SPRING 2013
Photo by Dylan Miner
T a b l e o f C o nt e nts
Cover image
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Spring 2013 Calendar of Events
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From the Director
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Mural at the Getty
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Spring 2013 Exhibitions • Native Kids Ride Bikes • Legacies for Iowa
• The University of Iowa Art Faculty Biennial Exhibition 11
2013 Museum Party
12–13 State Fair 14–15 Lectures • Curator’s Circle Lecture
• Elliott Society Lecture Series
• The Bette Spriestersbach Distinguished Lecture • Jeanne and Richard Levitt Lectureship: American Crafts in Context 16–17 Education • Gee’s Bend Quilts 18–20 Collection News • New Acquisitions 21
New Student Staff
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Le musée pARTi!
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Where in the world is the UIMA now?
We put the story back in “neWs story.”
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locations & hours
University of Iowa Museum of Art Temporary offices at Studio Arts Building: 1375 Highway 1 West/1840 SA Iowa City, IA 52242-1789 319.335.1727 uima.uiowa.edu
Temporary locations:
Iowa Memorial Union, third floor UIMA@IMU 125 North Madison St., Iowa City 319.335.1742 On-campus visual classroom featuring an extensive installation from the Museum’s permanent collection.
Support www.uifoundation.org/uima Museum Merchandise Shop for UIMA merchandise online at book.uiowa.edu
Black Box Theater On-campus space for UIMA special exhibitions.
Figge Art Museum 225 West Second St. Davenport, IA 52801 563.326.7804
Free admission Hours: Tuesday, Wednesday, and Friday, 10 a.m.–5 p.m. Thursday, 10 a.m.–9 p.m. Saturday and Sunday, 12–5 p.m.
Gallery space and storage for 11,000 pieces from the UIMA’s permanent collection, located one hour east of Iowa City.
Connect Find us on Facebook Facebook.com/UIMuseumofArt Follow us on Twitter Twitter.com/UIMuseumofArt Scan with a QR Reader to connect online
Free admission for University of Iowa students, faculty, and staff with UI ID cards and UIMA donors with their Donor Courtesy Cards. Hours: Tuesday through Saturday, 10 a.m.–5 p.m. Thursday, 10 a.m.–9 p.m. Sunday, 12–5 p.m. Sign up to receive our e-newsletter at uima.uiowa.edu. Sponsored by INVISION Architecture
The UIMA Magazine is sponsored by Hands Jewelers: William Nusser & Elizabeth Boyd Copy edited by Gail Zlatnik Design and layout by Meng Yang Copyright 2013
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SPRING 2013 CALENDAR
EXHIBITIONS Ongoing–January 29, 2013 February 23–May 5, 2013
Napoléon and the Art of Propaganda, Old Capitol (OC) and Black Box Theater, third floor, Iowa Memorial Union (IMU)
The University of Iowa Art Faculty Biennial Exhibition, Figge Art Museum, Davenport
March 2– July 28, 2013
Native Kids Ride Bikes, Black Box Theater, third floor, IMU
Ongoing
Video Classrooms: Studio Arts (SA), UI Main Library (LIB), Art Building West (ABW)
Ongoing
UIMA@IMU, third floor, IMU
P U BL I C P R O G R A M S January 4
5:00–7:00 p.m.
First Friday, hotelVetro, 201 S. Linn Street, Iowa City
February 1
5:00–7:00 p.m.
First Friday, hotelVetro, 201 S. Linn Street, Iowa City
February 7
7:30–8:30 p.m.
The Bette Spriestersbach Distinguished Lecture: “From Here to There” by Alec Soth, 240 ABW
February 8
5:30–6:30 p.m.
Lecture: “Identity Before Freud: Gauguin’s Self Portraits” by Richard Brettell, University Club
March 1
5:00–7:00 p.m.
First Friday, hotelVetro, 201 S. Linn Street, Iowa City
March 2
6:00–10:00 p.m.
The Museum PartY!, Coralville Marriott Hotel & Conference Center (call 335-1725 for ticket info)
March 28
7:30–8:30 p.m.
Jeanne and Richard Levitt Lectureship: American Crafts in Context: “Saddle to Torch” by James Bleakley, 240 ABW
April 5
5:00–7:00 p.m.
First Friday, hotelVetro, 201 S. Linn Street, Iowa City
April 18
5:30–6:30 p.m.
Lecture: “History, Memory, and Collaboration” by Dylan Miner, 116 ABW
May 2 5:30–6:30 p.m.
Lecture: “Design It, Build It, Ride It—A Titanium Bicycle” by Steve McGuire, 116 ABW
May 3
First Friday, hotelVetro, 201 S. Linn Street, Iowa City
5:00–7:00 p.m.
D O N O R / V OL U N T EE R E V E N T S February 8
6:30–7:30 p.m.
April 14
11:00 a.m.–1:00 p.m. Docent & Volunteer Appreciation Brunch, University Club
April 18
4:30–5:15 p.m.
Elliott Society Reception with Dylan Miner, ABW
May 2
4:30–5:15 p.m.
