Annual Report for the Year 2017-2018
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SEATTLE ART MUSEUM ANNUAL REPORT 2017 – 2018 JULY 1, 2017 THROUGH JUNE 30, 2018 CONTENTS LETTER FROM THE DIRECTOR & CEO, CHAIRMAN & PRESIDENT OF THE BOARD 3 SEATTLE ART MUSEUM 12 ASIAN ART MUSEUM 18 OLYMPIC SCULPTURE PARK 24 EXHIBITIONS, INSTALLATIONS & PUBLICATIONS 27 ACQUISITIONS 40 FINANCIAL & ATTENDANCE REPORT 44 EDUCATION & PUBLIC PROGRAMS 48 BOARD OF TRUSTEES, STAFF & VOLUNTEERS 56 DONOR RECOGNITION Cover: Installation view of Yayoi Kusama: Infinity Mirrors at Seattle Art Museum, 2017, photo: Natali Wiseman. Contents: Installation view of Figuring History: Robert Colescott, Kerry James Marshall, Mickalene Thomas at Seattle Art Museum, 2018, photo: Stephanie Fink. ANNUAL REPORT 2017 – 18 Photo: Natali Wiseman. LETTER FROM THE DIRECTOR The fiscal year of 2017/2018 was an exciting one publications, programs, acquisitions, and initiatives for all three locations of the Seattle Art Museum. that helped us accomplish our mission of & CEO, CHAIRMAN & It included astounding highlights such as the connecting art to life in this fiscal year. PRESIDENT OF THE BOARD resounding success of the popular Yayoi Kusama: We are proud of the hard work of all involved and Infinity Mirrors exhibition at Seattle Art Museum, wish to extend our deepest thanks to our members, the official groundbreaking that kicked off the donors, sponsors, volunteers, trustees, and staff $56 million restoration and enhancement of whose support, generosity, and tireless work helped the beautiful Art Deco Asian Art Museum, and make these great achievements possible. a tremendous two-day celebration in honor of the founders of the Olympic Sculpture Park, Jon Kimerly Rorschach and Mary Shirley, that raised nearly $700,000 to Illsley Ball Nordstrom Director and CEO benefit programs at the sculpture park. These Stewart Landefeld important milestones were matched by financial Chairman, Board of Trustees success for the museum with blockbuster exhibitions driving membership, admissions, Winnie Stratton museum store, and café growth year over year. President, Board of Trustees In the report that follows, we highlight each of our locations and offer details about these successes and the many other exhibitions, installations, 2 ANNUAL REPORT 2017 – 18 SEATTLE ART MUSEUM Photo: Natali Wiseman. 3 A YEAR OF DYNAMIC GLOBAL PROGRAMMING In 2017–18, SAM celebrated the depth of its global artistic program through exhibitions ANNUAL REPORT 2017 – 18 and educational programming that resonated with visitors from near and far. The downtown museum saw strong attendance and record museum membership, which reached an all-time high of 55,991 households. From the enthusiasm surrounding Yayoi Kusama: Infinity Mirrors to the new scholarship introduced by Andrew Wyeth: In Retrospective, and the thought- provoking questions raised by Figuring History, this year proved to be one of SAM’s most dynamic. Energetic participation, thoughtful engagement, impactful collaborations and generous support all came together to enliven the museum in brilliant, new ways. Installation view of Yayoi Kusama: Infinity Mirrors at Seattle Art Museum, 2017, photo: Natali Wiseman. 4 YAYOI KUSAMA: INFINITY MIRRORS IGNITES EXCITEMENT AND INSPIRATION ANNUAL REPORT 2017 – 18 The year opened with Yayoi Kusama: Infinity Activities across all departments supported the Mirrors, an exhibition that prompted around- monumental success of Yayoi Kusama: Infinity the-block lines of visitors eager to experience Mirrors. SAM’s conservators provided critical the artist’s immersive Infinity Mirror Rooms. insights into the care and display of the artist’s Kusama, who has been creating work since the complex works. Engaging educational programs 1950s, became the unlikely pop star of 2017. included an evening screening of Kusama’s film The exhibition welcomed visitors from nearly and video works and an interactive Pom-Pom every state in the US, as well as from countries Garden Installation presented by the Gardner throughout the world. Over 16,000 people became Center for Asian Art and Ideas. The Sunday museum members during the three months of Drop-In Studio: Infinity Reflections series also the exhibition—a testament to the community’s offered a special opportunity for visitors of all enthusiasm for this unique opportunity to see ages to participate in hands-on art making the life’s work of a true visionary. The in-depth inspired by Kusama’s processes alongside local survey offered an opportunity for visitors to artists, including Junko Yamamoto, Celeste experience five of her iconic Infinity Mirror Cooning, Regina Schilling, and Ellen Ziegler. Rooms alongside more than 60 works on paper, sculptures, and large-scale paintings from the Installation view of Yayoi Kusama: Infinity Mirrors at Seattle 1950s to the present, including the West Coast Art Museum, 2017, photo: Natali Wiseman. debut of her most recent works. 