Real Clear Arts

Judith H. Dobrzynski on Culture

Museums

Dale Chihuly, Too, Gets His Own Museum — UPDATED

While the art world was aflutter last week over word that Cy Twombly would join the ranks of artists with their museums, I heard nary a mention of another such artist: Dale Chihuly. He’s the artist critics love to criticize as too commercial — not in the category as Thomas Kincaid, say, but usually not someone to praise either.

Chihuly, now 70, opened Chihuly Garden and Glass at the foot of the Seattle Space Needle on May 21 — 45,000 sq. ft. designed by the artist himself. But when the Seattle Times covered it, it was Valerie Easton, who writes about gardens, who called it an “ exciting venue.” The art review, by Gayle Clemans, was written as a “highlights” and “low points” piece.

Coverage itself is a tad confusing, in fact: While Easton wrote that “The new exhibit is the largest display of Chihuly glass in the world, and every piece was created specifically for the setting,” other reports say that it contains elements from all of Chihuly’s life, including “conceptual drawings, glasswork themes, one-of-a-kind pieces and his personal collections.” 

The signature piece in the Exhibition Hall’s eight galleries is said to be a new 1,400-piece, 100-foot long glass sculpture. The exhibition includes one of his well-known Persian ceilings 9above), among many other Chilhuly works. Outside, the 16,000-square-foot garden features more large Chihuly creations. Clemans wrote:

…[Chuhily and architect Owen Richards] also added a modernist glass conservatory, a striking space with arching, white metal beams that visually connects the nearby Pacific Science Center and Space Needle. Although inspired by Chihuly’s love for conservatories, it reads a little like a contemporary cathedral from certain angles, which might underscore the feeling that Chihuly has built a shrine to himself….

But here’s the downside: the fact that this center was designed by the artist, during his lifetime, and includes not just Chihuly’s art but many of his personal collections, from Native American basketry to vintage glass Christmas ornaments. It generates inevitable narcissistic undertones.

Put me on the side of the ledger for those who don’t think Chihuly’s work warrants a museum of its own. Not that he would care — he makes millions a year and paid nothing for this center, whose $20 million cost was financed by the Space Needle Corp. It’s open seven days a week, with enlightened hours — from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. Friday to Sunday and from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday to Thursday — and is certain to draw crowds, at least for a while.

Unless, people are tripped up by the cost: general admission for adults is a steep $19. Compare that with the $10 charged by the Clyfford Still Museum, which caught some flack in the Denver area for being too expensive. It, btw, recently opened its second installation, Inaugural Exhibition, Part II, “including discoveries made since the opening of the Museum in November 2011 and an entirely new selection of works on paper.”  (Yes, I have query in on that… I’ll post an answer when I get one.)

UPDATE: According to a spokeswoman for the Still museum, “The works on paper (drawings and prints) that are now on view show greater connection to his paintings than previously revealed, which sheds light on his process and relationship between painted and drawn works. The museum also found that one work in the collection was actually a fragment – cut down from a replica of a major work that is at the Met.” You can see more about that here, in the blog post dated May 23.

Photo Credits: Courtesy of the Oregonian

Enlightened Minnesota Stages A Museums Month

Today is the last day of “Museums Month” in Minnesota, and I wish I’d known about it before. It’s another reason to wish that other states were as good about the arts as the North Star state. (To cite just one example, in 2008, residents voted to raise sales taxes by three-eights of one percent, or about $300 million a year, to protect the environment and cultural heritage.)

This was the maiden effort for Museums Month, but the organizers would like it to “become an annual festival of the many beloved museums and zoos located across the State of Minnesota.” Among some of the noteworthy elements:

  • 100 metro public libararies offered “Museum Adventure Passes” on a first-come, first-served basis: Holders could use their library card to “check out” two free admissions to eighteen cultural organizations in Minneapolis-St. Paul,  including the Minneapolis Institute of Arts and the Walker Arts Center. (Guidelines here.) The loan period for the pass was seven days.
  • The Metropolitan Library Service Agency every day during the month selected two members of the public, drawn randomly from those who registered online, for memberships to a selected group of museums.
  • Links on the Museums Month website spread the word about “museum stories,” articles that covered various museums.
  • One of those links disclosed that the Star-Tribune had a contest for viewers of its museum travel guide — those who visited 5 of 15 museums participating were entered in a contest for “fantastic prizes.”
  •  There’s also a short statement, posted in a PDF online, about the economic impact of Minnesota’s museums.

