Tag: Modern art

From the Collection: Pablo Picasso’s The Cock of the Liberation

Post author By Milwaukee Art Museum
Post date September 8, 2015
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Colorful rooster made of different shapes — Pablo Picasso (Spanish, 1881–1973), *The Cock of the Liberation (Le Coq de la Liberation)*, 1944 (detail). Oil on canvas. 39 1/2 × 31 3/4 in. (100.33 × 80.65 cm). Gift of Mrs. Harry Lynde Bradley M1959.372. Photo credit: Larry Sanders. © 2019 Estate of Pablo Picasso / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York

Many of the artists featured in the special exhibition Van Gogh to Pollock: Modern Rebels, Masterworks from the Albright-Knox Art Gallery are also represented in the collection of the Milwaukee Art Museum. This is the fifth in a series of blog posts that will highlight Milwaukee’s artworks during the run of the exhibition.

Pablo Picasso (Spanish, 1881–1973) is not usually considered a political artist. His favorite artistic subjects were still-lifes, portraits, harlequins, and other seemingly uncontroversial images.

But in some key instances, world events were an important influence on him. We don’t have to look far to find an example: the Milwaukee Art Museum’s The Cock of the Liberation (Le Coq de la Liberation), painted by Picasso in 1944.

Tags Collection, From the Collection, Modern art, Modern Rebels, Pablo Picasso

Art Curatorial

Matisse versus Picasso

Matisse’s colorful “La Musique” is featured in the exhibition Van Gogh to Pollock: Modern Rebels. Come check it out! Photo by the author.

“If I were not making the paintings I make, I would paint like Matisse,” Pablo Picasso once said of his rival and dear friend, Henri Matisse. Both artists are featured in the Milwaukee Art Museum’s latest exhibition, Van Gogh to Pollock: Modern Rebels.

In the early twentieth century, the relationship between Picasso and Matisse had developed out of a nature of competitiveness and grew to be one of mutual admiration—at times. When Picasso came onto the European modern art scene, Matisse, being eleven years older, had already established himself as a rebel in that world. After meeting in 1906 at the Parisian salon of famous writer Gertrude Stein, the two artists would continuously look to one another’s work to both pose criticism and find inspiration.

Tags 20th century art, European art, Henri Matisse, Modern art, Modern Rebels, Pablo Picasso

Art Exhibitions

Happy Birthday, Andy Warhol!

Post author By Milwaukee Art Museum
Post date August 6, 2015
No Comments on Happy Birthday, Andy Warhol!

Andy Warhol's 100 Cans in the exhibition Van Gogh to Pollock: Modern Rebels, Masterworks from the Albright-Knox Art Gallery. Photo by the author. — Andy Warhol’s 100 Cans in the exhibition Van Gogh to Pollock: Modern Rebels, Masterworks from the Albright-Knox Art Gallery. Photo by the author.

Today we celebrate the birthday of famous American pop artist Andy Warhol. The Milwaukee Art Museum’s permanent collection boasts a number of works by Warhol, but one of his most iconic pieces is featured in the Museum’s current temporary exhibition, Van Gogh to Pollock: Modern Rebels. The piece, titled 100 Cans, was completed in 1962.

Tags 20th century art, Andy Warhol, Exhibitions, Modern art, Modern Rebels

Art Collection Curatorial Modern

From the Collection: Chaïm Soutine’s Children and Geese

Post author By Emma Fallone
Post date July 28, 2015
1 Comment on From the Collection: Chaïm Soutine’s Children and Geese

Two young children walking in a field — Chaïm Soutine (Russian, 1893–1943, active in France), *Children and Geese*, 1934 (detail). Oil on canvas. Milwaukee Art Museum, Gift of Mrs. Harry Lynde Bradley M1959.375. Photo credit: Efraim Lev-er. ©2010 Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York / ADAGP, Paris.

Many of the artists featured in the special exhibition Van Gogh to Pollock: Modern Rebels, Masterworks from the Albright-Knox Art Gallery are also represented in the collection of the Milwaukee Art Museum. This is the third in a series of blog posts that will highlight Milwaukee’s artworks during the run of the exhibition.

