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EUROPEAN & AMERICAN ART COUNCIL
Newsletter September 2015
NOTE OUR NEW LECTURE TIMES President's Message
In This Issue Continuity and ….CHANGE President's Message Usually, with a new Board, we hear of change and new Curator's Message directions. Instead, with the start of our new Board year, I am strongly conscious of the store of experience and memory I September Lecture inherit, the legacy of more than a generation of Board and Council members. As a relative Upcoming Events newcomer, I am so pleasantly surprised to have the active support and help of so many of Annual Meeting our past Council presidents, as well as of our Council Liaison Jan Quivey and Curator New Members Dawson Carr. And I am further bolstered by several wonderful returning Board members. Past Lecture You all have my grateful appreciation. I cannot express it adequately. Travel Along with the continuity, there are some CHANGES ahead, Dues mainly in our scheduling. Our program year kicks off on the FOURTH Thursday of September, the 24th, in the Trustees Board In Memoriam Room, with a presentation by the Janet and Richard Geary Curator of European Art, Dawson Carr, on the history of Board of Directors landscape painting as a prelude to the Fall exhibition, Seeing Nature: Landscape Masterworks from the Paul G. Allen Family President Collection. Dawson will explore the development of landscape Greg Leiher painting from its beginnings as a small window on the world in
Vice-President the fifteenth century. Scheduling conflicts made the choice of the Patty McMahan fourth Thursday unavoidable.
Secretary October's program will take place on WEDNESDAY October 21st and will include a private walk-through of the Seeing Nature Mary Klein exhibit, led by Curator Carr. A reception in the Stevens Room will precede the tour. Selecting an evening that is normally Treasurer closed to museum visitors will enable a more intimate tour, with Susan Matthies fewer interruptions. The exhibit's 40 paintings cover a span of five centuries, all drawn from the collection of Microsoft co- Past President founder and philanthropist Paul G. Allen. Carol Ann Caveny
The exhibit explores the power of landscape to locate the viewer Committees in time and place, and the artists' response to the phenomena of the natural and man-made world. Echoes of the Golden Age in Archives Venice will reverberate with works by Canaletto, and we will see Barbara Dechet the groundbreaking landscape effects of J.M.W. Turner in the Kent Caveny early 19th century. The Impressionists are well represented, with five great landscapes by Claude Monet. Post-Impressionists such Communication as Paul Cezanne are also included. The 20th-century section Christine Nelson features Americans such as Georgia O'Keefe, Edward Hopper and Ed Ruscha, as well as European artists. All in all, a great Day Trips Glenys Harrison opportunity to benefit from Dawson's expertise as the author of several of the catalog entries. Hospitality Mary Lou Hautau In November, we will again meet on the third WEDNESDAY, Marty Dougherty November 18th, for a lecture on American art by Portland State Maureen Moller University adjunct professor Bryna Campbell, Ph.D. The title is Maria Teresa Pietrok Seeing America: Nature, Place and Nation in the Paul G. Allen Family Collection. Reception and lecture will take place in the Member-at-Large Miller Gallery of the Mark Building. Dee Poth For December, we have already scheduled the Holiday Luncheon Membership for Saturday December 12th. Please mark the date on your Arden Albertini calendars. More details will be coming shortly. We look forward
Programs to a strong turnout for this warm social occasion bringing Carol Shults together new and old friends. Patty McMahan In addition to our museum presentations, several day trips and a Special Events major out-of-town trip are already in the works. We know how Glenys Harrison much these events add to our appreciation and enthusiasm for Nancy Morrice European and American art, especially for artists not represented in our collections. You can expect to hear more Travel shortly from Day Trip Chair Glenys Harrison about a trip to Carol Ann Caven Seattle in the fall. And we will have news soon about a major Greg Leiher out-of-town trip the week of April 11, 2016! Patty McMahan
Maureen Moller Please help me welcome our newest Board members: Kent Curatorial Caveny, Nancy Morrice, Marty Dougherty, Maria Teresa Pietrok, Advisor Dawson Carr Glenys Harrison and Barbara Dechet, the latter two returning after a short absence. They join the other returning members Council Liaison you see listed on the left side of your newsletter. Jan Quivey The entire Board looks forward to your active participation in
our fall programs, that are geared to enhance and broaden our understanding of European and American art. We encourage you to interest friends and family in our activities and remind you that we welcome potential new members of the EAAC.
Greg Leiher
Curator's Column Dawson Carr, Ph.D., The Janet and Richard Geary Curator for European Art, has had his purview of European Art extended from 1850-1900. In addition to shouldering those additional 50 years, he is busy working on the deinstallation of the European Galleries in preparation for the upcoming exhibition, Seeing Nature: Landscape Masterworks from the Paul G. Allen Family Collection.