This was a collaborative effort by the museums themselves, with several partners, like libraries and public television. I salute them! Now, I’d like to see a report on the month — what it did, if anything, for attendance, membership, enlightenment and anything else they can imagine.

Meantime, this is a model other states could easily adopt.

 

Another Economic Casualty? Baltimore Contemporary Closes

I thought we might have been finished with museum closings for this economic cycle, but I guess not: While few people were paying attention, the Contemporary Museum in Baltimore ceased operation several days ago, in mid-exhibition and apparently with little warning.

Founded in 1989,  the Contemporary started out presenting exhibitions in temporary spaces and in partner institutions like the Baltimore Museum of Art, Maryland Historical Society, Peabody Conservatory and Walters Art Museum. Then, in 1999, it procured a space in downtown Baltimore near the Walters, focusing mainly on area artists. 

A year ago, it started to mount a series of one-week-long solo exhibitions called “The Baltimore Liste.” As the Contemporary’s director, Sue Spaid, told a local publication called the Urbanite at that time, “We decided on the ‘Liste’ model from Berlin because it focuses on younger artists and galleries.” 

That month — May 2011 – the Urbanite wrote, “The Contemporary Museum is packed this particular Friday evening: the young and bohemian smoke cigarettes out front, while the inside buzzes with animated conversations as people enjoy snacks and beer, cameras flash, and artists make faux kiss noises. The gathering has all the attributes of a really great art party.”  (The article has more on the Liste model, too.)

The Liste was set for a repeat performance this spring. But as a blog called BMoreArt recorded on May 22, visitors who went to the exhibition on the 19th (actually after May 16), were met by “a hand-written sign that said, ‘The Baltimore List has been de-listed until further notice.’ ” A day later came the official notice (right).

The Baltimore Sun caught up with the story last Friday, publishing an article which started out with the odd line that the Contemporary was having a hard time remaining contemporary — though that’s what Liste was all about. Then it quoted another museum director saying ‘There is a passionate base for contemporary art here now.”

Finally, the Sun went to the reason for the story, quoting Bodil Ottesen, the Contemporary’s board president, who said, “We are not shutting down. The museum is ceasing its programs for the time being.” She gave no prognosis, but the Sun noted that Spaid and four museum employees had been “let go.”

Last fall, the Contemporary moved out of its recent home and back into temporary spaces, but trustees have been trying to raise money to refurbish a former gallery spacea on N. Charles St. as its new home.  That plan has been scrapped.

The one positive sign in this story is that the Contemporary had shut down before, in 2003, but staged a new exhibition within months in a temporary space and hired a new director the following year, the Sun says.

Let’s hope.

Photo Credits: Courtesy of Urbanite (top), of BMoreArt (bottom)

What’s The Connection Between The Barnes And Hitler?

I’ve always opposed the move of the Barnes Foundation into Philadelphia, and mostly — but not unwaveringly — agreed with the Friends of the Barnes Foundation. But the Friends have goofed, I think, in a very distasteful way. It’s time to call them on it.

Last week, they sent me a link to a “New Barnes video” on YouTube. It’s not a snippet — it’s nearly four minutes long and someone, or some bodies, spent time on this. It uses an old film of a raging Hitler — apparently from a German film called “The Downfall” and which I gather has been used many times “in jest” — trying to pull off a great art heist. When he loses his own officers, Hitler decides to call the Pew Trust, which helped orchestrate the Barnes move.

Given all the good reviews the new Barnes has been getting (it opened with a trumpet fanfare), it’s clear the Friends are feeling low, but standing pat. On Friday night, during the opening gala, and on Saturday night, they had planned to wear black and stand in protest at the new Barnes to “witnesses to the destruction of the Barnes Foundation.” Presumably they did, though I’ve seen no mention of that in the press –another slight by hometown newspapers, which back the move.

And, the Friends have been fined by the court, probably unfairly, and are still protesting and fighting that.

But the Hitler video isn’t funny and is way out of proportion.

Last week, I suggested to one of the Friends, “Maybe it’s time to call it a day?” Their efforts, it seems to me, have nowhere to go. The Barnes has moved, and it’s not going back to Merion.

