I thought it would be nice to let our JSEA participants know
about the wonderful SLU Art Galleries which include the
Western Missionaries Exhibit. The following is the WEB site:
http://www.slu.edu/x50436.xml
This exhibit includes Fr. De Smet's cassock woven by the
Native Americans and chalice. The Western Missionaries
Exhibit includes several important Jesuit artifacts and it is
right on campus! There are at least 3 galleries on campus.
Thanks so much for the week!
perspective!
It has been seamless from our
Mariette
Saint Louis University's museums have made campus an art
destination.
Whether you're looking for the work of big-name artists,
religious-inspired pieces or historic architecture, you will
find it at Saint Louis University. The University is home to
three world-class museums—the Saint Louis University Museum of
Art, the Museum of Contemporary Religious Art and Samuel
Cupples House—and is a good neighbor to several outstanding
Midtown museums and galleries.
On Exhibit
by Elizabeth Harris Krasnoff
photos by James Visser and Chad Williams
Saint Louis University's museums have made campus an art
destination.
Whether you're looking for the work of big-name artists,
religious-inspired pieces or historic architecture, you will
find it at Saint Louis University. The University is home to
three world-class museums—the Saint Louis University Museum of
Art, the Museum of Contemporary Religious Art and Samuel
Cupples House—and is a good neighbor to several outstanding
Midtown museums and galleries.
[http://us-mg205.mail.yahoo.com/neo/Images/viewer/sluma.jpg]
Saint Louis University Museum of Art<http://usmg205.mail.yahoo.com/neo/arts-at-slu-79#sluma>
[http://usmg205.mail.yahoo.com/neo/Images/newslink/mocra_sign_250.jpg]
Museum of Contemporary Religious Art<http://us-
mg205.mail.yahoo.com/neo/arts-at-slu-79#mocra>
[http://us-mg205.mail.yahoo.com/neo/Images/viewer/cupples.jpg]
Samuel Cupples House<http://us-mg205.mail.yahoo.com/neo/artsat-slu-79#cupples>
[http://us-mg205.mail.yahoo.com/neo/Images/viewer/sculpturegarden.jpg]
Art in the Midtown Neighborhood<http://usmg205.mail.yahoo.com/neo/arts-at-slu-79#midtown>
Saint Louis University Museum of Art
11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Wednesday through Sunday
(314) 977-2666
sluma.slu.edu<http://sluma.slu.edu/>
Beyond the University's broad lawns and even broader minds,
the Saint Louis University Museum of Art (SLUMA) offers a
collection indicative of the modern SLU, one that has
aesthetic significance, worlds of culture and a social
conscience.
Think Lichtenstein and Picasso, Motherwell and Warhol—artists
known by single monikers or those who are well known in the
international art world.
"Our permanent collection reflects world history and culture—
aesthetics through the centuries," said Petruta Lipan,
director of SLUMA and Cupples House. "We also attract
interesting traveling exhibits well worth visiting."
[http://us-mg205.mail.yahoo.com/neo/Images/viewer/sluma1.jpg]
A second floor gallery at the Saint Louis University Museum of
Art.
And SLUMA's permanent collection is just as captivating, she
said.
The main room on the second floor provides some of the most
notable names in the collection. Dark and deep Motherwells
hang across from a speckled Lichtenstein that in turn, shares
the space with Jasper Johns, Chuck Close and Kiki Smith.
Winding through the various galleries provides a view of the
playful and the placid, the strange and the striking.
"Particularly eye-catching are the glass sculptures of Dale
Chihuly that resemble enormous oyster shells in vibrant colors
and fluid shapes—classic Chihuly," Lipan said.
Also on the second floor, the museum's Andy Warhol room
features his series of Polaroids. In black and white, virtual
unknowns as well as icons like Sophia Loren lounge casually,
sometimes staring directly at the camera; other times looking
off seemingly unaware that the pop artist was capturing the
moment.
Up another flight, more than a bit of history awaits along
with the art, for the third floor houses two of SLUMA's most
prized pieces—a rare pair of 17th century Willem Bleau globes.
