The Fred R. Jones Jr. Museum of Art Reinstalls Their Modern Collection

Written by Stephen Callaghan Monday, 02 April 2012 22:32

Oklahoma City.- In preparation of the reopening of the museum's Stuart Wing in October 2011, the Sandy Bell Gallery of the Fred R. Jones Jr. Museum of Art at the University of Oklahoma will be reinstalled with selected works from the permanent collection of modern and contemporary art, as well as works on loan from a private collector. Works by Leon Polk Smith, Robert Rauschenberg, Roy Lichtenstein, Ed Ruscha and other important contemporary artists will be included in the installation. The opening reception on June 3rd and 4th will feature a special choreographed dance inspired by Rauschenberg’s "The Lotus Series" and a live concert in conjunction with the Norman Music Festival.

As part of this fall’s upcoming opening of the new Stuart Wing and reopening of the newly renovated original building, the University of Oklahoma’s art museum is reinstalling works of contemporary and modern art from its permanent collection. The Sandy Bell Gallery, formerly the museum’s location for such works, has been utilized as a rotating exhibition gallery since construction began in spring 2009. The opening weekend also serves as a sign-up party for the Museum Association’s newest level, the Metro Arts Circle. The MAC is geared toward 25- to 45-year-olds and will host exclusive parties throughout the year featuring art, networking, special guests and more. The reinstallation of modern and contemporary art features works from the museum’s permanent collection as well as works on loan from a private collector. The exhibition includes works by Leon Polk Smith and Roy Lichtenstein as well as a rare Edward Ruscha painting depicting Oklahoma, titled No Man’s Land (1990), on loan courtesy of the artist.

“Contemporary art often engages complicated issues of personal history, race and sex as a means of fostering dialogue on how personal and group identity interact with society,” said Mark White, the Eugene B. Adkins Curator for the museum. “For instance, Edward Ruscha’s No Man’s Land recalls the artist’s youth in Oklahoma, and his lack of knowledge of life outside the state. Leaving Oklahoma in his late teens became a pivotal moment in his personal and artistic maturity as he explored the country beyond his familiar haunts.” The reinstallation also features a set of works by Rauschenberg called "The Lotus Series", the last series of works by the artist before his death in 2008. The series is a recent gift by Mary Spencer. Construction on a new wing is under way, but the Fred Jones Jr. Museum of Art is open and fully functional with exhibitions and programming throughout the entire construction process.


The permanent collection was embellished with the purchase of the so-called State Department Collection, comprised of thirty-six paintings from the exhibition Advancing American Art and including major works by artists such as Stuart Davis, Georgia O'Keeffe, and Edward Hopper. Jacobson's vision of a permanent facility to house the art finally came to fruition in 1971, when Mr. and Mrs. Fred Jones of Oklahoma City donated a fine arts building to the University. The resulting structure, the Fred Jones Jr. Memorial Art Center, housed the Museum of Art, which contains 15,000 square feet of exhibition space, the School of Art, and the administrative offices of the College of Fine Arts. In 1992, the Museum of Art was re-designated the Fred Jones Jr. Museum of Art. Over the years, the Museum's permanent collection has grown exponentially through the generosity of donors such as Max Weitzenhoffer and Jerome M. Westheimer Sr. In 1996, with an initial gift of $1 million from Mrs. Fred Jones, OU President and Mrs. David L. Boren spearheaded the successful fundraising campaign to acquire the important collection of the late Richard H. and Adeline J. Fleischaker, which is composed primarily of Native American and Southwestern art. 2000 was a watershed year in the development of the FJJMA's collections, with the gift of the Weitzenhoffer Collection of French Impressionism, which consists of thirty-three works of art by Edgar Degas, Paul Gauguin, Claude Monet, Camille Pissarro, Pierre-Auguste Renoir, Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec, Vincent Van Gogh, Jean-Édouard Vuillard and others. It is the most important collection of French Impressionism ever given to an American public university. The gift came to the University as the bequest of Clara Weitzenhoffer, an art collector and long-time University of Oklahoma supporter. Today, the Fred Jones Jr. Museum of Art is one of the finest university art museums in the United States. Strengths of the 12,300-object permanent collection (including the approx. 3,300-object Adkins Collection) are French Impressionism, twentieth-century American painting and sculpture, traditional and contemporary Native American art, art of the Southwest, ceramics, photography, contemporary art, Asian art and graphics from the sixteenth century to the present. Temporary exhibitions are mounted throughout the year which explore the art of various periods and cultures. Visit the museum's website at ... http://www.ou.edu/fjjma.html

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