ArtPourri

Skills Improve with Art -- A research study at Boston’s Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum has revealed a strong correlation between the “School Partnership Program” and improved critical thinking skills in children.  Part of a larger nationwide initiative, the three-year “Thinking Through Art” study findings revealed a significant positive impact of arts education on critical thinking and learning in elementary students in grades 3-5.  See www.gardnermuseum.org.

Lost Painting Found—The FBI’s Art Crime Team have located an original Norman Rockwell painting, Russian Schoolroom, stolen in Missouri in 1973.  Upon viewing an FBI Theft Notice, producer Steven Spielberg’s staff notified authorities that he had purchased the painting from a legitimate dealer in 1989.  He will retain possession of the painting until its disposition can be determined as the investigation continues.

Memorial to Victims – Thailand recently opened a seaside sculpture garden as a new memorial to victims of the 2004 tsunami.  The main sculpture, “Hold Me Close,” was donated by renowned artist Louise Bourgeois.   

Director Appointed – The Dia Art Foundation has announced the appointment of Jeffrey Weiss, curator and head of the Department of Modern and Contemporary Art at the National Gallery of Art, as Dia’s new director.  Weiss will assume his post in late spring and succeeds Michael Govan.

Exhibitions:

Cincinnati, OH – Cincinnati Art Museum – Andrew Wyeth Watercolors and Drawings, Selections from the Marunuma Art Park Collection, Japan includes 114 watercolors and drawings inspired by the world of Christina and Alvaro Olson in Cushing, ME.  Spanning three decades of his career, the works range from stand-alone watercolors to preliminary notations and detailed studies that demonstrate how the artist’s compositions evolved into finished tempera paintings.  Through May 6.

Houston, TX – Museum of Fine Arts – The Temptations of Flora:  Jan van Huysum is the first large-scale exhibition devoted to the artist’s work, renowned for the tremendous realism with which he painted elaborate floral and fruit arrangements.  A selection of production drawings, paintings that represent other facets of his work and works by his predecessors, contemporaries and followers complement the exhibition.  Through May 20.

New York, NY – New York Historical Society – A New Light on Tiffany:  Clara Driscoll and The Tiffany Girls reveals that many lamps, windows and other luxury objects produced by Tiffany Studios were not designed exclusively by Louis Comfort Tiffany.  Featured are approximately 60 lamps, windows, mosaics, enamels and ceramics designed by Clara Driscoll and other women at Tiffany Studios.  Through May 28.

Copyright ARTtalk Vol. 17 No. 6 — April 2007