Elliott Society Reception with Steve McGuire, ABW
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Curator’s Circle Reception, University Club
FROM THE DIRECTOR
Dear Museum Supporter, In 2008 the museum mounted one of its most popular exhibitions, a media extravaganza by Robert Wilson entitled VOOM Portraits; that year the museum hosted over 41,000 visitors and participants, most of them at its site on the “Arts Campus.” Later that same year, the Great Flood forced the museum to evacuate its home, and, as a result, museum activities have taken place in various temporary locations, many in other parts of the state. Fast forward to the most recent academic year, ending in 2012: at last count, the museum received over 145,000 annual visitors and participants. But how is this possible without a permanent museum facility, you may ask? Well, a lot of this has to do with the sheer amount of hard work put in by staff and volunteers who make the museum as successful and as relevant as possible. But at the same time people are coming up with creative solutions for new museum programming. We are taking more exhibitions and events on the road. We are doing more education initiatives at other institutions. We are partnering with other museums and schools. By taking the museum out of the “box,” we have ended up totally reversing the model that the vast majority of museums have been following for the last couple hundred years. This approach seems to be in line with the new lifestyle of Americans in the 21st century. Having said this, we cannot serve UI students without our own facility in Iowa City, and we are not doing a great many activities we would normally engage in because those require a permanent building. For example, we are unable to provide regular access to our collections, we cannot conserve and care for artwork as we must, and we spend an inordinate amount of staff time moving art around because we do not have appropriate spaces to work in. All of this is central to what a museum does and how it serves the public. Without a permanent and accessible building in Iowa City, we cannot fulfill these core missions. But fear not, President Mason has repeatedly stated that we will build a new facility, and I am confident we will get there. In the meantime, as we all wait ever so patiently, please remember that a museum is more than just a building — it is people, activities, exhibitions, conservation projects, collecting, and education programs. The high level of participation in record numbers from 2011–2012 proves this point. In short, as we wait for a new facility to be built, our museum programming is thriving. A great many people are participating in art activities, attending exhibitions, giving time and resources, and being an active part of the cultural community of the University of Iowa, Iowa City, and the state of Iowa. For this we are grateful and we are pleased to see so many learn from and enjoy the activities provided by the University of Iowa Museum of Art. I look forward to seeing you at a museum event soon. Yours, Sean O’Harrow, Ph.D. Director
Above: Dr. O’Harrow with Robert Motherwell’s Elegy to the Spanish Republic, No. 126 (1965–75) (detail) Acrylic on canvas 77 3/4 x 200 1/4 in. Purchased with the aid of funds from the National Endowment for the Arts with matching funds and partial gift of Robert Motherwell, 1973.289
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POLLOCK CONSERVATION
Mural at the Getty Elizabeth Wallace and Marianna Gunn of the UIMA recently spoke with Yvonne Szafran, senior conservator at the J. Paul Getty Museum, and Tom Learner, senior scientist at the Getty Conservation Institute, about the two-year conservation process Jackson Pollock’s Mural is undergoing at the Getty Center in Los Angeles, CA. The conservation team is hard at work exploring the intricacies of Mural, Jackson Pollock’s masterpiece painting and one of Iowa’s most treasured possessions. In addition to conservation, the Getty is performing a technical analysis to investigate Pollock’s process, pigments, and materials. The painting had been conserved once before, in the early 1970s. This restoration included varnishing the painted surface and gluing another canvas, called a lining, to the back of the original canvas using a wax and resin mixture. The synthetic varnish is now being removed as it has not aged well, becoming cloudy. It also becomes more difficult to remove over time. As well, says Szafran, Pollock preferred an unvarnished surface, and used a variety of matte and glossy paints. Szafran affirmed that the previous lining, though now outdated, helped to preserve the paint layers. But the added weight of the wax and resin mixture is stressing the wooden stretcher that supports the vast canvas, possibly increasing the noticeable sag in the painting that has been present since its creation. The stretcher is not original to the painting.
Alan Phenix and Tom Learner, scientists from the Getty Conservation Institute Photograph by Stacey Rain Strickler
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Szafran explained that the conservation process for Mural is the same as for any other work, but will take longer because of Mural’s size. Conservation and technical analysis involve “different ways of looking” at an artwork. For the past few months, the team has inspected the painting with noninvasive tools—microscopes, x-rays, and infrared cameras—to get to know its every detail.
