WINTER 2013
director’s exhibitions message
V
ariety is the spice of life, and the KIA is going to be pretty zesty this winter. Whether you like painting, drawing, glass, sculpture or photography, our winter exhibitions are very robust and will satisfy the most critical of art palates.
First, we are very excited about sharing art on loan from private collectors in Kalamazoo. Featuring nearly 100 works, Treasures from Kalamazoo Collections include paintings, sculptures, drawings, photographs and more that are rarely seen in public. Visitors can expect to see pieces from artists including Stephen Hansen, Jim Dine, Claes Oldenberg, Red Grooms, Dale Chihuly and many more. We are honored to have the privilege of showcasing these works for the community. Five years ago, the Joy Light East Asian Art Acquisition and Exhibition Fund was established and the KIA began collecting Asian art to be displayed in the Joy Light Gallery of Asian Art (built in 2010). This December, pieces acquired through this fund including paintings, prints, ceramics, and sculpture from both China and Japan will be on display as part of the The Arts of China and Japan: Selection from the Collection. While Asian art has been part of our collection for decades, the Joy Light Fund has made it possible for the KIA to grow our Asian art collection by more than 25%. We are very grateful to Joy and Timothy Light for their generosity and dedication to our mission. I am always intrigued by artists who are innovative in their approach to keeping their medium fresh for the public. That is why I am “stoked” to see Stoked: Five Artists of Fire and Clay. Richard Bresnahan’s method of using local, sustainable materials and involving the community is something I know will resonate with Kalamazoo. Bresnahan and four artists who have all studied at Saint John’s Pottery will have their work displayed in this exhibition.
Ansel Adams, Sierra Nevada, winter evening, from the Owens Valley, California, 1962, gelatin silver print. Gift of Wm. John Upjohn, 1995/6.27.15
Seihosai Meikei, Kirin Netsuke, mid- to late 20th century, boxwood with inlay. Gift of Mary Meader. T07.231
Last but not least is an exhibition of a famous photographer who needs no introduction: Ansel Adams. The KIA was collecting photography long before it was considered an art form. Today, our collection of more than 700 photographs is coveted among art collectors and museums across the country. Among these photographs is our collection of Ansel Adams’ 24 iconic black and white photographs. Sight and Feeling: Photographs by Ansel Adams opens on January 26, and I think it’s a great way to kick off a new year of fantastic exhibitions, programs and events at the KIA! As always, thank you for your support. Jim Bridenstine, Executive Director KIA 2011/2012 Board of Directors Nancy Springgate, President Linda Dunn, First Vice President William DeNooyer, Second Vice President Brian Hudson, Treasurer Sharon Anderson, Secretary Courtenay VanderMolen, Past President Susan Bowers, At Large Ron Kitchens, At Large page 2
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Larry Bell, Sydney Ellis, Michele Fabi, Curt Hartman, Cynthia Kole, Pam Mansager, Harvey Myers, Peggy Napier, Mike Ouding, Priscilla Pedraza, Gonzalo Rodriguez, Jr., Frank Sardone, Janet Scherzinger, Julie Sullivan, Phillip Torrence, Michelle Tombro Tracy, Billee Lightvoet Ward, Janet Wolf, N. Perry Wolfe
Hours: T uesday-Saturday: 10-5 Sunday: noon-5 Closed Monday and holidays This publication is supported in part by the Michigan Council for Arts and Cultural Affairs. cover photo: Anne Meyer, Mama Moon, 2009; University of Minnesota at Morris, anagama kiln; stoneware with underglaze and feldspathic glaze
news exhibitions and notes
Bus Trip to Toledo: Edouard Manet November 13 – All Day
$75 Call (269) 348-7775 ext. 3111 for reservations Deadline to reserve: November 5 A special exhibition of Edouard Manet paintings is visiting just one museum in North America. And the KIA is making it easy to enjoy it! We’re hosting a bus trip to the Toledo Art Museum for its presentation of Manet: Portraying Life, an incredible exhibition of works by the stylish painter who is sometimes referred to as “the father of Impressionism.” Featuring about 40 works from 25 museums and private collections worldwide, the exhibition is reportedly the first in-depth examination of Manet’s talents as a portraitist. Our visit begins with a docent-led tour of the exhibition. After lunch, you can tour the museum with Jim Bridenstine (who began his career here), or you can venture off on your own, enjoying other traveling exhibitions, an impressive permanent collection, and the unique Glass Pavilion. The cost is $75. It includes a seat on a deluxe motor coach, a premium box lunch, refreshments en route, admission to the show, and the tour. Reserve your seat by contacting Heather: 269-349-7775, ext. 3111, or heatherr@kiarts.org.
