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• AKN Maintenance
• America’s National Parks Revealed at the Michele and Donald D’Amour Museum of Fine Arts
• Asian Art Museum Presents Large-Scale U.S. Exhibition of Balinese Art
• The Irish Museum of Modern Art Celebrates Barrie Cooke's 80th Birthday
• The Judy A Saslow Gallery Shows Four Chicago Artists
• The Fabien Castanier Gallery To Show Pop Artist Maximilian Wiedemann
• Ancient Three Graces Myths by Artist Francesca Lowe at Riflemaker
• Baroque Prints by Jacques Callot at the Museum of Art in Rhode Island
• Priska C. Juschka Fine Art Presents Rosemarie Fiore ~ Artificiere
• "The Fruit of Promise" Exhibition at the Germanisches National Museum
• National Gallery Of Art exhibition Honors Chester Dale & His Major Gifts
• Andrew Wyeth Leads $32.3 Million Sale of American Art at Christie's
• 40 Years of the Rencontres d'Arles, 40 Years of Ruptures, Major Photography Expositions
• The Newark Museum features 'Paths to Impressionism: French & American Landscape Paintings'
• Modern Art Masters from the Smithsonian Opens at Cheekwood Art & Gardens
• Fifteen Years of Collecting at the Kunstmuseum Wolfsburg ~ Against the Grain
• Museum of Contemporary Art (MCA) Announces "The Art Auction"
• Rolls-Royce Celebrates 100 Years of "Spirit of Ecstasy" ~ Most Iconic Mascot in the Motoring World
• "Holland Art Cities" Exhibitions & Events Attracts Scores of International Visitors
• This Week in Review in Art Knowledge News

AKN Maintenance Posted: 23 May 2011 10:10 PM PDT

America’s National Parks Revealed at the Michele and Donald D’Amour Museum of Fine Arts Posted: 23 May 2011 10:00 PM PDT Springfield, MA.- The most beautiful natural scenery in the United States is presented in the exhibition "American Legacy: Our National Parks, on Location with the Plein-Air Painters of America", on view from May 24 through November 6 at the Michele and Donald D'Amour Museum of Fine Arts. The exhibition includes 94 paintings by 35 landscape artists who are members or guests of the Plein-Air Painters of America. All the works were created between 2008 and 2009. The Plein-Air Painters of America was established as a by-invitation painting group in 1986. "American Legacy: Our National Parks" was organized by the Haggin Museum, Stockton, California. The traveling exhibition is managed by Smith Kramer Fine Art Services, Kansas City, Missouri. The term plein-air is used for a painting done in the open air rather than in the studio. Beginning in the early 1800s, as America was expanding westward, lengthy survey expeditions were conducted to measure the land and draw up maps of the territories. In addition to surveyors, cartologists, geologists, and naturalists, the expeditions included artists to pictorially record the appearance of the land. Their color paintings provided the public with their first view of the grandeur and beauty of the American West. Artist Thomas Moran's 19th-century paintings of the geysers and towering waterfalls of the Yellowstone Valley were instrumental in the creation of our nation's first national park. Since then, artists have joined naturalists and preservationists in convincing American presidents and legislators to set aside more than 350 locations as part of our American Legacy. Each artist represented in this exhibition selected a favorite park to document, and their paintings depict sites from throughout the United States. The exhibit is organized chronologically from the earliest park designation to one of the most recent. A fully-illustrated exhibition catalogue is available in the Museum Store. The Springfield Museums, located in the heart of downtown Springfield, Massachusetts, is comprised of five world-class museums; the Michele & Donald D'Amour Museum of Fine Arts., the George Walter Vincent Smith Art Museum, the Springfield Science Museum, the Connecticut Valley Historical Museum and the Museum of Springfield History. The Museums Association is proud to be home to the Dr. Seuss National Memorial Sculpture Garden, a series of full–scale bronze sculptures of Dr. Seuss's whimsical creations, honoring the birthplace of Theodor Geisel, a.k.a. Dr. Seuss. The Michele & Donald D'Amour Museum of Fine Arts is one of the two Springfield Museums dedicated to fine and decorative arts. The Art Deco-style museum was erected in response to a bequest from Mr. & Mrs. James Philip Gray, who left their entire estate for the "selection, purchase, preservation, and exhibition of the most valuable, meritorious, artistic, and high class oil paintings obtainable," and for the construction of a museum to house them. The museum opened in 1934. The first floor of the museum is dedicated to American art ranging from "Portrait of Nymphas Marston" by John Singleton Copley to "Promenade on the Beach" by Winslow Homer to Contemporary glass sculpture by Dale Chihuly. The American collection also includes the country's only permanent museum gallery dedicated to the lithographs of Currier & Ives. The second floor is a chronological tour of the museum's fine European art collection. Beginning in the Middle Ages with an intricate 15th-century, Hispano-Flemish Fuentes Retable (altarpiece), the galleries lead visitors through the Renaissance and subsequent centuries with fine paintings from Italy and France. The Dutch and Flemish collection is particularly strong. Familiar names in the Impressionism Gallery include Claude Monet, Edgar Degas, Camille Pissarro and Paul Gauguin. Traveling exhibitions can be found in the Wheeler Gallery. Performances, lectures and presentations are offered in the Davis Auditorium. Visit the museum's website at ... http://www.springfieldmuseums.org/the_museums/fine_art

