleries. Join us next week to see the Collection and immerse yourself in the lavish world of 18th-Century France.

Jessie Frazier is Manager of Adult Programming at the DMA


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