Edouard Manet, Le Repos (Repose), ca. 1870-71. Oil on canvas. Bequest of Mrs. Edith Stuyvesant Vanderbilt Gerry. On loan from the Rhode Island School of Design for the Toledo Museum of Art exhibition Manet: Portraying Life.
Art & All That Jazz
Musical Guest: The Hook Band November 16, 5:30 – 7:30 p.m. Free KIA Members/$4 general admission
(Back row from left) Janet Wolf, Harvey Meyers, and Pam Mansager; (front row from left) Peggy Napier and Priscilla Pedraza. Not pictured: Cynthia Kole, Gonazalo Rodriguez, Jr. and Julie Sullivan.
KIA Welcomes Our Newest Board Members!
Back by popular demand, the Hook Band will be performing at Art & All That Jazz! Get your friends together for a rousing good time! Beer and wine will be available for purchase from Bell’s Brewery and the galleries will be open. sponored by:
This fall the KIA welcomed eight new board members! We thank them for their guidance and support.
Rent the KIA!
Looking for a different place to host your company holiday party or even a family event? We have several different spaces perfect for small groups and larger parties. Dates are filling up fast, so please contact Heather at (269) 349-7775, ext. 3111 to talk about your holiday event today!
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exhibitions
Treasures from Kalamazoo Collections November 17, 2012 – February 17, 2013
Through the generosity of many lenders in the greater Kalamazoo area, this exhibition will feature paintings, sculptures, prints, photographs, and decorative arts that are seldom seen in public. We invite you to explore these treasures from private collections. Sponsor:
Red Grooms, Gertrude, 1975, color lithograph and collage on paper, mounted on paperboard. Collection of Tom and Donna Lambert.
The Arts of China and Japan: Selections from the Collection December 15, 2012 – June 9, 2013
Asian art has long been a part of the collection of the Kalamazoo Institute of Arts; by 2007, the Asian holdings had grown to nearly 200 pieces. Through generous gifts from patrons and support from the Joy Light East Asian Art Acquisition and Exhibition Fund, the collection of East Asian works has grown by almost 25% over the past five years. With the opening of the Joy Light Gallery of Asian Art in 2010, the KIA is becoming known for its exhibitions of historical and contemporary work from Asian cultures. Included are works on paper, ceramics, and sculpture from both China and Japan. This exhibition is supported by the Joy Light East Asian Art Acquisition and Exhibition Fund. Seihosai Meikei, Sumo Wrestlers Netsuke, mid- to late 20th century, boxwood with inlay. Gift of Mary Meader. T07.232
Rick Beck, Aurora, 2011, cast glass. Courtesy of Habatat Galleries, Royal Oak, MI. page 4
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exhibitions
Anne Meyer, Woman in Shell, 2009; University of Minnesota at Morris, anagama kiln; stoneware with Marshall clay slip-based glaze
Stoked: Five Artists of Fire and Clay January 19 – April 7, 2013
A nationally touring exhibition organized by Saint John’s University, Stoked reviews recent work by Richard Bresnahan, Artist in Residence at Saint John’s University, and four former apprentices who have worked with Richard and the Saint John’s Pottery since it was established thirty years ago. Each of the artists has been influenced by the artistic style established by Richard, as well as his focus on local, sustainable materials and community engagement. With that continuity in mind, this 30th-anniversary project highlights the development of creative identity within and outside the bounds of apprenticeship.
Related Events:
Organized by:
January 19: Evening Reception and lecture by Richard Bresnahan January 19-20: Visiting Artist Workshop with Richard Bresnahan February 13: Art League Lecture by Dr. Matthew Welch, Deputy Director and Chief Curator, Minneapolis Institute of Arts, and curator of Stoked
Sight and Feeling: Photographs by Ansel Adams January 26 – May 19, 2013
In my mind’s eye, I visualize how a particular . . . sight and feeling will appear on a print. If it excites me, there is a good chance it will make a good photograph. It is an intuitive sense, an ability that comes from a lot of practice. Ansel Adams Ansel Adams’ skill at creating photographs with a remarkable range and subtlety of tones is legendary. Yet for all his technical mastery, Adams recognized that what made a compelling photograph was far more elusive. This exhibition of Adams’ photographs from the KIA collection suggests how his intuitive and emotional response to the landscape resulted in powerful and enduring photographs. Sponsor:
Ansel Adams, Dunes, Oceano, California, 1963, gelatin silver print. Gift of Wm. John Upjohn. 1995/6.27.4
CONTINUING… Asian Art from the Collection of Dr. Paul and Esther Wang through December 9, 2012
Great Lakes Pastel Society National Show 2012 through January 8, 2013
A Legacy for Kalamazoo: Works Acquired through the Elisabeth Claire Lahti Fund, 1998 - 2012 through January 20, 2013
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collection exhibitions highlight
Robert Mapplethorpe, Thomas, 1986, printed 1988, gelatin silver print. Elisabeth Claire Lahti Fund Purchase. 2012.12
titled with the model’s name, do not cross entirely into the realm of formal abstraction.
