Looking at the Collection:
Recent Acquisitions and a Celebration of African-American History Month
February 1 – April 8, 2018
Image captions:
Left: Luigi Lucioni (American, 1900-1988), Portrait of Ethel Waters, 1939, oil on canvas, 32 x 25 in.
Top right: Aimee Perez (Contemporary American), Rare Harvest, 2016, mixed media, 65 x 13 x 13 in.
Bottom right: Renee Stout (Contemporary American), A Vision I Can’t Forget, 1999, lithograph, 30.75 x 21 in.
The Huntsville Museum of Art is pleased to present the latest version of this recurring exhibition, showcasing artworks added to its permanent collection within the past year. Some were purchased for the collection, while others were gifts from generous donors. All were carefully reviewed by the Museum’s Collections and Acquisitions Committee to fit the criteria established for the collection, and are compatible with the Museum’s collecting objectives and goals.
Recent acquisitions exhibitions are by nature a wonderful hodgepodge. Works of different styles and media are displayed together, sometimes with no unifying characteristic other than the fact that they came into the collection within a given period of time. But these shows serve an important purpose – they demonstrate the scope of the Museum’s collecting interests and provide us the opportunity to acknowledge generous donors whose gifts help our collection grow
Exhibition highlights include an important large portrait of a peasant girl by American artist Frank Duveneck, painted in Italy in the mid-1880s, as well as a selection of original hand-colored lithographs by John James Audubon, donated by Mr. & Mrs. William H. Told, Jr. of Vermont. Recent purchases for the Museum’s signature collection of regional contemporary art include a moody nocturnal landscape by Memphis painter Marc Rouillard; an exquisite oil on copper painting by Benjamin Shamback, purchased in memory of long-time Museum employee Linda Berry; and Aimee Perez’s haunting mixed media sculpture, Rare Harvest, which received a Merit Award in the recent Red Clay Survey.
In celebration of African-American History Month, which coincides with the run of this exhibition, the Museum will also highlight several recent acquisitions by African-American artists, as well as works with African-American subjects. These include evocative prints by contemporary artists Renee Stout and Karsten Creightney, as well Luigi Lucioni’s stunning portrait of jazz and blues legend Ethel Waters, painted in 1939 at the height of her fame. The Waters portrait, which has been lovingly restored and reframed, will be unveiled at a special reception on Thursday, February 1, hosted by Dianne Reynolds, Bobby Bradley and the HMA Guild. Find more information here.
The Huntsville Museum of Art is delighted to share these recent acquisitions and to have the opportunity to say: “Thank you, artists! Thank you, donors!”
Luigi Lucioni Acquisition Campaign Funded by:
Cynthia and Rey Almodovar
Mr. and Mrs. Frank Williams
Huntsville Museum of Art Guild
Sara and Robert Arthur
Bobby Bradley and Charley Burruss
Dorothy Davidson
Lynn and Stuart Embury
Lockheed Martin, In Memory of Audrey Rones
Oscar Maxwell Fund
Dianne and James Reynolds
Tristenne and Paul Robin, In Honor of Jean Wessel Templeton
Mr. and Mrs. David W. Smith
Jean Wessel Templeton
The Boeing Company
Friends of the Luigi Lucioni Acquisition Campaign