Sunday, July 25, 2021
BMA: American Galleries
"Snowstorm, Madison Square"
by Childe Hassam
1859-1935, AMERICAN
"Reflections, Grez-sur-Loing"
by Willard Metcalf
1858-1925, AMERICAN
"The Sculptor's Studio"
by Charles Frederic Ulrich
1858-1908, AMERICAN
"The Nineteenth Century"
by Frank Blackwell Mayer
1827-1899, AMERICAN
"Janetta Falls, New Jersey"
by Jasper Francis Cropsey
1823-1900, AMERICAN
"Center Table"
by Anthony Gabriel Quervelle
1798-1856, FRENCH-AMERICAN
"Jonathas Granville"
by Philip Thomas Coke Tilyard
1785-1830, AMERICAN
Saturday, July 24, 2021
BMA: Katharina Grosse (1961 - )
The other contemporary artist's who installation at the Baltimore Museum of Art that I will share with you is by German born, Katharina Grosse. It was a single piece. Monumental in size. Took up the entirety of of the largest gallery in this section of the museum. A work of hung fabric that could only be compared to a Sam Gilliam (1933 - ) on steroids! I can see were some might not know what to do with this piece, let alone what to make of it. And that is the thing that people don't get about art. Whether it's da Vinci (1452-1519) or Chakaia Booker (1953 - ) the artist is not trying to create something easy to comprehend. And if you stop at the surface, you've not experienced the fullness of ART. Art is always an onion; and while, there aspect of art that are less challenging, there will always be components that only intentional participation can expose. And with all art--let me say that again: ALL ART--the power it possess to enrich your life comes not from the object, but from your willingness to engage with the object.
People do this all the time without consciously realizing it when they invest sentimental attachments to art, when they have visceral reactions to art, when they remember the art, days, months, even years after first encountering it. Art will speak to you, because that's what art does. In return, we can cultivate our ability to listen to art. When you do, you will come to understand that it doesn't matter what art tells you--it is right. Even if you are the only person who can hear it, it is right.
Join me then, and I will tell you what this art said to me.
People do this all the time without consciously realizing it when they invest sentimental attachments to art, when they have visceral reactions to art, when they remember the art, days, months, even years after first encountering it. Art will speak to you, because that's what art does. In return, we can cultivate our ability to listen to art. When you do, you will come to understand that it doesn't matter what art tells you--it is right. Even if you are the only person who can hear it, it is right.
Join me then, and I will tell you what this art said to me.
Psst! Hey you! Yes, you. Stop wasting your time with Lisa's tit paintings and come see me.
What are you!? Are you an Angel? Are you a Circus Tent? Are you a Trap?
Yes. 
And you expect me to just walk through this slit of an opening?
Expectations are a waste of time. But you will enter, because you can.
So, you're not going to give me a straight answer?
Only if you ask me a straight question...now, stop wasting time.
And why are you looking over your shoulder? Do you think you can't get out?
Maybe.
Getting out, like getting in, is up to you.
What are you thinking?
Seriously? Um, Jonah in the Belly of the Whale meets Joseph's Amazing Technicolor Coat.
Seriously? Um, Jonah in the Belly of the Whale meets Joseph's Amazing Technicolor Coat.
So who are you? Jonah, or Joseph!
Suddenly, I am neither. I am John Wesley Powell with delusions of being the first person to travel down the Colorado River through the Grand Canyon!
[smug silence], then:
The magic is working.
Is that the face of a Blue Lion rising? Or an Elephant's Orange Eye looking from above the fold of it's canvas tusk?
Why are you asking me such obvious questions?
Because I have never seen such an amazing Elephant.
Why are you asking me such obvious questions?
Have you ever looked for such an amazing Elephant?
In the clouds.
That's a good start.
How many things are there in here?
That's a good start.
Besides you?
Yeah.
Dunno. Never bothered to count. I have nothing to do with the answer, after all.
Right....
And around this corner, Mr Powell, what do you see?
Who?
Mr. John Wesley Powell.
Yeah.
Dunno. Never bothered to count. I have nothing to do with the answer, after all.
Right....
Who?
Mr. John Wesley Powell.
Oh, him. He was just a fleeting impression. Here, I see a magnificent American Mammoth Jackass on the floor with ears extended upward, and the statue of some meso-American god peering out from the jungle's greenery...and the silhouette of some amazing bird wearing a Native American headdress...and music?
Music?
Yeah, that song from Willie Wonka. You know it. "Come with me...and you see..."
Not to surprise you, but I get that one a lot. So look, when the music starts, it's time.
Time?
Time to go.