A
n accomplished American photographer, Robert Mapplethorpe gained widespread notoriety for a selection of explicitly homoerotic images that were included in a museum retrospective exhibition of his work. Those images fueled a Congressional fury about government funding of the arts in 1989, amid heated disagreements about the definitions of art and obscenity and limits on freedom of expression.
major bodies of work—stylized images of flowers, celebrity portraits, and formally composed nudes.
Presentation of the white, female nude is prevalent throughout the history of Western art, but Mapplethorpe offers the opportunity for aesthetic appreciation of the idealized, black, male body. His accentuation of lustrous contours and rich, bronzed tones recalls Edward Weston’s female nudes and studies of peppers. In the year this photograph, Thomas, was taken, Mapplethorpe said, “My work is about Against a solid black ground, the seeing—seeing things like they haven’t been undulating line of the model’s back and shoulders dips and curves as a sensuous seen before.” This applies not only to the abstraction. But Mapplethorpe’s nudes, most controversial images, but to his other
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Here, the body’s inherent symmetry is invoked by a frontal pose, but then disrupted by one bent arm. Vitality flows through the arc of the right arm, from the muscular shoulder to the firmly planted fist. If symmetrical, this pose would embody potential energy, a taut body coiled over toes and poised for upward movement. However, the left hand covers the head in a selfdefensive gesture, so the coiled posture of strength simultaneously recalls a protective fetal position. The model shields his bowed head and torso, perching in careful balance on the slightest footprint. As positioned, Thomas communicates both strength and vulnerability. Thus, the right and left sides of the figure express the complexities and contradictions contained in each of us, or perhaps the disparity between how we perceive others and who they really are inside. The artist’s compositional decisions enable us to see his model as both an object of great beauty and a figure of profound humanity. Karla Niehus, Assistant Curator of Exhibitions and Collections
exhibitions programs
ARTbreak
Tuesdays at noon Brown bag lunches welcome, cookies and coffee provided. Full program descriptions may be found at kiarts.org/events. Sponsor:
November 6: Bruce Heustis Art as Vacation: A Journey into Self November 13 & 20: Desert of Forbidden Art* November 27: Richard Light: The Search for the Agora: Public Sculpture and Public Parks December 4: Jim Dine: Self-Portrait on the Walls December 11 & 18: Mary Cassatt: A Brush With Independence January 8: TBA January 15 & 22: Christo’s Running Fence January 29: Jamie Lesman: The Art of Chinese Paper Cutting
* T his award-winning documentary tells the incredible story of how a trove of
banned Soviet art worth millions of dollars was found in the desert of Uzbekistan.
Up Close: Exploring the Collection
Learn about the KIA’s outstanding collection with Associate Curator of Collections Greg Waskowsky. Register in advance by phone (269) 349-7775 or online at kiarts.org/events.
Myth, Art and Life: Picasso’s Suite Vollard January 10, 17 & 24, 6:30-7:45 p.m. $30 members/$40 non-members In 1933, Pablo Picasso embarked on a monumental project: the creation of a series of 100 etchings, for his dealer Ambrose Vollard. Picasso used the recurring figures of a sculptor, his model and the Minotaur to create his unique narratives. View Suite Vollard prints in the KIA collection, and learn more about Picasso’s life and work in the 1930’s. A demonstration of the etching process is included. Sponsor:
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exhibitions programs
New! Get the Picture Gallery Talks Gallery Talks are a fun, interactive opportunity for adults to discuss 1-2 works of art per session with Curator of Education Michelle Stempien and other KIA staff. Experience a different work of art each month. Registration is required as space is limited. Call (269) 349-7775 or register online at kiarts.org/events.
