Inside the MFAH Posts by Valeria Turturro
The Characters of Kenwood: Kitty Fisher August 30, 2012
During the run of the exhibition Rembrandt, Van Dyck, Gainsborough: The Treasures of Kenwood House, London, we have filled you in on the lives of the characters that add to the colorful history of the Kenwoodestate. Quite a few of these 18th-century beauties—including actresses, courtesans, and other celebrities—would have recognized (and in some cases snubbed) each other had they entered the …
The Characters of Kenwood: John Joseph Merlin July 23, 2012
During the run of the exhibition Rembrandt, Van Dyck, Gainsborough: The Treasures of Kenwood House, London, we will fill you in on the lives of the characters that add to the colorful history of the Kenwood estate. Many of the artworks in the show are full-length portraits of glamorous society ladies painted by artists competing in the Royal Academy of Arts exhibitions. Quite a few of these 18th- …
The Characters of Kenwood: Daphne Guinness June 27, 2012
During the run of the exhibition Rembrandt, Van Dyck, Gainsborough: The Treasures of Kenwood House, London, we will fill you in on the lives of the characters that add to the colorful history of the Kenwood estate. Last time we introduced you to Mary, Countess Howe, whose elegant portrait by Thomas Gainsborough depicts fashion trends of the 18th century.The name Guinness may first have become …
A Collector of People and Places June 4, 2012
“You’ll never regret this,” the seller told him. That’s what art collector George Abrams remembers from his first Rembrandt purchase. Now, five decades later, selections from the Maida and George Abrams collection comprise the exhibition Drawings by Rembrandt, His Students, and Circle. This show marks the first time drawings by Rembrandt and his circle have been presented as an exhibition …
Snail Mail: A Conversation with MFAH Curator Anne Tucker (part 3 of 3) May 17, 2012
In the wake of the Eastman Kodak Co. filing for bankruptcy, I sat down for a chat with Anne Wilkes Tucker, the Gus and Lyndall Wortham Curator of Photography at the MFAH. Our conversation evolved from the history of a company to how Kodak forever changed the way artists and historians viewed the world. As we talked about the shrinking presence of snapshots in an increasingly digital world, a new …
A Mother's Day Tour May 8, 2012
This Mother's Day, tour the galleries of the MFAH to explore the diversity of mother-and-child representations throughout the museum's art collections. Click hereto download a handy self-guided tour. Since ancient times, the image of mother and child has appeared in art around the world. From symbols of fertility to reflections of wealth and status, the theme of mother and child has …
The Kodak Snapshot: A Conversation with MFAH Curator Anne Tucker (part 2 of 3) April 3, 2012
In the wake of the Eastman Kodak Co. filing for bankruptcy, I sat down for a chat with Anne Wilkes Tucker, the Gus and Lyndall Wortham Curator of Photography at the MFAH. She discussed the history of Kodak and the monumental news that “something that huge is gone.” In part two of our conversation, Tucker explains how the Kodak snapshot changed the way artists and historians viewed the world around …
The Kodak Era: A Conversation with MFAH Curator Anne Tucker (part 1 of 3) February 17, 2012
When Eastman Kodak Co. filed for bankruptcyin January, the news didn’t just mark a drastic point in a company’s history—it marked the end of an era. After all, the story of Kodak is not simply one of economics, but one of innovation, nostalgia, and heritage. With its invention in 1935 of Kodachrome film, the first commercially successful amateur color film, Kodak forever changed how we view the …
Stains, Sprays, and Splendor Fill the Canvases of Color Field Painter Jules Olitski February 15, 2012
Color Fieldpainter Jules Olitski didn’t stay in one place very long, artistically speaking. Unlike his contemporaries—Helen Frankenthaler, Morris Louis, Kenneth Noland—Olitski changed his artistic techniques frequently. “Olitski is unique among the Color Field painters in the rapidity of his evolution,” says Alison de Lima Greene, MFAH curator of contemporary art and special projects. Greene …