Asian Art Museum Presents Large-Scale U.S. Exhibition of Balinese Art Posted: 23 May 2011 09:55 PM PDT SAN FRANCISCO, CA.- A tiny island in the Indonesian archipelago, Bali reverberates in the world's imagination. A globally recognized destination in Southeast Asia, the island is home to one of the most vibrant centers of visual and performing arts in the world. But until now there has never been an in-depth examination in the United States of Balinese artistic traditions. Bali: Art, Ritual, Performance, on view at the Asian Art Museum through September 11, brings the art and artists of Bali to San Francisco, introducing museum visitors to Balinese history and religious beliefs, and illuminating the ways that performance and rituals are integrated into daily life.

The Irish Museum of Modern Art Celebrates Barrie Cooke's 80th Birthday Posted: 23 May 2011 09:44 PM PDT Dublin.- Organised to mark Barrie Cooke's 80th birthday, the Irish Museum of Modern Art (IMMA) is presenting "Barrie Cooke", a retrospective exhibition that includes some 70 paintings and sculptural works from the early 1960s to the present. It draws from the Museum's own significant holding of his works, including "Slow Dance Forest Floor" (1976), "Megaceros Hibernicus" (1983) and "Electric Elk" (1996), as well as loans from various private and institutional collections. The exhibition will be on view at IMMA from June 15th until September 18th.

The Judy A Saslow Gallery Shows Four Chicago Artists Posted: 23 May 2011 09:20 PM PDT Chicago.- The Judy A Saslow Gallery is pleased to present "The Four D's: Details, Doodling, Determination and Dazzle" from June 3rd through July 9th. The exhibition features four Chicago-based artists, James Allen, Frank Paluch, Nancy Paschke and David Philpot.

The Fabien Castanier Gallery To Show Pop Artist Maximilian Wiedemann Posted: 23 May 2011 08:59 PM PDT Studio City, CA.- The Fabien Castanier Gallery is proud to present "Pump up the Valium" a solo show of work by British pop-art sensation Maximilian Wiedemann. "Pump up the Valium" opens on June 4th and is on view until July 3rd. The exhibition will feature brand new works by German-born London-based Wiedemann, including collaborative pieces with mega celebrity photographer, Tyler Shields. Working together, the duo have created graffiti-splashed portraits of actresses Lindsay Lohan, Alessandra Torresani, and Elena Satine, all three of which will be on display. The exhibition will also feature a range of mixed media on canvas, silkscreens, neon sculptures, stenciled artworks and several spectacular installations.

