A Fond Farewell

On May 31, 2010 the world lost a great artist. The death of Louise Bourgeois at the age of 98 marked the end of a long and art-filled life. Thought known best for her sculpture, Bourgeois learned to draw and paint at an early age. She began her adult life as a mathematics student at the Sorbonne – a subject she liked because its constancy helped her to temporarily forget a painful family life. She left to enroll in art school, and in 1938 married art historian and critic Robert Goldwater. The couple moved to New York City, and Bourgeois became part of the Student Art League. In 1981, she was honored with a retrospective show at the Museum of Modern Art in New York. Bourgeois continued to work until her death. Her life was marked by private pain that drove her creativity and gave her solace that came from expressing her emotions through her prolific creation of sculpture and image. She has left behind a legacy to be enjoyed by the world.
- SCM

Women at the Chrysler Women and World War II

During the exhibition Women of the Chrysler: A 400-Year Celebration of the Arts, we’re celebrating the contributions of women to the history of the Chrysler Museum. Women from all backgrounds have played an integral role in the creation, development, and operation of the Museum from its very beginning. Each week during the exhibition, we’re a story about a woman or group of women accompanied by images from the Library's collections. This week's contribution was researched and written by Spring Library Intern Victoria Schwab. We invite you to join us in the Library to learn more about these dedicated women.

The women at the Norfolk Museum of Arts and Science were not discouraged by the hardships of World War II; rather they persevered by sustaining art and culture in Norfolk. Members of the Norfolk Society of Arts and Junior League regularly held exhibitions, lectures, and concerts in support of war relief. In 1942, ‘Women of the War Week’ was held to sell defense bonds and stamps encouraging citizens to “Stamp Themselves American.” Additional aid was provided through various shows including the Harvest Show, which raised $1,595.63. Aside from war relief, the Museum sponsored free concerts along with poetry and art competitions for individuals serving in the armed forces. The Museum’s commitment to the arts brought support and encouragement to residence in a time of crisis.

 

 -- Victoria Schwab, Library Intern

Lately, I’ve been reading Gregory Gibson’s Hubert’s Freaks: The Rare-Book Dealer, the Times Square Talker, and the Lost Photos of Diane Arbus. Photographer of both the popular and the unorthodox, Arbus lived an extraordinary adventure until her untimely death in 1971. She portrayed her subjects with uncompromising directness and dignity. Though born into an affluent New York family, Arbus chose to photograph in some of the darkest, most forbidden – and most interesting places in the city. She cut her professional teeth as a fashion photographer, but felt restrained by the rules of the fashion world and collaboration with her husband Allen Arbus. Later, through her technical studies with Lisette Model and the encouragement given by her famed tutor, Arbus honed her personal style. Eventually, her work revolutionized documentary photography. Interested in learning more about Diane Arbus? Please join us on May 19th for the latest installment of Books & Art, Wine & Cheese and have a look at ground-breaking photographs by female photographers in Women of the Chrysler.

--SCM

Women at the Chrysler : Making Beautiful Music

During the exhibition Women of the Chrysler: A 400-Year Celebration of the Arts, we’re celebrating the contributions of women to the history of the Chrysler Museum. Women from all backgrounds have played an integral role in the creation, development, and operation of the Museum from its very beginning. Each week during the exhibition, we’re a story about a woman or group of women accompanied by an online album of images from the Library's collections. We also invite you to join us in the Library to learn more about these dedicated women.



From the days of Norfolk Museum of Arts and Sciences musicales to modern musical performances such as Art Riff and The Art of Jazz, music has always been a large part of life at the Chrysler. This week we've created a slide show of just a few of the many talented women who have filled the galleries and grounds of the Museum with beautiful music. Please help us continue to celebrate women in art and music by joining us for a performance by Bellisima!, the South Hampton Roads auditioned ensemble performing music written specifically for the voices of women. Bellisima! will make beautiful music on Sunday, May 9 at 2pm in Huber Court.

"Why Have There Been No Great Women Artists?"

When ArtNews published feminist art historian Linda Nochlin’s essay “Why Have There Been No Great Women Artists?” in 1971, it set off a firestorm of discussion in the art world. Nochlin focused on the male-centric world of art history. Were there really never any great women artists, or had their accomplishments been misattributed and played down? Thirty years later Nochlin’s question became the topic of a conference at Princeton on the state of women artists, and her new essay “Why Have “”There Been No Great Women Artists” Thirty Years After” was published. Are you interested in weighing in on this issue? Please join us at the next Chrysler Museum Art & Books, Wine & Cheese on Wednesday, April 21, 2010 for what is sure to be a lively discussion. Please e-mail us at library@chrysler.org if you would like to have digital scans of the articles sent to you. We hope to see you there!