Comparing the painting by Chaïm Soutine (Russian, 1893–1943, active in France) in the Modern Rebels show (Carcass of Beef) with the one in the Milwaukee Art Museum’s collection (Children and Geese), it is almost difficult to believe that the two works are by the same artist. The former depicts the body of a cow, flayed open from neck to tail, its scarlet inner organs glistening vividly against the shadowed blue background. In contrast, the artwork within Milwaukee’s own collection is a simple rural scene: a young boy and girl walking down a country path, with abstract brushstrokes suggesting a flock of white geese beside them.

A shockingly graphic image of blood and death versus an innocent, bucolic portrayal of childhood. How could these two works have been painted by the same artist?

Tags 20th century art, Chaim Soutine, Collection, European art, From the Collection, Modern art

Art Exhibitions

Happy Birthday, Frida Kahlo!

Post author By Milwaukee Art Museum
Post date July 6, 2015
1 Comment on Happy Birthday, Frida Kahlo!

Frida Kahlo’s “Self-Portrait with Monkey” can be seen displayed in “Van Gogh to Pollock: Modern Rebels,” at MAM through September 20th

From June 18 to September 20, the Milwaukee Art Museum is proud to temporarily house works by some of the most famous artists in history in an exhibition titled Van Gogh to Pollock: Modern Rebels. One such rebel artist, whose painting Self-Portrait with Monkey is displayed in this extraordinary exhibition, is Frida Kahlo. In honor of her 108th birthday on July 6, we celebrate the life and mind of this strong woman and creative artist.

Tags 20th century art, Frida Kahlo, Modern art, Modern Rebels

Art Collection Curatorial European Modern

From the Collection: Wassily Kandinsky’s Fragment I for Composition VII

Post author By Emma Fallone
Post date June 30, 2015
No Comments on From the Collection: Wassily Kandinsky’s Fragment I for Composition VII

Wassily Kandinsky (Russian, 1866–1944), *Fragment I for Composition VII (Center)*, 1913. Oil on canvas. Milwaukee Art Museum, Gift of Mrs. Harry Lynde Bradley M1958.12. Photo credit by Larry Sanders.

Wassily Kandinsky (Russian, 1866–1944), *Fragment I for Composition VII (Center)*, 1913 (detail). Oil on canvas. Milwaukee Art Museum, Gift of Mrs. Harry Lynde Bradley M1958.12. Photo credit by Larry Sanders.

Many of the artists featured in the special exhibition Van Gogh to Pollock: Modern Rebels, Masterworks from the Albright-Knox Art Gallery are also represented in the collection of the Milwaukee Art Museum. This is the second in a series of blog posts that will highlight Milwaukee’s artworks during the run of the exhibition.

Only one artwork from the Milwaukee Art Museum’s own collection is displayed as part of the newly-opened Modern Rebels exhibition: Wassily Kandinsky’s Fragment I for Composition VII. When one reads the title of the equally vibrant artwork from the Albright-Knox Gallery hung next to it, the reason for its inclusion becomes instantly clear.

Tags 20th century art, European art, From the Collection, Kandinsky, Modern art, Modern Rebels

Art Collection Curatorial Modern

From the Collection: Theseus by Jacques Lipchitz

Post author By Catherine Sawinski
Post date June 23, 2015
No Comments on From the Collection: Theseus by Jacques Lipchitz

Jacques Lipchitz (French, b. Lithuania, 1891–1973, active in the United States), Theseus, 1942 (detail). Hollow bronze cast. height: 23 3/4 in. (60.33 cm). Milwaukee Art Museum, Gift of Mrs. William D. Vogel M1956.80. Photo credit by Larry Sanders. © Estate of Jacques Lipchitz, all rights reserved.

Black sculpture of a man grabbing a minotaur by the horns — Jacques Lipchitz (French, b. Lithuania, 1891–1973, active in the United States), *Theseus*, 1942. Hollow bronze cast. height: 23 3/4 in. (60.33 cm). Milwaukee Art Museum, Gift of Mrs. William D. Vogel M1956.80. Photo credit by Larry Sanders. © Estate of Jacques Lipchitz, all rights reserved.

