|
|
Contact: Norman Keyes, Jr.
Director of Media Relations
215-684-7862
nkeyes@philamuseum.orgRETROSPECTIVE EXHIBITION SURVEYS
THE CAREER OF THOMAS EAKINS
Thomas Eakins (1844-1916) emerged among the most outstanding American artists in the aftermath of the Civil War. In celebration of its 125th anniversary in 2001, the Museum will present a spectacular loan exhibition surveying, for the first time in nearly 20 years, the career of this enormously challenging, controversial, and influential artist. On view will be some 60 major oil paintings, together with examples of Eakins’s work in watercolor, drawing and sculpture, selected from the Museum’s own unrivaled collections and borrowed from public and private collections nationwide. Eakins was one of the earliest American artists to make photography an integral part of his creative process. For the first time in a major retrospective of his work, Thomas Eakins: American Realist will include some 120 photographs by the artist and his circle.
Eakins was among the first generation of American artists who flocked to Paris for artistic training. Unlike his contemporaries, however, he was determined to apply Beaux-Arts techniques to subjects that were distinctly American and reflected his own experience. Eakins’s preoccupation with athletics is reflected in his famous scenes of rowing, sailing, fishing and boxing, among other sports. Some of the finest and most celebrated of these—Max Schmitt in a Single Scull, Starting Out After Rail, Shad Fishing at Gloucester on the Delaware River, and Between Rounds, among others—will be shown in the exhibition.
Eakins is equally well-known for his portraits that, as deeply moving character studies, often reflect the complexities of American life at the turn of the century. His controversial paintings of famous surgeons at work in their operating amphitheaters—The Gross Clinic and The Agnew Clinic—will be included. Also on view will be a group of other outstanding portraits, including Miss Van Buren, Professor Henry A. Rowland, The Thinker, and Mrs. William D. Frishmuth.
The last comprehensive survey of Eakins’ work was mounted by the Museum in 1982; it traveled to the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. Since that time, there has been a great deal of exciting new scholarship about Eakins and his times, and many previously unknown works by him have surfaced. Thomas Eakins: American Realist will introduce a new generation of the public to this great painter and key figure in American art.
Sponsors:
The exhibition is made possible by Advanta and Strawbridge's.
Additional funding was provided by generous grants from The Henry Luce Foundation, Inc., and the Robert J. Kleberg, Jr. and Helen C. Kleberg Foundation, The Pew Charitable Trusts, and the National Endowment for the Arts, with initial funding from the William Penn Foundation. Additional support was provided by NBC 10 WCAU and Amtrak.
Curator: Darrel Sewell, The Robert L. McNeil, Jr., Curator of American Art
Location: Dorrance Special Exhibition Galleries, first floor
Publication: Co-published in hardcover by the Museum and Yale University Press, Thomas Eakins includes essays by the leading scholars exploring his education, career, and environment, including Darrel Sewell; Amy Werbel, Associate Professor of Fine Arts, St. Michael’s College; H. Barbara Weinberg, Curator of American Painting and Sculpture, The Metropolitan Museum of Art; Elizabeth Milroy, Associate Professor, Art Department, Wesleyan University; Kathleen A. Foster, Curator of 19th and 20th Century Art, Indiana University Art Museum; Marc Simpson, Associate Director, Graduate Program, Williams College; W. Douglas Paschall, Research Associate in American Art, Philadelphia Museum of Art; Mark S. Tucker, Senior Conservator of Paintings, Philadelphia Museum of Art, and Nica Gutman, Assistant Conservator; Carol Troyen, Curator of American Paintings, Museum of Fine Arts, Boston; and William Innes Homer, H. Rodney Sharp Professor Emeritus of Art History, University of Delaware. Thomas Eakins includes 440 pages, 250 color and 325 black-and-white illustrations. ISBN: 0-87633-142-8 (paper); ISBN: 0-87633-143-6 (cloth).
Itinerary:
Philadelphia Museum of Art October 4, 2001 – January 6, 2002
Musée d’Orsay, Paris February 5, 2002 – May 12, 2002
The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York June 18, 2002 – September 15, 2002
The Philadelphia Museum of Art, which celebrates its 125th anniversary in 2001, is one of the largest museums in the United States. It showcases more than 2,000 years of exceptional human creativity in masterpieces of painting, sculpture, decorative arts and architectural settings from Europe, Asia and the Americas. The striking neoclassical building, housing more than 200 galleries across an expanse of 600,000 square feet, is an oasis of beauty and enriching activities—including family programs, lectures, concerts and film.
For additional information, contact the Marketing and Public Relations Department of the Philadelphia Museum of Art at (215) 684-7860. The Philadelphia Museum of Art is located on the Benjamin Franklin Parkway at 26th Street. For general information, call (215) 763-8100, or visit the Museum’s website at www.philamuseum.org. 07/24/01