Topics:
November 15: Luis Jimenez’s El Buen Pastor December 20: Jerry Kearns’ Right of Way and Robert Scott Duncanson’s Heart of Andes January 17: Philip Pearlstein’s Portrait of the Artist’s Daughter
Luis Jimenez’s El Buen Pastor
Sunday Funday Fun with Pastels
Sunday, November 11, 2-4 p.m. Come on down for a pastel art-making experience with local artist Melody Allen, who is a featured artist in the Great Lakes Pastel Society National Show 2012, currently on view in the KIA galleries. Then join us in the exhibition for a fun and interactive tour experience.
Deadline to Enter: January 19, 5 p.m. Info: kpl.gov/teens/filmmakerfest Co-sponsored by the KIA, the Kalamazoo Public Library, Public Media Network and Campaign Pictures.
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Melody Allen, Autumn Sycamore, pastel (Kalamazoo, MI) Peter Wege Juror’s Award
programs
KIA Library
New! A.R.T. (Art Research Tools)
Programs are free and open to the public
Second Friday of each month, 10 a.m. - 2 p.m. Have you ever wondered about the painting in your attic, or the scuplture you inherited? Let the KIA help you! Librarian Dennis Kreps will you show you how to use the research and reference tools used by art professionals. Learn how to access auction records, background and biographical information and more. Not sure what you have? No problem! KIA curatorial staff will also be available to answer questions. Drop-ins are welcome. For more information call (269) 349-7775 ext. 3165.
Story Time and Short Films for Kids: Saturdays,11:15 a.m. Book Discussion January 16, 2 p.m. I Shock Myself: The Autobiography of Beatrice Wood
Kalamazoo Art League Lectures
are free for Art League Members/$10 KIA Members/$12 general admission/$3 students with current college ID. Call (269) 349-7775 for information.
Eames Housebird design
Beyond the Elgin Marbles: The Cultural Property Debate with Jenifer Neils, Ph.D. November 14, 10 a.m. Dr. Neils will address the ethical and legal issues that ensue when museums acquire art and antiquities that are part of another country’s cultural heritage. Citing recent controversies encountered by museums, Neils will discuss the importance of research, authentication and purchasing from reputable art dealers.
Furniture Design as Art: Eames Furniture History with Carla Atwood Hartman December 12, 10 a.m. Ms. Hartman, the granddaughter of Charles and Ray Eames, will discuss the history of the famous Eames furniture design and lead a tour of Good Design: Stories from Herman Miller at the Kalamazoo Valley Museum after the lecture reception.
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exhibitions support
Volunteer Spotlight: John Sage
We need you!
Support from people like you started the institute in 1924, and individuals’ generosity has sustained it ever since. Today, individuals fund 35¢ of every dollar needed to keep the KIA open and serving our community.
Over the course of almost 15 years as a KIA volunteer, John Sage has lavished so many hundreds of service hours on the museum that he calls it his home away from home. Even Executive Director Jim Bridenstine has joked that John should have a cot on the premises! A self-described jack-of-all-trades, John has greeted patrons and promoted membership at virtually every major exhibition and at the KIA Fair, served refreshments at fundraisers and receptions, sat on planning and standing committees, and even played Santa Claus at the Holiday Sale. In September, John’s extraordinary service and dedication to the KIA and other local cultural organizations were recognized with the 2012 Patron Award, one of the Community Arts Awards sponsored by the Arts Council of Greater Kalamazoo.
Please help continue this tradition by contributing to our Annual Fund appeal. An Annual Fund contribution is a true civic investment. That’s because it helps the KIA present programs, classes, exhibitions, and services that anyone can enjoy. This year, the KIA will entertain, enlighten, and inspire 140,000 adults and children. Make a contribution by visiting kiarts.org/annualfund or calling 349-7775, ext. 3110.
Our Funding Individuals’ Support
35% 65% Other
Another KIA volunteer is honored! We are so pleased to honor one of our most dedicated volunteers, Frank Wolf, who received a 2012 Priority Health Senior Impact Award for his work in the creation of the Touch Art Tour Program. The Senior Impact Awards were developed to recognize the ways senior volunteers put their energy and commitment to work for our Michigan communities. Not only did Frank receive a beautiful glass award, but $1,000 was also given to the Kalamazoo Institute of Arts. Thank you, Frank!
Host an Artist for the 2013 Art Fair!
At the 2012 Kalamazoo Institute of Arts Fair, nearly half of the exhibiting artists came from other states or distant Michigan locales. We anticipate more in 2013. Most will need lodging. If you have a guest room that you’re willing to make available for an Art Fair artist on the weekend of June 7, please contact Heather at heatherr@kiarts.org.
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2012
H LIDAY SALE Member’s Preview
Thursday November 29 5-7:30 pm Friday November 30 5-7:30 pm
Saturday December 1 9 am - 3 pm