Nearby, visitors will see a rich collection of artifacts from
Pierre-Jean De Smet, S.J., and his travels to the Western
frontier to work with Native American tribes. This Collection
of the Western Jesuit Missions fills the entire third floor of
the museum, illustrating not just the experience of the Jesuit
missionaries but also Jesuit and Catholic life.
The Aronson Gallery located on the museum's first floor is
dedicated to traveling and special exhibitions. The gallery's
current exhibition is Robert Motherwell: Abstract
Expressionist, which concludes July 22. Urban Wanderers, a
partnership with Stray Rescue of St. Louis, begins Aug. 3 and
continues until Sept. 16. Offering art with a heart, every
piece in this exhibition is available for auction and directly
benefits Stray Rescue, St. Louis' only no-kill dog and cat
shelter.
Back to top.<http://us-mg205.mail.yahoo.com/neo/arts-at-slu79#top>
Museum of Contemporary Religious Art
11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesday through Sunday
(314) 977-7170
mocra.slu.edu<http://mocra.slu.edu/>
Saint Louis University's Museum of Contemporary Religious Art
(MOCRA) is housed in a chapel once used by Jesuits in training
for the priesthood and brotherhood. That setting is a perfect
fit.
"The Fusz Memorial Chapel space that houses MOCRA provides
visitors with a sacred environment designed to help people
understand the works so that we each may address the ultimate
questions that we have been asking for centuries," said
executive director Terrence Dempsey, S.J., who also holds
SLU's May O'Rourke Jay Endowed Teaching Chair in Art History
and Religion.
Another dimension that makes MOCRA special is that it is the
world's first interfaith museum of contemporary art. Both in
the main space and the side chapels, visitors find works made
by the artists of this time that speak to the meaning of life,
answer questions of place and purpose, and serve as thresholds
to the holy.
At MOCRA people visit with the art. This is not a museum to be
casually glimpsed, Dempsey noted, but rather mindfully mined.
Its treasures lie out in the open in the main gallery space
and tucked away in intimate side chapels, all equipped with
chairs.
[http://us-mg205.mail.yahoo.com/neo/Images/viewer/mocra1.jpg]
Michael Tracy's Triptych: 11th, 12th, and 13th Stations of the
Cross for Latin America: La Pasion (1981-1988) commands the
west end of MOCRA's spacious nave gallery.
"I didn't want benches—I wanted chairs," he said. "I wanted
people to be comfortable sitting and not worrying about their
bodily comfort so they could focus on the work."
And that decision has fostered just the sort of contemplative
response he desired, if not what Dempsey imagined.
"After 9/11, one woman came in to see our 2001 installation of
Andy Warhol's Silver Clouds, and she sat for an hour weeping,"
he recalled. "She told me how much being here had meant to
her."
Not long ago, local grade-school students found that a hubcap
painted by an Australian Aboriginal artist challenged their
notion of art. Still others—including Dempsey, himself—were
astonished by California artist Lewis deSoto's Paranirvana, a
25-foot-long image of a reclining Buddha in death made of
nylon and inflated with air, particularly the first time
Dempsey and others watched as it was slowly deflated. That is
when they discovered that it resembled someone in his last
moments of life.
"First, the head drops back, and then one of the shoulders
droops. Then an arm, and at each stage, it plateaus," Dempsey
said. "And when the air had left, the inflatable sculpture had
lost its human form and looked like a drop cloth. We were
stunned."
MOCRA is currently hosting a special summer
exhibit<http://www.slu.edu/x65585.xml> in remembrance of
American painter Frederick J. Brown who died May 5, 2012. The
exhibit will feature the five paintings that make up "The Life
of Christ Altarpiece," a work Brown painted expressly for
MOCRA.
Back to top.<http://us-mg205.mail.yahoo.com/neo/arts-at-slu79#top>
Samuel Cupples House
11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday
(314) 977-6630
cupples.slu.edu<http://cupples.slu.edu/>
Sometimes the wrapping can be as interesting as the gift.
Arguably, the ornate exterior of the historic Samuel Cupples
House is as much a feast for the eyes as the collection of
priceless furnishings that await visitors inside, said Mary
Marshall, SLU's marketing coordinator for museums and
galleries.
