Category: photo essays

Return to Crystal Bridges

Hiram Powers, Proserpine, c. 1840, marble.
Tim Liddy, The Horror, 2014, enamel and oil on copper. On loan for State of the Art: Discovering American Art Now.
Leo Villareal, Buckyball, 2012, aluminum tubing clad with LED lights atop aluminum plinth. Loaned courtesy of the Madison Square Park Conservancy, Gering and Lopez Gallery, and Leo Villareal.
Jeila Gueramian, IT’S YOU (detail), 2014; crocheted quilting, batting, and LED lights. On loan for State of the Art: Discovering American Art Now.
Henry Kirke Brown, The Choosing of the Arrow, 1849, bronze.
Jamie Adams, niagaradown from the series, Niagara, 2013, oil on linen. On loan for State of the Art: Discovering American Art Now.
Randolf Rogers, Atala and Chactas, 1864, marble.
Adam Belt, Through the Looking Glass (James Webb Telescope Mirror), 2011; two-way mirror, mirror, wood, and LED lights. On loan for State of the Art: Discovering American Art Now.
Hiromi Mizugai Moneyhun; Moths 1, 5, and 7; 2013; hand-cut paper. On loan for State of the Art: Discovering American Art Now.
Gabriel Dawe, Plexus No. 27, 2014; thread, wood, and hooks. On loan for State of the Art: Discovering American Art Now.
Miki Baird, swatch…the weft and warp of red walker, 2010–12, 1/2″ x 1/4″ archival pigment prints. On loan for State of the Art: Discovering American Art Now.
Crystal Bridges Museum cafeteria with Jeff Koons, Hanging Heart (Gold/Magenta), 1994–2006, high chromium stainless steel with transparent color coating and yellow brass.
Jenny Holzer, Venice Installation: Gallery D (Second Antechamber) (detail), 1990, Italian marble tiles.
Elie Nadelman, Woman’s Head, before 1915, bronze. Alfred Stieglitz Collection.
Arthur Garfield Dove, Red Tree and Sun, 1929, oil on canvas. Alfred Stieglitz Collection.
Hamilton Poe, Stack, 2013; box fans, sombreros, and weighted plastic eggs. On loan for State of the Art: Discovering American Art Now.
Peter Glenn Oakley, Stack (2011) and Cassette Stack (2014), marble. Collections of North Carolina Museum of Art and Allen Thomas, Jr., on loan for State of the Art: Discovering American Art Now.
Museum exterior
Richard Estes, Reflections of the Woolworth Building, 2006, oil on board.
John James Audubon, Osprey and Weakfish, 1829, oil on canvas on hardboard. Collection of the National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C., on loan for John James Audubon and the Artist as Naturalist.
Laurel Roth Hope, Biodiversity Suits for Urban Pigeons: Dodo II (foreground) and Biodiversity Suits for Urban Pigeons: Passenger Pigeon II (background); yarn, polyurethane, pewter, glass, epoxy, and walnut. On loan for State of the Art: Discovering American Art Now.
Museum exterior.
Norman Rockwell, Rosie the Riveter, 1943, oil on canvas.
Emma Marie Cadwalader-Guild, Free, c. 1876, basswood.
Dan Webb, Destroyer, 2012, carved fir. Private collection, on loan for State of the Art: Discovering American Art Now.
Jonathan Schipper, Slow Room, 2014; household objects and furniture, cables, pulley, and electric motor. On loan for State of the Art: Discovering American Art Now.
Charles Bird King, Wai-Kee-Chai, Crouching Eagle, c. 1824, oil on panel.
Jeila Gueramian, IT’S YOU (detail), 2014; crocheted quilting, batting, and LED lights. On loan for State of the Art: Discovering American Art Now.
Michael Menchaca, Index of Figural Archetypes and Recurring Pattern Ornamentation, 2013, digital prints. On loan for State of the Art: Discovering American Art Now.
Zoë Charlton, Dreamers and Builders from the series Festoon, 2012, collage and gouache on paper. On loan for State of the Art: Discovering American Art Now.
Museum exterior, with view of café.
All photos by Renée DeVoe Mertz. November 27–28, 2014.

