It was such an honor to deliver my artwork, Springtime in Noxubee, to the permanent collection of the Interior Museum at the US Department of Interior in Washington, DC. The piece represents Noxubee National Wildlife Refuge in Mississippi. I blogged about this piece HERE. This post, however, is my way of sharing the special day when it was delivered. Steve and I were treated to a comprehensive tour of the building's many murals as well as a behind-the-scenes look at some of the museum's storage area and other artworks.
We arrived in DC a day earlier and went to the Renwick to see (First Floor) Sharing Honors and Burdens: Renwick Invitational 2023 featuring six truly remarkable Native American artists: Joe Feddersen (Arrow Lakes/Okanagan), Lily Hope (Tlingit), Ursala Hudson (Tlingit), Erica Lord (Athabaskan/Iñupiat), Geo Neptune (Passamaquoddy), and Maggie Thompson (Fond du Lac Ojibwe) and (Second Floor) an in-house curated selection of contemporary craft. So keep scrolling for some of the photos I took!
The museum's collection is vast and includes two gigantic and priceless Thomas Moran masterpieces: The Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone (1872) and The Chasm of the Colorado (1873–1874). It is exciting to know that the upcoming exhibit of new acquisitions will be in the same, large room ... including my piece!
Artwork in the collection is also hung in various executive offices in the building ... which is two city blocks in length and one in width! The floor plan is such that every office has a window. Built in just eighteen months (April 1935 - December 1936), it was the first Roosevelt administration, New Deal building in the capital. It was the first to have air-conditioning and escalators. When first open, there was even an ice cream parlor for employees!
The murals depict all sorts of events and the diversity of this country's people. Our tour also included a brief time on the roof. Most of the roof is covered in grass to lessen its carbon footprint but one area has the most inviting view to the mall. Every year employees enter a lottery to have access to this part of the roof for the Fourth of July fireworks!
Even the light fixtures were gorgeous!
Although no longer operational, people can still walk up and down the Art Deco escalators!
The Renwick is undoubtedly my very favorite museum. (Okay, some days I think London's V&A is my favorite ... but that's understandable. Both are FINE CRAFT museums with the best-of-the-best artwork one could ever hope to see during a single visit. I've been to both several times!)
The Native American invitational exhibit was GORGEOUS. I was especially struck by the fine lighting ... and not just in the way the museum installed the work. Shadows played a big part in the appreciation of several pieces. Take, for example, the piece on the left side of the photo above. Fused glass petroglyphs were suspended away from the wall on which their shadows were cast.
I could have stood in front of this piece for hours. Motion from the air-conditioning and people passing by caused gentle movement ... which also enhanced the work and the shadows!
I was quite struck by this set of three body bags. Believe it or not, the copper lines are seed beads couched over cording! I only know this because there were very well done video interviews featuring each of the six artists. In the video featuring Maggie Thompson, she was threading copper beads onto a needle and actually stitching one of these pieces.
All of the signage was first rate too ... and this one was particularly heartfelt.
Basketry is obviously an important craft in Native traditions. Geo Neptune is more than a master; he's a genius!
I really liked these masks and the other fashions that were on display ...
... but I think the best part about these garments was the sense of origin which was projected high on the wall. The landscape and seascape images brought a sense of place.
One of my favorite pieces, however, was this one. It is a visualization of "a knot in one's stomach" and a "gut feeling". Truly brilliant ... and with a great shadow effect too!
Steve and I were almost overwhelmed when visiting the second floor. From ceramics to wood to metal to glass ... it is hard to absorb all that magic in artwork. I took only three pictures ... of textiles, of course ... including this jacket by Jon Eric Riis ...
... and a detail shot from one of Bisa Butler's giant quilts ...
... and this Nick Cave Soundsuit! If in DC, I highly recommend both the Department of Interior's museum and building tour but ... of course ... The Renwick!
1 comment:
What a fascinating place. Thank you for sharing.
Love that your artwork is there. Congrats againxx
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