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Blog Category: Collections

FRAME|WORK: George Washington by Rembrandt Peale

Posted by Sarah Bailey Hogarty on February 22, 2012

FRAME|WORK is a weekly blog series that highlights an artwork in the Museums' permanent collections. On Monday, the Museums were closed in observance of Presidents Day and today is the birthday of American painter Rembrandt Peale (1778–1860). In honor of these two occasions, we feature Peale’s iconic portrait of George Washington, which is currently on display in Gallery 27 at the de Young.

George Washington

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FRAME|WORK: Love and the Maiden by John Roddam Spencer Stanhope

Posted by Sarah Bailey Hogarty on February 15, 2012

This week’s FRAME|WORK, featuring John Roddam Spencer Stanhope’s luscious Love and the Maiden, will serve as the first in a series of posts examining a variety of themes present throughout the special exhibition The Cult of Beauty: The Victorian Avant-Garde, 1860–1900 (opening this Saturday, February 18). Stanhope’s allegorical painting will provide the backdrop for the discussion of topics ranging from artistic technique to the Aesthetic Movement’s color palette to the role of frames in the perception of an artwork.

Love and the Maiden

John Roddam Spencer Stanhope (English, 1829–1908). Love and the Maiden, 1877. Tempera, gold paint and gold leaf on canvas. Museum purchase, European Art Trust Fund, Grover A. Magnin Bequest Fund and Dorothy Spreckels Munn Bequest Fund. 2002.176

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A Band Apart: Ralph Eugene Meatyard and Francesca Woodman

Posted by Sarah Bailey Hogarty on February 8, 2012

Currently on view at the de Young and SFMOMA are two significant photography exhibitions—Ralph Eugene Meatyard: Dolls and Masks and Francesca Woodman, respectively. In this rare, behind-the-scenes look at the curatorial process, Julian Cox (of the de Young) and Corey Keller (of SFMOMA) discuss the elusive issues of artistic intention and practice, the mythology of the artist, and the position of Meatyard and Woodman in the history of photography.

Meatyard Woodman

Left: Ralph Eugene Meatyard (American, 1925–1972). Untitled, ca. 1960–1962. Gelatin silver print. Museum purchase, John Pritzker Fund. 2011.4.1. Right: Francesca Woodman (American, 1958–1981). My House, Providence, Rhode Island, 1976. Gelatin silver print. Courtesy George and Betty Woodman. x2011.467.032

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FRAME|WORK: A Maya vessel from the department of Africa, Oceania and the Americas

Posted by Sarah Bailey Hogarty on February 8, 2012

FRAME|WORK is a weekly blog series that highlights an artwork in the Museums' permanent collections. Later this week, the San Francisco Tribal and Textile Arts Show opens at Fort Mason. In that spirit, we feature an outstanding new acquisition, Lidded vessel in the form of a turtle shell, currently on display at the de Young in Gallery 2.

2011.55.4a-b

Lidded vessel in the form of a turtle shell. Mexico, Central Lowlands, Maya. A.D. 350–450. Earthenware. Gift of Gail and J. Alec Merriam in memory of Merle Green Robertson. 2011.55.4a-b

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Exhibition Beautiful: The Art of Wallpaper

Posted by Sarah Bailey Hogarty on February 6, 2012

William Morris, champion of the Aesthetic Movement, said of interior design, “Whatever you have in your rooms, think first of the walls.” Wallpaper was a defining decorative motif in the homes of the Victorian avant-garde and bourgeoisie alike. In keeping with this fashion, the special exhibition The Cult of Beauty: The Victorian Avant-Garde, 1860–1900, opening at the Legion of Honor on February 18, will feature several environments adorned with the hand printed art wallpaper of Bradbury & Bradbury.

Calling card

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FRAME|WORK: Untitled (Stack) by Peter Voulkos

Posted by Sarah Bailey Hogarty on February 1, 2012

Matter + Spirit: The Sculpture of Stephen De Staebler, currently on view at the de Young, presents a retrospective of the artist’s work. This week’s FRAME|WORK draws attention to De Staebler’s mentor, Peter Voulkos. A renowned sculptor and teacher, Voulkos was hugely influential in the world of ceramics and the Bay Area in particular. Untitled (Stack) is currently on view at the de Young in Gallery 5.

Untitled (Stack), 1980

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