Blog @ the Nelson-Atkins

One of my favorite parts about working at a museum is getting to know the stories behind the works of art. A recent special project, 365 Days of Art, has better acquainted and re-acquanted me with some interesting tales.

One of my favorites is about a painting from the American collection by Gilbert Stuart, an artist who gained fame for painting portraits of George Washington. This painting is of Dr. William Aspinwall, a renowned doctor who had served as deputy director of the hospital in Jamaica Plain, Massachusetts during the Revolutionary War.

The official story goes that the painting was almost destroyed in July 1834, when a proslavery mob wrecked the home of Dr. Aspinwall's abolitionist daughter and son-in-law in New York City. The rioters burned most of the furniture in the street, but they spared the painting because they mistook it for Stuart's famous portrait of George Washington (The Collections of The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, American Paintings to 1945). The real portrait of Washington is now at the National Gallery in Washington D.C. Here is a fun look at it on their website.

I would like to thank those conscientious rioters for sparing Dr. Aspinwall so that his portrait may grace our new American galleries set to open April 17, 2009.

At this time of year, the Nelson-Atkins receives holiday greeting cards from companies, vendors and friends. Every year, my favorite card comes from the same firm and this year was not a disappointment.

It may be hard to see, but the scene is an aerial view of the Alaskan wilderness. Santa and some reindeer are running after the sleigh which has been hijacked by a few select members of the team. A helicopter hovers above with a bubble that reads "Happy Holidays everyone...I'm back! Bang! Bang!"

The caption reads: "With Sarah Palin's return to Alaska, the state's cloven-hoofed residents seek safe haven elsewhere..."

One of the escaping reindeer says "You think this is bad...I hear Damien Hirst is coming to town next week!"

For more on Damien Hirst, click here.

The Museum's 75th anniversary has been the cause for much research by various staff members. Every time someone finds something interesting, it is circulated or added to a folder in case someone else has a need for it.

As I was looking through the file today, I found this image from 1979 of Water Lilies by Monet. The Nelson-Atkins owns the right-hand panel in this massive triptych painting (one of four such sets that Monet completed). The other two panels are at the Cleveland Museum of Art and the St. Louis Art Museum.

In 1979, the three panels were reunited for a special display. I have no idea what gallery this is but the addition of the plants is very interesting. The Museum today has a strict policy on plants and flowers in the galleries due to conservation issues. I am sure those flowers were properly treated to prevent bugs from crawling around the works of art.

Yesterday afternoon I paid a visit to Gallery P27, currently home to the exhibition Animalia: 19th and 20th Century European Prints and Drawings. While viewing the images of colorfully plumed birds and fantastic beasts, I was struck by the number of prints, six out of the 14 to be exact, that feature horses. Not that I’m surprised. I had a bit of an equine obsession myself as a child. Horse-themed sketches filled my room, a collection of lifelike models lined the shelves and many an afternoon was spent riding Cocoa, my beloved black Quarter Horse, around the family farm.

So, what is it then about the horse that artists find so alluring? Perhaps it is an appreciation of their strength and beauty as demonstrated in the Géricault (Horses Going to a Fair) and de Chirico (Castore, shown above) lithographs. In these works the artist’s equine subjects showcase powerful, defined hindquarters and graceful, arched necks. Their nostrils are flared and their ears alert, projecting an air of confidence and majesty.

Or, is it the spiritual qualities of the horse that draw the artist in? I, for one, believe horses are sentient creatures—possessing the ability to perceive and feel, to empathize with their human companions. The idea of animals as spiritual beings is beautifully illustrated in the colorful Expressionist work Sleeping Animal by Franz Marc—the color blue signifying the horse’s heightened spiritual state.

The attraction, no doubt, is a combination of these and many more. After all, the horse did play a significant role in the evolution of human culture and defined it for many centuries. They offered man faster communication, travel, advantages in combat, status and companionship.

