Allen Memorial Art Museum
Oberlin College
87 North Main Street
Oberlin, Ohio 44074
General information: 440.775.8665
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
September 16, 2013
Contact: Megan Harding
440.775.8670
www.oberlin.edu/amam
FALL 2013 PROGRAMS AND EXHIBITIONS AT THE ALLEN
Four current exhibitions at the Allen Memorial Art Museum examine the realist art movement
from its roots in mid-19th-century France to the present day.
Regarding Realism—through June 22, 2014
Rejecting classical tradition, realists depicted the world around them, from landscapes and rural
scenes to the grittiness of urban life. Their open-air paintings and sketches—a landscape study by
Théodore Rousseau, for example—set the stage for the later works of Impressionist and postImpressionist artists, including Claude Monet, whose Wisteria (1919-20) is featured.
See related event on December 5.
Modern and Contemporary Realisms—through June 22, 2014
Works range from colorful expressionist paintings of the early 20th century to highly detailed
photorealist works by Chuck Close and Audrey Flack. Highlights include Picasso’s 1911 canvas,
Glass of Absinthe, and Red Grooms’ near-life-size Token Booth with Nude Commuters (1975).
The Human Comedy: Chronicles of 19th-Century France—through Dec. 22, 2013
This exhibition of about 150 works—primarily lithographs reproduced in the French popular
press—examines both French art and literature. While Balzac was a pioneer of the serial novel,
Honoré Daumier and Paul Gavarni were among the first to utilize lithography as an artistic
medium. Now large numbers of their works could be reproduced and circulated widely in homes,
cafés, and city streets—an immediacy that was well suited to social and political satire.
See related event on October 3.
Harold E. Edgerton, Seeking Facts—through December 22, 2013
Works by the legendary Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) professor, who pioneered
flash photography techniques in the course of his scientific investigations, include images of an
atomic detonation, surface tension, and other phenomena.
FREE PUBLIC EVENTS
First Thursday Lecture, October 3, 5:30 p.m.
“Proper Women, Necessary Women”
Libby Murphy, associate professor of French, and Greggor Mattson, assistant professor of
sociology, give a talk on the gender and sexuality roles evident in the exhibition The Human
Comedy: Chronicles of 19th-Century France. On view through December 22, this selection of French
satirical prints shows female dandies, laundresses, housewives, and courtesans that populated the
19th-century imagination. Murphy curated the exhibition and is teaching a related course.
Tuesday Tea Talk, October 8, 2:30 p.m.—Sebastiaan Faber, professor of Hispanic studies and
director of the Oberlin Center for Languages and Cultures, has developed ObieMAPS, a web
interface that allows users to find connections between museum collections, academic courses,
faculty expertise, and study-away programs at Oberlin College.
First Thursday Lecture, November 7, 5:30 p.m.
Robert M. Edsel, author of The Monuments Men: Allied Heroes, Nazi Thieves, and the Greatest
Treasure Hunt in History, will present this year’s Harold Jantz Memorial Lecture. He will tell the
story of the Monuments Men, a group of American and British scholars and army officers —
including Charles Parkhust, the AMAM’s director from 1949-62—who located and helped to
restitute many of Europe’s art treasures following Nazi theft. Edsel’s book has been adapted for a
major motion picture starring George Clooney, Matt Damon, Cate Blanchett and Bill Murray, which
will open in theaters this December. Edsel’s Monuments Men Foundation for the Preservation of
Art received the 2007 National Humanities Medal. A book signing will follow the talk.
Tuesday Tea Talk, November 12, 2:30 p.m.—Andaleeb Badiee Banta, the museum’s curator of
European and American art, gives a talk on A Vision of the Holy Family Near Verona, a 1581
painting recently reinstalled in the Nord Gallery.
First Thursday Lecture, December 5, 5:30 p.m.
“Courbet’s Realism”
Linda Nochlin, a leading scholar in the field of 19th-century art, holds the Lila Acheson Wallace
Professorship in Modern Art at New York University’s Institute of Fine Arts. Nochlin’s 1971 book
Realism remains the standard source for study of the art movement. She is known for her seminal
essay “Why Have There Been No Great Women Artists?” and other publications such as Women,
Art and Power, The Politics of Vision: Essays on 19th-Century Art and Society, and Representing
Women.
Tuesday Tea Talk, December 10, 2:30 p.m.—Jeffrey Pence, associate professor of English and
cinema studies, will discuss new ways of looking at art history as the history of media
development.
Sunday Object Talks, 2 p.m.
September 15 through December 15 (except October 20 and 27, and December 1). Each studentled talk focuses on a work on view and lasts about 15 minutes, followed by time for questions.
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MUSEUM HOURS: Tuesday through Saturday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Sunday 1 to 5 p.m.; closed
Mondays and major holidays. Free educational or group guided tours may be arranged by calling
440.775.8671.
The Allen Memorial Art Museum cares for more than 14,000 works that provide a comprehensive
overview of the history of art. A non-profit institution that is part of Oberlin College, the AMAM
works with faculty and students to promote direct study of original works of art, foster visual
literacy, and deepen appreciation for the diversity of the world’s cultures. Founded in 1917 with
the idea that learning about art is important for everyone, the museum offers free admission.