He will be lecturing on the exhibition on September 24th and doing a walk-through on October 21st. [see below]
SEPTEMBER 24th LECTURE
THURSDAY, September 24:
Trustee Room - Fourth Floor Mark Building 6:00 p.m. Social Hour 6:30 p.m. Program: Dawson Carr, The Janet and Richard Geary Curator of European Art, Portland Art Museum Seeing Nature: Landscape Masterworks from the Paul G. Allen Family Collection
Upcoming Events Sunday, September 13: Gods and Heroes: Masterpieces of the École des Beaux- Arts, Paris CLOSES
Friday, October 9: Opening Party-Tickets on sale Seeing Nature: Landscape Masterworks from the Paul G. Allen Family Collection 6:00 pm-9:00 pm
Exhibition opens on Tuesday, October 10th
Wednesday, October 21: Stevens Room - Belluschi Building 6:00 p.m. Social Hour 6:30 p.m. Program: Dr. Carr will lead a walk-through of Seeing Nature: Landscape Masterworks from the Paul G. Allen Family Collection
Wednesday, November 18: Miller- Mark Building 6:00 p.m. Social Hour 6:30 p.m. Program: Bryna R Campbell, Ph.D. Scholar and Instructor, American and Modern Art, and American Cultural Studies, Portland State University Seeing America: Nature, Place, and Nation in the Paul G. Allen Family Collection
December 12: Holiday luncheon at the Waverley Country Club
No meeting in January 2016
Annual Meeting
Members gathered on June 17 for the Council's Annual Meeting. Before settling down to business, however, Dawson Carr, The Janet and Richard Geary Curator of European Art, took the group on a private tour of the exhibit, Gods and Heroes, Masterpieces from the Ecole des Beaux-Arts, Paris. This tour was a perfect example of how enriching and enjoyable it is to be in the galleries with the Curator!
Following the tour, the group gathered in the Miller Gallery for the business of electing new officers for the 2015-2016 year. Carol Ann Caveny called on Sarah Munro, chair of the nominating committee, to introduce the proposed officers: Greg Leiher, President; Patty McMahan, Vice President, Mary Klein, Secretary and Susan Matthies, Treasurer. These folks were elected with great enthusiasm. Carol Ann continued by thanking all the members of the current Board, and giving a brief summary of the year ended June 30, 2015. She provided everyone present with a printed Summary of Council Activities, and reported that the Council is growing; and from the summary of the Treasurer's report she gave, it is clear that our next year should be a good year for Council programs, as well as assisting with exhibition support and other activities to enhance the Museum's European and American Galleries. (The Annual Summary of Activities and/or Treasurer's Report are available upon request.)
Following a delicious and plentiful buffet dinner, Dawson Carr gave us a preview of the upcoming year, which will focus on our own collections, as well as include an exhibit of 39 masterpieces from the Paul G. Allen collection. Titled Landscape Masterpieces from the Paul G. Allen Family Collection, this exhibit will run from October 10, 2015 through January 10, 2016. (And just a hint about 2017, Dawson says to be on the lookout for an amazing exhibit of French sculptor and graphic artist, Auguste Rodin's work.) Dawson closed by expressing his deep gratitude to the Council's members, and their wonderful support of the Museum.
Judy Lyons
New Members
Welcome to our new members:
David Barnard and Akiko Hashimoto Giovanna and Richard Jackson Lewis (Art) and Sara Jo McArthur Adrienne (Didi) Nowers
Past Lectures
May 21st Lecture Dawson Carr's lecture: Recent Acquisitions and Introduction to Gods and Heroes.
The May lecture by Dawson Carr in the Fields Ballroom was probably the best attended Council meeting of the season. Lavishly illustrated and contextualized by Dawson, the lecture itself was a treat to the senses.
Because of its relevance to both his topics I think it might be useful here to reproduce the Hierarchy of Painting as it was generally accepted in Europe from the 17th to the mid-19th centuries:
History Portrait Genre Landscape Animal Still Life
Distilling this information-rich lecture:
PAM historically has had a dearth of genre painting. The recent donation by Marilyn Podemski of two works by Louis-Marc- Antoine Bilcoq not only help to alleviate that situation, but also complete the Museum's holdings of the only significant Portland collection of genre paintings - that of Joseph R. Bowles.
Portland's much-loved "The Drunken Cobbler" by Jean- Baptiste Greuze is a masterwork of genre painting (coming also from the Bowles collection) and very different in tone from the Bilcoqs. It is more serious about its moral lesson. Greuze himself refused to join the Académie as a protest of its undervaluing of genre painting.
Gods and Heroes
Gods and Heroes offers an opportunity to see the Heirarchy as it was manifested in artists' training at the École des Beaux Arts. Complex compositions dealing with subjects from Greek mythology were often awarded the Prix de Rome, the grand prize.
The title of the exhibit has a dual meaning: It refers not only to the subjects of the paintings, but to the artists themselves; i.e. the likes of the great Jacques-Louis David and Jean-August- Dominique Ingres. There was enormous value placed on the skill of drawing. Look for Raphael, Jean-Honoré Fragonard, Charles-André van Loo and Antoine Coypel.