Leo Villareal’s “Buckyball”

Leo Villareal, Buckyball, 2012. Aluminum tubing clad with LED lights atop aluminum plinth. 30 ft. x 144 in. x 144 in. (914.4 x 365.8 x 365.8 cm). Installed at Crystal Bridges Museum, Bentonville, AR. Loaned courtesy of the Madison Square Park Conservancy, Gering & Lopez Gallery, and Leo Villareal.

All photos by Renée DeVoe Mertz, November 28, 2014.

Monet, revisited

Claude Monet, Apples and Grapes, 1880 (detail).

The Art Institute of Chicago recently published the first of several planned online scholarly catalogues based on its collection. This flagship edition focuses on the museum’s paintings and drawings by Monet, and promises to be an incredible free resource for scholars and the mildly curious alike. In addition to contextual essays, technical reports, and extensive documentation, the entries include enlargeable, high-resolution images that allow viewers to see the works in greater detail than would be possible even in the galleries. The following are screenshots of these photographs.

Monet, in my opinion, has never looked so good.

Claude Monet, Etretat, the Beach and the Falaise d’Amont, 1885 (detail).
Claude Monet, On the Bank of the Seine, Bennecourt, 1868 (detail).
Claude Monet, Branch of the Seine near Giverny (Mist), 1897 (detail).
Claude Monet, Branch of the Seine near Giverny (Mist), 1897 (detail).

Impressions of Dublin

Well, Pierce, it looks like your catch phrase caught on somewhere.

If you’re going to Ireland, chances are you will fly in and out of Dublin. The Republic’s capital is a mostly charming city of manageable size with several museums, impressive cathedrals, and numerous drinking establishments. Travelers can see a lot in a short amount of time without sacrificing the enjoyment of simply wandering in a new city. In two days, we drank some good beer, ate some good (Indian) food, and went to six museums, two crypts, two cathedrals, one church, and one library. Someone in a hurry or lodging in a more central part of the city could probably do more.

Staircase in the Long Room of the Old Library, Trinity College. Photo by Joshua Albers, May 23, 2013.
Whale skeleton in the upper galleries of the Natural History Museum. Photo by Renée DeVoe Mertz, May 23, 2013.
Detail of window in St. Patrick’s Cathedral, Dublin. Photo by Renée DeVoe Mertz, May 30, 2013.
Dublin graffiti. Photo by Renée DeVoe Mertz, May 30, 2013.
Detail of pulpit from Christ Church Cathedral, Dublin. Photo by Renée DeVoe Mertz, May 30, 2013.
Second floor of Natural History Museum, Dublin. Photo by Renée DeVoe Mertz, May 23, 2013.
One of several unique floral capitals in the Museum Building, Trinity College, Dublin. Photo by Renée DeVoe Mertz, May 23, 2013.
Detail of window in St. Michan’s Church, Dublin. Photo by Renée DeVoe Mertz, May 30, 2013.
Building in downtown Dublin. Photo by Renée DeVoe Mertz, May 30, 2013.
Second floor of Natural History Museum, Dublin. Photo by Renée DeVoe Mertz, May 23, 2013.
Building in downtown Dublin. Photo by Renée DeVoe Mertz, May 30, 2013.
Christ Church Cathedral, Dublin. Photo by Renée DeVoe Mertz, May 30, 2013.
Shop window in Dublin. Photo by Renée DeVoe Mertz, May 30, 2013.
St. Patrick’s Cathedral, Dublin. Photo by Renée DeVoe Mertz, May 30, 2013.
Dublin graffiti. Photo by Renée DeVoe Mertz, May 30, 2013.
Detail of case on second floor of the Natural History Museum, Dublin. Photo by Renée DeVoe Mertz, May 23, 2013.
Museum Building, Trinity College, Dublin. Photo by Renée DeVoe Mertz, May 23, 2013.
Long Room, Old Library, Trinity College. Photo by Renée DeVoe Mertz, May 23, 2013.
Museum Building, Trinity College, Dublin. Photo by Renée DeVoe Mertz, May 23, 2013.
Detail of window in Christ Church Cathedral, Dublin. Photo by Renée DeVoe Mertz, May 30, 2013.
Detail of case on second floor of the Natural History Museum, Dublin. Photo by Renée DeVoe Mertz, May 23, 2013.
Detail of pigment display in the Long Room of the Old Library, Trinity College. Photo by Joshua Albers, May 23, 2013.
Window in St. Patrick’s Cathedral, Dublin. Photo by Renée DeVoe Mertz, May 30, 2013.
Christ Church Cathedral, Dublin. Photo by Renée DeVoe Mertz, May 30, 2013.