Music?
Yeah, that song from Willie Wonka. You know it. "Come with me...and you see..."
Time?
Time to go.
Go?
Are we down to one word sentences? Cause if we are, you might have been here too long.
Go where? Two words.
There. Through the opening. Time to make room for others.
Thank you.
De nada...I'll see you again.
BMA: Lisa Yuskavage (1962 - )
Now, the fun stuff. My favorite place to explore at the BMA is the back (physically by the layout) in the Contemporary Galleries. They often use this space to highlight particular artists. Currently there are four female artists receiving this honor. I will share two with you and start with Lisa Yuskavage. Born just up the road in Philadelphia, she studied at Yale for her MFA. The works here represented two periods in her creative career.
In the first room there are a series of small/medium size watercolors all on the theme of breasts. Breasts shrouded in dreamy mists of garish colors with flora motifs all around. The anatomical components are subtle, but the titles? No so much! Now, being gay, you might assume that I have no appreciate for the female form--that would be so not true. It is in its various component parts fascinating and beautiful. That's exactly what Yuskavage has captured in these paintings--and with watercolor, no less!
The other two galleries where sparsely populated with large canvases of oil paintings depicted human and human-esque forms where the motif a voluptuous breasts figured prominently. These also at times reminded me of the amazing Frank Frazetta (1928-2010) paintings that graces the covers of classic Sci Fi and Fantasy paperbacks in the 1960-70's From Tarzan to Conan to Mars Colonies. The mid-century modern benches in the galleries certainly didn't dissuade me from connecting those dots.
In the first room there are a series of small/medium size watercolors all on the theme of breasts. Breasts shrouded in dreamy mists of garish colors with flora motifs all around. The anatomical components are subtle, but the titles? No so much! Now, being gay, you might assume that I have no appreciate for the female form--that would be so not true. It is in its various component parts fascinating and beautiful. That's exactly what Yuskavage has captured in these paintings--and with watercolor, no less!
"Tit Heaven #3"
by Lisa Yuskavage
1962- , AMERICAN
The other two galleries where sparsely populated with large canvases of oil paintings depicted human and human-esque forms where the motif a voluptuous breasts figured prominently. These also at times reminded me of the amazing Frank Frazetta (1928-2010) paintings that graces the covers of classic Sci Fi and Fantasy paperbacks in the 1960-70's From Tarzan to Conan to Mars Colonies. The mid-century modern benches in the galleries certainly didn't dissuade me from connecting those dots.
BMA: The Legacy of Adelyn Breeskin
Between the galleries with works from the Cone Sister's collection and Modern Art is a single gallery with a lovely focus show. It is dedicated tot he contribution of Adelyn Breeskin (1896-1986). I love shows like this that draw from a museum's own collection while highlighting some aspect of the works that would otherwise be completely ignored. Additionally, this little exhibition elevated a pioneering woman in the art museum world, who likewise created a legacy now all but forgotten.
Breeskin's first employment was as an assistant curator of prints at The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City in 1918. She came into the employment of the Baltimore Museum of Art when she was appointed its first Curator of Prints. In 1942, she was promoted to the position of Director (actually, the BMA's second female Director). A role that she held for the next 20 years. Through her long life she studied the works of Mary Cassatt (1844-1926), and one of her foremost experts. She was the first person to assemble a catalogue raisonne of the Impressionist's works.
This exhibition highlights some of the wide range of works that Breeskin acquired for the BMA over the course of her career. Interestingly enough the one Cassatt portrait in the show is a work that she wasn't able to purchase; however, the Peabody Institute (which does own it) has lent it to the BMA for an undetermined amount of time. Thus "Portrait of Madame J (Young Woman in Black)" has called the BMA home for many years.
This exhibition highlights some of the wide range of works that Breeskin acquired for the BMA over the course of her career. Interestingly enough the one Cassatt portrait in the show is a work that she wasn't able to purchase; however, the Peabody Institute (which does own it) has lent it to the BMA for an undetermined amount of time. Thus "Portrait of Madame J (Young Woman in Black)" has called the BMA home for many years.
The works she was able to acquire represent a range of iconic painters. On the back wall: Van Gogh, Gauguin, and Cezanne. But the works are also eclectic. Note the Aztec sculpture on the right. Of course, there are prints, as well.
"St. Anthony Being Tormented by Demons"
by Martin Schongauer
circa 1430-1491, GERMAN
"Cup of Silver Ginger"
by Georgia O'Keeffe
1887-1986, AMERICAN
"The Bessie of New York"
by Arthur Dove
1880-1946, AMERICAN
Things Just Wanna Grow!
