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American Visionary Art Museum Mandala marylandata.org | DocArt.com - 1997 Fogg Art Museum docart.com | & Do Around Fremont: Joslyn Art Museum famc.org | National Emergency Medical Services Museum Foundation ~ National EMS... nemsmf.org |
 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] MissionTo foster the full integration of a dynamic art museum into the life and liberal arts mission of The College of William & Mary and to serve as a model of curatorial excellence and a catalyst for art exploration at The College and in the surrounding community.[2] [edit] Vision statementThe Muscarelle Museum of Art will play a leadership role in the creation of a vibrant new integrated arts complex at The College of William & Mary. The Muscarelle will be an impressive portal to a facility that will accommodate all performing and fine arts departments, encourage the participation of many other university disciplines, and bring together the campus and the larger community.[2] [edit] HistoryThe 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. Subsequent gifts extended the collection beyond its roots in American portraiture; the treasures in the collection now span the centuries, including works by Hans Hofmann, Picasso, Matisse, and John Stuart 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] Mark Johnson succeeded Mr. Lowry and under his direction, the Museum was expanded in 1987 to nearly double its original size. Mr. Johnson is now the Director at the Montgomery Museum of Fine Arts in Alabama. The third Director was Bonnie G. Kelm, who served from 1996 – 2002, and who recently retired from the University of California-Santa Barbara Art Museum. 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 dayThe Museum is currently led by Aaron H. De Groft, who joined the Muscarelle in 2003. Dr. De Groft came to Williamsburg from the John and Mable Ringling Museum of Art in Sarasota, Florida, and is a 1988 graduate of William & Mary. More than 4,000 works of art from many cultures and historical eras have been collected. The strength of the collection is the holdings in English and American portraits of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries that have national importance. Also included are a survey collection of European and American prints and drawings from the sixteenth through the twentieth centuries, Japanese prints, African art, Asian ceramics, and a noteworthy collection of Abstract Expressionist paintings, drawings, and watercolors. The Museum collection is supplemented and enhanced by numerous special exhibitions that bring works of art from public and private collections worldwide. These exhibitions provide opportunities for the viewing and study of material not otherwise available in this area. The Museum collaborates on special thematic exhibitions with academic departments at The College and with other cultural institutions and organizations. 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 marked the 25th anniversary of the Muscarelle Museum’s opening.[1] [edit] Future arts complexPlans are underway to build a new arts complex to enrich the experiences of the students and visitors and bring new programming for the community.[3] This will increase the space of the Museum, allowing it to bring even more of the permanent collection out of storage and to take advantage of more traveling exhibition opportunities. The new complex will also create more performance space for the music, theater and dance departments, and increase the laboratory and studio space for the art and art history departments.[3] [edit] References[edit] External linksCoordinates: 37°16′05″N 76°42′57″W / 37.2679526°N 76.7158878°W |
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