Ancient Three Graces Myths by Artist Francesca Lowe at Riflemaker Posted: 23 May 2011 08:16 PM PDT LONDON.- A modern reinterpretation of the ancient Three Graces myth is the subject of the exhibition by artist Francesca Lowe at Riflemaker, from 23rd May  through July 2nd. Headland: Woman in a Landscape consists of five large-scale heads, five symbol-laden tree paintings, and a group of 'tree-cuts' which invite the viewer to indulge in a game of symbolic decoding, to reveal a woman's journey through the complex landscape of today.

Baroque Prints by Jacques Callot at the Museum of Art in Rhode Island Posted: 23 May 2011 08:15 PM PDT Providence, RI.- Highlights from the Museum of Art Rhode Island School of Design extensive and superb collection of prints by the French artist Jacques Callot (1592-1635) are on view from June 17th 2011 through January 22nd 2012 in the exhibition "Jacques Callot and the Baroque Print". The exhibition explores the themes of Callot's art alongside his technical innovations in the medium of etching. "This is the first time in more than 30 years that the RISD Museum's outstanding collection of Callot's work has been on view," says the Museum's Interim Director Ann Woolsey. "Visitors will be fascinated by Callot's theatrical presentation, his mastery of intricate detail, and his serious as well as humorous subjects."

Priska C. Juschka Fine Art Presents Rosemarie Fiore ~ Artificiere Posted: 23 May 2011 07:59 PM PDT NEW YORK, NY.- Priska C. Juschka Fine Art presents Artificiere, Rosemarie Fiore's second solo exhibition at the gallery, on view from May 19th through July 2nd. Fiore continues her practice of using fireworks as her sole medium to create works on paper and, most recently in addition, glass sculptures by uniquely utilizing fireworks and smoke bombs for her work and compositions.

