Mr. Nelson and his Art

Today marks the day that Nelson Rockefeller "died of a heart attack at his desk in New York City" in 1979. I'm not explaining the quotes. As most of you know, my first job in archives was working on Nelson's papers at the Rockefeller Archive Center and one of the first series I processed were the papers that documented his extensive Art Collection. In that collection of nearly 100 cubic feet were papers about all of the works of art Nelson collected, bought, sold, gave away, and donated to museums. It is an impressive collection of materials. You can read a description of them at the Archive Center's website here. You can also see the finding aid I created by searching the collections database here.

One of Nelson's prized works was Jackson Pollock's No. 12, which was significantly damaged in a fire in the Governor's Mansion. Nelson later donated it to the State of New York. I noted with great interest when I saw (as I do from most of the things I find on) kottke this story about Pollock's paintings. The kottke story links to a Smithsonian Magazine article about Pollock hiding his name in one of his many mural works.

In 1998, I gave a paper at the Society of American Archivists Annual Meeting on Nelson's Art Collection. I recently came across the paper when I was doing some electronic file records management. I also talked about one of Henry Moore's Knife Edge sculptures in that paper, which Nelson owned and had installed on the family estate. Another is part of the National Gallery's permanent collection and is being restored.

So you still wondering about the quotes? Well he was in his office. He was near a desk. And he did die, so he's not saying what he may have been doing right before that.

Friday's List - The 50 Best Works of Art

My wife went back to work two weeks ago at her job at an archives which maintains the papers of many artists and works closely with several art museums. To mark that event, I offer you this list, of the 50 Best Works of Art and how to see them. It comes from (again) kottke.org from a link/article from the Telegraph (UK). And here you can see the list, with links to Wikipedia for more information about the works of art.

This list is sure to spark some discussions as, with all lists, it is subjective and bears the stamp of the person who created the list. I am purposely not including the list in this post for (a) it is too long; (b) I don't agree with how it is arranged; and (c) who is to say what makes a great work of art? It should be noted that in the article, the list is presented chronologically, with explanations about how easy it is to get to see them. What's your take? How many have you seen?

I consider myself a fairly cultured person and in a previous job, I worked on arranging the papers of Nelson Rockefeller's art collection, who collected a lot of Modern Art, but also had a full spectrum of art in his collection. And I have to say that while I definitely recognized most of the works, I have not seen more than a few of them in person. Of course, there is the whole discussion to be had about how we are defining "best"? I have a very good friend, who reads this blog, who is an artist and I like her stuff. Were I to write an article about great works of art, would her name appear?

I am further reminded of the depiction of art museums in popular culture. There is the scene in Ferris Bueller, where they rush through an art museum in Chicago; the scene in National Lampoon's European Vacation, where they take in the sights of the Louvre in fifteen minutes. The Louvre is also prominently featured in the film, The Da Vinci Code.

I really believe that art is what you make of it. Not every work of art is for everyone. What I like may not be what you like. As I like to tell my wife, it's not wrong, it's just different.

For My Simpsons Fans Out There

I am not a fan of the show personally, but this was too wild to not share. From limpfish.com via kottke.org.

This portrait of Homer Simpson painted in the style of Rembrandt is strangely mesmerizing. Can't look away from those giant eyes.

As I have said many times before, Kottke.org is worth a visit or get the RSS feed. And limpfish.com is very amusing as well.

It's Epiphany. Here's some God stuff

Everybody loves Google Earth. You know you have put your address in to see if you were standing out front when the satellite went over snapping pictures. Well, here, the Glue Society presents the Bible According to Google Earth [from the Creative Review blog].

Looking at the pictures, you can see the Crucifixion, Adam and Eve catching some rays in the Garden of Eden, where Noah's Ark ran aground, and Moses parting the Red Sea.

The blog entry ends by noting that "the Glue Society is aiming to produce further works using the same satellite imagery next year but this time relating to mythological occurrences and major historical events." That sounds like something worth waiting for.

The IMAX of the Gilded Age

Hey, that's what the Post calls it. The Gettysburg Cyclorama is making a comeback. What is the cyclorama you might ask? It is a 360 degree oil painting depicting Pickett's Charge during the Battle of Gettysburg. The cyclorama is one of the last surviving cycloramas in the United States. It is being restored and will be the showpiece in a new multi-million dollar building at Gettysburg National Military Park. The cyclorama used to hang in a 1960s building, where it was on display for more than 40 years. It had been painted in 1884 by French artist Paul Philippoteaux.

