The Official Blog of the Allen Memorial Art Museum

Here’s the lowdown on the hours and programs at the AMAM...

Thu, 23 May 2013 14:00:21 -0400

Here’s the lowdown on the hours and programs at the AMAM for this coming weekend:

AMAM Commencement Weekend Hours:
Saturday, May 25 10:00 am - 7:00 pm
Sunday, May 26 10:00 am - 5:00 pm

Docent-led tours of the museum will be offered on Saturday (11am and 3pm) and Sunday (2pm).

Additionally, the Weltzheimer/Johnson House will be open from 10am until 5pm on Saturday and 12pm to 5pm on Sunday.

We hope to see you around the museum and around campus at one of the many great events taking place prior to Monday’s Commencement ceremonies!

Although books of hours were the most common devotional books of...

Tue, 21 May 2013 16:00:23 -0400

Although books of hours were the most common devotional books of the fifteenth century, there were also more varied collections of prayer. This leaf comes from one such prayer book. It shows the hand of the resurrected Christ, whose palm bears the stigmata associated with his crucifixion. Set against a yellow background meant to imitate gold leaf, this inexpensive image was used by readers who looked at the image while contemplating Christ’s death and subsequent resurrection. The text encircling the image translates as, “Whatever has been, or will be, appointed through the right hand of God the omnipotent father shall be blessed.”

This image is one of only two printed works in the exhibition Private Prayer, Public Performance. A woodcut, it was made around 1450, roughly contemporary with Gutenberg’s invention of printing with movable type, which would spell the end of manuscript illumination. This work illustrates that transition perfectly: although the image is printed, the prayer on the other side of the page is handwritten.

This work will be on view in the 2nd floor Ripin Print Gallery through July 31 in the exhibition Private Prayer, Public Performance: Religious Books of the Later Middle Ages and Renaissance.

Image:
German
Hand of God, Leaf from a Prayerbook, ca. 1450
Hand-colored woodcut
Friends of Art Fund, 1956.2

tell me more about your renovation

Tue, 21 May 2013 14:36:16 -0400

Thanks for your question. We have quite a bit of information about our renovation project available online. You can follow the links below.

http://www.oberlin.edu/amam/ProjectOverview.htm

http://vimeo.com/amam

dalerothenberg: yesterday’s show at oberlin’s frank lloyd...

Sat, 18 May 2013 12:00:20 -0400

dalerothenberg:

yesterday’s show at oberlin’s frank lloyd wright house was incredible! we had a big turnout and had a great time. I’m still amazed at how many people showed up.

I’ve been working on this continuously for a straight week…it’s a wonderful feeling to see hard work pay off. I’m relatively satisfied with the selection and it’s a relief to finally be done. this next week I’m just doing some video projects and small editorial stuff, and then graduating. weird feeling.

Clare Leighton - Emily Brontë’s Wuthering Heights Known for her...

Sat, 18 May 2013 11:00:17 -0400

Clare Leighton - Emily Brontë’s Wuthering Heights

Known for her illustrations of nineteenth-century British novels by authors like Thomas Hardy, Claire Leighton also wrote prolifically on the virtues of rural life in an increasingly urban and industrial world. This series of wood engravings for the 1931 Random House edition of Wuthering Heights combines Leighton’s cherished English countryside with the brooding moors of the novel’s romanticized Yorkshire landscape. Written in 1846, Wuthering Heights was the only novel by Emily Brontë, a member of the famous Brontë family of writers. Leighton’s series of twelve illustrations depicts both crucial moments in the book’s narrative, which chronicles the passionate but doomed love story of Catherine Earnshaw and Heathcliff, as well as tangential episodes and characters.

These works are on view in the exhibition “Representing the Word: Modern Book Illustrations” through July 31.

Image:

Clare Leighton (English, 1900–1989)
Heathcliff’s Grief, from the series Wuthering Heights, 1930
Wood engraving
Gift of Mrs. Malcolm L. McBride

The Allen Memorial Art Museum at Oberlin College will offer FREE...

Thu, 16 May 2013 16:00:10 -0400

The Allen Memorial Art Museum at Oberlin College will offer FREE admission to the Weltzheimer/Johnson House on Sunday, May 19 (from 12pm to 5pm), as part of the Association of Art Museum Directors’ (AAMD) Art Museum Day, coinciding with International Museum Day and Weekend on Saturday, May 18, 2013. Last year, more than 120 other AAMD member museums across North America participated in Art Museum Day.

For this special weekend, the AMAM has also teamed up with the Oberlin Public Library to present a related talk. Cheryl Kuonen, director of the Wickliffe Public Library, will be presenting a talk on Frank Lloyd Wright’s art and architecture at the Oberlin Public Library Sunday at 1pm. This talk promises to enrich the experience of visiting one of the few Wright structures open to the public in Ohio.

