Building the image of modern art : the rhetoric of two museums and the representation and canonization of modern art (1935-1975) : the Stedelijk Museum in Amsterdam and the Museum of Modern Art in New York Leigh, M.A. Citation Leigh, M. A. (2008, December 9). Building the image of modern art : the rhetoric of two museums and the representation and canonization of modern art (1935-1975) : the Stedelijk Museum in Amsterdam and the Museum of Modern Art in New York. Retrieved from https://hdl.handle.net/1887/13362 Version: Not Applicable (or Unknown) License: Leiden University Non-exclusive license Downloaded from: https://hdl.handle.net/1887/13362 Note: To cite this publication please use the final published version (if applicable). Building the Image of Modern Art The Rhetoric of Two Museums and the Representation and Canonization of Modern Art (1935-1975): The Stedelijk Museum in Amsterdam and the Museum of Modern Art in New York Proefschrift ter verkrijging van de graad van Doctor aan de Universiteit Leiden, op gezag van Rector Magnificus prof. mr. P.F. van der Heijden, volgens besluit van het College voor Promoties te verdedigen op dinsdag 9 december 2008 klokke 13.45 uur door Mary Anna Leigh geboren te New York in 1958 Promotiecommissie: Promotores: Prof. dr. C.J.M Zijlmans Prof. dr. C.A. van Eck Referent: Prof. dr. R. Zwijnenberg Overige leden: Dr. M.R. Bouquet (Universiteit Utrecht) Prof. dr. T. van Haaften Dit proefschrift kwam mede tot stand met steun van de Nederlandse Organisatie voor Wetenschappelijk Onderzoek (NWO). My ABC’s for D, E, F and G’s Table of Contents Preface I Acknowledgments III Introduction: Museums Build the Image of Modern Art 1 Studying Museums in their Shaping of the History of Modern Art 1 Rhetoric: The Art of Verbal and Visual Persuasion 3 A Comparative Study 5 Rhetoric As Analytical Model 8 Aspects of Rhetoric 9 Invention 10 Arrangement 11 Style 12 Memory 13 Delivery 14 Parameters of Research 14 Using the Rhetorical Approach in Comparing Two Stories of 17 Modern Art: Prize or Price of the Museums’ Rhetoric? Chapter 1: The Rhetoric of Policymaking: Creating One’s Own Image 19 The Stedelijk Museum’s Goals and Ambitions: ‘a living center of visual art’ 24 The Museum of Modern Art’s Goals and Ambitions: 35 ‘The Greatest Museum of Modern Art in the World’ The Development of an organization: The Stedelijk Museum 45 The Development of an organization: The Museum of Modern Art 49 MoMA’s Publications 57 Books in the Stedelijk 60 Anniversary Exhibitions as prime examples of ethos-building exhibitions 61 Anniversaries in ‘het Stedelijk’ 63 Sandberg’s Grand Finale 68 The Stedelijk’s 75th 76 MoMA’s Anniversaries 84 MoMA’s 15th 91 MoMA’s 25th Master Celebration 94 Anniversaries of a Growing Museum 101 Chapter 2: Modern Matters: Defining and Defending Modern Art 104 The Museum of Modern Art’s ‘Modern’ 107 Exhibitions Defining and Defending Modern Art 111 Didactic Exhibitions Explain the ‘Modern’ 114 The Introductory Series to the Modern Arts 118 The Stedelijk Museum’s ‘Modern’ 129 Stedelijk’s Didactic Exhibitions 134 Modern Art as Part of Modern Living: A Sign of Progress 135 The Museum of Modern Art’s Positioning of Modern Art as Part of Modern Life and Living 136 Modern Design: Sign of the Modern 139 MoMA’s exemplary exhibition of Modern Art as Part of Modern Life 144 The Stedelijk Museum’s Positioning of Modern Art 149 as Part of Modern Life and Living Dutch Modern Interior Design During 152 the War An Exemplary Exhibition of Modern Art 156 in Modern Life in the Stedelijk Modern Art of All Times, Ages and Cultures: The ‘Modern’ Quality 159 Children’s Art in the Museum of Modern Art 161 Children’s Art in the Stedelijk 164 Ancestors and Affinities: Older, Exotic 167 and Primitive in the Museum of Modern Art An Exemplary Exhibition of Timeless Modern Art 175 in MoMA The Older, Exotic and ‘Primitive’ in the Stedelijk 177 An Exemplary Exhibition of Timeless Modern Art 179 in the Stedelijk The Necessity to Define Declines 182 Chapter 3: The Making of Masters, Masterpieces and Movements: 184 the Representation of the History of Modern Art Structuring the History of Modern Art 186 The Museum of Modern Art’s Historical Series in the Thirties 189 Early Historical Exhibitions in the Stedelijk 205 Historical Theme Exhibitions in the Stedelijk 213 in the Fifties and Sixties Historical Exhibitions in MoMA in the Fifties and Sixties 236 The Founding Fathers of Modern Art and other Classic Modern Masters 245 MoMA’s Founding Father: Cézanne 245 Van Gogh as the Founding Father in the Stedelijk 250 Monet as New Ancestor in the Stedelijk? 