Docent In Training - First Evening With a Curator

Hello again,

This weeks class was presented by Maggie Adler curator of sculpture and paintings at the ACMAA. She presented and gave a background history of some of the 19th century arts in the collection of the ACMAA. I am so in love with lectures by persons with a passion for their work and Ms. Adler certainly has that. But passion is only a small part of the process. A curator has to know so much about art history that it boggles my mind. She will be teaching us again this next week on 20th century art of the museum and I hope to pick her mind, if permitted, about the process of knowing what is on the market and how to determine if it fits in the museum. Also knowing if it can be afforded is important.

Since you could not attend the class with me I will show you a couple of paintings that Ms. Adler presented and, give you a very brief description of the artist and, if possible, what lies behind the piece of work.

Johnson Martin Heade - Two Hummingbirds Above a White Orchid 1875-1890

Martin Johnson Heade - Thunderstorm on Narragansett Bay 1868

 Martin Johnson Heade (1819-1904) was born in Bucks County, PA. He is sometimes called a Hudson River School artist but he is also known for his hummingbird paintings, one of which is shown above. Unfortunate that the birds had to die to be still enough to paint. Hummingbird jewelry was also popular in that time period leading to an overkill of the beautiful little creatures. Heade had hoped to create a book on the South American birds but the cost was far too great so it did not happen. The Narragansett Bay painting was originally discovered in an antiques store in Larchmont, NY. Thunderstorm was the centerpiece of the show Ominous Hush: The Thunderstorm Paintings by Martin Johnson Heade at the ACMAA, among other museums, in 1994.

To learn more about Heade use this link
https://www.nga.gov/collection/artist-info.1381.html

Thomas Cole - The Hunter's Return 1845

  When one looks at this painting by Thomas Cole (1801-1848) one sees an idyllic scene. A hunter returning home with food, wife and children rushing to greet him, a cabin and gardens. Lovely, but, Cole is also trying to convey the destruction of the landscape. Note the tree stumps in the lower right of the painting. Recognized as the creator of the Hudson River School of painting Cole did not live a long life but made a great impression on the art world. It is ironic to me that Cole built a house in the area he most wanted to preserve.
For more on Cole follow this link
https://www.nga.gov/collection/artist-info.1155.html

Robert Seldon Duncanson - The Caves 1869

  Robert Seldon Duncanson (1821-1872) was one of few African-American painters in the 19th century. He left the country for Canada during the civil war. Some of his work is said to be references to slavery and he was popular with abolitionists. The caves may or may not have been used for underground rescue of slaves. Duncanson spent the majority of his career in Cincinnati, Ohio and helped develop the Ohio River Valley landscape tradition.

For more on Seldon Duncanson follow this link
https://americanart.si.edu/artist/robert-s-duncanson-1353


I will be posting again no later then this Sunday, October 21 on the class of the 18th which will be even more interesting. In the meantime if you are interested in the collection of the Amon Carter try this link. www.cartermuseum.org/collection.

Adios amigos,

Caroline