Many of the artists featured in the special exhibition Van Gogh to Pollock: Modern Rebels, Masterworks from the Albright-Knox Art Gallery are also represented in the collection of the Milwaukee Art Museum. This is the first in a series of blog posts that will highlight Milwaukee’s artworks during the run of the exhibition.

Knowledge of classical mythology is one of those subjects that will always help the student of art history, no matter what period you study. Over the last few years, I have explored mythological subjects in the Milwaukee Art Museum’s collection represented in ancient Greek hydriae; Baroque decorative arts and painting; and nineteenth century German ceramics.

Modern art is no exception. We have to look no further than the sculptures of Jacques Lipchitz (1891–1973).

Jacques Lipchitz was a Jewish artist from France who was born in Lithuania. He was classically trained in Paris, although he soon worked in a cubist style, such as Sailor with Guitar in the collection of the Albright-Knox Art Gallery.

Tags Lipchitz, Modern art, Modern Rebels, Mythology, sculpture

Art Collection Contemporary Curatorial

Can I walk on it?

Carl Andre (American, b. 1935), 144 Pieces of Zinc, 1967. Zinc plates;
each plate: 12 x 12 x 3/8 in. Milwaukee Art Museum, Purchase, National Endowment for the Arts Matching Funds M1969.22.
Photo by Larry Sanders.
© Carl Andre/Licensed by VAGA, New York, NY

Yes!

Carl Andre’s 144 Pieces of Zinc is one of the few artworks in the Museum’s Collection that is meant to be experienced physically, and that visitors may touch. The artist felt that the qualities inherent in the material were the most important aspect of his work, and that they were meant to be discovered through touch.

Imagine 144 Pieces of Zinc wasn’t in a museum, but, say, come upon in a hardware store surrounded by a bunch of home improvement tiles. You don’t have to imagine. The Tate Museum did it. They installed their collection’s 144 Magnesium Square on the floor in a hardware store in Liverpool, England, and then asked residents of Liverpool what they thought about seeing the minimalist work in a non-art context.

As you see in the video, people have strong feelings about this sort of thing…

Tags Carl Andre, Contemporary Art, Harry Bertoia, Minimalism, Modern art, Pol Bury, sculpture, Stanley Landsman

Art Collection Contemporary

From the Collection: Agnes Martin’s “Untitled #10”

Post author By Chelsea Emelie Kelly
Post date August 26, 2011
No Comments on From the Collection: Agnes Martin’s “Untitled #10”

Agnes Martin (American, b. Canada, 1912–2004), *Untitled #10*, 1977. Gesso, India ink, and graphite on canvas. 72 × 72 1/8 in. (182.88 × 183.2 cm). Gift of Friends of Art M1981.6. Photo by Efraim Lev-er. © Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York

Agnes Martin’s work can be tricky, all lines and grids and pale neutrals. It used to make me wonder, what’s the big deal? Pencil marks and a wash of color—not so impressive. I chalked it up to those nutty Abstract Expressionists and Minimalists, divorcing themselves from the real world and delving into a world I didn’t know how to get into.

Tags 20th century art, Abstract Expressionism, Agnes Martin, From the Collection, Minimalism, Modern art, Slow Art

Art Library/Archives

Vive “Verve”

Matisse’s cover, VERVE The French Review of Art Volume 2, Number 8 (Sept-Nov 1940). Printed in France. Milwaukee Art Museum, Gift of Lillian Schultz. Photo by Beret Balestrieri Kohn.

Imagine having your favorite artists, authors, philosophers and others ready at your beck and call for any project you desire.

What would you have them do?

Published by E. Tériade, “Verve: The French Review of Art” was a legendary quarterly art journal with that kind of seemingly-limitless access to legendary artists.

From 1937 to 1975, Tériade (real name Stratis Eleftheriades, French 1889–1983) was an art critic, patron, and publisher that commissioned artists and philosophers, including Pablo Picasso, Henri Matisse, and André Derain to produce works for his prestigious journal.

This particular issue of “Verve” (Vol. 2, No. 8, Sept—Nov 1940), devoted to the “Nature of France”, features a luxurious dark dust jacket after Matisse’s paper cutouts.

Tags European art, French Art, Henry Matisse, Library/Archives, Modern art, Pablo Picasso, Pierre Bonnard, Verve