SentinelSource.com |THE SECRET LIFE OF ART
SentinelSource.com |THE SECRET LIFE OF ART The exhibit gracing the walls and glass cases of the Currier Museum of Art in Manchester may, on the surface, seem to focus on education. “The Secret Life of Art: Mysteries of the Museum Revealed” takes a look behind the scenes to illustrate the journey a painting or piece of furniture takes before it is elevated to a display at the museum.
Visitors learn about the storage, transportation, procurement and negotiation that goes hand in hand with bringing art to the public. Fortunately, the show is about much more than that.
Galleries and museums aren’t shy about letting us know where art comes from — placards indicate if an item is on loan from a private collection or another gallery or if it’s art from the museum’s permanent collection. The interesting part of that information is usually left out: how the art arrived at the museum.
In recent years, for example, we’ve seen art that was stolen by the Nazis returned to the rightful owners all over the world. Yes, the art is beautiful and interesting, but the story behind the art can often be much more compelling stuff. That’s not always the case, of course, but it illustrates there is more than one way that art can tell a story.
One way the Currier illustrates art’s journey is with the use of timelines.
For example, one such story is about the acquisition of “Overmantel Picture,” a painting from the 1820s by an unknown artist. The piece draws the attention of a curator at the Currier when it shows up in Christie’s, the famed auction house catalogue, in 2004.
From that point, there is a quick succession of activity: consult experts to validate the authenticity of the piece, find out if any other museums in the region will be looking to bid on the painting, secure approval from the trustees to spend the money (up to $200,000), which involves sending images and descriptions of the work, and finally, bidding on the painting to hopefully add it to the museum’s collection.
The process for obtaining this particular painting, considered an excellent example of art from New Hampshire, was fairly quick, less than a month. Other such negotiations can take ten times as long.
“Overmantel Picture” was hanging over a mantel in a home in Exeter for many years. It is oil on pine panel, colorful and somber at the same time, much like some would describe New Hampshire. It now rests on a wall at the Currier.
Part of the beauty of “The Secret Life of Art” is the creative way the museum tells the stories about the journey of art, but it is also in the art used to tell those stories — masterpieces by different artists and different genres: Mark Rothko, Sol Lewitt, Georgia O’Keeffe, Severin Roesen.
The O’Keeffe painting, “Cross by the Sea,” is displayed in a case that allows viewers to see not only the canvas, but also the back of the painting. On it, 22 paper labels are attached, tracing its exhibition history from gallery to gallery since 1935.
And there’s more.
A lounge chair and ottoman by Charles and Ray Eames invites visitors to sit and watch a television piece about the design and construction of the chair, a classic piece of furniture from the 1950s.
A large table in one of the four galleries housing the exhibit holds a replica of the show itself under glass.
Then there is a diorama of sorts, complete with penciled notes and coffee stains.
A painting by William Henry Haseltine, “Rocks at Narrragansett,” is shown two ways: A print of the painting is wrapped in a gold frame, and then the original is displayed beside it in a larger, restored period frame that shows more of the painting and Haseltine’s signature.
The more technical aspects of the cleaning and restoration of art are illustrated through stunning before-and-after examples of cleaned paintings.
To show visitors the intricate details of packing and framing art in preparation for travel, the curators created a short video.
An intriguing aspect of the exhibit shows how infared reflectography is used to see beyond the framed work. Historians and conservators use the technology to look through the layers to see the drawings underneath the finished work. Beside an original work, a print shows the shadows of what that painting would have looked like.
The exhibit is ambitious in nature and rich in information. Various tools are used to share that information, which add interest; video, audio, and interactive elements enhance the visual experience.
Visitors learn about the storage, transportation, procurement and negotiation that goes hand in hand with bringing art to the public. Fortunately, the show is about much more than that.
Galleries and museums aren’t shy about letting us know where art comes from — placards indicate if an item is on loan from a private collection or another gallery or if it’s art from the museum’s permanent collection. The interesting part of that information is usually left out: how the art arrived at the museum.
In recent years, for example, we’ve seen art that was stolen by the Nazis returned to the rightful owners all over the world. Yes, the art is beautiful and interesting, but the story behind the art can often be much more compelling stuff. That’s not always the case, of course, but it illustrates there is more than one way that art can tell a story.
One way the Currier illustrates art’s journey is with the use of timelines.
For example, one such story is about the acquisition of “Overmantel Picture,” a painting from the 1820s by an unknown artist. The piece draws the attention of a curator at the Currier when it shows up in Christie’s, the famed auction house catalogue, in 2004.
From that point, there is a quick succession of activity: consult experts to validate the authenticity of the piece, find out if any other museums in the region will be looking to bid on the painting, secure approval from the trustees to spend the money (up to $200,000), which involves sending images and descriptions of the work, and finally, bidding on the painting to hopefully add it to the museum’s collection.
The process for obtaining this particular painting, considered an excellent example of art from New Hampshire, was fairly quick, less than a month. Other such negotiations can take ten times as long.
“Overmantel Picture” was hanging over a mantel in a home in Exeter for many years. It is oil on pine panel, colorful and somber at the same time, much like some would describe New Hampshire. It now rests on a wall at the Currier.
Part of the beauty of “The Secret Life of Art” is the creative way the museum tells the stories about the journey of art, but it is also in the art used to tell those stories — masterpieces by different artists and different genres: Mark Rothko, Sol Lewitt, Georgia O’Keeffe, Severin Roesen.
The O’Keeffe painting, “Cross by the Sea,” is displayed in a case that allows viewers to see not only the canvas, but also the back of the painting. On it, 22 paper labels are attached, tracing its exhibition history from gallery to gallery since 1935.
And there’s more.
A lounge chair and ottoman by Charles and Ray Eames invites visitors to sit and watch a television piece about the design and construction of the chair, a classic piece of furniture from the 1950s.
A large table in one of the four galleries housing the exhibit holds a replica of the show itself under glass.
Then there is a diorama of sorts, complete with penciled notes and coffee stains.
A painting by William Henry Haseltine, “Rocks at Narrragansett,” is shown two ways: A print of the painting is wrapped in a gold frame, and then the original is displayed beside it in a larger, restored period frame that shows more of the painting and Haseltine’s signature.
The more technical aspects of the cleaning and restoration of art are illustrated through stunning before-and-after examples of cleaned paintings.
To show visitors the intricate details of packing and framing art in preparation for travel, the curators created a short video.
An intriguing aspect of the exhibit shows how infared reflectography is used to see beyond the framed work. Historians and conservators use the technology to look through the layers to see the drawings underneath the finished work. Beside an original work, a print shows the shadows of what that painting would have looked like.
The exhibit is ambitious in nature and rich in information. Various tools are used to share that information, which add interest; video, audio, and interactive elements enhance the visual experience.