The Cone Sisters: Pierre Bonnard
You cannot (or should not) go to the Baltimore Museum of Art and not visit the amazing collection of works amassed by the Cone Sisters. The pair were great fans of both Matisse and Picasso and purchased paintings like a pair of 20 century hoarders all to the great benefit of the Baltimore Museum of Art. Two here by Pierre Bonnard.
Bonnard is considered a post-impressionist, and for a time was a seminal member of "Les Nabis". A group that included one of my favorite artists (Edouard Villard). The thing that characterizes Bonnard's work in my mind are his use of somewhat garish colors and a general flattening of the images by a selective use of contrasting colors. He often includes women in his compositions, but most significantly melds their forms into the images so as to de-emphasize their presence in an almost ghostly way. At the same time, whenever, and there often is, a dog in the painting, you can see it pretty readily! There has got a thesis paper on this written somewhere.
Bonnard is considered a post-impressionist, and for a time was a seminal member of "Les Nabis". A group that included one of my favorite artists (Edouard Villard). The thing that characterizes Bonnard's work in my mind are his use of somewhat garish colors and a general flattening of the images by a selective use of contrasting colors. He often includes women in his compositions, but most significantly melds their forms into the images so as to de-emphasize their presence in an almost ghostly way. At the same time, whenever, and there often is, a dog in the painting, you can see it pretty readily! There has got a thesis paper on this written somewhere.
"Luncheon Table"
by Pierre Bonnard
1867-1947, FRENCH
"Woman with a Bowl of Fruit"
by Pierre Bonnard
1867-1947, FRENCH
BMA: European Art
After attending the lecture at the Maryland Zoo, I went over to the Baltimore Museum of Art for a visit. Interestingly, it was the last public venue that I went to before everything shut down back in Mid-March 2019.
The first floor galleries which feature the museum's African Art works is completely shut down for a total make over. They have a fairly descent collection of 18th thru mid-20th century cultural artifacts. I look forward to see how they plan to better contextualize the works. The BMA is one of these all in one museums with a little something from antiquity to contemporary.
With the first floor closed, I headed up to the second and started as one must in the several galleries devoted to European Art 15th thru 19th centuries. I had just entered the second room when a young black patron called out, "Hey! How are you doing?"
Since I was the only other person in the gallery, I turned and replied, "Fine," and then added, "How are you?"
From the tone of his voice, I sort of assumed that he had mistaken me for someone he knew. We were (everyone was) wearing masks, after all. He replied that he was good, too. So I gently too it a little further. I didn't want him to feel embarrassed.
I asked, "Are you enjoying the museum?"
He replied, "Yes. It's really nice."
The first floor galleries which feature the museum's African Art works is completely shut down for a total make over. They have a fairly descent collection of 18th thru mid-20th century cultural artifacts. I look forward to see how they plan to better contextualize the works. The BMA is one of these all in one museums with a little something from antiquity to contemporary.
With the first floor closed, I headed up to the second and started as one must in the several galleries devoted to European Art 15th thru 19th centuries. I had just entered the second room when a young black patron called out, "Hey! How are you doing?"
Since I was the only other person in the gallery, I turned and replied, "Fine," and then added, "How are you?"
From the tone of his voice, I sort of assumed that he had mistaken me for someone he knew. We were (everyone was) wearing masks, after all. He replied that he was good, too. So I gently too it a little further. I didn't want him to feel embarrassed.
I asked, "Are you enjoying the museum?"
He replied, "Yes. It's really nice."
The way he inflected his worlds made me think he was seeing the place for the first time, so I continued, "Is this your first visit, or have you been here before?"
"This is my first visit. You?"
"I've been before, though it's been awhile."
"That's cool."
Here the conversation faded, and so mission accomplished, I said, "There's a lot of great stuff to see, I hope you enjoy the rest."
He thanked me and we went about our separate explorations. Here are 6 images from these galleries for you enjoyment.
"Birds and Fowl"
by Melchior D'Hondecoeter
1636-1695, DUTCH
"Still Life with Grapes, Fruit and Flowers"
by Jan Van Os
1744-1808, DUTCH
"Still Life with Grapes, Fruit and Flowers" DETAIL
"Thatched Village (Flesselles, near Amiens)"
by Jean-Baptiste-Camille Corot
1796-1875, FRENCH
"Beneath the Archway"
by Prosper Marilhat
1811-1847, FRENCH
"Outside the Bar"
by Eugene Boudin
11824-1898, FRENCH
"Still Life with Oranges"
by Victor Vignon
1847-1909, FRENCH
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