“Art museums bring communities together and engage people of every background in the shared exploration of human expression across time and cultures,” said Chris Anagnos, Executive Director of the Association of Art Museum Directors. “AAMD is so pleased that the Allen Memorial Art Museum is joining us in celebrating Art Museum Day and is encouraging everyone in Oberlin and northeast Ohio to participate and share their experiences in a public forum.”

Art Museum Day emphasizes the essential role that art museums play in their communities, highlights the value of the visual arts in society, and provides new opportunities for audiences to participate in the wide-ranging programs offered by AAMD member museums. These member institutions—located across the United States, Canada, and Mexico—include regional museums as well as large international museums. International Museum Day is organized annually around the world by the International Council of Museums (ICOM). AAMD’s Art Museum Day is an opportunity to focus attention on the role of art museums in North America, as part of ICOM’s global celebration.

A comprehensive list of participating AAMD member art museums can be found on the AAMD website here. Note that while AAMD’s Art Museum Day and ICOM’s International Museum Day are formally held each year on May 18, some institutions shift their celebrations to adjacent dates.

For more information on the lecture or visiting the Weltzheimer/Johnson House, located at 534 Morgan Street in Oberlin, please contact the AMAM Education Department at (440) 775-8671, or email jtrimmer [at ] oberlin.edu.

In celebration of the 150th Anniversary of Oberlin College and...

Sun, 12 May 2013 16:00:24 -0400

In celebration of the 150th Anniversary of Oberlin College and Town in 1983, AMAM curator William Olander organized the exhibition Art and Social Change, U.S.A., in celebration of Oberlin’s long tradition of social awareness. The exhibition featured artwork by John Ahearn, Nancy Buchanan, Sarah Charlesworth, John Fekner, Mike Glier, Jenny Holzer, Peter Huttinger, Barbara Kruger, and Sherrie Levine, as well as performances by Candace Hill-Montgomery (b. 1945) and Eric Bogosian (b. 1953, OC ‘76). The performances provided direct social critique that complemented the work of the other artists in the exhibition, located not only in the galleries, but in the museum courtyard, Tappan Square, and around town.

To inaugurate the exhibition, Hill-Montgomery performed Win Within Eye Shot Out. The piece was text based, but defied classification as a poetry reading. Hill-Montgomery’s reading was accompanied and occasionally interrupted by the piercing voice of opera singer Lisa Dunbar. The spare performance, like Hill-Montgomery’s other work, utilized the artist’s perspective as a black female artist to heighten awareness of contemporary race and gender issues. In contrast, Eric Bogosian’s two-part performance, comprised of Voices of America and Funhouse, critiqued current social issues by taking on the guise of the undesirable and desperate characters of the American landscape: the drug pusher, the criminal, the alcoholic, the beggar, the insurance salesman. These characters, which the artist sought to reinsert into public consciousness, grew out of Bogosian’s observations of daily life on subways, in diners, and on city streets.

This work is on view through May 26 in the focus exhibition ’Performance at Oberlin,’ which chronicles the history of performance art at Oberlin College since the 1970s, curated by Thomas Huston (OC ‘13).

Image:
Poster for Live Performance, Art & Social Change, 1983
AMAM Exhibition Archives

AMAM Masterpiece Spotlight: Peter Paul Rubens’ “The...

Thu, 09 May 2013 16:00:20 -0400

AMAM Masterpiece Spotlight: Peter Paul Rubens’ “The Finding of Erichthonius”

The subject of this work by Rubens comes from Ovid’s Metamorphoses: the daughters of Cecrops, the King of Attica, had been entrusted by Athena with a basket they were explicitly told not to open. It contained the baby Erichthonius, son of Vulcan and Gaia, whose legs were in the form of snakes. Naturally, they opened the basket (the youngest daughter, Aglauros, is seen in this act in the AMAM painting), where, to their shock, they found the deformed child. According to some accounts, they were so horrified at the sight, they threw themselves from the heights of the Athenian Acropolis. Art historian Julius Held, however, noted that in the Oberlin painting, Ovid’s version of the tale is depicted, as no harm comes to the daughters and as a landscape-not the rocky outcropping of the Acropolis-is seen in the background.

The AMAM canvas is a fragment of the complete work, whose composition can be deduced through preliminary sketches, prints, and a number of copies. The complete painting was in the collection of the Duc de Richelieu in 1676, but by 1786 when it appeared in an auction as “a female gardener,” it had been significantly cut down, and overpainted: Erichthonius had been covered over by blossoms, so that the entire composition looked like a young girl with a basket of flowers; the various limbs of her sisters, seen in the AMAM work, had also been overpainted. In 1939, the Rubens scholar Ludwig Burchard recognized the composition from a Rubens print, and suggested cleaning the work, after which the original composition was discovered.

