VANDALS TO VANGUARDS

Vandals to Vanguards is a special opportunity to share works by celebrated artists and highlight incredible local collections. The exhibition examines how several icons of modern art found success by rebelling against the prevailing sentiments of the art world and seeking a more democratic form of artistic expression. Starting in the 1960s with pop art’s radical use of commonplace images from advertising and entertainment, the exhibition illustrates how generations of artists have recycled and remixed concepts and themes to continually advance and question the boundaries of fine art. What was once revolutionary is now an element of our mainstream visual culture. The exhibition will be accompanied by a catalog celebrating the collection and contributions of Lewis Bear, Jr. and his family. Though the exhibition is composed of works from several local lenders, Lewis Bear’s collection served as both the inspiration and the primary source for this remarkable show. Lewis and his wife Belle fell in love with the playful and colorful work of the pop and street art movements many years ago and have since assembled an impressive collection of contemporary art. When the Pensacola Arts Center, now the Pensacola Museum of Art, was opened, Lewis was one of its first students. Bear visited his grandparents in New York City and fell in love with the city and modern artworks not accessible in Pensacola at the time. “Returning to Pensacola, following military service, my parents encouraged me to get involved in community activities. The Art Center had hired a new director, Mary Takach, who convinced her board to change the mission from an art center to a museum,” Lewis Bear said. “A few months later, I was on the board of the center.” As well as supporting local arts organizations, Lewis has always enjoyed collecting artwork, but didn’t have a strong direction until he discovered the many-layered relationships between artists like Warhol, Haring and Mr. Brainwash. “Their works were light and fun but also expressed some social issues. It was amazing how the early artists influenced the younger artists, and how the younger artists were becoming more socially relevant,” Lewis Bear said. The relationships between the pop artists of the twentieth century and today’s street artists are at the heart of Vandals to Vanguards. The Bear’s appreciation of these referential relationships is clear when you view their collection through the lens of the exhibition. Iconic images like Warhol’s Campbell’s Soup Cans and his infamous portrait of Marilyn Monroe appear throughout the galleries, remixed and reimagined over several decades by many different hands. It is truly special to be able to highlight these connections through these examples from local collections.

THE EVENTS

The worlds of pop and street art will be brought to life this fall by the Pensacola Museum of Art in a series of programs supported by a generous Foo Foo Festival grant. The weeklong celebration of Vandals to Vanguards will kick off with an Opening Reception and Block Party on, November 4. To honor the ethos of the artwork, attendees will be able to enjoy a block-party outside the museum with food, beverages and street art-themed activities. The exhibition opening event will begin at 6 pm and end at 9 pm. On November 10 from 6 pm to 9 pm, the PMA will bring the vibe and cultural context of these artworks to life through an event at Vinyl Music Hall that merges music, video projections, live street art demos and interactive artmaking. This will include participatory experiences for the public to print their own t-shirt, tote bag or band poster using custom designs. The PMA will facilitate the creation of the printed items, working with event attendees throughout the duration of the event. As a connection to the well-known Warhol soup cans, the PMA will also be collecting canned food donations to benefit Manna Food Pantries at the event. “We look forward to inviting new audiences to the museum and working with Vinyl Music Hall to host a lively night of music, art making and community that captures the feel of the underground movements that inspired these revolutionary artworks,” PMA Director Nicholas Croghan said. As part of the Foo Foo Festival celebration, admission to the Vandals to Vanguards exhibition will be free from November 4 to November 11. To learn more about these events, check the museum hours of operation or purchase tickets for an upcoming museum visit, go to pensacolamuseum.org.