"The Fruit of Promise" Exhibition at the Germanisches National Museum Posted: 23 May 2011 07:39 PM PDT NUREMBERG.- Bitter oranges and lemons are found in portraits since the 15th century. Varied meanings are tied up with the fruits. In the Baroque age, it was popular to symbolize the descent of a portrait subject from the Dutch ruling dynasty of Orange by a small fruit-bearing orange tree. Often a citrus fruit represented the social or moral status of the portrait subjects. But citrus fruits could also point to personal botanical preferences and to dream destinations in Southern climes. On exhibition at the Germanisches National Museum through 11 September. Time and again citrus fruits were also associated with the subject of wedding, marriage and love. This traces back to the golden apples of the Hesperides which already in the classical myths were a wedding gift and a beauty prize. Religion: Adam's Apple Since time immemorial the citron has been playing an important part in the Jewish Feast of Tabernacles, in which the gathering in of the harvest is celebrated for a week in fall. To this day it is used in the morning prayer, together with the festal bouquet of purple willow, myrtle and palm. The citron, called "etrog" in the Talmud, is of highly symbolic value in the Jewish faith. As the fruit of the biblical 'goodly tree', it was equated with the fruit of the tree of knowledge, of which Adam and Eve ate. At the same time, the etrog symbolizes the Jewish hope of paradise. Customs: Illness and Death In German-speaking Europe, lemons and bitter oranges played an important part in various customs surrounding illness, death and funeral. The earliest known depiction of a deceased with a citrus fruit in his hand is to be found on the 1247/48 tomb of Count Henry of Sayn and his daughter. The citrus fruit symbolizes the hope of resurrection and eternal life. In addition, lemons in particular served as get-well gifts for sick people, due to their medicinal properties. Still Lifes: Feast for the Eyes and Sensuous Delight Around 1600, still lifes developed in Italy and the Netherlands as a distinct genre from religious painting. Citrus fruits played an important part in them from the outset, which is attributable, apart from the fruits' exoticism and value, to their importance as a Marian symbol. This religious interpretation manifests itself in the simply composed Spanish fruit still lifes until the 17th century. However, the botanically exact documentation of the various citrus varieties was also a significant stimulus for their depiction, primarily in the Italian still lifes. In the 17th century, the charging of the still lifes with inner meaning as well as the virtuosic composition of selected objects and citrus fruits was brought to a climax by the Dutch. In their paintings citrus fruits can be interpreted as an exhortation to moderation in the midst of portrayed luxury. At the same time the bright citrus fruits with their pitted skins and the transparently shimmering pulp provided an opportunity to the artists to bear witness to their skills. Insects, dew drops and traces of fruit decay added a theme of temporality to the still lifes and heightened the virtuosity by yet another element. Botany: Artifact and Miracle of Nature For centuries well-to-do garden lovers and patricians in these climes have collected and enjoyed citruses. The scent of the delicate flowers, the bright colors of the fruit and the bitter-sweet taste of their juice made them something special. In the Middle Ages they had already found their way into many areas of life in Central Europe. They were coveted as seasoning and as remedies, for the strange and exotic was deemed particularly efficacious. Citrus Trade: Golden Apples Traveling Some citrus varieties like sour lemons and thick-skinned citrons have been known to the Western world since antiquity. However, it is uncertain when trading with these and other citrus fruits began in Central Europe. Not until around 1400 is there increased evidence of goods traffic along Central European long-distance trade routes involving these exotic fruits. In the 19th century the worldwide cultivation of citrus fruits goes hand in hand with their growing consumption in broader levels of the population, both as fresh fruit and processed into lemonade. The two world wars of the 20th century mark a deep break here, too: In post-war Germany fresh oranges became a rarity again, of which we are reminded by their presence on German Christmas plates even today. Table Culture: Culinary Art and Table Decoration Citruses adorn the festive table in Italy and Spain as early as the beginning of the Renaissance.They are reproduced initially in faience, later in silver, porcelain and glass. Often silver or porcelain lemons were also used as jar knobs. In addition, porcelain figures decorated the tables of upper-class parties. Among the best-known rococo figures are the reproductions of Paris street vendors, which, known as the Cris de Paris series, originate around 1744. Here, too, the lemon vendor or 'lemon monger' is to be found. Orangeries: Conceived Space From the 16th century on, citruses were transported across the Alps to the North in increasing numbers. In central Europe, the valuable plants developed into important mobile elements of decoration in the French formal garden in summer. To overwinter the sensitive tub plants, bitter orange houses and orangeries, which became a permanent feature of princely palace grounds, were built. Linked to the orangery was the ideal of classical antiquity and of the mythical Garden of the Hesperides where trees bearing golden apples flourish. Treatises on architecture and gardens, especially between 1650 and 1750, focus on orangery culture and the architectural development of orangeries. The era of great representative works in the 1st half of the 18th century begins with Johann Friedrich Nette and Matthias Diesel and reaches its climax and end with Salomon Kleiner's copperplate prints. Apart from the etrog, the Adam's apple is another citrus fruit that since the late Middle Ages has been identified as the paradisiacal fruit of the tree of knowledge. In the Ghent Altarpiece, Eve is portrayed for the first time with one such Adam's apple in her hand. Especially in devotional pictures of Mary and the infant Jesus the Adam's apple becomes a frequently used symbol of the overcoming of the Fall by Mary, the new Eve, and Jesus, the new Adam.  Johann Christoph Volkamer and His Work on the Hesperides Citrus fruits came into fashion in the Baroque age. Hardly another fruit has since been given as much attention as the evergreen, simultaneously blossoming and fruit-bearing plants on which especially the so-called Hesperides literature focuses. In the early 18th century the Nuremberg merchant Johann Christoph Volkamer created the two-volume standard work on the culture of citrus fruits, still accepted today: "Nürnbergische Hesperiden" ("Nuremberg Hesperides") and their "Continuation". His etchings were created based on his own observations of the fruits that Volkamer raised in great numbers in his Nuremberg garden and received from other garden owners at home and abroad. Each folio combines the life-size rendering of a fruit with a topographical view, which lends the work its unique charm. The first volume shows views of Nuremberg Patricians' and burghers' gardens; the second, the villas of Veneto. A third volume of the "Nürnbergische Hesperides" depicting citrus fruits above villas of the Bolognese nobility does not get beyond engraver's copies and proofs. They are showcased in this exhibition for the first time. Visit the Germanisches National Museum at : http://www.gnm.de/