POLLOCK CONSERVATION
The next step is to take microscopic samples of all of the paint colors and analyze them chemically, according to Learner. The findings from the analysis will inform conservation techniques and approaches, and are also intrinsically interesting from an historical, biographical, and research standpoint. Learner explained that pigments often have characteristic optical properties when viewed under high magnification, and that when a scanning electron microscope is used, a feature called energy-dispersive x-ray fluorescence can identify a pigment’s elements, such as mercury, which has already been detected in vermilion paint used on Mural. The study also will explore which oils or binders are present in Mural’s palette, using techniques such as infrared spectroscopy, a common chemical analysis technique which gives a molecular fingerprint that can be matched to known binding materials. The conservation process is hands-on: small swabs, a variety of magnification tools, and lots of patience will be used to remove the layer of varnish and reveal the original variety of
the painting’s surface. Additionally, possible solutions for the sagging problem will be explored. The team looks forward to understanding Pollock’s technique and process in creating Mural. The painting, which Learner states is “clearly a seminal work,” was completed before Pollock’s transition to splashing and dripping techniques, although it achieves a similar fluid feel. One of the myths surrounding Mural is that it was painted in less than twentyfour hours. The Getty team’s preliminary findings suggest that many of Mural’s paint layers seem to have dried fully before a new layer was added, thus making the twenty-four hour claim highly unlikely. The state-of-the-art Getty facilities, combined with the two-year time period, will provide a great opportunity for treatment and technical study. Researchers at the Getty are excited to learn more about Jackson Pollock’s body of work through findings about Mural. In fact, Szafran and Learner claim the painting is already serving as a catalyst for interesting discussions. Though safely housed in the Getty Museum’s conservation facilities, the painting has attracted many visitors in art professions who are eager to view the artwork. After the conservation and research processes are complete in 2014, Mural will be on display for three months at the J. Paul Getty Museum. Future plans for events and/or publications may include the participation of the Getty Research Institute, another organization under the umbrella of the J. Paul Getty Trust. The UIMA would like to acknowledge the diligent work of the entire team involved with the Mural project: Tom Learner, senior scientist (Getty Conservation Institute); Yvonne Szafran, senior conservator (J. Paul Getty Museum); Alan Phenix, scientist (Getty Conservation Institute); Laura Rivers, associate conservator (J. Paul Getty Museum); Wendy Lindsey, assistant scientist (Getty Conservation Institute); Lauren Bradley, assistant conservator (J. Paul Getty Museum).
Laura Rivers, associate conservator at the J. Paul Getty Museum Photograph by Stacey Rain Strickler
Yvonne Szafran, senior conservator for the J. Paul Getty Museum Photograph by Stacey Rain Strickler
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SPRING EXHIBITIONS
Contemporary Anishnaabeg Transportation: Lowrider Bicycles, the Seven Grandfathers, and Youth Collaboration by Dylan Miner, curator Native Kids Ride Bikes
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“My people will sleep for one-hundred years, but when they awaken it will be the artists who give them back their spirit.” – Métis leader Louis Riel, hanged by Canadian government in 1885
G’mishomisinaani, or Our Seven Grandfathers. Shown in the pennants exhibited in the gallery, these teachings include the concepts of Nbwaakaawin (wisdom), Zaagi’idiwin (love), Minaadendamowin (respect), Aakwa’ode’ewin (bravery), Debwewin (truth), Dibaadendiziwin (humility), and Gw ekwaadiziwin (honesty).
Since the late 1960s, artists have been interested in making art in collaboration with communities, as opposed to making art solely for communities. This kind of artistic strategy, referred to variously as socially engaged art, participatory art, or collaborative art, foregrounds the social connections between people and considers them fundamental to the overall success of an artwork. Using this model, beginning in 2010 the project called “Anishnaabensag Biimskowebshkigewag (Native Kids Ride Bikes)” brought together Indigenous youth in middle and high school, non-Native Michigan State University students, and Native artists to construct a series of seven lowrider bicycles, guided by the sacred Anishinaabeg teachings known as Niizhwaaswi
Using traditional Anishinaabeg, Métis, and Cayuse knowledge imparted by the artists and community members involved, this project, a long-term collaboration, addressed the very real need within the urban Native community to maintain Indigenous history and language by engaging with contemporary youth culture. Its outcome is a series of seven lowrider bicycles that signify the grandfathers’ teachings, propose alternative Indigenous histories and subjectivities, and provoke us to think about sustainable modes of transportation. Drawing on the importance of hip hop within the urban Native community, the lowrider bicycle serves as an ideal site of investigation as it allows young collaborators to bring their knowledge to a cross-generational project. Working with
UIMA
two groups of youth—middle school participants in the Indigenous Youth Empowerment Program (IYEP) summer camp and high school students in Lansing Eastern High School Native American Club (LENAC)—“Anishnaabensag Biimskowebshkigewag (Native Kids Ride Bikes)” collectively produced the seven lowrider bicycles featured in the exhibition. Lowrider bikes are an urban phenomenon shared with Chicano and hiphop communities. The lowrider bicycles have become the impetus to explore issues of migration, mobility, labor, economics, and community history for urban Indians in Michigan. Of specific importance is the fusion of Native youth culture with traditional stories, knowledge, and art-making. The bicycle is construed as a (post)modern evocation of the Red River cart, a common and important marker of Métis identity and communal livelihood. For the Métis nation, li michif sharey (Red River cart) symbolizes the way that Indigenous communities have commonly migrated from one location to another, often crossing illegitimate national borders in the process. Métis people today rarely
use the cart as a viable means of transportation, its having been surpassed by the automobile as their main mode of transportation. Changes to diet and this reliance on automobiles have significantly altered the health of Native communities, contributing to a pandemic of diabetes, obesity, and related noncommunicable diseases. Unlike the automobile, an ecologically unsustainable method of human transportation, the bicycle, much like the Red River cart, is a two-wheeled, simple machine that produces no greenhouse gases and improves its rider’s cardiac health. By envisioning the bicycle from an Indigenous perspective, this project redirects the discourse on sustainable transportation and has a positive influence on Native health when more youth ride bicycles. Using concepts established by the Maori scholar Linda Tuhiwai Smith, this project and its exhibition asks what role the bicycle may play in revitalizing Indigenous culture and how it may intervene in the destruction of the earth: Can it help us envision new ways of being? Can it facilitate the sharing of new stories?