One of the pieces of the cyclorama is 26 feet long and weighs more than 950 pounds. It was hoisted into place that past week. When completed the new visitor's center will resemble a Pennsylvania farmhouse and will be far from the battlefield. The current visitor (read: not there during the battle) structures will be torn down. The cyclorama is not expected to be shown again until fall of 2008.

Cycloramas used to be all the rage. There were at least two in Washington, DC. One was on 15th Street NW, near the Treasury Building and featured cycloramas of the battles of Gettysburg, Shiloh, and Bull Run. There were nine Gettysburg cycloramas touring the country. Philippoteaux made four of them. And here is your MAC (mandatory archival content): When hired Philippoteaux hired a photographer to take pictures of the battlefield to ensure the accuracy; then he came to Washington and did research on the battle and examined maps.

This particular painting has had a hard life. First installed in Boston in 1890, it was cut into pieces, crated, and left in a vacant lot in Boston. It was set on fire twice, and exposed to the elements. In the early 1900s, it was acquired by a department store owner, who installed most of the pieces in his Newark, NJ store. In 1913, for the 50th anniversary of the battle, an unheated, tile-covered building on the battlefield was constructed and the painting was put on display. Finally in 1942, the National Park Service acquired the painting and built a cyclorama building in time for the 100th anniversary of the battle in 1963.

And now, the cyclorama is, ahem, coming around again. A new building for an old painting.

All About Art

I had two different people in the past week send me links to articles about art. The first was from a friend who is seeking to raise the level of discussion about archives and is doing it very well here. She sent me a link to an article about the Renoir archive. Her comment to me, which I concur with was, "I don't know quite what I'd say about this news story--it's just kind of sad and bizarre . . . "

To summarize (go read the article), the Renoir archive was purchased by a gallery in Arizona. The gallery then produced a business plan to market souvenirs featuring the work of Renoir (yes, you to can own a Renoir sculpture toilet paper holder). The business plan, quoted in the Art Newspaper article, stated that the merchandise would be aimed at “the most Neanderthal of art fans.”

The sale of the archive was made with the blessing of one of Renoir's grandsons, who is named in the business plan. Unfortunately, the "Renoir archive includes letters from Rodin, Monet and Manet, the artist’s Légion d’Honneur medal as well as hundreds of photographs and letters, and even a dossier on fake Renoirs."

The second article came from today's Wall Street Journal. You have to register with the WSJ to read the article, but again, I will summarize. The article was titled, "Perishable Art: Investing
In Works That May Not Last Collectors Struggle to Preserve, Insure Contemporary Pieces; Replacing the Dead Shark." Many works of art are now being questioned about their "staying power. From the obvious "Puppy" discussed in the article, made from fresh flowers, to works of art by "established" artists who may have used materials that may not stand up to the test of time. It hasn't seemed to bother the collectors, from the article, "Aging and wear affect all art, but the ephemeral nature of some contemporary art has become more problematic as values have soared. Prices of contemporary and postwar art shot up 44% in 2006 and 19% annually over the past five years, while art prices overall rose nearly 12% a year from 2001 to 2006, according to Artasanasset.com."

The article continues, discussing the even more problematic use of electronic mediums in art, video, audio, computer, etc. What is it we say in our profession? Migrate, Migrate, Migrate. So insure the work of art, right? Uh, no. "Fine-arts policies also often contain a provision for "loss of value" that occurs when a piece cannot be completely restored to pristine condition after a covered claim. If a $2 million painting is worth just $1.5 million after a tear in the canvas, the insurer pays for the repair plus the $500,000 difference in price. Some fine-arts policies also cover up to 150% of the insured value to allow for appreciation." Put your elbow through your Picasso at your own risk, there, Mr. Wynn.

Art is nice, and I would like to own more of it. But as is once again painfully clear, I can't afford it. Well, maybe the art, just not the insurance.

The Mall of America

Prompted by an article I read in the New York Times Magazine, March 4, 2007.

