Courtesy of the Saint Louis Art Museum
Edgar Degas, French, 1834-1917; “The Milliners”, c.1898; oil canvas; 29 5/8 x 32 ¼ inches
The Saint Louis Art Museum has a lot in store for 2017. At a press briefing this morning, Museum Director Brent Benjamin described the upcoming season as “splendid,” and added he was very excited to announce the newest featured works in the main and print galleries.
In addition to the exhibits, SLAM has a busy schedule of community events planned for the new year: Their Kwanzaa celebration is January 1, with a Martin Luther King Jr. Freedom Celebration on January 13. Art in Bloom will be back in February from the 26 through the 28. The summer film series returns on Fridays starting July 14 and running through August 4. The increasingly popular SLAM Underground event occurs on the last Friday of every month.
Main Gallery:
Courtesy of the Saint Louis Art Museum
INC2967778
Edgar Degas, French, 1834-1917; “The Millinery Shop”, 1879-1886; oil on canvas; 39 3/8 x 49 9/16 inches; The Art Institute of Chicago, Mr. and Mrs. Lewis Larned Coburn Memorial Collection
Degas, Impressionism, and the Paris Millinery Trade (Feb. 12 through May 7)
French artist Edgar Degas was a late 19th- and early 20th century painter who SLAM says was little known for Impressionist art. One of the works on display is "The Milliners," c. 1898 (above). The concept revolves around Parisian milliners, who were people that made and sold women’s hats.
"'Degas, Impressionism, and the Paris Millinery Trade,' will compliment Impressionist works in the permanent collection, while giving proper context to Degas’ "The Milliners," which the Saint Louis Art Museum acquired in 2007,” Benjamin says.
Courtesy of the Saint Louis Art Museum
lation photo of the exhibition “Reigning Men: Fashion in Menswear, 1715-2015”, April 10 – April 21, 2016; Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA). Photo © Museum Associates/LACMA
Reigning Men: Fashion in Menswear, 1715 - 2015 (June 25. through Sept. 17)
This exhibit features the changing styles of men’s clothing over the last 300 years. From robes worn around the house in the 18th century to the casual outing clothing of today, the exhibit will feature more than 100 looks. A SLAM press release says the exhibition traces cultural influences over the centuries, examines how elements of the uniform have profoundly shaped fashionable dress, and reveals how cinching and padding the body was and is not exclusive to womenswear.
Benjamin says the exhibit is based on themes—from uniforms, to business suits, and the idea of both concealing and revealing the body.
Courtesy of the Saint Louis Art Museum
Thomas Struth, German, born 1954; “Aquarium, Atlanta, Georgia”, 2013; chromogenic print; image: 78 3/4 × 137 13/16 inches; High Museum of Art, purchase with funds from the Donald and Marilyn Keough Family, the Hagedorn Family, Lucinda W. Bunnen for the Bunnen Collection and through prior acquisitions, 2014.23 © Thomas Struth
Thomas Struth: Nature and Politics (Oct. 29 through Jan. 21, 2018)
These photographs by Thomas Struth explore the idea of a “natural world influenced by technology,” says Benjamin. These 35 large-scale works were created in the last decade by the German artist. The press release says this is how Struth investigates the fascinating complexities of sites where human knowledge, ambition, and imagination are advanced.
Print Galleries:
Learning to See: Renaissance and Baroque Masterworks from the Phoebe Dent Weil and Mark S. Weil Collection (March 3 through July 30)
Almost 200 works of art from the 15th to 18th centuries reflect European art and culture with Italian Renaissance engravings, prints by Albrecht Dürer, and etchings and drypoints by Rembrandt.
Also included are Renaissance bronzes and terracottas and a marble portrait bust of Roman emperor Marcus Aurelius made in the 18th century.
Modern and Contemporary Japanese Prints from the Collection (Fall 2017)
This collection features war-related prints similar to SLAM’s current exhibition, "Conflicts of Interest: Art and War in Modern Japan." Approximately 60 artworks include single sheet prints, print series, and a woodblock printed coterie magazine.
The first section comprises shin hanga or “new prints” consisting of beautiful women and landscapes. The second is dedicated to the sōsaku hanga or “creative prints” which were inspired by European modernism and contemporary graphic design. The third features Western artists who contributed to the vitality of Japanese printmaking.
Currents Exhibitions:
Currents 113: Shimon Attie (April 1 through June 25)
The American artist’s new work ranges from site-specific public projects to multichannel video installations and other media works. Attie’s work has been shown in the Museum of Modern Art New York, Centre Pompidou in Paris, and Boston’s Institute of Contemporary Art.
Attie will discuss his work including the exhibition in a lecture on Friday, March 31 at 7 p.m. in the Farrell Auditorium.
Currents 113: Matt Saunders (Fall 2017)
Saunders, also an American artist, will have his new work featured in the fall. He is known for his explorations of ways for images to be repeated, altered, and distorted over time. Exact dates to be determined.