UI Exhibition sponsors are Ruth Ann W. & John L. Bentler, Nancy J. Richardson & Charles J. Krogmeier u i m a . u i o w a .edu
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SPRING EXHIBITIONS
Byron Burford (American, 1920–2011), Spec, 1992 Alkyd resin on canvas, Gift of Byron Burford and Family, 1998.91
The UIMA will literally become the “Museum for the People of Iowa” by means of a new collections-sharing initiative. Legacies for Iowa: A University of Iowa Collections Sharing Project will not only provide works of art from the UIMA collections to museums, nonprofit galleries, and art centers across the state of Iowa that meet professional museum standards, but will in fact make viable connections for engagement between UI faculty, staff, and students, and the audiences of the borrowing sites. Since 2010, UIMA has partnered with the Figge Art Museum in Davenport, the Iowa Hall Gallery at Kirkwood Community College in Cedar Rapids, ICON Gallery in Fairfield, and the Des Moines Art Center, lending artworks free of charge. Beginning in 2013, two UIMA exhibitions Crafting Tradition: Oaxacan Wood Carvings and I AM: Prints by Elizabeth Catlett, will be on view at the Luce Gallery, Cornell College, Mt. Vernon, and the Cedar Rapids Museum of Art. In January 2013, a loan of eight objects will travel to the African American Museum of Iowa in Cedar Rapids to be installed in conjunction with their new exhibition, Western Africa: Before the Boats. •
Legacies for Iowa: Masterworks from the University of Iowa Museum of Art to the Figge Art Museum in Davenport, Eighteen paintings, ongoing
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A loan of three objects to Picturing Identity: The Allure of Portraiture to the Figge Art Museum, through February 17, 2013
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The exhibition Eye on UI Faculty: Byron Burford, Stuart Edie, James Lechay to the Figge Art Museum, through October 2013
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A loan of eight objects to the African American Museum of Iowa in Cedar Rapids, January 11, 2013– March 29, 2014
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The exhibition Crafting Tradition: Oaxacan Wood Carvings to the Luce Gallery, Cornell College, in Mt. Vernon, January 20–March 3, 2013
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The exhibition I AM: Prints by Elizabeth Catlett to the Cedar Rapids Museum of Art, February 9–May 26, 2013
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The exhibition The Power of Line: European and American Prints from the Etching Revival to the Gallery of Art, University of Northern Iowa, Cedar Falls, fall 2014
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Grant Wood’s Plaid Sweater to the Dubuque Museum of Art, fall 2014
Legacies for Iowa: A University of Iowa Museum of Art Collections Sharing Project for spring 2013 is sponsored by: Alden Lowell Doud and Dick & Mary Jo Stanley 10
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SPRING EXHIBITIONS
The University of Iowa
Art Faculty Biennial Exhibition
February 23 to May 5, 2013 Figge Art Museum, 4th floor gallery, Davenport IA Organized by the University of Iowa Museum of Art
This year’s faculty exhibition, curated by UIMA Director Sean O’Harrow, features work from the UI School of Art and Art History’s studio art faculty. Disciplines represented in this year’s show include graphic design, 3-D design, sculpture, painting, printmaking, intermedia, ceramics, photography, jewelry and metalwork, drawing, and multimedia. The last biennial was popular with audiences, and we expect this one to be as well.
SAVE THE DATE A New Deal for the UIMA! Please mark your calendars for The Museum Party! on Saturday, March 2, 2013, 8:00–11:00 p.m., at the Coralville Marriott! Our New Deal Party will raise funds for the upcoming 2013–2014 academic year. The party will have a 1930s nightclub feel with live musical performances by Kristen Behrendt and Steinway artist Dan Knight, fun photo opportunities, and swing dancing to the classic tunes of Rod Pierson’s Not-So-Big-Band. Tickets are $50 per guest ($25 is tax deductible). You will have the opportunity to experience a variety of UIMA programs during the evening through interactive displays, video presentations, and personal stories by UIMA patrons. By the end of the night, we hope you will choose the Museum programs you value most and direct your charitable contributions to those areas.
Mildred Rackley (American, 1906–1992) Boogie Woogie, c. 1940 Wood engraving, 6 1/8 x 5 in. University of Iowa Museum of Art Gift of the Estate of James Lechay
We are excited to host another fun-filled evening for guests while generating funds that will sustain Museum programming for the 2013–2014 academic year. If you would like to purchase tickets or have questions, please contact the University of Iowa Museum of Art, 319-335-1725. u i m a . u i o w a .edu
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STATE FAIR
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CURATOR’S CIRCLE
ELLIOTT SOCIETY
LECTURES
February 8, 5:30–6:30 p.m. University Club
April 18, 5:30–6:30 p.m. 116 ABW
May 2, 5:30–6:30 p.m. 116 ABW
Richard Brettell is among the foremost authorities on Impressionism and French painting of the period 1830 to 1930. The holder of bachelor’s, master’s, and PhD degrees from Yale University, he has taught at the University of Texas, Northwestern University, the University of Chicago, Yale University, and Harvard University, and is currently Margaret McDermott Distinguished Professor of Aesthetic Studies in the Interdisciplinary Program in Arts and Humanities at the University of Texas at Dallas. He is also an international museum consultant with projects in Europe, Asia, and the United States. Dr. Brettell is the director of the Paul Gauguin catalogue raisonné project of the Wildenstein Institute in Paris and was recently named a commandeur of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres by the French minister of culture for the work he accomplished within FRAME (French Regional/American Museum Exchange).
