Exhibition: Celebrating 50 Years of Art and Local History: Musser Museum Anniversary Exhibition

Exhibit dates:  August 16, 2015 - January 3, 2016

Opening Reception: Sunday, August 16 from 2 to 4 p.m.

Details: Program at 2 p.m. and Music by the Creepin' Charlies from 2:30 to 4 p.m. Free Admission.

CONTACT:  Melanie Alexander, Director 563-263-8282 or malexander@muscatineiowa.gov

The Muscatine community is invited to celebrate the 50^th Anniversary of the Muscatine Art Center/Laura Musser Museum. On Sunday, August 16, the Art Center will open special exhibitions throughout the facility. Rooms throughout the Musser Mansion will have displays of elegant gowns, handsome suits, domestic servants' uniforms, colorful day dresses, and intricate accessories. Laura Musser's wedding dress will be on view in the master bedroom, and display cases will feature Musser/McColm personal items, belongings of Laura's mother and father, and other family memorabilia.

"The gowns are especially stunning. Some of the fabrics are quite fragile, limiting the number of times that the Art Center can place the pieces on view. The detail is impressive," states Director Melanie Alexander. "For example, Laura Musser McColm had a gown designed specifically to wear to Madame Butterfly. The gown has a wing-like effect with sheer black fabric attaching to the fingers."

In addition to the clothing displays, historic photographs and other archival materials have been placed throughout the Musser Mansion. Visitors will be able to view the spaces as they are today and compare with the historic photographs.

The Stanley Gallery features 50 years of collecting both works of art and local artifacts. The two-dimensional works of art from the permanent collection are presented in chronological order from the year in which the item was added to the collection. "Some works of art in this exhibition are not often on view, and it is unusual to hang works by these artists together," explains Alexander. "A painting by Marvin Cone is in the same space as a print by Mauricio Lasansky. On the middle floor of the Stanley Gallery, a six foot by six foot Arthur Osver (painted with latex) is presented near Georgia O'Keeffe's White Lotus (oil on canvas). Also in the exhibition are works by Grant Wood, Beth Van Hoesen, and John Doyle, Roland Poska. Unless a person has participated in a behind-the-scenes tour, it is challenging to provide visitors with an understanding of the true scope of the collection."

Curator/Registrar Virginia Cooper adds, "Due to the foresight and knowledge of the Art Center's collection policy, by its founder's, Fine Arts Association, board member and directors, the collections have grown to be among the  most distinguished held by a small museum in the Midwest. This dynamic, historic museum is accredited by the American Alliance of Museums, which recognizes high standards and public accountability. The Art Center continues to awe out of town visitors and is a source of pride and heritage for the local community. The anniversary exhibit will highlight the landmark, milestone, and historically important works that have been added to the collection since 1965."

Also on display in the Stanley Gallery is a sampling of highlights from the Muscatine history collection. Again, it is not possible to put out every item that is worthy of being part of the 50^th anniversary exhibition. To help present the collection, the Art Center staff challenged Muscatine artist, Randy Richmond, to use photography to show the scope of the collection, provide a glimpse of some of the spaces that are usually off-limits to most visitors, and hint at the museum methods used to preserve collections for future generations. Richmond's photographs will be displayed in the Stanley Gallery and throughout the facility with several works exhibited in the Music Room and Dressing Room in the Musser Mansion.

The Musser Museum Gallery will display the works of art from the Mary Musser Gilmore Collection. Many works from this collection are on long-term view in second floor hallway of the house. The collection includes works  by Edgar Degas, Pierre-Auguste Renoir, Marc Chagall, Vincent van Gogh, Camille Pissarro, Pablo Picasso, Raoul Dufy, George Rouault, Henri Matisse, and other internationally recognized artists. The initial gift of twenty-seven works was received in 1992.  In 2010, an additional eleven works of art from the Gilmore Collection were gifted to the Muscatine Art Center via the Sarah King Wilmer estate, daughter of Mary Musser Gilmore.

On the main floor of the mansion, landmark pieces from the Mississippi River Collection will be supplemented with some rarely-on-view works from the River Collection. "Many Muscatine-natives love 'View of the Mississippi from Wyoming Hill' by William Bunn, painted in 1946," comments Alexander. "Bunn was born in Muscatine, studied under Grant Wood, and completed several post office murals in Iowa. 'Wyoming Hill' will hang in the Library for the 50^th Anniversary exhibition."

