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

Woman at the Chrysler: Docent Liven Art Scene

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.

When I find myself in Huber Court or the Galleries on a weekday morning, I am always impressed by the hum of activity, and the many happy groups touring in a surprisingly orderly fashion. I especially enjoy overhearing bits and pieces of conversations between tour groups and the Docents who make this all possible. Next week these dedicated women and men will celebrate the conclusion of another successful year of leading thousands of children and adults in an enlightening conversation with the Chrysler Museum Collections and exhibitions.

As with many programs at the Museum, the Docent program grew from the hard work of a group of inspired Norfolk women. In 1958, the Junior League of Norfolk established a volunteer docent program to lead school tours at the Museum. Modeling their program after the National Gallery of Art, they began giving their first tours in the spring of 1959 with only six volunteers. These founding volunteers recognized the importance of the arts and the Museum to the quality of education offered in the region’s schools. As the demand for school tours grew, so did the number of volunteers. Consequently, the Junior League pledged $20,000 in 1966 towards the salary of the Museum’s first education director, Mr. Richard Carroll. His primary responsibility was to train the Museum’s Docents. During this time, women from the service clubs of Virginia Beach and Portsmouth also assisted with Museum education programs, including taking works of Art into schools. Even after Walter P. Chrysler Jr. brought his art collection to Norfolk in 1970s, the role of the Docents in the Museum’s mission remained essential, and continues to be a key part of the Museum today.

In honor of the millions of tours that have been given by Museum Docents during the last 50 years, we’ve created a slideshow of images from the Library archives of Docents doing what they do best – bringing people and art together.

This year, as The Azalea Festival becomes NATO fest, we thought we’d take a moment to reach into our archives and have a look back at the tradition of crowning Queen Azalea in Norfolk. The crowing of Queen Azalea was retired in 2009 and replaced with the new tradition of naming a Festival Ambassador, an honored armed forces service member - male or female – to represent their country to NATO and to the world. Representatives from member nations, the armed forces and the Hampton Roads community participated in the Annual Parade of Nations last week, at which the chosen Ambassador, French Air Force Captain Geraldine Ribereau was honored. Past Queens from the United States include Hollywood Actress Patricia Anne Priest (1954) – the first Queen, Lynda Bird Johnson (1961) and Luci Baines Johnson (1965), Tricia Nixon (1969), Jennie Elizabeth Eisenhower (1997), Jennifer Robb (2003) and many more. Please enjoy these photos of Queens past and some of the ladies of their courts. Want more? Stop by the Jean Outland Chrysler Library and have a look at several full-color brochures from the 1950s and 60s celebrating The International Azalea Festival and The Azalea Court as well as military life and tourism in Norfolk.

Azalea Festival

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.

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.

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!