Dylan At Miner (Métis) is a border-crossing artist, activist, historian, curator, and professor working throughout Turtle Island (North America). His project, Anishinaabensag Biimskowebshkigewag (Native Kids Ride Bikes), is presently touring the continent. Miner is the 2010 recipient of the Smithsonian’s Artist Leadership Fellowship (NMAI), and a member of the award-winning artist collective JustSeeds. He has had thirteen solo exhibitions across Europe and North America. He holds a PhD in art history from the University of New Mexico and is an assistant professor at Michigan State University. Miner has published extensively on contemporary art, Indigenous visual sovereignty, and radical politics. He has two forthcoming books with the University of Arizona Press and IB Tauris.
Steve McGuire is professor of 3-D design and metal arts, head of Dimensional Practice (3-D design, ceramics, metal arts, and sculpture), and studio division coordinator in the University of Iowa School of Art and Art History. He has been a faculty member since 1988. Steve received both an MA in sculpture and a PhD in art education (philosophy of interpretation) at the University of Iowa. He has exhibited, performed, and conducted art workshops nationally and internationally. The challenge behind his current project, “Design It, Build It, Ride It,” is simple: Design a mountain bike to travel self-supported; build it yourself; and then exist well outside your comfort zone in tackling a time-trial odyssey, finishing as fast as possible without cracking (with new stories to boot).
The Curator’s Circle Lecture and Spring 2013 Elliott Society Lecture Series are part of the UIMA Public Initiatives and Outreach, which is supported by Karen Hubenthal & Wallace K. Chappell, James A. & Katherine Rathe Clifton, Scott A. Dunn & Robert Moray, George E. & Beth A. Hanna, Katie A. & Christopher R. Moorhead 14
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LECTURES
THE BETTE SPRIESTERSBACH DISTINGUISHED LECTURE February 7, 7:30–8:30 p.m., 240 ABW Alec Soth is a photographer born and based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. His photographs have been featured in numerous solo and group exhibitions, including the 2004 Whitney and São Paulo Biennials. In 2008, a large survey exhibition of Soth’s work was exhibited at the Jeu de Paume in Paris and Fotomuseum Winterthur in Switzerland. In 2010, the Walker Art Center produced a large survey exhibition of Soth’s work, entitled From Here To There. Alec Soth’s first monograph, Sleeping by the Mississippi, was published by Steidl in 2004 to critical acclaim. Since then Soth has published NIAGARA (2006), Fashion Magazine (2007), Dog Days, Bogotá (2007), The Last Days of W (2008), and Broken Manual (2010). In 2008, Soth started his own publishing company, Little Brown Mushroom. Soth is represented by Sean Kelly in New York and Weinstein Gallery in Minneapolis, and is a member of Magnum Photos.
JEANNE AND RICHARD LEVITT LECTURESHIP: AMERICAN CRAFTS IN CONTEXT March 28, 7:30–8:30 p.m., 240 ABW James Bleakley is the founder of Black Sheep Bikes, based in Fort Collins, Colorado. A lifelong bike enthusiast, Bleakley started mountain biking while a student at Colorado State University, where he received his degree in construction management. After graduation he embarked on his journey as a craftsman, working for four years with Boulder Bicycle, a custom build shop, followed by another four years working for Advanced Alloys, where he honed his knowledge of and skills in precision welding and fabrication. In 1999, Bleakley took a leap of faith and started Black Sheep Bikes (BSB). Today BSB is a collective of three bicycle craftsmen who adhere to the philosophy that bicycles should be built to last a lifetime and should precisely fit the customer’s dimensions and needs. The partners strive to always find the “best, simplest solution” to all their design challenges. BSB has received numerous awards, including two medals from the North American Handmade Bike Show in 2011. Bleakley rides what he builds. He has finished the grueling Leadville Trail 100 seven times on a single speed bicycle and hopes to complete 10 races and win the coveted thousand mile belt buckle award.