The public is invited to celebrations beginning at 2 p.m. on Sunday, August 16^th. Several speakers will provide reflections on the first 50 years of the organization's history. Mayor DeWayne Hopkins will read the City of Muscatine's proclamation, recognizing the 50^th anniversary. Around 2:30 p.m., the Art Center will unveil the oil painting "Vegetable Gardens" by Grant Wood. The work was acquired to commemorate the 50^th anniversary. At 2:30 p.m., the Creepin' Charlies will perform, and refreshments will be served.

EVENT DETAILS: Sunday, August 16, 2015 from 2 to 4 p.m. - Celebrate the 50th Anniversary of the Muscatine Art Center/Laura Musser Museum. A special program will begin at 2 p.m. Admission is FREE.

EXHIBITION DETAILS: The exhibition, "Celebrating 50 Years of Art and Local History: Musser Museum Anniversary" will be on view from August 16, 2015 through January 3, 2016.

The Muscatine Art Center is located at 1314 Mulberry Avenue in Muscatine, Iowa. Hours are Tuesday through Friday from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., Thursday evenings until 7:00 p.m., and Saturday and Sunday from 1:00 to 5:00 p.m. Admission is free. Donations are appreciated. Visit www.muscatineartcenter.org for more information about programs and events and to download a class brochure.

Concert: The Alex Murphy Jazz Trio

The Muscatine Art Center's Music Room

Thursday, June 18th at 5:30 p.m.

FREE ADMISSION

The Muscatine Art Center is pleased to present the Alex Murphy Jazz Trio. The trio consists of three very talented young musicians from St. Charles, Illinois: their leader Alex Murphy on the piano, Mary Halm on the bass, and Zac Nunnery on the guitar.  The three met while attending Charles East High School and quickly discovered they were drawn to jazz. In great demand, they have been working the last couple of years in restaurants and private parties in the Fox Valley area. They specialize in both the jazz standards and original compositions.

Alex Murphy has been immersed in music his entire life as the son of a professional musician and arts manager.  One of his first experiences with jazz was meeting George Shearing and Marion McPartland as a small child.  Alex has studied piano since age six and currently teaches and is an accomplished accompanist.  He recently collaborated with his dad on a recital of music for Horn and Piano.  Alex will be continuing his education at DePaul University this fall in Jazz Studies.

Mary Halm began studying classical bass in second grade and began playing jazz in High School.  Mary will also be attending DePaul University in the Jazz Studies program this fall.

Zac Nunnery just completed his first year at DePaul University studying guitar in the Jazz Studies program.  While at DePaul, he has begun playing in the Chicago music scene in addition to his work with Alex and Mary.

The group will perform in the Art Center's Music Room on Thursday, June 18^th beginning at 5:30 p.m. There is no charge for admission.

Please contact Melanie Alexander, Director, with any questions or concerns at 563-263-8282 or by email at malexander@muscatineiowa.gov.

The Muscatine Art Center is located at 1314 Mulberry Avenue in Muscatine, Iowa. Hours are Tuesday through Friday from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., Thursday evenings until 7:00 p.m., and Saturday and Sunday from 1:00 to 5:00 p.m. Admission is free. Donations are appreciated. Visit www.muscatineartcenter.org for more information about programs and events and to download a class brochure.

Muscatine Art Center's collections were significantly enriched by a gift of twenty-seven works of art by Matisse, Toulouse-Lautrec, Degas, Chagall, Renoir, Signac, Duffy, Laurencin and other European artists. The collection was a gift in 1992 from the estate of Mary Musser Gilmore in honor of her parents, Richard Drew Musser and Sarah Walker Musser.

This spring, the Muscatine Art Center welcomes Carol Ehlers, art history speaker, to present a lecture featuring Henri Matisse's Later Life: The Cutouts. View the artwork of Matisse that is part of the Muscatine Art Center collection. The lecture will be held on May 21, 2015, the third Thursday of the month and will be begin promptly at 5:30 pm. These lectures are FREE and open to the public.