Women at the Chrysler: The Galleries in Bloom

During the exhibition Women of the Chrysler: A 400-Year Celebration of the Arts, we’re celebrating the contributions of women to the history of the Chrysler Museum. Women from all backgrounds have played an integral role in the creation, development, and operation of the Museum from its very beginning. Each week during the exhibition, we’re a story about a woman or group of women accompanied by an online album of images from the Library's collections. We also invite you to join us in the Library to learn more about these dedicated women.
Outside the temperatures are rising and the spring flowers are in full bloom. It's the perfect time to enjoy a lovely walk outside in one of the Museum's two gardens. The beautiful blooms also reminded us of one wonderful feature of the Chrysler. Every week and at every event we enjoy beautiful flowers, artfully arranged in the galleries.  This week's album features the dedicated ladies (and gentlemen) who have worked throughout the years to keep the gardens and galleries of the Museum beautiful with blooms.

Women At the Chrysler -All A Bloom

Take a Peep at what's going on at the Chrysler Museum of Art!

The Peeps Present 10 Fun Things to Do at The Chrysler This Spring:
1. Take one last look at the Eliot Porter exhibition.
2. Enjoy a children's book.
3. Participate in Yoga for Art Lovers.
4. Try your hand at drawing in the galleries.
5. Visit the shop.
6. Talk to a helpful gallery host.
7. Take time to enjoy the tulips.
8. Check out the Boncori restoration.
9. See what's new in the Jean Outland Chrysler Library.
10. Visit the "Women of the Chrysler" website at http://www.womenofthechrysler.org/ and post to the blog http://www.womenofthechrysler.org/guestblog/

Happy Spring!

Women At the Chrysler: Annie Wood - Author

During the exhibition Women of the Chrysler: A 400-Year Celebration of the Arts, we’re celebrating the contributions of women to the history of the Chrysler Museum. Women from all backgrounds have played an integral role in the creation, development, and operation of the Museum from its very beginning. Each week during the exhibition, we’re a story about a woman or group of women accompanied by an online album of images from the Library's collections. We also invite you to join us in the Library to learn more about these dedicated women.

This week we thought we’d share an interesting aspect of a well-known figure in the Museum’s history. If you are a regular Museum visitor or a Norfolk native, chances are you’ve heard of Irene Leach and Anna Cogswell Wood) and their contributions to the establishment of an Art Museum in Norfolk. (If you haven’t stop by the Library and take a look at our
Women at the Chrysler exhibit to learn all about it.) What you may not know, however, is that Annie Wood was also a prolific writer, authoring and co-authoring numerous works of fiction and non-fiction. Beginning in 1891 with the novel Diana Fontaine written under the nom de plume Algernon Ridgewood (taken from Wood’s Father’s name) Wood followed this work with the 1892 novel Westover’s Ward. Over the next forty-nine years, she published five other works of non-fiction and essays on topics ranging from her travels in Europe to parlor dramatics to criminal psychology. Wood also tirelessly compiled albums of her thoughts and ideas in beautifully leather bound books she called her “pensées”. Many of these were donated after her death to the Norfolk Museum of Arts and Science and remain in the collections of the Chrysler Museum and the Irene Leache Memorial Foundation. In the attached slide show you’ll find images of works by and about Wood. If you’d like to learn more, we urge you to stop by the Library or to read Jo Ann Mervis Hofheimer’s 1996 biography Annie Wood: a  Portrait.

Westover’s Ward is also available through Google Books.

L.C.

Item of The Week

Only 19 years old, Rosa Bonheur made her first entry into the Paris Salon of 1841 with “Rabbits Nibbling Carrots.” Her handling of light, color, balance and texture were well beyond her years. In that same year, Bonheur began to show and sell her bronze animals, which became wildly popular. This was the beginning of a long and full career. Bonheur worked steadily until her death in 1899. Her drawings, paintings and bronzes remain popular – particularly those of animals.