It is this idea of companionship, of cooperation between humans and horses, of which I am particularly fond. And the simple yet poignant print by Marino Marini, Acrobat with Two Horses, sums it up beautifully. Here a man stands triumphantly between his two steeds while all three take in the cheers and accolades of the adoring crowd. Man and beast as equals.

The holidays are a festive time at the Nelson-Atkins but instead of doing the traditional entry about the massive 22-foot tree in Kirkwood Hall surrounded by the 15th-century creche figures, I've decided to showcase the creativity of our staff. This year, the elves have been extra busy.

As I strolled through the offices, I noticed the typical decorations: cards and garland taped to cubicles, snowflakes on windows and miniature Christmas trees on desktops.

I turned a corner and found myelf in a winter wonderland! These folks have outdone us all. The decorations ranged from a traditional full-sized Christmas tree and menagerie of Santa Clauses in the Donor and Information Services department to the very individualized Christmas tree display in Human Resources.

Each member of the HR staff has decorated a tree with a different theme. One is called "Arty Holidays" which is hung with images of paintings and objects from the Museum's collection. Another is called "Sweet Treats" and is full of cookie decorations and candy canes. The "Bow Wow Christmas" had dog treats and toys all over it. One that is called "Santa and His Alter Ego" had reindeer on the tree. I'm not sure if I get that one.

But my favorite would have to be "A Beachy Christmas" complete with a Barbie doll decorating the tree in her bikini and an actual image taken from the employee's aunt's house in Granada. What could be better?

Last night was the dazzling kick off to our year-long celebration of the Museum's 75th anniversary. More than 1,200 of our closest friends and supporters were on hand to clink champagne glasses and hear inspirational words about both the past and the future.

Morton Sosland, longtime Museum supporter, spoke about the first 75 years of the Museum's history and how things have changed at both the Nelson-Atkins and for Kansas City. He was present as a young child on opening day in 1933.

Museum Director Marc Wilson spoke next and announced the launch of a major, year-long initiative to collect 75 significant works of art. So far, 34 donors have given or pledged works of art to the Nelson-Atkins.

Eleven of those works were on view in Kirkwood Hall including a sculpture by George Segal, a photography by Robert and Shana ParkeHarrison, a breathtaking glass and silver vase, a painting by Raphaelle Peale and an intriguing chair called Black Widow by Wendell Castle, an artist born in Emporia, KS, now working in Rochester, NY.

The 11 works in Kirkwood Hall will be on view through the weekend. After Sunday, you will have to wait until 2010 for an exhibition of all the new acquisitions.

To celebrate our 75th anniversary, we have created a fun little online feature called 365 Days of Art.

Each day for the next year (actually, it will be through January of 2010) you can come to our website and see a different work of art from one of our collections. You can get there two ways. From the home page, click the graphic on the right-hand side (see above) or from our 75th anniversary section.

If you click the image of the artwork, you can use our fancy viewer that allows you to zoom in and get up close and personal. Much closer than you can actually get to the work in the gallery.

Of course, we would love for you to come see the works in person but this is a great way to visit some of your favorites that may not be on view right now.

As we go, the archive will build to show all of the works that have been featured.

This week, the Nelson-Atkins celebrates the momentous occassion of our 75th anniversary.

Even though it was cold and blustery on opening day Dec. 11, 1933, nearly 8,000 people waited in line to tour the Nelson-Atkins.

This weekend, Dec. 13 and 14, may be cold and blustery again but we've got lots of fun activities to keep you warm inside the Museum including FREE CUPCAKES!

If you haven't seen our fantastic exhibition Art in the Age of Steam: Europe, America and the Railway, 1830-1960, take advantage of free admission this Saturday and Sunday. The exhibition closes on Jan. 18.

Stay tuned for an announcement about a special online feature to celebrate our anniversary.