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EDUCATION
the same pride and creative satisfaction that has always inspired their efforts. Mary Ann Pettway, who made two of our new acquisitions, speaks of the significance of quilting to her:
Gee’s Bend Quilts The UIMA Schools Program Collection/Black Artists includes several new treasures: five contemporary Gee’s Bend quilts. Created by a multigenerational group of African American women residing in the small, remote, rural town formerly known as Gee’s Bend, in Wilcox County, Alabama, these quilts have a unique history and style, the result of the community’s near complete isolation for much of the twentieth century. Most of the current residents are African Americans whose ancestors were once slaves. Historically a practical necessity to provide warmth, quilt-making in Gee’s Bend has grown into a thriving tradition. In the past, and using whatever fabric was available, the women of the area quilted together, passing down their singular forms of beauty in a community that evolved into an informal art school. Their quilting style is ever fluid, mistakes are explored rather than fixed, and a group effort stands behind each masterpiece. Today, working with new fabrics and new techniques, these women maintain the traditional patterns with Above: Mary Ann Pettway (American, b. 1956) May Day, 5/1/2012 Quilt, 27 x 51 in. UIMA School Programs Collection
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Having my quilts seen by all ages makes me feel good, to know that my work will always be shown in a museum for everyone that wants to see can see it. I do hope and pray that someone sees my work and that will inspire them to want to create something that God will bless them to create. That is who gave me the knowledge to create what I have done: God. The changes that they have made in my life as a member of my community. I have been able to travel to places I only dream of going. Now because of these quilts, I have gotten even closer to God, and He has allowed a great change in my life through getting closer to him. I’m a witness to what my God and your God can do. William Arnett, the collector of African American arts who is credited with “discovering” the Gee’s Bend quilts, describes their artistic value: The women here, while none of them use the word “art” to describe what they do, they think and they work like traditional artists the world over. They make the same types of aesthetic decisions. What you see coming from Gee’s Bend is not accidental. It didn’t happen because a bunch of women were just sewing cloth together and happily they came up with something that was beautiful or unique. It was a very conscious thing, and it’s been passed down for at least five or six generations. (http:// www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/entertainment/july-dec03/ quilts_07-01.html)
Gee’s Bend quilts now hang in major museums across the United States (including the Whitney Museum of American Art and the American Craft Museum) and are considered to be great examples of uniquely American art. Our UIMA Schools Program quilts provide an unusual way for teachers to address curriculum standards and learning objectives in the visual arts and social studies at the K–12 levels. These works of art serve as primary source materials that illustrate aesthetic principles and illuminate a crucial time in American history. In the most literal sense, the quilts bring textbooks to the classroom and offer a visually stimulating focus to discussion of our collective American experience.
EDUCATION
China Pettway (American, b. 1952) 2004, n.d. Quilt, 84 x 74 in. UIMA School Programs Collection
Nancy Pettway (American, b. 1935) Brick Layer, May 2005 Quilt, 72 x 74 in. UIMA School Programs Collection
Mary Leatha Pettway (American, b. 1961) Coming Together, n.d. Quilt, 44 1/2 x 41 in. UIMA School Programs Collection
Mary Ann Pettway (American, b. 1956) My Way, April 2012 Quilt, 86 x 69 in. UIMA School Programs Collection
Education Partners: Anonymous Family Foundation (2), Claudia L. Corwin, E. Anthony Otoadese & Family, Susann K. & Garry R. Hamdorf, Pat & Kevin Hanick, Delia & Matthew A. Howard III, Yvonne L. McCabe, Carrie Z. Norton, Scheels All Sports, Marlene W. & William Stanford, Mary Jo & Richard H. Stanley, Faye Hyde Strayer, Dick & Buffie Tucker, U.S. Bank, Gail Parson & Frank J. Zlatnik u i m a . u i o w a .edu 17
COLLECTION NEWS
New Acquisitions
From January through June 2012, the UIMA added sixty-seven works to the permanent collection. We expect that the collection will exceed fourteen thousand objects by the end of this calendar year. Just think how the collection will grow when we actually have a Museum building! Sixteen prints were acquired via gift and purchase for the Midwest Matrix project. The project was both a tribute to the University of Iowa and other midwestern universities and schools that constituted the nucleus of new Master of Fine Arts printmaking programs after World War II, and an acknowledgment of the individual artist-professors whose own work and that of their students contributed to the now celebrated postwar printmaking revival in the United States. In our search for prints by artists who had worked for the Federal Art Project and then taught at midwestern universities, we identified the lithograph Man at a Well by Charles Pollock, Jackson Pollock’s eldest brother, as a potential UIMA purchase.
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Charles was the supervisor of the Michigan (Detroit) Works Progress Administration Mural and Graphic Arts Divisions. Earlier he had studied with Thomas Hart Benton (along with his brother Jack) at the New York Art Students League. Later, Charles Pollock established the print workshop at Michigan State University, where he taught from 1942 to 1965.
at the University of Tulsa, a position he held until 1963. Hogue’s Liberators is interesting for its nationalistic representation. Liberators was included in the seminal 1942 Metropolitan Museum of Art exhibition “Artists for Victory.”
Charles Pollock (American, 1902–1988) Artist-Professor, Michigan State University, East Lansing, 1942–1965 Man at the Well, 1941, color lithograph, 7 x 8 1/2 in. Edwin B. Green American Art Acquisition Endowment, 2012.28
Alexander Hogue (American, 1898–1994) Artist-Professor, University of Oklahoma, Tulsa, 1945–1968 Liberators, 1943, lithograph, 11 1/2 x 15 1/2 in. Edwin B. Green American Art Acquisition Endowment, 2012.27
Man at a Well, 1941, draws upon the same subject as an earlier painting from 1937 and his later painting of the same title, c. 1942, in the collection of the Smithsonian American Art Museum. In the mid-1930s, Charles Pollock worked for the Resettlement Division (later the Farm Security Administration), traveling through the South. It is possible that his subject of a man standing next to a water well with a frayed and broken rope, in a compromised rural setting, was developed during these travels. Another artist-professor who painted murals for the Federal Art Project before his WWII military employment is Alexandre Hogue. In 1945, Hogue was named head of the art department
School of Art and Art History
professors Bob Glasgow and Anita Jung noted that the UIMA collection did not include a print by Alfred Sessler, who started the print program at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, in 1946. Sessler was a Wisconsin-based artist who had been employed by the Milwaukee Federal Art Project, creating murals and other artworks. In Sessler’s classroom at Madison, all print media (intaglio, lithography, relief) were taught, but Sessler became known primarily for his reductive color-woodblock printing technique in which a single block (usually a plank of pine or birch plywood) is cut, inked, and printed, then cut some more, and inked again in different colors and
COLLECTION NEWS
reprinted until virtually no surface remains on the block. Sessler’s students referred to this technique as the “suicide” method because it left little room for error. Two Sessler prints were acquired by the UIMA, one—with his iconic “bag lady” subject—was donated by the Sessler family; a more abstractsurrealist woodcut was purchased and included in the A Midwest Matrix Family Tree exhibition.