5 ANNUAL REPORT 2017 – 18 ANDREW WYETH: IN RETROSPECT EXPLORES A MASTER ARTIST IN UNEXPECTED WAYS In the fall, SAM presented the groundbreaking aspects of the seminal artist that are captured in SAM showcased the films created by 25 teams, exhibition Andrew Wyeth: In Retrospect, curated the accompanying catalogue co-edited by Junker. which ranged from poignant to humorous. The by Patricia Junker, SAM’s Ann M. Barwick Teen Arts Group also designed tours focused on SAM’s Education and Public Programs team also Curator of American Art, in partnership with the historical representations of the female figure and organized a wide-ranging slate of programming. Brandywine River Museum. Featuring over 100 the ways those histories intersect with the #MeToo Educators created an audio guide in partnership paintings and drawings from throughout Wyeth’s movement. The exhibition resonated strongly with the Brandywine River Museum that offered career, the exhibition followed the evolution of with teachers; over 400 attended the Educator engaging insights into the exhibition and was one of America’s most famous painters by Preview—one of the highest figures experienced by over 18,000 visitors. Public bringing together well-known and rarely seen ever seen for this event. Programming explored the cinematic influence of works. Andrew Wyeth: In Retrospect was Andrew Wyeth’s work, inviting local filmmakers to especially noteworthy for the new scholarship it create short films inspired by the paintings during brought to light, including the role that film played a weeklong sprint; throughout the exhibition, in inspiring Wyeth’s art and other lesser-known Installation views of Andrew Wyeth: In Retrospect at Seattle Art Museum, 2017, photos: Natali Wiseman. 6 FIGURING HISTORY REDEFINES REPRESENTATION AND INSPIRES NEW COLLABORATIONS The spring exhibition Figuring History: Robert Colescott, Kerry James Marshall, Mickalene Thomas featured three pioneering artists from ANNUAL REPORT 2017 – 18 successive generations who use figurative painting to critique and redefine mainstream narratives of Black representation. Curated by Catharina Manchanda, Jon & Mary Shirley Curator of Modern & Contemporary Art, the exhibition and its publication presented important works from SAM’s collection, including the recently acquired Les Demoiselles d’Alabama: Vestidas (1985) by Colescott, alongside loans from several institutions and collections. Mickalene Thomas also created new works for the exhibition. Figuring History reflected the museum’s role in the community as a place where exciting and challenging questions can be asked—an aspect of the show that was at the heart of its robust educational programming. The Figuring History cell phone tour featured a range of voices and stories from local cultural ambassadors and was used by over 1,600 visitors. An interactive educational space called “Reflect and Respond” combined digital and analog activities to surface important questions raised by the exhibition and inspired thousands of note-card responses from visitors. The Complex Exchange program series, hosted at both the Seattle Art Museum and at the Northwest African American Museum (NAAM), featured Seattle community members from a variety of disciplines, who tackled themes that resonated with Figuring History and NAAM’s exhibition Everyday Black. A number of community partnerships and collaborations were essential to Figuring History’s success. SAM was honored to collaborate with the Seattle People of Color Salon (SPoCS ) to implement viewing hours open only to SPoCS members. This opportunity was created specifically for People of Color, by People of Color. The viewing hours took place once per month, were free for SPoCS members, and included networking, activities, and facilitated discussions with local podcasters. The exhibition’s Community Opening also featured a partnership between Teen Arts Group and the NAAM Youth Curators, who co-led tours centered on African American history and identity. SAM partnered with Kids and Race to co-author a guide focused on looking at works of art and generating discussions on race and identity with young children. SAM’s Education team also deepened their relationship with Exhibition Educator advisors. Donte Felder and Eve Sanford reviewed the Educator Resource Guide and also led the Educator Workshop, a collaborative method that will be used as a model for future exhibitions. Installation views of Figuring History: Robert Colescott, Kerry James Marshall, Mickalene Thomas 7 at Seattle Art Museum, 2018, photos: Stephanie Fink and Natali Wiseman. JEAN-MICHEL BASQUIAT’S UNTITLED: A RARELY SEEN MASTERPIECE COMES TO SEATTLE In March