Tucked away above the galleries and buzz of daily museum life sits an orderly studio that is home to the Paintings Conservation Department. It is here, in a room awash in natural light, full of interesting tools and brushes, that science and art come together to breath new life into many of the Museum’s precious works of art. With the reinstalled American Galleries opening in mid-April, Conservators Scott Heffley and Mary Schafer graciously invited staff up for a "behind the scenes" look at the inner workings of their studio and the projects they’ve undertaken in preparation for this much-anticipated occasion.

Our tour included an in-depth look at John Gadsby Chapman’s A Lazy Fisherman. Under Scott’s skilled hand years of grime and multiple layers of varnish have been carefully removed. We learned that all of his repairs are visible when the painting is viewed under black light. This feature makes it easy to determine the work of the conservator versus that of the original artist. As Scott moved the lamp across the canvas three months of painstaking work became instantly recognizable—the fixed tears in the bottom left corner, the area of inpainting beneath the young fisherman’s rocky perch and repaired abrasions across the surface of the water.

Mary then shared the fascinating story of George and Emma Eastman by Calvin Balis. The work was commissioned by the family in 1850, sold as a play prop in 1931 and purchased by the Nelson-Atkins in 1933. It had numerous areas in need of repair, including a curious teal-colored section near Emma’s head. After thorough analysis under a microscope Mary determined it was oil paint, which is unsafe to remove because of the permanent bond it forms with the original paint. Using a series of glazes she was able to perfectly match the colors of the surrounding hills.

Let me just say that, in person, the restored works are simply stunning (click on the linked titles to view "before" images). A Lazy Fisherman and George and Emma Eastman have never looked better thanks to Scott and Mary’s tremendous talents. If this preview is any indication, the unveiling of the reinstalled American Galleries will be, simply put, spectacular!

On December 11, the Nelson-Atkins will celebrate its 75th anniversary. I have always thought the story of the Museum's collection was interesting so I did a little bit of research.

Most museums are built around an existing collection or promised works of art. This was not the case with the Nelson-Atkins. The combined estates of two families provided for the construction of a building and the acquisition of a collection but neither one owned what would have been considered museum-quality works of art.

As construction of the Nelson-Atkins began in the early 1930s, so did the construction of our collection. Many people were instrumental in building the collection but no one individual made his mark as deeply as Laurence Sickman.

Among the many exquisite pieces of art that Sickman acquired for the Museum was the Ming temple ceiling that continues to amaze visitors in the Chinese Temple Gallery, several handscroll paintings that were acquired directly from China’s last emperor who was living in exile in Japan, as well as a jade Ritual Disc with Dragon Motif (above) that has been described as the “single most famous jade carving” in existence.

Because of the foresight of the Museum's first trustees, the western half of the original building was left unfinished, allowing curators and leaders to create a truly comprehensive collection that rivals many top American museums.

Click here to read more about the history of the Nelson-Atkins.

Over the weekend, the Nelson-Atkins was abuzz with visitors. There were many people from out of town and lots of locals who brought their family and friends who were here for Thanksgiving.

My family and I came for the tree lighting and concert by the Kansas City Chorale. The tree was beautiful and the concert was lovely. The kids enjoyed singing along to "We Wish You a Merry Christmas."

Of course we had to stop in to see Resting Places Living Things. It is definitely the most popular attraction right now.

Kids love it for obvious reasons but grown ups are intrigued with it as well. I came up to the table where a family was observing the indendations (the "resting places" part) that Michael Cross created with his elbows into the surface of the table. I placed my hand on the table to feel the pulse of the table (the "living things" part). The mother looked at me strangely so I explained what I was doing. She thought that was so neat.

There wasn't enough snow this weekend for real sledding so these kids decided to do a little bit indoors.

We ended our afternoon with a quick visit to Art in the Age of Steam. My 8-year-old daughter has been in it several times so she just wanted to check out a few of her favorites. She really likes Donner Lake from the Summit by Alfred Bierstadt and the gallery called States of Mind which includes Time Transfixed by Rene Magritte.

It was so nice to get to experience the Museum as a visitor and share it with my loved ones. We even got a nice family portrait in front of the tree.