Don't miss: the museum is marking all paintings within the collections of works by École-trained artists.
Notice the extreme youth of the artists included.
Included are works deriding the academic tradition: Look for the comic Menelaus Triumphant by Honoré Daumier, the great French satirist.
I'd like to note how this exhibit enhances and extends the knowledge we have gained from many exhibits of the last few years - Body Beautiful and the recent Tuileries show from last summer being the first to come to mind. Many thanks to Portland Art Museum for making this a continuing saga, and to Dawson Carr for illuminating it so beautifully for us.
Carol Shults
Travel Travel opportunities for council members include an October day trip to Seattle to see wonderful Impressionist paintings from the Mellon Collection and a Spring trip to Los Angeles.
October Day Trip to Seattle
A bus trip is planned for Thursday, October 29 to the Seattle Art Museum to see Intimate Impressionism from the National Gallery of Art (in Washington, DC). The collection is comprised of extraordinary paintings, considered to be the jewels of one of the finest collections of French Impressionism in the world. This is the first time this remarkable collection has gone on tour and it is only because the East Building of the National Gallery of Art, Washington, DC will be closed for renovation. Seattle is the last opportunity to view this exhibition before it heads home. This exhibition features 68 intimately scaled paintings by Impressionist and Post-Impressionist masters, including Edouard Manet, Auguste Renoir, Claude Monet, Eugène Boudin, Paul Cézanne, Edgar Degas, Camille Pissarro, Pierre Bonnard, Edouard Vuillard, Paul Gauguin, and Vincent van Gogh, among others.
Included in the tour will be a guided tour, time to explore on your own, and a gourmet lunch in a private dining room at the museum. Dawson Carr will be traveling with us as well.
Mark your calendars and look for more details and your registration form in the next week.
Visit SAM's web page
Spring Trip to Los Angeles The European & American Art Council Invites you to Join us in experiencing the World of Art In Los Angeles, California April 10-15, 2016 Join The Janet and Richard Geary Curator of European Art, Dawson Carr, Ph.D. and Council members for a five day and five night museums visit. * J. Paul Getty Museum, Getty Villa, LA County Museum of Art, The Broad, the Huntington Museum+, Norton Simon Museum+. * Group lunches, one evening meal, potential evening entertainment.
* Final details will be available in November including a recommended hotel.
* Deposits will be taken in November with final payment in February.
Please contact Carol Ann Caveny if you are interested. [email protected] +The Huntington Art Collections focus on two distinct areas- European art from the 15th to the early 20th century, and American art from the late 17th to the mid-20th century. The holdings reside in two buildings on the Huntington estate, The Huntington Art Gallery, and the Virginia Steele Scott Galleries of American Art.
Link to article and pictures of these museums
Dues
The time has come to raise Council membership dues. On a Museum-wide basis, Council dues will become $150 per person/couple beginning on November 1, 2015. Supporting memberships will rise to $250, and Benefactor memberships will remain at $500. You will see the new fees in your Council membership renewal forms and on the website after November 1.
Did you know that you can renew your Council dues on the Museum's website? Go there and extend your membership for another year BEFORE November 1. Remember that you must be a current Museum member to belong to a Council.
Many of you will recall that the current fee structure was put in place in 2008. At the time, Council bylaws stipulated that fees would be revisited every three years, but Director Brian Ferriso urged us to hold steady while the economy recovered. Even at the new rate, Portland's Councils are priced far below those of our peer museums. We hope you will all agree that it is still a great bargain!
In Memoriam
John Burnett Wild MD, MRCP November 12, 1923 - July 26, 2015
John Wild, our tall, funny and charming friend of the EAAC, was born in Sunderland, England. He spent his early years in India, Egypt and Scotland, following his physician father's career in the British Royal Army. He went to Bedford School (founded in 1552 by Sir William Harper and his wife Dame Alice), where he excelled in formal studies as well as rugby.
He attended St. Mary's Medical school and the University of London. During WWII he was a firewatcher during the Luftwaffe's bombing raids - "with my pail of water next to me - not sure what I could have done". He also acted in amateur plays (usually farces) and after the war obtained his MRCP and became an internist.
In the early 1950's John went to Iowa City as an Assistant Professor of Internal Medicine in the SUI Hospitals. It was there that he met Sabine and they married in 1954. A journey to Portland in 1961, with its 'beautiful clouds' so impressed him that he prevailed on Sabine to move there. He practiced medicine in Portland at Northwest Permanente Kaiser Hospitals as their first cardiologist. He was also a principal Investigator of NIH studies at their Portland Research Center and a published researcher and author.
John continued to enjoy acting in Portland theater productions and was a supporter of the arts and cultural associations such as the Portland Art Museum, the Maryhill Museum and the Oregon Shakespeare Festival. He is survived by his wife Sabine, children Anne, Phillip and Paul and was the devoted grandfather of eight grandchildren. Glenys Harrison
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