255 Monet’s Position in MoMA 256 Chapter 4: Adding the Contemporary to the Modern Canon: 260 the Positioning and Promoting of the Living Artist Presenting Contemporary Heroes 262 Institutionalizing Pollock in the Museum of Modern Art 262 The Icon Appel in the Stedelijk 270 ‘Inter’national Shows of New Art 275 The New American Painting Show: MoMA’s Claim to Fame 276 Sandberg’s nederlands bijdrage Show 286 The Artist’s Experiment 298 Controlled Experiment in MoMA 301 The Stedelijk’s Experimental Exhibitions 307 The Stedelijk’s Survey Show of Conceptual Artists 319 MoMA’s Experimental and Conceptual Art Shows 325 Conclusions and Outlook: The Prize and Price of Rhetoric 342 Bibliography 354 Biography 381 Samenvatting (Summary) 382 VOLUME II: List of Illustrations and Illustrations Preface The idea for this thesis was planted many years ago. Fascinated by the concept of a constructed art history and drawn to the powerful and intriguing museum phenomenon, I sought to understand and expose what stories museums of modern art told, why they told them and how they told them. From my background in economics, I had learned to view museums as sites of production, distribution and reception of art; institutions in which the meaning and value of art were produced and communicated. The difficulties and possibilities museums of modern art faced in these processes seemed all the more interesting and relevant, since there was so much controversy and uncertainty about matters concerning modern art. Furthermore, the economic, social and political conditions of these museums as organizations in society seemed to influence their courses. During my studies of art history - in which I specialized in modern art - I had delved into the creation of a modern movement and discovered the important role museums had in determining its success. In order to narrow down the subject, two museums of modern art from different countries (with different economic, social and political conditions) were selected. Countries which I knew well, being an American living in the Netherlands. This selection did not only limit my material, it also optimized my research by providing for a fruitful comparison: the selected museums – the Stedelijk Museum and the Museum of Modern Art - were the pioneers of modern art and they respected and influenced each other. Working through the various materials from the two Museums was an absorbing experience. I encountered an immense collection of documents and it became clear that it would not be possible to present all the Museums’ portrayals of modern art history. Besides, to retell the Museums’ stories in a historiography of the museums would not answer the questions concerning the why and how. To gain insight into the processes of meaning making through which the Museums as authorities presented their histories, rhetoric seemed to provide useful analytical tools. What is more, the wealth and beauty of the publications and exhibitions themselves made me want to expose these rich resources: to scrutinize these persuasive presentations in detail in search of how they were constructed. My approach departing from rhetoric thus grew from the material itself. I Rhetoric has opened a whole new exciting terrain and I am only beginning to cultivate the possibilities it has for studying the communicative role of museums in society. This book therefore should not be seen as a blooming bouquet of my research on the subject, but as the first blossoming flower. II Acknowledgements For the most part this dissertation was written in my spare time, next to teaching and raising a family. Although this did not leave much time for research, my teaching on subjects concerning art and museums in society did bring me into contact with many creative men and women in the field, who have fertilized my ideas on presentations of museums over the years. Needless to say, it would be impossible to thank them all personally here, but I am grateful for their inspiration. Doing research on the presentations of two Museums has meant spending many intense, exciting hours in their libraries and archives. I would like to thank Michelle Elligott and Michelle Harvey at the Museum of Modern Art Archives for their patience and assistance during my visits over the years. At the Stedelijk Museum Archives, I received a lot of help and support from Margreeth Soeting and Maurice Rummens, and recently from the librarian Michiel Nijhoff, for which I am very thankful. During the many years it took to write this book, there were periods of complete drought for my research: periods in which others needed to be nurtured. This accepting, and dealing with, responsibilities as they appeared, has taught me a lot. Thanks to the support of colleagues and the love and care of my family and many dear friends, I was always able to revitalize my endeavours and finally complete this book. I would particularly like to thank my mother and my father; my sister Kathy and brother-in-law Rick; and my friends Corry Donner and Jan Jacobs.