Muscarelle Museum of Art
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The Muscarelle Museum of Art at The College of William & Mary is an art museum in Williamsburg, Virginia, USA, on the College’s campus.[1] It sits adjacent to the Phi Beta Kappa Memorial Hall on Jamestown Road. The museum was given to the College as a gift from alumni and friends and first opened its doors in 1983.[1] The biggest donor was William & Mary alumnus Joseph L. Muscarelle (Class of 1927) and his wife Margaret. They and their family have continued to support the museum’s operation with funding through the years.[1]
[edit] History
The idea for an art museum was conjured by then-College President Thomas A. Graves, Jr. after a visitor in the 1970s had pointed out that an original Georgia O’Keeffe painting was hanging, unprotected, on a wall on campus.[1] Graves wondered how many other valuables were strewn about campus. After an investigation, it was found that important artwork spanning over 300 years had accumulated. The need, Graves decided, was to establish a museum to preserve and protect them.[1]
In 1732, the third Earl of Burlington gave The College of William and Mary a portrait of physicist Sir Robert Boyle, thus marking the start of the collection.[1] Presently, the Muscarelle Museum of Art contains pieces that span every century since then, including works by Hans Hofmann, Picasso, Matisse and John S. Copley.
According to William & Mary’s website, "The Museum opened in 1983 with Glenn Lowry (currently director at MoMA in New York) as the first Director, and underwent a major building construction and remodeling project in 1987, which resulted in a facility twice the original size. The "world's first solar painting," designed by Gene Davis, the noted Washington Color School painter, transforms the south façade of the Museum into a dramatic and innovative work of art when monumental tubes, filled with colored water, are lit from behind. The title, Sun Sonata, describes both the rhythmic pattern of colors visible at night and the function of the wall as a solar energy collection system by day."[1]
The Muscarelle is accredited by the American Association of Museums, and was the first university/college in Virginia to do so.[1] Fewer than 5% of all museums ever reach this accreditation.
[edit] Present day
Today’s collection surpasses 4,000 works of art from an array of historical eras and cultures. Though diverse, the chief areas of specialty are:[1]
- English and American portraits of the 17th and 18th centuries
- a survey collection of European and American prints and drawings from the 16th through the 20th centuries
- Japanese prints
- African art
- Asian ceramics
- Abstract Expressionist paintings, drawings and watercolors
Many educational opportunities are offered throughout the year in combination with the permanent collection and loan exhibitions, including lectures, gallery talks, demonstrations, seminars and symposia. 2008 marks the 25th anniversary of the Muscarelle Museum’s opening.[1]
[edit] References
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