Marvin Cone: Quiet Integrity art talk will be given on the third Thursday, May 15, at 5:30 p.m. at Muscatine Art Center. The program will provide information about the life of Marvin Cone, including his long friendship with Grant Wood. The two met in high school, traveled to Paris, attended the Art Institute of Chicago, and joined forces in the summer of 1932 and 1933 to create Stone City Art Colony. As people they were opposites and each followed a different path, but they did influence each other.

Cone and Wood were both active in the Cedar Rapids Art Association, one of the oldest art organizations in Iowa, which later becomes the Cedar Rapids Art Museum. The program will include the history of the association and many images from the Muscatine Art Center, Cedar Rapids Museum of Art, Coe College and Figge Art Museum  The cultural environment of Cedar Rapids provided both Cone and Wood with exposure to well known artists and the inspiration to become artists.

Marvin Cone lived in Cedar Rapids, married, raised a family, and taught at Coe College. Although, he does not have the fame of Grant Wood, it is clear that he was a skilled artist and an important figure in American painting.

After graduating from Coe College with liberal arts degree, he attended the Art Institute of Chicago with Grant Wood. Both joined the army during World War I. Because Marvin Cone could speak French, he was selected to attend the University of Montpellier, France, in February of 1919 before returning home. Marvin returned to Cedar Rapids to teach French at Coe College. The following summer Cone and Wood traveled to Paris, London, Liverpool, and Antwerp. Both painted in the Impressionistic style and held an exhibition of their artworks on the ship as they return to Cedar Rapids.

On the same return trip home, Grant Wood introduced Marvin to Winnifred Swift whom Marvin married in 1921. Winifred and Marvin had one daughter, Doris.

During the 1920s, Cone's activities included starting the art department at Coe College and keeping an active schedule of exhibitions with the Cedar Rapids Art Association. At the time, Cedar Rapids was a thriving atmosphere for the arts and in 1928, the American Federation of Arts and Carnegie Foundation provided a $50,000 grant to open The Little Gallery, and Edward Rowan was hired as a trained museum administrator. Rowan arranged for Cone and his wife to go back to Paris in 1929. In 1930, Grant Wood, received the Art Institute award for American Gothic and became famous.

1932, Marvin Cone and Grant Wood taught at the Stone City Colony and Art School. Background information and images of the Stone City Colony are included in the program. Courses at the Stone City Colony were accredited by Coe College. Unfortunately, the Depression caused the Colony to close after two summers. Grant Wood went on to teach at the University of Iowa, while Cone was appointed professor of painting at Coe College.

The art talk will take you through Marvin Cone's styles: landscapes, haunting interiors, barns, circus scenes, and finally abstract images. Unlike artists associated with regionalist and American scene painting of the 1930s, Marvin Cone would integrate his firsthand observation and move from realism to abstraction. Cone's work includes more than rural Midwest scenes.

On May 18, 1965, Marvin Cone died. As a tribute to his forty years of teaching, Coe College established the Marvin Cone Collection and the Marvin Cone Alumni collection with his artwork on display. The Cedar Rapids Museum of Art provided images for the program as the museum has one of the largest collection of Marvin Cone's works in the United States.

###

The public is invited to join the Muscatine Art Center on Sunday, April 27th at 2:00 p.m. as it hosts Humanities Iowa Speaker, Loren Horton. Horton will give a 45 minute presentation on the changes in Iowa life over the past 150 years. His presentation will include the origins of the people, the technology, and the occupations and social customs of Iowans. Horton will also touch on the history of the state's economy and politics and explore the changes that have shaped Iowa's present and changes that will continue to shape Iowa's future and the future of its residents.

Loren Horton began his employment with the State Historical Society of Iowa in 1972. Since his retirement in 1996, Horton has concentrated on research in 19th century social history and comparative funeral and burial customs in the United States.

This program is funded by Humanities Iowa, a private, non-profit state affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities. A cultural resource for Iowans since 1971, Humanities Iowa brings humanities programs into the heart of Iowa communities.

The humanities are fields of study that help us to discover and remember who we are and how we came to be, as individuals and as part of the world. Humanities Iowa offers funding for this Speakers Bureau event and for grants in support of public programs to non-profit organizations in the state of Iowa.