Alfred Sessler (American, 1909–1963) MA, University of Wisconsin, Madison, 1945 Artist-Professor, University of Wisconsin-Madison, 1944–1963 Blue Veil II, 1959, color reduction woodcut 21 7/16 x 14 11/16 in. Gift of Karen Sessler Stein and Gregory Sessler, 2012.55
As a GI Bill student under Mauricio Lasansky in the late 1940s, David Driesbach embraced innovations recently introduced to the UI intaglio studio. He too was drawn to Stanley William Hayter’s Atelier 17 workshop and Hayter’s experimental approaches to intaglio. In 1969, after working with Hayter in Paris (Atelier 17 relocated back to Paris in 1950), Driesbach further developed Hayter’s technique of viscosity printing, which involves the control of overlapping layers of color inks. The Driesbach family donated two prints for Midwest Matrix.
The legacy of Lester D. Longman, head of the UI School of Art and Art History from 1936 to 1958, includes his hiring of artist-professors Mauricio Lasansky and Philip Guston. The recent gift of twenty-two works from the collection of Stanley and Ruth Longman, of artwork Stanley Longman’s father acquired while at UI, includes all the traditional media, by both faculty and students. Mauricio Lasansky’s SelfPortrait—created the year Lasansky established the now renowned university intaglio program—is dedicated to Lester Longman.
Mauricio Lasansky (American, born in Argentina, 1914–2012) Artist–Professor University of Iowa, 1945–1985 Self-Portrait, 1945, engraving, 12 x 10 in. Gift in memory of Lester and Florence Longman from Stanley and Ruth Longman, 2012.47
Included in the Longman gift are prints by Malcolm Myers, who initially attended the UI and studied with Emil Ganso (also represented in the gift) before WWII. After the war, Myers returned to the UI on the GI Bill to the new intaglio program and soon became Mauricio Lasansky’s assistant. David F. Driesbach (American, b. 1922) MFA, University of Iowa, 1950 / Artist-Professor, University of Northern Illinois, DeKalb, 1964–1991 All Children Must Be Accompanied by Adults, 1971 Color viscosity etching, second state Gift of Carrie D. and Bob Provost, 2012.58
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COLLECTION NEWS
Malcolm H. Myers (American, 1917–2002) MFA, University of Iowa, 1948 / Artist-Professor, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, 1949–2002 Saint Anthony, 1946, etching, drypoint, soft ground, burnishing, engraving, 14 3/4 x 20 1/8 in. Gift in memory of Lester and Florence Longman from Stanley and Ruth Longman, 2012.37
Myers recalled that his professor “opened [his] eyes to contemporary thinking.” Lasansky and Myers shared the teaching load of six sections per semester for two years. Myers explained, “There were lots of GIs coming back then.” In 1949 Myers was hired to start the printmaking program at the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis, where he taught until his retirement in 2002.
attributed to Philip Guston. According to Stanley Longman, one day in 1945 Guston, a UI professor from 1941 to 1945, visited the Longman family residence. Joining Stanley, who was lying on the floor drawing, Guston made four drawings of restaurant scenes. The drawings are unsigned, but Ruth Longman noted Guston’s name and the year on the reverse of each.
Of tremendous interest in the Longman gift are four drawings
Sir Herbert Tree once commented, “If you want to see English people at their most English, go to the Café Royal where they are trying their hardest to be French.” (It was at the Café Royal that Oscar Wilde held court night after night, arguing into the wee hours with, among others, Aubrey Beardsley and Bernard Shaw. Guston’s drawing captures the ambience of that time.)
Attributed to Philip Guston (American, born in Canada, 1913–1980) Café Royal, c. 1945, graphite, 7 1/4 x 10 1/2 in. Gift in memory of Lester and Florence Longman from Stanley and Ruth Longman, 2012.44
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This past spring, Gerald Nordland and his wife, Paula Giannini, donated twenty-one works by Ulfert Wilke to the UIMA, bringing the number of Wilke’s works in the Museum collection to forty-eight.
