Contact: Mike Horyczun
Director of Public Relations
(203) 413-6735
For Immediate Release
September 25, 2009
Bruce Museum
1 Museum Drive, Greenwich, CT
Exhibition Schedule 2009
September 26, 2009 - January 3, 2010
Alchemy: Magic, Myth or Science?
Offering a multi-faceted introduction to the practice of alchemy from ancient times through its flourishing
in the 16th and 17th centuries, this major, interdisciplinary exhibition explores the history of alchemy and
both the science and art it inspired. The show features mineral specimens, scientific instruments,
paintings and prints, historical documents, and appropriate animal specimens to describe the practice of
alchemy and its place in the beginnings of modern chemistry. The exhibition is organized by the Bruce
Museum and is a registered resource for the Year of Science 2009. The exhibition is underwritten by a
Committee of Honor under the leadership of the Bruce Museum Science Committee, and with support
from the Connecticut Commission on Culture & Tourism, and the Charles M. and Deborah G. Royce
October 3, 2009 – January 24, 2010
Charles Addams: Cartoonist
The Bruce Museum presents approximately 40 framed, original cartoon artworks of Charles Addams, the
beloved cartoonist of The New Yorker and creator of the characters known as the “The Addams Family.”
The exhibition, organized for the Bruce Museum by the Tee and Charles Addams Foundation, provides a
sampling of the creative wit and sometimes macabre but always lovable humor of Addams’ oeuvre. The
show is supported by Anne and Fred Elser, the Elizabeth Elser Doolittle Charitable Trusts, Mel Seiden,
and the Charles M. and Deborah G. Royce Exhibition Fund. Please note that this exhibition is held in the
Bantle Lecture Gallery, which may be closed for viewing due to programs taking place. Please call ahead
or check the website for non-viewing times.
October 31, 2009 – January 31, 2010
Alexander Calder: Printmaker
One of America’s best-known sculptors, Alexander Calder became famous for his kinetic abstract
mobiles. However, he was a prolific producer in all facets of art and design including the creation of
hundreds of etching and lithograph prints throughout his long career. This exhibition focuses on Calder
as printmaker showcasing 28 of his fine art prints along with several watercolor paintings and small
pieces of sculpture that visually relate to the prints on exhibition. Several prints in the exhibition will clearly
illustrate the connections between Calder’s graphic work and his better-known sculptural works. The
show is supported by the Charles M. and Deborah G. Royce Exhibition Fund.
November 21, 2009 – November 28, 2010
Eat or Be Eaten: Animal Survival Strategies
The fascinating and sometimes bizarre adaptations of predators and prey in the natural world is the focus
of this year-long exhibition. In the complex web of life, animals have evolved a variety of strategies that
help them find food and avoid becoming someone else’s meal in the struggle for survival. Specimens of
insects, shells, fish, reptiles, mammals, and birds from the Bruce Museum collection illustrate how
animals detect, capture and consume prey while minimizing risk from predators. The show is supported
by the Charles M. and Deborah G. Royce Exhibition Fund.
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Exhibition Schedule 2010
January 23, 2010 - April 25, 2010
Exotic Encounters: Art, Travel, and Modernity in the Collection of the Bruce Museum
With extraordinary works of art from Europe and the Americas, the Middle East, Africa and the Far East,
the exhibition illuminates a little-recognized but key aspect of modern esthetics: the drive to preserve the
sensation of exotic encounter that might otherwise vanish into thin air. Depicting what one has seen or felt
abroad, and collecting objects that evoke far-away places and people are ways to overcome the thrilling
yet frustratingly evanescent experience of travel. Exotic Encounters: Art, Travel, and Modernity in the
Collection of the Bruce Museum reshuffle the deck of cherished art and artifacts, uncovering the
profound connections between the extraordinary places we visit and the remarkable things we bring back.
The show is supported by the Charles M. and Deborah G. Royce Exhibition Fund.
January 30, 2010 – May 30, 2010
Writing the Earth: 2,000 Years of Geography and Mapping
This exhibition of world maps, printed between 1511 and 1800 and drawn on a wide variety of projections,
shows a wonderfully diverse, often confused, but always beautiful record of the history of the Earth as its
citizens understood it at the time. The exhibition is supported by the Charles M. and Deborah G. Royce
Exhibition Fund. Please note that this exhibition is held in the Bantle Lecture Gallery, which may be
closed for viewing due to programs taking place. Please call ahead or check the website for non-viewing
times.
February 13, 2010 – June 6, 2010
Lincoln, Life-Size
Drawn primarily from the extensive archival collections of The Meserve-Kunhardt Foundation, this
exhibition explores the rise and presidency of Abraham Lincoln on the human scale. Photographs from
the period will be digitally enlarged to life-size and juxtaposed with the original photographs, glass
negatives and daguerreotypes. Other objects on exhibition bring history to life including a Lincoln life
mask, bronze sculptures, 19th-century ephemera, and Civil War artifacts. This exhibition is being
organized by guest curator Peter W. Kunhardt, Jr., Assistant Director, The Meserve-Kunhardt Foundation,
and Robin Garr, Director of Education, Bruce Museum.
September 25, 2010 – January 10, 2011
Circus! Art and Science Under the Big Top
The circus has been a source of delight and wonder, sparking the creative powers of countless artists
from Europe to America from the 18th century to the modern day. The exhibition examines the history, fine
art, and science of the circus. The show also spotlights the evolution of the art of the circus over the past
125 years, reviewing the variable history of the institution as well as the changing styles of artists’
representations of the circus.
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The Bruce Museum is located at 1 Museum Drive in Greenwich, Connecticut, USA. General admission is
$7 for adults, $6 for seniors and students, and free for children under five and Bruce Museum members.
Free admission to all on Tuesdays. The Museum is located near Interstate-95, Exit 3, and a short walk
from the Greenwich, CT, train station. Museum hours are: Tuesday through Saturday 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.,
Sunday 1 p.m. to 5 p.m., and closed Mondays and major holidays. Groups of eight or more require
advance reservations. Museum exhibition tours are held Fridays at 12:30 p.m. Free, on-site parking is
available. The Bruce Museum is accessible to individuals with disabilities. For information, call the Bruce
Museum at (203) 869-0376, or visit www.brucemuseum.org.
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