The painting is from the last decade of Rubens’s life, and displays the brilliant coloration, sheen of silks and satins, and free handling for which he is known. Rubens was the foremost Flemish artist of the seventeenth century, and was widely known throughout Europe for his inspired compositions and sumptuous coloring. He ran a large studio and served as painter to the Duke of Mantua, the Spanish and French courts, the Habsburgs, and a vast array of other notables, often serving both as artist and diplomat.

The AMAM collection contains a print after the painting by the Flemish artist Pieter van Sompel, as well as two drawings by Rubens, showing The Mystic Marriage of Saint Catherine and the Head of an Old Man.

Assistant Curator of Modern and Contemporary Art Denise...

Tue, 07 May 2013 16:00:24 -0400

Assistant Curator of Modern and Contemporary Art Denise Birkhofer contributes another blog post to Artsy.net on “The Felt Suit of Joseph Beuys.” Our multiple of the suit is on view through May 26 in the Ellen Johnson Gallery.

Image:
Joseph Beuys (German, 1921–1986)
Suit of Clothes, 1970
Felt
Fund for Contemporary Art, 1972.48

Depicted on this chasse is the beheading of Thomas à Becket at...

Sun, 05 May 2013 11:00:21 -0400

Depicted on this chasse is the beheading of Thomas à Becket at the altar of Canterbury Cathedral by knights of King Henry II (the result of an ongoing feud between Becket and Henry over the separation of Church and State). Becket’s blood stained the floor and was collected by the cathedral clergy, diluted with water, and distributed to pilgrims who traveled to Canterbury after the saint’s death. Known as “Becket Water,” this mixture was said to perform miracles, curing illnesses and healing deformities when consumed. Limoges Becket chasses like this one may have contained Becket Water at one point, or perhaps the saint’s corporeal relics that were distributed all over Western Europe.

Image:
French
Reliquary Chasse Depicting the Martyrdom of Saint Thomas à Becket, ca. 1210
Gilded copper alloy and champlevé enamel over wood core
Gift of Baroness René de Kerchove, 1952.20

This work is featured in our current exhibition, Illuminating...

Thu, 02 May 2013 16:00:34 -0400

This work is featured in our current exhibition, Illuminating Faith in the Russian Old Believer Tradition, on view through July 31.

The account of St. John the Baptist’s descent into Hell after his beheading derives from apocryphal literature and carries a particular apocalyptic inflection for Old Believers, who consider the end of time to be near. In Hell, St. John the Baptist, also known as St. John the Precursor in Eastern Orthodoxy, meets the patriarchs and prophets from the Old Testament to announce those souls that Christ would take away during the Second Coming. The artist has portrayed St. John with wings, an indication of his multi-layered sanctity as angel, apostle, and martyr.

Image:
Russian, late 18th–early 19th century
Descent of St. John the Baptist into Hell
Ink and color on paper
Gift of Frederick Binkerd Artz, 1958.32H

Our final First Thursday of the semester is this week! Join us...

Tue, 30 Apr 2013 20:00:18 -0400

Our final First Thursday of the semester is this week! Join us as we welcome Audrey Flack to the museum. A pioneer of Photorealism and a nationally recognized painter and sculptor, Flack will give a lecture titled: Women the Passion and the Sorrow in conjunction with the exhibition, “Religion, Ritual and Performance in Modern and Contemporary Art.” This talk is sponsored by the AMAM and the Art Department Ellen Johnson Fund.

Originally scheduled to give a talk in November, and delayed by Hurricane Sandy, we are thrilled to welcome her to campus. The talk will begin at 5:30pm, and galleries remain open until 8pm. Hope to see you there!

Among the ten paintings in the collection of the Allen Memorial...

Mon, 29 Apr 2013 16:00:08 -0400

Among the ten paintings in the collection of the Allen Memorial Art Museum (AMAM) that were gifts of the Samuel H. Kress Foundation in 1961, is one by the artist Giampietrino of the death of Cleopatra, dating to circa 1515. The painting is the AMAM’s closest link to the work of Leonardo da Vinci, as Giampietrino is known to have worked in his studio.

It had been in storage, due to discolored varnish, uneven surface, extensive overpaints, and cleaving paint. With a generous grant fro the Kress Foundation, the painting was conserved from 2010-2012 at the Intermuseum Conservation Association in Cleveland (an organization founded in 1952 at Oberlin College with the support of AMAM director Charles Parkhurst).

