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Posts tagged ‘museums’

Feb 7

Museo Prado hall, Madrid
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Spring Break 2013 in a Museum?

A list went out earlier this week of “100 Museums to See Before You Die” which got me thinking about my next trip.  While this particular list of museums is in no way exhaustive (no Egyptian Museum, no Chicago Art Institute, etc, etc!), it made me realize there are huge clusters of amazing museums I’ve never seen because there are many major international cities I still haven’t visited.  I’m itching for an easy to plan “Spring Break” and what better way to spend a potentially rainy week in March than in museums!  My only problem is deciding where to go….

Madrid, Spain

Museo Prado hall, Madrid

Central gallery, Museo del Prado, Madrid (Photo: Turismo Madrid, flickr)

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Jan 28

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Examining Michelangelo’s Unfinished David-Apollo

Michelangelo's David-Apollo

Michelangelo’s David-Apollo on display at the National Gallery of Art, Washington, DC on loan from the Museo Nazionale del Bargello, Florence (Photo: adapted from NGA publicity materials)

I personally love artworks with a little mystery and what could be better than an unfinished sculpture by Michelangelo?  His David-Apollo is currently on display at the National Gallery of Art in DC until March 3rd, on loan from the Museo del Bargello in Florence.  The sculpture is so named because there is no real consensus on whom it depicts.  In 1530, Michelangelo started a small marble of David.  It has been speculated that he abandoned this symbol of Florence and tried to adapt it to a classical Apollo but ultimately left the piece unfinished.  To me, there is no evidence to suggest that this figure was ever meant to be an Apollo.  More likely, it was a victim of Michelangelo’s legendary perfectionism.  The beauty of unfinished pieces is that one can walk around them, examine the carvings and try to understand the master’s thought process up close.

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Jan 15

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Curators Have All the Fun: San Diego’s “Behold, America!” Exhibit

How would you arrange pieces in an art gallery? Should paintings be placed in groups by artistic movement? Does it makes more sense to see everything in chronological order?  Should geographic differences and temporal differences rigidly divide works?

Time period, artistic movement, and geography are often used to organize a museum.  Imagine how many times you’ve entered into the first room of “old” art and then walk forward in time through each successive room.  Changing this classic approach, San Diego’s three major art museums put together something a little different which I thought made for a really incredible show.  They’ve combined works from their very unique collections into thematically based exhibits broadly entitled “Behold, America!” on display until Feb 12, 2013.

Behold, America! San Diego exhibit banner Read more

Jan 7

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ArtSmart Roundtable – Copley Library Galleries in Boston

The monthly ArtSmart Roundtable brings together posts from some of the best art history-focused travel blogs on a common theme.  For January (and just in time for your 2013 travel planning), we are discussing “The Best Museum You’ve Never Heard Of”.  This is a great topic and I can’t wait to read about all the great finds from the rest of the roundtable!  You can find links below to all the group’s articles.

Boston has some incredible art museums – The Museum of Fine Arts (MFA), the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, the Institute of Contemporary Art and the (currently condensed) Harvard Art Museums .  While I definitely recommend these places, some of my favorite paintings in Boston are actually public art in the central library!  The Copley Square Library was constructed in 1895 and was decorated in a Renaissance revival and Beaux Art style.  Inside are three incredible and overwhelmingly beautiful mural cycles including one by my favorite portrait painter.  The Galleries are free, open to the public 6 days a week and worth a trip for any serious art lover. Read more

Nov 10

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Art Institute of Chicago Ancient Greek & Roman Wing Reopens – Nov 11

On November 11th, the Art Institute of Chicago opens its Mary and Michael Jaharis Galleries of Greek, Roman, and Byzantine Art.  I have to give the AIC a lot of credit for the best museum construction sign ever!  I saw this while visiting in August:

Art Institute of Chicago Greek and Roman wing closure sign

Greek art, get it?

Anyways, these galleries sit awkwardly in the hallway to the Chagall windows making it a difficult space for a curator to work with.  The remodeling construction this summer consisted of numerous, single item sized, free standing display cases.  From the few mockup images I’ve seen, the galleries will be a lot less crowded and more focused.  (Click here for a panorama of one of the former Roman galleries).  I presume fewer items will be displayed making for a more focused collection.  If anyone stops soon, I’d appreciate a report back on the new space!

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