New York, May 2014

Zoe Leonard (b. 1961). 945 Madison Avenue, 2014. Lens and darkened room (camera obscura). Whitney Biennial; Curator: Anthony Elms.
Kiki Smith (b. 1954). Lilith, 1994, United States. Bronze with glass eyes. Metropolitan Museum of Art.
Jean de Liège (d. 1381). Tomb Effigy Bust of Marie of France, c. 1381, from the Chapel of Notre-Dame-la-Blanche, Royal Abbey of Saint-Denis, Ile-de-France, France. Marble with lead inlays. Metropolitan Museum of Art.
Miljohn Ruperto (b. 1971); animated by Aimee de Jongh (b. 1988). Janus, 2014. Digital video, color, sound. 3:30 min. Whitney Biennial; Curator: Stuart Comer.
Dan Graham (b. 1942) with Günther Vogt (b. 1957). Roof Garden Commission, 2014, United States. Ivy, steel, mirrored glass. Metropolitan Museum of Art.
Ai Weiwei (b. 1957). Moon Chest, 2008. 7 chests in huali wood. Brooklyn Museum of Art.
Alma Allen (b. 1970). Three Untitled sculptures, 2013. Marble on walnut and walnut on aluminum. Whitney Biennial; Curator: Michelle Grabner.
Ai Weiwei (b. 1957). Coca-Cola Vase, 2007. Neolithic vase (5000–3000 BCE) and paint. Brooklyn Museum of Art.
Circle of Conrad Meit of Worms (1480s–1550/51). Lucretia, 1500–15, Flanders. Boxwood. Metropolitan Museum of Art.
View across the roof of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, May 2, 2014.
Ai Weiwei (b. 1957). He Xie, 2010. 3,200 porcelain crabs. Brooklyn Museum of Art.
Jean-Joseph Carriès (1855–94). Le Grenouillard, c. 1891, France. Stoneware. Metropolitan Museum of Art.
Riccio (Andrea Briosco, 1470–1532). Striding Satyr with Vase Inkwell and Shell Lamp, ca. 1507, Padua. Bronze. (Metropolitan Museum of Art)
Swoon (Caledonia Dance Curry, b. 1978). Swoon: Submerged Motherlands, 2014. Mixed media installation with the boats, Alice and Maria, from a former 2008 performance. Brooklyn Museum of Art.
Lucas Samaras (b. 1936). Untitled, A, 1966, United States. Graphite and incised lines on paper. Metropolitan Museum of Art.
Charlemagne Palestine (b. 1945). hauntteddd!! nhuntteddd!! n daunttlesss!! n shuntteddd!!, 2013. Stairwell installation with toys, speakers, sound. Whitney Biennial; Curator: Anthony Elms.
Bjarne Melgaard (b. 1967). 2014 installation with mixed media and video. Whitney Biennial; Curator: Stuart Comer.
Pierre-Adrien Dalpayrat (1844–1910) and Alphonse Voisin-Delacroix (1857–1893). Vase with Face, 1892–93, France. Stoneware. Metropolitan Museum of Art.
Ai Weiwei (b. 1957). Ruyi, 2012. Porcelain. Brooklyn Museum of Art.
Swoon (Caledonia Dance Curry, b. 1978). Swoon: Submerged Motherlands, 2014. Mixed media installation with the boats, Alice and Maria, from a former 2008 performance. Brooklyn Museum of Art.
Ai Weiwei (b. 1957). Brooklyn Museum of Art.
Swoon (Caledonia Dance Curry, b. 1978). Swoon: Submerged Motherlands, 2014. Mixed media installation with the boats, Alice and Maria, from a former 2008 performance. Brooklyn Museum of Art.
Ai Weiwei (b. 1957). Bowls of Pearls, 2006. Porcelain bowls and freshwater pearls. Brooklyn Museum of Art.
Saint Elzéar, c. 1370–73, from the Franciscan church, Apt, Provence, France. Alabaster. Metropolitan Museum of Art.

All photos by Renée DeVoe Mertz, May 2–4, 2014.