National Gallery Of Art exhibition Honors Chester Dale & His Major Gifts Posted: 23 May 2011 07:21 PM PDT WASHINGTON, DC.- New York investment broker Chester Dale's 1962 bequest made the National Gallery of Art one of the leading repositories in North America of French art of the late-19th and early 20th centuries. From Impressionism to Modernism: The Chester Dale Collection, on view in the Gallery's West Building from January 31, 2010 through July 31, 2011, will bring together 81 of the finest French and American paintings that Dale and his wife Maud, an artist and critic, assembled from the 1920s through the 1950s. The exhibition and its accompanying book will explore the Dales' passion and talent for acquiring great art. Many of the works in the show are among the most renowned masterpieces in the history of art, but due to a stipulation in the bequest, may only be seen at the National Gallery of Art in Washington, DC.

Andrew Wyeth Leads $32.3 Million Sale of American Art at Christie's Posted: 23 May 2011 07:20 PM PDT NEW YORK, NY.- Christie's Important American Paintings, Drawings and Sculpture sale achieved a total of $32,358,750, with works by Andrew Wyeth, Mary Cassatt, and Charles Prendergast commanding the highest prices. Two new world auction records were set for American artists Guy Pène Du Bois and John Joseph Boyle, and a second highest price was achieved for a work by Andrew Wyeth. Eric Widing, Head of American Paintings at Christie's noted: "Our December 2 sale saw collectors returning to the saleroom to bid with vigor and enthusiasm on many of our top lots. Our sale results were by far the best we have seen in American Art for over a year. Good paintings sold well, and great paintings touched the stratosphere."

40 Years of the Rencontres d'Arles, 40 Years of Ruptures, Major Photography Expositions Posted: 23 May 2011 07:19 PM PDT ARLES, FRANCE -  One way of celebrating 40 years of such a vulnerable enterprise might be to invite all those who have so generously put their work on show here. Yet nostalgia and extolling the great deeds of the past might not to appropriate for the Rencontres, whose history is made up of ongoing creative ventures, photographers pushing back the boundaries of the still image, and uncertain periods of transition. A history that has never been so effervescent. On public view 7 July through 13 September, 2009.

The Newark Museum features 'Paths to Impressionism: French & American Landscape Paintings' Posted: 23 May 2011 07:18 PM PDT   NEWARK, NJ - Impressionism flourished in nineteenth-century France and the United States as one of the most powerful forms of artistic expression and continues to draw the appreciation and admiration of art lovers throughout the world. With the opening on September 17 of Paths to Impressionism: French and American Landscape Paintings from the Worcester Art Museum, a forty-two painting exhibition featuring masterworks by Claude Monet, Jean-Baptiste-Camille Corot, Braque, George Inness and Childe Hassam, The Newark Museum provides an opportunity to examine one of the most popular styles in the history of art.

Modern Art Masters from the Smithsonian Opens at Cheekwood Art & Gardens Posted: 23 May 2011 07:17 PM PDT NASHVILLE, TN.- Modern Masters examines the complex and varied nature of American abstract art in the mid-20th century through three broadly conceived themes that span two decades of creative genius – "Significant Gestures," "Optics and Order" and "New Images of Man." The exhibition "New Images of Man" includes works by Romare Bearden, Jim Dine, David Driskell, Grace Hartigan, Nathan Oliveira, Larry Rivers and several others, each of whom searched their surroundings and personal lives for vignettes emblematic of larger, universal concerns. Issues such as tragedy, interpersonal communication and racial relations guided the creation of these artists' pieces. On exhibit 19 March until 19 June at the Cheekwood Art & Gardens.