“Calling it a day depends mostly on an assessment of whether or not there is any justice to be had and the risks of putting the system to the test,” she wrote back.

That is true. Someone, in some court, may agree that they should not have to pay penalties for using the courts. I just wish they had remained on the high road. What’s the connection between the Barnes and Hitler? None, absolutely none.

Photo Credit: Courtesy of the Friends of the Barnes Foundation

 

On Eve Of New Barnes’s Opening, Full Coverage In The Hometown Newspaper

The Philadelphia Inquirer threw a lot of resources at the Barnes Foundation this weekend, providing a preview as the new building in the city moves toward its opening on May 19 — I counted seven articles and six slide shows online, though I have not seen the physical paper. UPDATE: Turns out there are more than seven articles — at least 10 — now online and in print (which I have not seen).

The paper is pretty positive about the new Barnes, which makes sense; opponents of the move from Merion to the city feel the paper and the city’s power elite who made the move a reality have always been aligned. They want to make Philadelphia an art destination, and as fine as the Philadelphia Museum of Art’s collection is, the city wasn’t a destination for art-lovers unless the museum mounted a blockbuster (which it did regularly).

Now, when you combine the two nearby collections, the city truly does have an impressive cluster of 19th Century French works. Here’s the tally according to the Inquirer:

Add the Barnes’ 181 Renoirs to the Art Museum’s 16 and that is the largest collection in the world. The Barnes’ 69 Cezannes plus the museum’s 16 amounts to more than there are in all of France. The Barnes owns 46 Picassos; the museum, 23. The Barnes has 59 Matisses, the museum, 15. The Barnes owns 18 Rousseaus, the museum, 10. Each institution boasts seven van Goghs.

In one Inquirer article, about the city’s “Museum Mile,” Philadelphia Museum curator Joseph Rishel says the cluster will become a pilgrimage site for art-lovers. On the other hand, Witold Rybczynski, architect, author, and University of Pennsylvania professor, says “I don’t think it’s a great idea to have three museums lined up in a row or three stadiums next to each other – there’s no synergy in that” and “No one spends two hours in a museum, then goes down the street to spend two hours in another.” I think they are both right, with a qualifier on Rybczynski’s “no one.” Most people don’t go from museum to museum, but traveling art pilgrims do. The question is how many they are — and whether they care about the legitimacy of the move.

Critic Edward Sozanski called the change this way: “The metamorphosis doesn’t diminish the art, but it does significantly alter the context in which visitors encounter it…” and “It’s not an absolutely precise re-creation, although the changes for the most part enhance the viewing experience.” (One wonders, as he repeated himself, if he was trying to convince himself.)

One change he mentions is better lighting. Here’s another:

Matisse fans and art historians will be delighted to discover that the masterpiece The Joy of Life no longer languishes on a landing in a stairwell. It’s now ensconced in a small room on the second floor that in Merion was where the trustees met.

The Joy of Life, a key step in the development of modern art, is now directly juxtaposed with Matisse’s mural The Dance, which fills three lunettes in the first-floor central gallery. My memory could be playing tricks, but the mural seems to be slightly easier to see in the museum than it was in Merion, even if it does involve architectural sleight-of-hand.

Sozanski also notes that the Barnes, now a real museum, has guest amenities, like a place to buy a sandwich.

Architecture critic Inge Saffron wrote two pieces, including a straight review, and she’s not crazy about the new Barnes:

…no less urgent, is the issue of how the new ensemble fits into its new home in the city. The answer is that it doesn’t.

In a nutshell, everything wrong with the new Barnes stems from a desire to compensate for the problems of the past. Hence the huge, unnecessary parking lot. It not only blocks the view of the Barnes’ elegant entrance facade, but it also weakens the emerging hub at 20th and Callowhill Streets. The bus drop-off is comically over-scaled – like the driveway at a Merion mansion – and cursed with a canopy so tacky one can imagine it presiding over a highway gas station. Add a grotesquely large, all-too-visible loading dock, and what you get is a site that has all the aesthetic coherence of a suburban supermarket.

Saffron’s other piece describes the architectural process, which she feels sacrificed the building for the art.
There’s also a history piece, a profile of Barnes the man and a profile of the collection (the latter two also by Sozanski).
Friends of the Barnes Foundation have not yet reacted on their website.
The photo above is from 2011, before the building was completed — sorry.