The Museum of the Shenandoah Valley Shows Masterpieces From the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts

Written by Chuck Weslake Saturday, 30 July 2011 21:38

Winchester, VA.- The Museum of the Shenandoah Valley is proud to present "Goya, Dali, Warhol: Masterpieces of World Art from the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts", on view at the museum until September 25th. More than 30 works of art from across the world will be on view in the exhibition. Along with etchings by Francisco Goya, a painting by Salvador Dali, and the famous silkscreen of Marilyn Monroe by Andy Warhol, the exhibition will include a Chinese stone carving from the sixth century, a French Art Deco bronze, and a Peruvian bottle that is more that 1,600 years old. Goya, Dali, Warhol has been organized by the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts in celebration of 75 years of sharing art statewide with generous support from Altria Group. See below for the exciting summer programming being offered in conjunction with this special exhibition.

"The God of the Bay of the Roses" by Salvador Dali is one of the major attractions. The exhibit also has three etchings by Goya, two from 1799 and one from 1816. The variety of other works includes paintings, prints, sculptures, decorative arts and a 1,500-year-old Chinese limestone carving. The art spans about 2,500 years, from the sixth century, B.C., all the way up to 1992. The largest piece is a 79-inch by 79-inch painting called "Pool," which American artist Robert Cottingham painted in 1973. Among the smallest pieces is a gold "Pendant of Twin Frogs," from Panama or Costa Rica, created sometime between A.D. 800-1500.

Exhibitions manager of the Museum of the Shenandoah Valley, Corwyn Garman said the exhibit's variety "speaks to the strength of [the VMFA's] collection." He said it was a challenge to design such an eclectic exhibit - not only because of the range in sizes of the artwork, but also the different mediums and time periods. Garman said it was a challenge he thoroughly enjoyed, however. "I was very thrilled to get the opportunity to work with these pieces and to get to design a show that represents such a great diversity of art, and sort of make them relate, make them complement each other," he said. "This is a very different show than any we've had at the museum. Of the 16 shows we've done, we've never had one that sort of is playful. It's playful, but it also has such great variety and depth." "Goya, Dali, Warhol" will be the fifth exhibit the MSV has done in partnership with the VMFA.

Centuries before the house and its surrounding landscape opened to the public and the dream of a regional history museum for the Valley became a reality, the people that lived here left indelible marks that are part of this historic property's story today. With the opening of the museum, the site now tells the broader story of the Shenandoah Valley and those that have made their homes in the Valley for thousands of years. Exhibits in the new museum provide an interpretive backdrop for the many individual stories told by historic sites throughout the region, including the museum complex's own Glen Burnie Historic House, which played a role in the settlement of the Valley. The Museum of the Shenandoah Valley complex contains five distinguished collections displayed in three locations. On view in the historic house is the Glen Burnie Historic House Collection, which includes objects original to the earliest Wood and Glass families and the paintings, fine furniture, and decorative objects acquired by Julian Wood Glass Jr. for his ancestral home. The museum's living collection is comprised of the six acres of spectacular gardens surrounding the Glen Burnie Historic House. Finally, the Museum of the Shenandoah Valley Collection, the Julian Wood Glass Jr. Collection, and the R. Lee Taylor Miniatures Collection are each on first-time permanent display in their own galleries in the Museum of the Shenandoah Valley. The second level of the Museum of the Shenandoah Valley presents four main galleries comprised of eleven gallery rooms. In the Shenandoah Valley Gallery, three gallery rooms explore the sweep of Valley history, and three additional rooms display decorative arts made in the Valley from the mid-1700s to the present. The Julian Wood Glass Jr. Gallery presents the collection assembled by one of the Valley's most significant private collectors, and includes paintings, furniture, and objects illustrating the themes of portraiture, landscape, and the Grand Tour. The R. Lee Taylor Miniatures Gallery is home to a fascinating collection of furnished miniature houses and rooms, also assembled in the Shenandoah Valley, while the Changing Exhibition Gallery displays continually changing exhibitions throughout the year. Visit the museum's website at ... http://www.shenandoahmuseum.org

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