This summer, the Mall of America in Bloomington, Minnesota (within easy reach of the
Minneapolis/St. Paul airport - an easy shopping day trip?) will celebrate its 15th Anniversary. While it remains the largest mall in the United States at 4.2 million square feet, there are several more in Asia that are larger. The current leader is a mall in China that is 9.6 million square feet.

If you click on the link above, you will learn a bunch of useless facts about the Mall of America's "hugeness" including the banal statistic that "258 Statues of Liberty could lie inside." More than 500 stores and 20,000 parking spaces await you and you can even order a coupon book online.

The article goes on to attempt to explain how the "Mall of America" has become a brand (MY friend went to the Mall of America and all they could afford was this lousy T-shirt). One woman is attempting to poke some fun at that. Rosemary Williams, who is an artist and an assistant professor at St. Cloud State University, decided to make a "sculpture," she called the Wall of Mall. Her blog, Rosemarygoestothemall.com, explains her plan. There are even podcast episodes available for download. Here she chronicles her problem, in that stores did not want to give her a bag without a purchase. So she has been spending weeks going back and forth, buying things and returning them to get the bag for her sculpture, which you can see here.

The things some people will do for their art. And here in DC, even the garbage is being turned into art.

February is Black History Month

Two articles in Thursday's Washington Post contained both archival content and pertinent topics on Black history.

The first article involves a librarian at a local school library here in Rockville. Linda Crichlow White found a collection of photos in the basement of a 91-year old cousin. While the article describes White as being in "full-on librarian mode," she really was in "full-on archivist mode." She has been spending her time going through crumbling photo albums, recognizing family members and realizing she needs to update her family tree.

As is often the case, most of the pictures are unlabeled. She was able to determine the bulk of the photos were taken in Boston around the turn of the century, in the early 1900s. She shared the photos with Aaron Schmidt, who oversees the photo collection at the Boston Public Library, he was stunned. Never before had a private citizen brought such a large collection of photos to the library's attention.

A portion of the collection will go on display Saturday at Zawadi, an African goods retailer here in DC. White is OK with parting with the photos, although she is unsure of the financial value, and remarked, "Most of these people are not my family members. They're in-laws." Schmidt is also negotiating to buy some, if not all, of the collection and bring it to BPL.

White believes the photographer is a great-great-uncle Charles H. Bruce, who she compares to James Van Der Zee, who photographed much of the Harlem Renaissance. White's parting words in the article? "Get older relatives to help you catalogue your pictures."

The second article concerns a project to conduct oral histories with African Americans. The initiative is called the Story Corps Griot Project. The major focus will be on World War II veterans and those involved with the civil rights movement. This project is the largest effort to collect oral histories from African Americans since the Federal Writer's Project in the 1930s.

Bon Anniversaire to the Pompidou Center

Spotted in the Washington Post on February 1, 2007:
“The Pipe Dream Realized: Paris’s Pompidou Center Turns 30”

I’ll over look the second “s” in the headline for the moment to comment on the controversies surrounding the Pompidou Center in Paris when it was completed and what is rocking the French art world these days.

In 1977, when a new building opened in Paris, it attracted a great deal of controversy at the time for its avant garde design. In the city of light, a new museum decorated with brightly colored pipes rose in the “new Paris.” Here we are now, thirty years later, and the Georges Pompidou Center is celebrating its 30th anniversary. It has become one of Paris’ most recognizable monuments. It holds the largest collection of modern and contemporary art in all of Europe. It is France’s second most visited museum, after the Louvre.

The current controversy, now that Parisians have gotten past the building design, are plans to expand the Pompidou Center to Metz, a city in the northern part of France, and a center in Shanghai, China. These plans, along with plans for a “mini-Louvre” in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, has galvanized the French art world, with protests saying that politicians are “hijacking art for strategic and economic ends.”

As for the Center itself, it was conceived by French President Georges Pompidou (1969-1974), who envisioned a center that would become a magnet for the arts in Paris. The Center that bears his name also holds a library and a center for music research. And, despite the wailing of the French people when it was completed, was so popular that it had to be extensively renovated from 1997 to 1999. It had been designed to handle approximately 5,000 visitors a day and instead saw more than 25,000 a day. In the past 30 years, more than 150 million people have come through the doors.