Do you know a child who loves animals and art? We’ve got a book for them! Portraits of Women Artists for Children: Rosa Bonheur is a full picture of the life of the artist in a shorter form. The book is full of surprises and fun trivia. Did you know that the Bonheur family kept a sheep in a 6th-floor apartment? Did you know that Rosa Bonheur painted publicity photos for Buffalo Bill? Please stop by the Jean Outland Chrysler Library and check out our new collection of children’s books!

By Library Assistant Sara Mason

Coming Soon!

The exhibition Women of the Chrysler: A 400-Year Celebration of the Arts opens next Wednesday, March 24.  
This expansive show fills both the Large and Small Changing Galleries with more than 150 works by women painters, sculptors, photographers, silversmiths, glass artists, and printmakers drawn from the Chrysler Museum's permanent  collection. The exhibition also traces the course of women’s ever-expanding contributions to the arts in Europe, America, and eventually the world .

Here in the Library we've been gathering information about the contributions of women to the history of the Museum itself. Women from all backgrounds have played and integral role in the creation, development, and operation of the Museum from its very beginning.  Each week during the exhibition, the blog will feature a story about a woman or group of women accompanied by an online album of images from the Library's collections. We  also invite you to join us in the Library throughout the run of the exhibtion to learn more about these dedicated women.

Stay tuned!

Kate Chopin's The Awakening at Art & Books, Wine & Cheese!

Please join us on March 17th at 6:30pm for Art & Books, Wine & Cheese in the Gifford Room at the Chrysler Museum of Art. We will be kicking off Women of The Chrysler by discussing Kate Chopin’s The Awakening. Kate Chopin, nee’ Catherine O’Flahrety, was born in St. Louis to an Irish father and a mother of French descent. She spent her life surrounded by strong women, including her mother and two grandmothers, and good friends who influenced her creative ideas and encouraged her writing. Her charming personality and quick mind led to friendships with the likes of Edgar Degas and George Sand. Chopin’s writing was both celebrate and heavily criticized by her contemporaries; quite notably Willa Cather.

Upon its publication in 1899, The Awakening was labeled as shocking, morbid and distasteful. Chopin’s depiction of the public and private life of a well-off woman of polite New Orleans society caused a fuss in its day, but was quickly forgotten after her death in 1904. A resurgence of the popularity of her work in the late 1960s and early 1970s once again brought Chopin’s novels and short stories to the forefront. Her work has become a permanent fixture in literature classes world-wide, The Awakening being arguably the most popular and thought-provoking. We hope that you will be provoked to join us on the 17th.

For more information about Kate Chopin, please visit http://www.katechopin.org/.

- Library Assistant Sara Mason

Item of the Week: “To Imagine a Language is to Imagine a Form of Life”

We're getting ready for Women of the Chrysler: A 400-Year Celebration of the Arts, part of Minds Wide Open: A Statewide Celebration of Women in the Arts in Virginia.  The exhibition opens March 24, 2010 and will feature an amazing variety of artwork by women artists drawn from the Chrysler Museum Collection. In the Library you'll find books and other resources about each artist included in the exhibition.  Spring Library Intern Victoria M. Schwab was inspired by one of the works in the show  - Deborah Butterfield's 2000 peice Kakiwi to write the following about one of the volumes featured in the reading room:  Horses: the Art of Deborah Butterfield.  Victoria writes:
"Deborah Butterfield’s work establishes a language with another species through her ability to understand and communicate with the horse. When constructing her sculptures she relies on her memory of the horse’s internal gestures and energy rather than a mere copy. Butterfield compares the process to learning how to dance with someone who cannot talk to you.

Butterfield claims art is meant to advance human beings and that a single work is the “debris from thinking and growing.” She specifically believes that art is geared to confront the viewer with what may initially appear uncomfortable through a vulnerable and complex position. Through her expression of language, growth and perception are made achievable in the physical presence of her sculptures. The viewer is asked to climb into and connect with the shape, which offers a view of the world through another set of eyes. The transference of oneself into the form allows the viewer to bring their unique life experiences to the work of art, meanwhile perceiving the remnants of Butterfields’s energy. The wonderful result is that the viewer utilizes what makes them unique from the next person and grows from the experience; one that begins with yourself and then working outward."

By: Victoria M. Schwab

Derived from the 1988 interview with Marcia Tucker

More information about Women of the Chrysler  will soon be available here, or your can learn about other events taking place as part of Minds Wide Open here.