Jule Collins Smith Museum of Fine Art

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Jule Collins Smith Museum of Fine Art
Established October 3, 2003
Location Auburn, Alabama
Type public
Director Dr. Michael De Marsche
Website www.julecollinssmithmuseum.com

The Jule Collins Smith Museum of Fine Art is an art museum on the campus of Auburn University, and is the only university art museum in Alabama.[1] Opened on October 3, 2006, the Jule Collins Smith Museum of Fine Art sits on approximately 20 acres of land, and includes eight exhibition galleries within its 40,000 square feet of available space.[1][2] In addition to the galleries, the museum facility includes an auditorium, cafe, study room, and museum shop. Outside the main building, botanical gardens encompass fifteen acres of land, including a three acre lake.[2]

The museum is named after Jule Collins Smith, the wife of Al Smith, who graduated from Auburn University in 1947.[1] Smith donated $3 million to the project as a gift to his wife, in honor of their 50th wedding anniversary.[1]

Contents

[edit] Exhibits

[edit] Permanent collection

The Jule Collins Smith Museum of Fine Art, seen at night from the north
The Jule Collins Smith Museum of Fine Art, seen at night from the north

The museum's permanent collection focuses mainly on 19th and 20th century American and European Art.[2] The museum includes works by Romare Bearden, Ralston Crawford, Arthur Dove, Georgia O'Keefe, Jacob Lawrence, John Marin, and Ben Shahn, within its Advancing American Art collection.[2] Within the museum's Louise Hauss and David Brent Miller Audubon Collection are 114 prints by naturalist John James Audubon.[1][2] In addition, the museum contains the Bill L. Harbert Collection of European Art collection. This exhibit contains works by Marc Chagall, Salvador Dalí, Henri Matisse, Joan Miró, Pablo Picasso, and Pierre-Auguste Renoir.[2]

[edit] Traveling exhibitions

In the Fall of 2005 (September 1 - December 4, 2005), the museum presented its first traveling exhibit, a collection of quilts titled The Quilts of Gee’s Bend.[1][3] The exhibit features "70 quilts created by four generations of artists from the isolated community of Gee's Bend, Alabama."[3] The Quilts of Gee’s Bend has been described as "some of the most miraculous works of modern art America has produced."[1]

From March 24, 2006 through May 28, 2006, the museum displayed an exhibit on loan from the Georgia Museum of Art at the University of Georgia.[4] The exhibit featured drawings from 19 and 20th century artists such as Charles Burchfield, Giorgio de Chirico, Elaine De Kooning, and Robert Motherwell.[4] The drawings were a representation of Modernism, with images from the Renaissance to modern times.[4]

Beginning in May 2006, the Jule Collins Smith Museum of Fine Art unveiled another exhibit with the assistance of the Georgia Museum of Art.[5] Entitled The Spirit of the Modern: Drawings and Graphics by Maltby Sykes, the exhibit featured work by Maltby Sykes.[5] Known for his work in both paint and print, Sykes was represented by more than fifty objects.[5] Together, the works are indicative of his development from social realism through modern abstraction and remained on display until July 30, 2006.[5]

During the years since it opened, the museum has also featured traveling exhibits displaying ceramic work by Eva Zeisel, architecture inspired by Sambo Mockbee, and paintings by Hugh Williams.[6][7][8]

[edit] References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g Brown, Haden (2003-08-27). AU's Jule Collins Smith Museum of Fine Art Opens Oct. 3. Auburn University News. Retrieved on 2007-08-19.
  2. ^ a b c d e f Jule Collins Smith Museum of Fine Art Fact sheet. Auburn University. Retrieved on 2007-08-19.
  3. ^ a b The Quilts of Gee’s Bend. Jule Collins Smith Museum of Fine Art. Retrieved on 2007-08-19.
  4. ^ a b c Modern Drawings from the Ceseri Collection and the Georgia Museum of Art. Jule Collins Smith Museum of Fine Art. Retrieved on 2007-08-19.
  5. ^ a b c d The Spirit of the Modern: Drawings and Graphics by Maltby Sykes. Jule Collins Smith Museum of Fine Art. Retrieved on 2007-08-19.
  6. ^ Eva Zeisel: The Playful Search for Beauty. Jule Collins Smith Museum of Fine Art. Retrieved on 2007-08-19.
  7. ^ Rural Studio: Education of the Citizen Architect. Jule Collins Smith Museum of Fine Art. Retrieved on 2007-08-19.
  8. ^ Exploration: Discovery: Transformation: new work by Hugh Williams. Jule Collins Smith Museum of Fine Art. Retrieved on 2007-08-19.

[edit] External links