To celebrate the Eskenazi Museum of Art’s 75thbirthday, each of the five curators has chosen a group of objects for Spotlights: Five Views into the Eskenazi Museum of Art’s Collection. Highlighted for their rarity, research interest, or importance, the selections show the range and quality that make the museum’s collection among the best in the country.
A rare album of photographs made by English photographer Julia Margaret Cameron is the focus for Nan Brewer, the Lucienne M. Glaubinger Curator of Works on Paper. One of only nine such albums (the only one in an American public collection), it is a rare treasure. The disbinding of the album for repair enables a unique opportunity to display more than half of the images together at the same time. You can find more about Cameron's work at the Victoria and Albert Museum's website.
Jenny McComas, the Class of 1949 Curator of European and American Art, is putting the spotlight on French sculpture made between 1890 and 1945. Our collection includes significant works by some of the most important sculptors working in France during this period, including Jacques Lipchitz, Aristide Maillol, and Auguste Rodin. This exhibition draws attention to this important strength in our collections.
The museum’s outstanding collection of ancient jewelry is celebrated by Juliet Istrabadi, acting Curator of the Ancient Art. Cherished for its beauty, jewelry also reflects social status, cultural practices, religious beliefs, and international trade. The selection on display will explore the many ways that these objects of personal adornment were valued in the ancient world.
Judy Stubbs, the Pamela Buell Curator of Asian Art, chose Japanese woodblock prints called surimono. Luxurious prints commissioned by individuals or groups for special occasions, surimono feature finer printing, paper, and inks than those commonly used in commercial prints. The Eskenazi Museum of Art has an outstanding collection of surimono, but they are rarely on view due to the fugitive nature of the pigments.
Indigo-dyed Yoruba textiles are highlighted by Diane Pelrine, the Raymond and Laura Wielgus Curator of the Arts of Africa, Oceania, and the Americas. The installation will feature some cloths that are promised gifts to the museum from artist and local collector William Itter and have never been exhibited before.
This exhibition is made possible in part by a gift from Ann K. Sanderson and by the Class of 1949 Endowed Curatorship for European and American Art, the Thomas T. Solley Endowed Curatorship for Ancient Art, the Lucienne M. Glaubinger Endowed Curatorship for Works on Paper, the Thomas T. Solley Endowed Curatorship for Asian Art, and the Raymond and Laura Wielgus Endowed Curatorship for the Arts of Africa, Oceania, and the Americas.
