Mississippi River Views from the Muscatine Art Center Collection at the Figge
Davenport, Iowa (January 25, 2016) –. Americans have long been fascinated by the “Big River”—the Mississippi. Visitors to the Figge Art Museum will be able to explore this fascination with the new exhibition: Mississippi River Views from the Muscatine Art Center Collection.
Opening Saturday in the third floor gallery, the Mississippi River Views exhibition includes a collection of 60 paintings, drawings, maps and other river-related works from the collection of the Muscatine Art Center, whose Musser Mansion is undergoing mechanical upgrades.
Beginning with a rare map from 1680 by Nicholaes Visscher, the exhibition includes drawings made on the river by Seth Eastman in the 1830s, and paintings of the river from the 1850s to the present day.
Also featured are paintings and prints of riverboats, a model of the paddlewheel River Queen and early views of Muscatine, Davenport, Moline and Fort Armstrong.
The exhibition will be on view until June 6, 2016 and is generously sponsored by Roy J. Carver Charitable Trust and Alcoa.
Companion Events:
Reading and Discussion
7 p.m. Thursday, February 4
River Action will host a reading of the abridged version of Susan Glaspell’s Inheritors. Glaspell’s play is set in Davenport in 1879 and 1920 and addresses the settlers’ uneasy “inheritance” of land taken from Native peoples. River Action Executive Director Kathy Wine will moderate the event.
Opening Reception, Talk & Tour
Saturday, February 6
2 p.m. Opening Reception
3 p.m. Gallery Talk and Tour
Free admission
Melanie Alexander, director of the Muscatine Art Center, and Tim Schiffer, executive director of the Figge Art Museum, will speak about the exhibition and provide a gallery tour.
Exhibition Tours
1:30 p.m. Saturdays, February 6 & 27
1:30 p.m. Sunday, February 7
Sounds of the Mississippi
5:30 p.m. Thursday, March 24
Have a cocktail at the Figge as musician Ellis Kell from River Music Experience shares the history and music of the Mississippi River.
River Writers
7 p.m. Thursday, March 24
Authors from the Midwest Writing Center will read selected original works that focus on life along the Mississippi River.
Free Family Day
10 a.m.-1 p.m. Saturday, April 2
Explore the Figge on Free Family Day! The museum is open and free to the public with special activities from 10 a.m. – 1 p.m. Sponsored by Quad-City Times.
Film Fest
6:30 p.m. Thursday, May 12
Quad Cities residents will share their 1-minute film entries that explore the beauty, history and politics of the Mississippi River in this region. More details at www.figgeartmuseum.org beginning February 6.
Talk and Book Signing
5:30 p.m. Thursday, May 26
Iowa artist Nancy Purington will share a presentation entitled: “Moonlight on the Mississippi: Futuristic Rhythms, Currency and Change,” with images from her new book Moonlight on the Mississippi. Purington will sign copies of the book, a collection of paintings and photographs of the Mississippi River, after her talk.
About the Figge Art Museum
The Figge Art Museum is located on the riverfront in downtown Davenport at 225 West Second Street. Hours are from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., Tuesday through Saturday and Sundays noon to 5 p.m. Thursdays the museum is open until 9 p.m. Admission to the museum and tour is $7. Admission is always free to Figge members and institutional members, and free to all on Thursday evenings from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. To contact the museum, please call 563.326.7804, or visit www.figgeartmuseum.org.
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