Marks of Genius
dal 12/7/2014 al 20/9/2014
Segnalato da
12/7/2014
Marks of Genius
Minneapolis Institute of Arts, Minneapolis
100 Extraordinary Drawings from the Minneapolis Institute of Arts. The exhibition brings to life the immediacy of drawings and explores its multiple roles as a means of study, observation, problem solving, a record of the artist's imagination, and a medium for creating finished works of art.
This summer, the Minneapolis Institute of Arts
(MIA) showcases an exemplary selection
of its rarely seen, superb drawings collection
in “Marks of Genius: 100 Extraordinary
Drawings from the Minneapolis institute of
Arts.” This special exhibition marks the first
time this selection of drawings, which spans
over 500 years, will be seen together by the
public. Featured artist include celebrated
masters such as Ludovico Carracci, Guercino,
Thomas Gainsborough, Eugène Delacroix,
Edgar Degas, Gustav Klimt, Egon Schiele,
René Magritte, and Georgia O’Keeffe. “Marks
of Genius” opens at the MIA and will be on
view July 13 through September 21, 2014. The
exhibition will then travel to the Grand Rapids
Art Museum in Michigan, the North Carolina
Museum of Art, Raleigh, and the Joslyn Art
Museum in Omaha, Nebraska. A fully illustrated
catalogue accompanies the exhibition.
“Due to their sensitivity to light, drawings
are exhibited for only short periods of time
and are otherwise kept in dark storage,”
says exhibition curator Rachel McGarry.
While works from the museum’s large paper
collection—over 40,000 prints and drawings—
can be seen by appointment in the Herschel V.
Jones Print Study, “Marks of Genius” is a rare
opportunity for the public to see the cream of
this collection. “In a way, we are opening up
our treasury to the public,” McGarry says.
“Marks of Genius” is exhibited at an apropos time. The MIA’s “treasury” of drawings, which includes over 2,600 works,
has increased by 20 percent since 2009. Several of these recent additions will be on view for the first time in this show.
The exhibition brings to life the immediacy of drawings and explores its multiple roles as a means of study, observa-
tion, problem solving, a record of the artist’s imagination, and a medium for creating finished works of art. The
thematic display highlights these different aspects of drawing:
• “Spark of Creation” features “first draft” sketches and inventions. This portion of the exhibition, showcasing the
immediacy of the artistic process, features works such as Giuseppe Bazzani’s Pan and Syrinx, c. 1760, and
George Romney’s Study for ‘The Lapland Witch,’ completed c. 1775–77.
• “From Life” is a section which features various observational studies drawn from nature throughout history.
Notable works include Käthe Kollwitz’s c. 1903 Two Studies of a Woman’s Head and Pierre-Joseph Redouté’s
Amaryllis lutea. c. 1800-06.
• “Portrait Drawings” presents works such as Lovis Corinth’s Self-Portrait completed in 1908 and Egon Schiele’s
Standing Girl, c. 1910.
• “Figural Abstraction” a section which documents artists’ studies of
human forms and expression. Works featured in this section include
Guercino’s Hercules, (1641–42) and Ernst Kircher’s Seated Woman in
the Studio, completed in 1909.
• “Storytelling” presents drawings with a narrative theme, such as Arthur
Rackham’s Little Red Riding Hood, 1909, and Ludovico Carracci’s
Judith Beheading Holoferenes, c. 1581–85.
Other themes include “Sense of Place” with Emil Nolde’s Heavy Seas
at Sunset, c. 1930–35, and “Appropriation” with Roy Lichtenstein’s
1962 Bratatat!
“Marks of Genius” will be activated with a “Drawing Studio” located
in the last gallery of the exhibition. Inspired by the works on view,
visitors are invited to try their hand at creating drawings based on
the exhibition’s themes. Additionally, “Marks of Genius” opens on a
Family Day, the MIA’s free monthly event for families, kids, and the
young at heart, held on the second Sunday of every month.
The exhibition is accompanied by a fully illustrated, 300-page
hardcover catalogue, Master Drawings from the Minneapolis Institute
of Arts. The book includes more than 225 illustrations, essays by
Rachel McGarry and Thomas Rassieur, and contributions by other
MIA scholars. It retails for $59.99 in the museum’s store and can be
ordered online at artbooks.com/mia or by calling (612) 870-3000.
Image: Mequitta Ahuja, American, born 1976, Tress IV, 2008, waxy chalk
on paper, unframed: 961⁄2 x 45 in. (245.1 x 114.3 cm) (overall)
Gift of funds from Sheila Morgan 2010.17
PRESS CONTACTS
MINNEAPOLIS INSTITUTE OF ARTS
Anne-Marie Wagener, (612) 870-3280; awagener@artsmia.org
Tammy Pleshek, (612) 870-3171; tpleshek@artsmia.org
Emmalynn Bauer, (612) 870-6364; ebauer@artsmia.org
Minneapolis Institute of Arts
2400 Third Avenue South - Minneapolis, MN 55404
Museum hours: Sunday, 11 a.m.–5 p.m.; Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday, 10 a.m.–5 p.m.;
Thursday, 10 a.m.–9 p.m.; Monday closed.
General admission to the MIA is always free. Some special exhibitions have a nominal admission fee.