A rare example of Richardsonian Romanesque architecture in St.
Louis, Cupples House stands on a firm yet fanciful foundation
of pink granite and is topped with purple Colorado sandstone.
The home was designed by architect Thomas Annan and completed
in 1890 for a cost of $500,000—$15-20 million by today's
standards. The mansion features stone archways, 42 rooms, 22
grand fireplaces and rich woodworks carved by English
craftsmen whom Cupples brought to the United States to create
his manse.
[http://usmg205.mail.yahoo.com/neo/Images/viewer/cupples1.jpg]
The main entry hall of Cupples House exhibits the home's
grandeur.
"The intimately lit interiors are heavily and substantially
adorned with detail and pattern," Marshall said. "The entire
third floor of the house has been transformed into a gallery
that displays the Eleanor Turshin Glass Collection, which is
one of the largest collections of Steuben glass outside of
Corning, N.Y." While not original to the home, the collection
does offer a sense of the uncommon art glass that was common
in homes of this stature.
"This may be the home that Samuel Cupples built, but it is
also known as the house that Father Maurice McNamee saved,"
Marshall said. "Believe it or not, this treasured home was
scheduled for demolition in the late 1960s. Father ‘Mac,' a
professor of literature and chair of the English department,
petitioned then-president Father Paul Reinert to take
responsibility for restoring the house to its original glory.
Benefactors, alumni and students joined Father Mac in his
efforts to preserve the house. And in 1976, the historic
Samuel Cupples House was placed on the National Register of
Historic Buildings."
The ornate mansion serves as an elegant venue for numerous
events, including wine tastings and the popular "Rooms in
Bloom" floral showcases each spring and Christmas.
Back to top.<http://us-mg205.mail.yahoo.com/neo/arts-at-slu79#top>
Art in the Midtown Neighborhood
In addition to the world-class museums on its campus, Saint
Louis University's neighborhood is home to several other
notable museums and galleries.
Designed by Pritzker Prize-winning architect Tadao Ando, the
Pulitzer Foundation for the Arts features changing exhibitions
with a focus on art and architecture. Now on display through
Aug. 13 is "Dreamscapes," which features dream-like artworks
juxtaposed with Ando's architecture. For more information,
visit www.pulitzerarts.org<http://www.pulitzerarts.org/>.
Next door to the Pulitzer is the Contemporary Art Museum of
St. Louis,a non-collecting museum with main exhibits that
change three times a year and smaller displays that change
every few weeks. Through Aug. 14, see "Cryptic: The Use of
Allegory in Contemporary Art with a Master Class from Goya,"
which features sculptures, paintings and videos by six
international contemporary artists displayed with works by the
Spanish master. For more information,
visit www.camstl.org<http://www.camstl.org/>.
Located directly across from the Pulitzer and CAM, the Bruno
David Gallery specializes in contemporary art. For more
information,
visit www.brunodavidgallery.com<http://www.brunodavidgallery.c
om/>.
A few blocks east is the Greenberg Van Doren Gallery, also
specializing in modern works. For more information,
visitwww.greenbergvandoren.com<http://www.greenbergvandoren.co
m/>.
The Sheldon Art Galleries feature 7,000 square feet of space
devoted to changing exhibits of photography, architecture, St.
Louis artists, jazz history and children's art. For more
information,
visit www.thesheldon.org<http://www.thesheldon.org/>.
For something out of the ordinary, visit the Moto Museum,
which is home to 100 rare and vintage motorcycles. For more
information, visit
themotomuseum.com<http://themotomuseum.com/>.
Art lovers visiting campus or Midtown won't want to miss SLU's
Ellen Clark Sculpture Garden, at the corner of Grand and
Lindell boulevards, which is home to a permanent collection of
sculptures by celebrated local artist Brother Mel Meyer, S.M.
CONFIDENTIALITY NOTICE:
This e-mail and any attachments are confidential and may be
protected by legal privilege. If you are not the intended
recipient, be aware that any disclosure, copying, distribution
or use of this e-mail or any attachment is prohibited. If you
have received this e-mail in error, please notify us
immediately by returning it to the sender and delete this copy
from your system. Thank you for your cooperation.