Fifteen Years of Collecting at the Kunstmuseum Wolfsburg ~ Against the Grain Posted: 23 May 2011 07:16 PM PDT WOLFSBURG, GERMANY - The foundation of the Kunstmuseum Wolfsburg in 1994 simultaneously marked the launch of its mission to build a permanent collection. Today, along with the museum's exhibition programme, the collection enjoys an international reputation and is one of the outstanding cultural features that contribute to the City of Wolfsburg's appeal. To mark the museum's 15th anniversary, Markus Brüderlin, the director of the Kunstmuseum Wolfsburg since 2006, has chosen to present the collection in a new light. The exhibition 15 Years of Collecting – Against the Grain has therefore been conceived as a distinctive, informal juxtaposition of older and younger artists and works rather than the customary chronological display. On view through 13 September, 2009.

Museum of Contemporary Art (MCA) Announces "The Art Auction" Posted: 23 May 2011 07:15 PM PDT CHICAGO, IL.- The Art Auction, the Museum of Contemporary Art's (MCA) Chicago's most important fundraiser, is being held for the first time ever in the galleries of the museum. This year, the auction features works by the most recognized contemporary artists working today, including Olafur Eliasson, Louise Nevelson, Ed Ruscha, Mark Bradford, Kiki Smith, Lari Pittman, René Magritte, Julie Mehretu, Luc Tuymans, William Wegman, Lorna Simpson, and Christopher Wool, along with works by promising emerging artists. The event is co-chaired by Leslie Bluhm and David Helfand, and Liz and Eric Lefkofsky. The event takes place at 6:30 pm on Saturday, October 30, 2010.

Rolls-Royce Celebrates 100 Years of "Spirit of Ecstasy" ~ Most Iconic Mascot in the Motoring World Posted: 23 May 2011 07:14 PM PDT LONDON - One hundred Rolls-Royce< motor cars took to the streets of London in February 2011 to celebrate a special anniversary, the centenary of the Spirit of Ecstasy hood mascot, which was first fitted to Rolls-Royce models in 1911. "The Spirit of Ecstasy" is a genuine icon, a graceful goddess who has adorned the prow of Rolls-Royce cars past and present," said Rolls-Royce Motor Cars CEO Torsten Müller-Ötvös<. "She is recognised the world over as a symbol for the pinnacle of automotive aspiration and is an inspiration to those of us working for the company today. The centenary drive was a fitting tribute to such an important figure for our company."

"Holland Art Cities" Exhibitions & Events Attracts Scores of International Visitors Posted: 23 May 2011 07:13 PM PDT LEIDSCHENDAM, NL - During the first nine months of the Holland Art Cities art and culture event, well over 860,000 visitors from abroad, and 100,000 visitors from the United States saw one or more exhibitions. "Holland Art Cities" will run until mid 2011 and the theme until July 1, 2010 is "Young: Modern and Contemporary Art and Design". The theme "Young: Modern and Contemporary Art and Design" presents a cross section of the very best in today's world of art and design. Both Dutch and foreign artists, such as Matisse, Malevich, Picasso, Van Dongen, De Vlaminck, Derain, Kadinsky, Gauguin and fashion designers, including Aziz, Alexander van Slobbe and Chanel are included in the modern art collections of various museums and are truly exciting.

This Week in Review in Art Knowledge News Posted: 23 May 2011 07:13 PM PDT This is a new feature for the subscribers and visitors to Art Knowledge News (AKN), that will enable you to see "thumbnail descriptions" of the last ninety (90) articles and art images that we published. This will allow you to visit any article that you may have missed ; or re-visit any article or image of particular interest. Every day the article "thumbnail images" will change. For you to see the entire last ninety images just click : here . When opened that also will allow you to change the language from English to anyone of 54 other languages, by clicking your language choice on the upper left corner of our Home Page.  You can share any article we publish with the eleven (11) social websites we offer like Twitter, Flicker, Linkedin, Facebook, etc. by one click on the image shown at the end of each opened article.  Last, but not least, you can email or print any entire article by using an icon visible to the right side of an article's headline.

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