"Having a Ball" at The Akron Art Museum

Monday, 03 April 2006 16:21

Akron, Ohio - While the Akron Art Museum’s galleries are closed for expansion, the museum is collaborating with The University of Akron to present Having a Ball: Costume Drawings by Viktor Schreckengost from the Akron Art Museum. The exhibition celebrates the artist’s 100th birthday by featuring twelve dazzling large-scale drawings of Schreckengost’s costume designs for Akron’s Rubber Ball of 1939.The exhibition will take place from April 10 through June 30. Schreckengost is one of the most prolific artists and designers in the history of American art. Renowned for his work in ceramics, sculpture and toy and industrial design, Schreckengost also created theatrical sets and costumes during the 1930s. In 1939, he designed the costumes for the King, Queen and royal court of the Akron Rubber Ball, a lavish social event attended by more than 4,000 people. Children of the rubber industry’s founding fathers ruled in regal splendor wearing Schreckengost’s costume designs as King and Queen of the event. They were Mary Gertrude Seiberling, granddaughter of F.A. Seiberling, and Leonard K. Firestone, son of Harvey Firestone. The costumes represented the four basic elements (earth, fire, air and water) as well as other factors contributing to the fabrication of rubber, such as chemistry and industry. Schreckengost’s designs—which featured intense colors, bold shapes and a variety of rubber-based fabrics—embodied the energy and spirit of the country as it emerged from the Great Depression. These drawings are part of a group of works (representing all of the costumes that Schreckengost designed for the Rubber Ball) that are promised gifts to the Akron Art Museum from Viktor and his wife, Gene. Having a Ball is one of more than 100 exhibitions taking place across the United States this summer as part of Viktor Schreckengost: National Centennial Exhibition, an event spearheaded by the Viktor Schreckengost Foundation. To learn more about this nationwide celebration and the artist himself, visit : Viktor Schreckengost This exhibition is organized by the Akron Art Museum and presented in cooperation with the Emily Davis Gallery, University of Akron. Visit The Akron Art Museum at : Akron Art Museum

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