Please contact Melanie Alexander, Director, with any questions or concerns at 563-263-8282 or by email at malexander@muscatineiowa.gov. For more information about Humanities Iowa, visit www.uiowa.edu/~humiowa.

The Muscatine Art Center is open to the public Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday from 10 AM to 5 PM, Thursday from 10 AM to 7 PM and Saturday and Sunday from 1 to 5 PM Admission is FREE.

Xi-Ma, an instructor from the Confucius Institute, a branch of the University of Iowa's International Programs, will conduct a class at the Muscatine Art Center on the ancient art of calligraphy. Assisting Ma will be Erin Mullins of the Confucius Institute.  There is no experience necessary and all supplies will be included in the registration fee. Class size is limited so be sure to register now!

The Chinese Calligraphy class will be held on Thursday, April 3, 2014. Class will run from 5:15 through 6:45.  The registration fee is $10.00.  All class supplies will be provided however,  you may also purchase your own brush for the class for $5.00. Both instructors were here last year for the class. Call us at 563.263.8282 to get signed up now!

Chinese calligraphy is one of the most ancient forms of written communication. It has developed over thousands of years, and is a very fluid language. Chinese calligraphy, unlike the letters based on the Roman system of writing, does not separate each individual character that forms a word. Chinese writing uses the painted character to express an idea or word in its entirety. This calligraphy must be both functional and beautiful. It is a true art form.

Xi Ma is the Curriculum Coordinator at the Confucius Institute.  Ma also teaches Confucius Institute courses. She is a returning Iowa Alumnus, moving to Iowa City in 2012 from Bronx, New York where she coordinated the Mandarin Language Program for Fordham University.  Ma holds an MA in Asian and Slavic Languages and Literatures from the University of Iowa, an MA in Foreign Language and Applied Linguistics and a BA in English from Anhui University.

Erin Mullins is the Program Coordinator at the Confucius Institute. A graduate of the University of Iowa, Mullins holds an M.A. in Counselor Education and a B.A. in Elementary Education.  Joining the Confucius Institute at the University of Iowa in 2011, Mullins previously provided outreach education and services to area schools and community agencies.

EVENT DETAILS:

What: Chinese Calligraphy Class

Who: Xi Ma of the Confucius institute

When: Thursday, April 3, 2014

Time: 5:15-6:45 PM

Where: The Muscatine Art Center

Admission to this program is FREE. Please contact, Lynn Bartenhagen, Office Coordinator, with any questions or concerns at 563-263-8282 or by email atlbartenhagen@muscatineiowa.gov.

The Muscatine Art Center is open to the public Tuesday,Wednesday and Friday from 10 AM to 5 PM, Thursday from 10 AM to 7 PM and Saturday and Sunday from 1 to 5 PM Admission is FREE.

Explore the Musser Mansion and hear the stories of Laura Musser McColm, her family and her domestic servants. A member of the Muscatine Art Center staff will you guide you through each room of the house, explain the various collections and furnishings on display and answer your questions.

Guided mansion tours will be offered at 5:30 p.m. on the first Thursday of the month. The guided tour on March 6th marks the debut of this program. Reservations are not required - just drop in and enjoy!

Admission for the tours is by donation. The suggested donation amount is $5 per person. The tour will last approximately 45 minutes.

HIGHLIGHTS:

• Paintings from the Mississippi River Collection

• The Mary Musser Gilmore Collection of French Impressionism

• Painted and Photographic Portraits of the Musser Family and a Sculpted Bust of Laura Musser as a Child

• Listen to Historic Music Boxes

• Collection of Historic Toys

EVENT DETAILS:

What: Muscatine Art Center's Guided Mansion Tour

Who: Hosted by Muscatine Art Center Staff

When: Thursday, March 6, 2014

Time: 5:30-6:15 PM

Where: The Muscatine Art Center

Admission to this program is FREE. Suggested donation of $5 per person.

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 open to the public Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday from 10 AM to 5 PM, Thursday from 10 AM to 7 PM and Saturday and Sunday from 1 to 5 PM Admission is FREE.