In this video, AMAM Director Andria Derstine and ICA paintings conservator Andrea Chevalier discuss the extensive process of research and conservation, which included submitting the painting to x-ray scans, ultraviolet imaging, infra-red reflectography, and comparisons to similar work in other collections. Very interesting!

As part of a recent Kress Foundation Digital Resources planning...

Thu, 25 Apr 2013 18:00:30 -0400

Volume 1, Number 1 - June 1944

Volume 12, Number 3 - Spring 1955

As part of a recent Kress Foundation Digital Resources planning grant, the AMAM and the Oberlin College Library teamed up to provide high-quality scans of all available Allen Memorial Art Museum Bulletins. The Bulletin is a series of scholarly journals published by the Museum since 1944 which contain articles related to exhibitions and works in the collection. A valuable resource for faculty, students, staff, and scholars around the world, these Bulletins provide a wealth of information on collection works, often dating back to when a piece was first acquired by the AMAM.

To browse the complete selection of scans, click here to visit the Oberlin College Digitial Resource Commons page.

This Thursday and Friday, April 25 and 26, we will be hosting a...

Mon, 22 Apr 2013 16:00:18 -0400

This Thursday and Friday, April 25 and 26, we will be hosting a very special symposium on Renaissance art in conjunction with our year-long exhibition “Religion, Ritual and Performance in the Renaissance” which presents important Renaissance paintings, sculpture, and decorative arts from the AMAM and the Yale University Art Gallery (YUAG) collections. The symposium - free and open to the public - will be held in the museum’s King Sculpture Court, and will last from 11am to 6:30pm on April 25, and from 9am to 5pm on April 26.

Presenters include Oberlin College faculty members from the Art, English, History and Musicology departments, three Oberlin College students who were selected via a competitive process, faculty from Case Western Reserve University, Washington & Lee University, Miami University of Ohio, and Ohio State University, along with staff from the AMAM, the YUAG, the Cleveland Museum of Art, and the Intermuseum Conservation Association.

These two days promise to be exciting ones, and the public is warmly urged to attend. Presentations will range widely on topics related to medieval, Renaissance and baroque art, literature, history and music, as well as pilgrimage and religious practice.

A complete schedule of speakers and events can be found on the symposium’s page here.

If you are in town, we hope you can make it out to some of the talks!

Bring my class into the museum to teach in front of the artworks

Sat, 20 Apr 2013 16:00:11 -0400

#GPOY # docents

whatshouldwecallarthistory:

and I’m all…

Check out our new video (with music and captions!) documenting...

Thu, 18 Apr 2013 16:00:43 -0400

Check out our new video (with music and captions!) documenting the recent creation of a sawdust carpet in the Allen Memorial Art Museum’s King Sculpture Court. The carpet was de-installed on April 14. During that time, we had a large number of visitors who saw the installation, from a second-grade tour to adults and admitted students in town for All Roads Lead to Oberlin visitation days.

And, if you like this be sure to visit our Vimeo page for our other videos. More to come!

bettyv: Romare Bearden, Conjur Woman, 1975, collage of various...

Wed, 17 Apr 2013 16:00:00 -0400

bettyv:

Romare Bearden, Conjur Woman, 1975, collage of various papers with paint and ink on wood, Allen Memorial Art Museum, Oberlin College

Read an interview with Bearden about the inspiration for this and similar works here

This collage is currently on view in our Ellen Johnson Gallery of Modern and Contemporary Art, through May 26.

This small-scale object features Adam and Eve after their...

Sun, 14 Apr 2013 13:00:21 -0400

This small-scale object features Adam and Eve after their expulsion from paradise. Both figures are evidently ashamed: their bodies are hunched forward and shrouded, with Eve holding onto Adam’s arm, raised to obscure his face. Neither figure looks upward, building tension between the viewer and the depicted subjects. It is as if the viewer is being immersed in the very moment that God uttered to the pair, “What is this that thou hast done?” (Genesis 3:13).

The scale and intended installation of the object in a collector’s cabinet would have permitted a close and personal viewing experience. The medium also played a notable role in situating the viewer’s encounter with the sculpture. Ivory was considered a precious material and objects carved from it were admired for their fine detail.

Currently on view in the museum’s East Gallery, this work is included in our gallery flip book situating permanent collection works within our year-long theme of Religion, Ritual and Performance.

Image:
Netherlandish
Expulsion from Paradise (Adam and Eve), ca. 1600
Ivory
R.T. Miller, Jr. Fund, 1959.114

Poem by Connor McNamara Stratton (OC ‘13), inspired by...

Thu, 11 Apr 2013 16:00:24 -0400

Poem by Connor McNamara Stratton (OC ‘13), inspired by Barnett Newman’s “Onement IV.” Submitted as part of our recent Muse in the Museum poetry event.