It’s Our 16th Anniversary!!

ArtPourri

Rare Exhibition Planned—The High Museum of Art, Atlanta, GA, has announced that it is in the advanced stages of developing an exhibition of three newly restored panels from Lorenzo Ghiberti’s celebrated “Gates of Paradise.”  After more than 25 years of restoration work, this would be the first and only time that original panels would travel to the U.S. since their creation over 500 years ago.  After the premier in Atlanta in April 2007, the show would tentatively travel to the Art Institute of Chicago and the Metropolitan Museum of Art in NY.  Once returned to Florence, the three panels would be reassembled in their original framework and placed in a specially designed, hermetically sealed case never to travel again.

Holiday Stamps Available—The U.S. Postal Service has commemorated the winter holiday season with four new 39-cent stamps featuring photos of snowflakes.  The “Holiday Snowflakes” stamps are photographs of two basic snowflake patterns by physicist Kenneth Libbrecht.

New Memorial Dedicated—The U. S. Air Force Memorial has been officially dedicated and presented to the nation.  Located in Arlington, VA, directly across from the Pentagon and designed by James Ingo Freed, the memorial’s stainless steel surface forms the equilateral triangles that form the spires, with each illuminated by its own light source.  Soaring 270 feet, the array of arcs against the sky evokes a modern image of flight by jet and space vehicles.

Achievement Recognized—The 2006 recipients of Japan’s Praemium Imperiale International Prize for outstanding achievement in the arts have been announced.  Among them are Yayoi Kusama for Painting (Japan), Christian Boltanski for Sculpture (France), and Frei Otto for Architecture (Germany).  Each Laureate will receive approximately $131,000.

Auction News--Sotheby’s has announced that it will sell Edward Hopper’s 1955 renowned oil painting Hotel Window in its sale of American Paintings in late November.  The presale estimate is $10-15 million.  At Christies, 40 Years of Star Trek:  The Collection reached a total of $7.1 million when 1,000 lots consisting of models, costumes and props were offered and 100% sold.

Distinguished Americans Honored—The Heinz Family Foundation has announced the recipients of the 12^th Annual Heinz Awards that honor groundbreaking achievements.  Included among the five honorees, each of whom receive $250,000, was James Nachtwey, global photographer and photojournalist from New York City, in the category of Arts and Humanities.

Winter Hours Posted—Dia:Beacon (Beacon, NY) has announced new seasonal hours.  Through Nov. 13 hours are 11am-4pm, Th. – Mon.  From Nov. 17-April 16, hours are 11am-4pm Fri.-Mon.  For further info on this major contemporary art museum, visit www.diaart.org.

Grants Awarded—The Getty Foundation has announced seven grants to arts institutions in New Orleans for conservation and transition planning to assist them in their recovery from the impact of Hurricane Katrina.  Totaling more than $1 million, these are the first round of support from the $2 million Fund for New Orleans that was established earlier this year.  Visit www.getty.edu/news/press for a listing of grantees.

Exhibitions:

New York, NY – The Frick Collection – Cimabue and Early Italian Devotional Painting reunites two diminutive, jewel-like panels by the early Italian Renaissance master Cimabue for the first time in America:  The Virgin and Child Enthroned with Two Angels from the National Gallery in London and the Frick’s Flagellation of Christ. Studies reveal that these two paintings once formed part of the same ensemble featuring various scenes from the life of Christ.  The installation also features representative examples of devotional art from early Renaissance Italy.  Through Dec. 31.

Fenimore Art Museum – Cooperstown, NY - Grandma Moses:  Grandmother to the Nation includes approximately 40 paintings from Anna Mary Robertson Moses’ long and successful career.  Developed in thematic sections that connect Moses’ work to America’s transition from the Great Depression and WWII to prosperity and domesticity in the ‘50s, the exhibition incorporates paintings with photographs, artifacts, film of the popular artist at work and source material for her art.  Through Dec. 31.  Travels to Reynolda House in NC, Hunter Museum of Art in TN, Crocker Art Museum in CA, and The John and Mable Ringling Museum in FL.

New York, NY – Museum of Modern Art – Eye on Europe:  Prints, Books & Multiples/1960 to Now identifies significant strategies exploited by European artists to extend their aesthetic vision within the mediums of prints, books and multiples.  Through Jan. 1.  Visit the online exhibition at www.moma.org.

Dayton, OH – Dayton Art Institute – Rembrandt and the Golden Age of Dutch Art:  Treasures from the Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam celebrates the 400^th anniversary of Rembrandt’s birth with this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to see rare Dutch masterpieces while the Rijksmuseum undergoes an extensive renovation and expansion project.  Notable masterpieces in the show include Rembrandt’s self-portrait, his portrait of his wife, Saskia van Uylenburgh, and Frans Hals’ portrait of Nicolaes Hasselaer.  Through Jan. 7 and then travels to Phoenix Art Museum in AZ and Portland Art Museum in OR.

San Francisco, CA – Legion of Honor – Transparent Reflections:  Richard Pousette-Dart Works on Paper, 1940-1992 features 51 glowing and luminous works on paper by this abstract expressionist artist that commemorate his prolific career of over 50 years as a draftsman.  A selection of his finest drawings, paintings on paper and painted prints illustrate the important role that works on paper played in his life’s work.  Through Jan. 14.

Raleigh, NC - North Carolina Museum of Art – Revolution in Paint is the first exhibition in the southeastern U.S. to examine the working materials of the impressionist painters and place their techniques within an historical context.  Paintings by Bouguereau, Sisley, Isabey and others are on loan from public and private collections.  Through Feb. 11.

Copyright ARTtalk Vol. 17 No. 1 -- November 2006