Third Thursday, May 21, 2015 -- Henri Matisse's Later Life: The Cutouts

Henri Matisse recognized at one of the great artist of the twentieth century due to personal goal of the perfect synthesis of line and color. The program will include an introduction of the recognized works during his life time as he moves from the styles and subjects of pointillism, fauvism, odalisque, decorative arts, dance, and music. Later in life, Matisse relates how fauvism affected his cutouts.

Matisse did not originally see the cutouts as a medium for artwork but rather the cutouts were used as a process toward the final works. The talk includes information about: Dance and Music done for Russian collector Sergey Ivanovich Shchukin; the Dance done for Alfred Barnes; the Large Reclining Nude done for the Cone Sisters; and stage curtain design for Rouge et Noirs

In 1937, Tériade published Verve (magazine) and Matisse would use cut outs for covers. It would be Tériade, who encourages and supports Matisse to publish Jazz. The original edition of September 30, 1947 consisted of twenty plates. View the images and learn about the technique used to produce the work.

Shortly after Jazz, Matisse agrees to commission to design Chapel of Rosary in Vence, France. Learn about the four years, 1947-1951, of concentrated work to make his dream become reality and culmination of four years of concentrated work on stain glass, murals, and vestments. Today the chapel survives and represents a point that Matisse sees cut-outs as a medium for his artwork.

1952 was one of the most productive years for Matisse. The Sorrow of the King, Blue Nudes, Snail, Swimming Pool, Sheaf and other large scale cutouts will be presented with background information.

For Matisse's last fourteen years of his life or his second life, he found renewed and unexpected energies creating breathtaking new work called the cutouts.  Matisse dies on November 3, 1954

EVENT DETAILS:

What: "Henri Matisse's Later Life: The Cutouts

Who: Carol Ehlers

When: Third Thursday, May 21, 2014

Time: 5:30 PM

Where: The Muscatine Art Center's Music Room

Admission to these programs is FREE.

Please contact Melanie Alexander, Director,  with any questions or concerns at

563-263-8282 or by email at malexander@muscatineiowa.gov.

The Muscatine Art Center is located at 1314 Mulberry Avenue in Muscatine, Iowa. Hours are Tuesday through Friday from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., Thursday evenings until 7:00 p.m., and Saturday and Sunday from 1:00 to 5:00 p.m. Admission is free. Donations are appreciated. Go to www.muscatineartcenter.org for more information about programs and events and to download a class brochure.

The public is invited to join the Muscatine Art Center for the presentation, "American Musical Organettes: The Early Years of Mechanical Music in the Home", by Muscatine collector Brian Walter. The 45 minute presentation will explore the use of musical organettes in the home from 1879 to 1920. The presentation is offered in conjunction with a temporary exhibition on Musical Organettes and will take place on Thursday, January 23^rd at 5:15 PM in the Muscatine Art Center's Music Room. Admission is FREE.

An organette was a mechanical accordion that was manufactured in the late 1800s by several companies, most notably the Autophone Company of Ithaca, New York. Music was recorded on rolls of perforated paper and turned over a track bar. Air was produced by hand- or foot- operated bellows, which would be pushed through the perforations corresponding to different notes, much like a player piano. Some models of organettes were played by mechanically blowing through them, but most were played with a crank that was turned to create a vacuum.

There were at least six models made - the standard 22-note model, the 32-note Autophone, the Concert model (tabletop with operating handle and cabinet style with floor pedal) and other floor standing models. The Autophone Company manufactured the organette in vast numbers. In 1889, it was noted in Harper's Magazine that the Autophone Company recorded 18,000 units sold.

Although these types of machines were sold into the 1930s, they began to lose their popularity by 1900 while the home phonograph rose in popularity. The Rollmonica -- or "player harmonica" -- sold during the late 1920s and the 1930s was the last organette produced.

The Laura Musser Mansion Small Gallery currently features the first in a series of music box exhibits from the private collection of Brian Walter. The temporary exhibition and the presentation by Brian Walter are the first in a series on historical music boxes.

EVENT DETAILS:

Lecture: "American Musical Organettes: The Early Years of Mechanical Music in the Home"

Who: Brian Walter

When: Thursday, January 23, 2014

Time: 5:15 PM

Where: The Muscatine Art Center's Music Room

Admission to this program is FREE.

Please contact Katy Loos, Program Coordinator, with any questions or concerns at 563-263-8282 or by email at kloos@muscatineiowa.gov.