by Caroline Gabsewics
Staff Writer
Art work from some of the world’s greatest modern artists is currently on display at the Cummer Museum of Art & Gardens.
The exhibit, ” ‘Rather Strange Developments:’ Picasso, Kandinsky, and Mondrian from the Munson-Williams-Proctor Arts Institute” will be at the museum beginning today through Aug. 12. The exhibit is in the museum’s newest gallery, The Minerva and Raymond K. Mason Gallery.
“The exhibit features top artists of the modernist movements from the first half of 20th Century Europe,” said Cummer Museum Director Maarten van de Guchte. “Nothing of the sort has been shown in Jacksonville for many years.”
The exhibit features 24 paintings and sculptures by modern artists including Pablo Picasso, Wassily Kandinsky, Piet Mondrian, Henry Moore and Salvador Dali.
Van de Guchte said all “isms” that swept through Europe in the early 20th Century are represented in this exhibit, and they include: cubism, expressionism, surrealism and futurism.
“There is amazing and extraordinary material from top artists in Europe,” he said. “To see these pieces in the flesh and all of the vibrant colors ... it is too good to be true.”
Van de Guchte said the value of the paintings in the exhibit are so astronomical, many museums can’t afford to bring in the exhibit.
“We had to adjust our budget in order to bring in the exhibit,” he said.
The traveling exhibit was organized by the Munson-Williams-Proctor Arts Institute in Utica, N.Y.
Besides the actual exhibit, there is also a sitting room in the gallery with tables and chairs that look out onto the museum’s gardens. Quotes from the famous artists accent the walls, including one from artist Piet Mondrian, “Curves are so emotional.”
There are also interactive stations within the exhibit, said Jeanette Toohey, chief curator at the Cummer Museum.
“We want the viewers to be involved in the art,” she said. “We believe in really reaching out to our visitors.”
At one station, visitors can make their own Piet Mondrian painting of “Composition in Blue, Yellow and Black” by using a touch screen.
Another station allows visitors to make their own Wassily Kandinsky masterpiece by looking at the relationship between art and music.
“If you really want to experience what modern art left on the 20th Century then you must come see the exhibit,” said van de Guchte.
For information on museum hours please call 356-6857.