Ulfert Wilke (American, born in Germany, 1907–1987) Temple Gong Rhythms, 1958, ink, 14 3/8 x 10 3/4 in. Gift of Gerald Nordland and Paula Giannini, 2012.22
Gerald Nordland met Ulfert Wilke in California in the late 1950s, at a time when passion for experimentation and community in the arts was at its height. Nordland was then the dean at Chouinard Art Institute (later California Institute of Arts / CalArts), and Wilke was teaching painting in Southern California. Nordland responded with enthusiasm to Wilke’s work, and their friendship grew— both were passionate about art and collecting. In 1966, Nordland became director of the San Francisco Museum of Art, and from 1977 to 1984 he was director of the Milwaukee Art Museum. In these positions he organized seminal exhibitions and wrote authoritative books on Richard Diebenkorn, Gaston Lachaise, and Ynes Johnston, among others. In 1969, Ulfert Wilke became the first director of the UIMA, coming from a teaching position at Rutgers University. Both the 1970 exhibition Ulfert Wilke: Recent Works at the Des Moines Art Center under James Demetrion and the 1983 show Ulfert Wilke: A Retrospective were organized by Nordland.
NEW STUDENT STAFF Brad Ferrier Registrarial Assistant Third-year MA student, Library Information Science, Certificate in Book Studies Job details: Assists in the maintenance of the UIMA collection database, physical filing system, and managing of rights-and-reproduction requests. Brad’s goal is to become an art librarian, and this past year he worked as a student assistant in the art library. His UIMA tasks draw upon and add to his knowledge of librarianship and the information profession.
Cory Gundlach Curatorial Research Assistant, African and Non-Western Art First-year PhD student, African Art History Job details: Works hands-on with faculty and staff in the UIMA@IMU Visual Classroom, and assists with acquisitions research, collections records, cataloguing, and public inquiries. With a passion for African art, Cory finds that his UIMA research, writing, and teaching of African art history, and especially his work with the Stanley Collection, provide extraordinary preparation for his goal of doing research in Africa.
Alexandra Janezic Assistant Preparator at UIMA First-year MFA student, Book Arts Job details: Prepares galleries and artwork for exhibitions, including matting, framing, unframing, packing and shipping artwork. For Alexandra, a practicing artist, working at the Museum gives her skills to use in managing and exhibiting her own artwork. It also provides opportunities to expand her understanding of art history through hands-on interactions with artwork.
Sarika Sugla Curatorial Research Assistant, American and European Art Second-year MA student, Printmaking Job details: Meets with classes and individuals in the Print Study Room at the UIMA@ IMU and does research projects, including a conservation survey of Duchamp’s Boite-en-valise. With her previous experience in printmaking, her knowledge of art history, and her work in applied research, Sarika’s time with the UIMA collections has already contributed to a stronger conceptual basis for her studio work.
Meng Yang Graphic Designer Second-year MA student, Graphic Design Job details: Develops creative ideas and concepts for designing Museum materials— everything from posters and invitations to this magazine. The work of a designer requires a passion for creativity and aesthetics, a good eye for detail, and the ability to solve problems and communicate through design. Meng’s tasks at the UIMA allow her to participate in real projects to solve real problems. u i m a . u i o w a .edu 21
Le musee PartI! October 13, 2012
This year’s Museum Party! marked the Museum’s tenth annual gala and celebrated the fall special exhibition, Napoléon and the Art of Propaganda, at the beautiful hotelVetro. Guests were transported into the ambiance of the Napoléonic era with art, candlelight, and live music performed by the Iowa Quartet, soprano Rachel Joselson, and pianist Rene Lecuona. Guests enjoyed an opportunity to be robed and to sit on Napoléon’s throne for a photo. Thanks to the dedicated Members Council and Committee Co-Chairs Anna Barker and Kay Irelan, the elegant soirée was a night to remember! 22
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We’d like to thank all of our generous Party! supporters Honorary Chairs Marc Moen & Bobby Jett Party Sponsors Integrated DNA Technologies •University of Iowa Community Credit Union • Willis Law Firm/Security Abstract Party Hosts Anna and James Barker • Jackie Blank • Margaret C. Clancy • Sandra/Zoe Eskin • Kristin Hardy & Gerry Ambrose • Polly & Tom Lepic • Carrie Z. Norton • Kristin Summerwill • Liz & Alan Swanson • Mary Westbrook • Hayes Lorenzen Lawyers PC • hotelVetro • Hudson River Gallery - Nick Hotek • The Luxe Zone & Jan Finlayson Designs • Oaknoll Retirement Residence • Phelan, Tucker, Mullen, Walker, Tucker, & Gelman, L.L.P. • Pleasant Valley Flower Shoppe & Greenhouse • Randy’s Carpets & Interiors • Rohrbach Associates PC Architects • Shive-Hattery - Architecture-Engineering • Unique Events
Where in the World is the UIMA now?
Sistine Chapel (detail), July 31, 2012 Vatican Museums, Vatican City, Italy Hand of Dale Fisher, UIMA Curator of Education “No, this is not why I was thrown out.”
Sheep No. 110, August 2012 Nicholas Farm, Campbellford, Ontario, Canada “I always knew No. 110 was smarter than the rest.” – Lou Ellen Hale
GET YOUR PHOTO IN THE UIMA MAGAZINE! When you travel abroad, take UIMA magazines with you. Photograph your group with the magazine in front of a landmark. Email your photos and story to be featured in the next UIMA magazine at uima@uiowa.edu
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HANDS— where every
Lazare Diamond is a masterpiece.
Jackson Pollock (American, 1912-1956) Mural (detail), 1943 Oil on canvas, 8’ ¼” x 19’ 10” Gift of Peggy Guggenheim, 1959.6 University of Iowa Museum of Art Reproduced with permission from the University of Iowa
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