Now the Louvre and Versailles Also Closed by French Museum Strike
PARIS (AP).- The Louvre Museum and the royal palace
at Versailles were closed Thursday because of a French museum workers’ strike
that appears to be gathering steam. Frustrated tourists gathered
outside the landmark pyramid in the courtyard of the Louvre, blocked off by
workers. They are protesting government plans not to replace half of retiring
public servants, which will affect the country’s national museums. The
strike began at the Pompidou Center for Modern Art last month and workers at
other national museums joined in Wednesday.
Indianapolis Museum of Art features Rare Exhibition of Spanish Sacred Art
INDIANAPOLIS, IN (AP).- El Greco’s vision of the veil
of Veronica hangs near a golden crown with 447 emeralds. Just a few steps away,
a recumbent sculpture of the crucified Jesus Christ rests before its return to a
Spanish hermitage in time for Holy Week. The free exhibition, which continues
through Jan. 3, 2010, has thrilled experts and other visitors
alike. Harvard Art Museum curator and cultural historian Ivan Gaskell said it
inspired him intellectually like no other exhibition he has seen this year.
“Sacred Spain: Art and Belief in the Spanish World” at the Indianapolis
Museum of Art is drawing visitors from around the world for an unprecedented
exhibition of 71 pieces from 45 lenders — many of them private — in Spain,
Mexico, Peru and other countries. Madrid’s Prado has loaned five works
alone.
The Brooklyn Museum to Open The Ancient Egyptian Mummy Chamber
BROOKLYN, NY.- An installation of more than 170
objects selected from the Brooklyn Museum’s world-famous holdings of ancient
Egyptian material explores the complex rituals related to the practice of
mummification and the Egyptian belief that the body must be
preserved in order to ensure eternal life. The Mummy Chamber will open at the
Brooklyn Museum on May 5 and will remain on long-term view. The Mummy
Chamber provides a look at the Museum’s collection of wrapped human and animal
mummies. In addition, containers that physically protected the mummies will
demonstrate the history of coffin making for humans and animals in Egypt, along
with objects that illustrate the ancient Egyptians’ corporal and supernatural
methods for protecting the mummy from harm and for ensuring a pleasant
afterlife.
Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego Gets Grant to Continue Free Admission
SAN DIEGO, CA.- The Museum of Contemporary Art San
Diego announced Qualcomm’s continued sponsorship of the 25 and under free
admission program for another two years. Thanks to this generous
support, all MCASD locations — downtown San Diego (Joan and Irwin Jacobs
Building and 1001 Kettner) and La Jolla — will continue this policy. Qualcomm
has been a major supporter of MCASD’s education programs for over 15 years and
the company’s generous support of the 25 and under free admission program is
helping to develop young arts enthusiasts.
Museum Kunst Palast in Dusseldorf opens Per Kirkeby Retrospective
DUSSELDORF, GERMANY.- Born in 1938, Per Kirkeby is the best known
Danish artist of his generation and one of the most important contemporary
European artists. After a degree in geology and several expeditions to
Greenland, Kirkeby turned his attention entirely to the world of art in the
mid-1960s and embarked upon a journey that involved researching the vast
diversity of painting options while also working as a sculptor, architect,
printer, illustrator, film maker and author. Retrospective on view from
26 September through 10 January, 2010.
Bonhams Latest Canadian Art Sale Tops $1M
LONDON.- Bonhams Sale of Canadian Art on November 30th made a total of CAD $1,046,670 with 86.5% sold by value. Top picture in the sale was Lot 223, a James Wilson Morrice (1865-1924) titled “On the March in France”, circa 1918.’ It stormed past its pre-sale estimate of CAD $80,000 -120,000 to make CAD$204,000. The Canadian landscape painter JW Morrice was the inspiration behind the alcoholic poet Cronshaw in Somerset Maugham’s “Of Human Bondage”. Morrice is widely considered to be the first great Canadian painter, if also an archetype for the booze-drenched bohemians of the Belle Époque. A man of independent means, he trained as a lawyer in Montreal before leaving Canada for Paris. There he spent the better part of his working life and came into association with the likes of Maugham, Matisse, Gauguin and Clive Bell. Despite briefly abandoning France at the outbreak of hostilities, Morrice was commissioned by Lord Bea
“ARTIST ROOMS 2010 Tour” Announced – 21 Exhibitions from Llandudno to Fort William
LONDON.- 21 British museums and galleries from Llandudno to Fort William will be able to show masterpieces of contemporary art in 2010 thanks to ARTIST ROOMS, Anthony d’Offay’s gift to the nation made in 2008. The “ARTIST ROOMS 2010 Tour” has been made possible by The Art Fund and is supported by the Scottish Government. Held jointly by National Galleries of Scotland and Tate, “ARTIST ROOMS” is the largest public gift of art to museums in UK history. The collection has now been enhanced by artists and collectors who have made significant donations to the scheme including: Ed Ruscha, “The Music From the Balconies” 1984 – donated by the artist • Ian Hamilton Finlay– Idylls End in Thunderstorms
Spectacular Collection of Dresses on View at the National Gallery of Victoria
MELBOURNE.- Opening in December, the National Gallery of Victoria will present a spectacular collection of works in “Drape: Classical Mode to Contemporary Dress”. The exhibition will feature over 30 works primarily drawn from the NGV’s holdings of fashion and textiles, as well as key loans. Sculpture, paintings, decorative arts and photography, from antiquity to the present day
Peter Forakis, Originator of Geometry-Based Sculpture, Dies at 82
SAN FRANCISCO, CA.- The influential American sculptor Peter Forakis died Thanksgiving Day, Thursday, November 26, 2009 at Petaluma Valley hospital in Petaluma, California from complications of pneumonia. He was 82. Forakis was born in 1927 in Hanna, Wyoming to Greek immigrants. He grew up in Oakland and Modesto, California. After military service in Korea, he attended the California School of Fine Arts from 1955 to 1957. After a highly productive period in New York and Vermont, where he established his reputation, Forakis returned to
Museum in San Diego Announces New Qualcomm Grant to Continue Free Admission
SAN DIEGO, CA.- The Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego announced Qualcomm’s continued sponsorship of the 25 and under free admission program for another two years. Thanks to this generous support, all MCASD locations — downtown San Diego (Joan and Irwin Jacobs Building and 1001 Kettner) and La Jolla — will continue this policy. Dr. Hugh M. Davies, The David C. Copley Director of MCASD, said, “Thanks to the community commitment and generosity of Qualcomm, MCASD is very pleased to be able to continue this highly successful program. Since its launch in 2007, over 35,000 young people have received free admission to the Museum, enjoying exhibitions and programs that help them learn about contemporary visual art and ideas. We are building our audiences of the future by serving them so well today.” “Qualcomm is very pleased to continue its support of the 25 and under free admission program at the Museum of Contemporary Art San Dieg