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The painting before (left) and after (right) the removal of the Victorian overpainting and careful restoration of the original. (Photo: screenshot of video from Carnegie Museum of Art)

Years ago, a painting of a young woman ended up at The Metropolitan Museum of Art. The museum was not very impressed by the benign, uninspired face of the sitter, leading to the painting's eventual deaccession from the collection. Instead, it found its way into the collection of the Carnegie Museum of Art in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. It then sat in the basement, unseen, until it caught the eye of Louise Lippincott, a former museum curator. She showed the work to chief conservator Ellen Baxter, who worked her magic to transform a mediocre work into its original, elegant form. The shocking before and after, documented in 2014, demonstrated the many transformations a work can go through over the centuries.

Originally, the painting was thought to depict Eleanor of Toledo, wife of Cosimo I de Medici, who ruled Florence. A sticker on the back frame alleges the painter was court artist Bronzino. However, Baxter suspected the truth was hidden within, under the pretty yet unremarkable features of the young woman. An x-ray scan confirmed that beneath the face was another one, with larger features and much more character. Beneath the petite hand was a larger one, and it held a vase which had later been painted over. The 16th-century painting had clearly undergone a transformation in the 19th century. The wood panel on which it was painted was shaved down to a very thin strip which was then affixed to canvas. Meanwhile, the face and hand of the woman were overpainted with a more Victorian, delicate image that lacked the vibrance of the original.

Baxter removed the old varnish covering the painting and slowly removed the 19th-century paint as well. Beneath it is the remarkable face of Isabella de Medici, daughter of Cosimo I and Eleanor of Toledo. While not certain, the work was likely done by Alessandro Allori, who trained under Bronzino. The work was then fully conserved to restore its original glory, with careful varnish and delicate inpainting to fix flaking. Baxter notes in a video of the process that she is careful to match color and texture while resisting the urge to put [herself] in the painting. Her work is engaging, and she talks to the painting pleasantly as she restores its glory. These restorations follow certain ethical rules of transparency.

Baxter's efforts are in service of presenting the princess in her glory, as the Paris Hilton of the day. Rich and wild, she took lovers and spent, spent, spent. She was well-educated and witty, but her intrigues may have contributed to her untimely death. Officially it was attributed to dropping dead while washing her hair, but historians believe her husband murdered her in revenge and anger for her affairs. As baxter describes her life, a bad end, but a good story. Painted in this newly uncovered work with a small vase typical of Mary Magdalene depictions, Lippincott explained to Carnegie Museums, This [portrait] is literally the bad girl seeing the light.

h/t: [Open Culture]

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Conservator Restore This Renaissance Painting of a Medici - My Modern Met

Paul Gauguin once brazenly claimed that he inspired Van Gogh to create the Sunflowers. This is patently untrue, since the still lifes were painted two months before Gauguins arrival at the Yellow House in Arles. The self-serving Gauguin wanted to claim credit for his colleagues signature works.

Van Goghs Sunflowers (August 1888) Credit: National Gallery, London

Gauguins boast comes in a letter to his Paris-based friend Andr Fontainas, to whom he sent his 1902 manuscript Racontars de Rapin (Tales). This 28-page unpublished article was written in the Marquesan islands in French Polynesia. Yesterday (30 November) The Art Newspaper reported that the manuscript has just been acquired by Londons Courtauld Gallery.

Paul Gauguins Self-portrait (1901) (detail) Credit: Kunstmuseum Basel

In Tales, Gauguin lists 40 artists he admires. Van Gogh is included at the very end of the list, although nothing more is said about him, despite the fact that Gauguin lived and worked with him for nine weeks in the autumn of 1888. Their collaboration came to an abrupt end when Van Gogh mutilated his ear.

The last page of Gauguins Racontars de Rapin (Tales), which includes Van Goghs name at the end of a list of artists he admired Credit: Christies

In his letter to Fontainas, dated September 1902, Gauguin wrote that on his arrival in Arles, following my advice and my instructions, he [Van Gogh] worked quite differentlypainting yellow sunflowers on a yellow background. This was a complete distortion of the truth: Van Goghs Sunflowers (August 1888) was actually hanging in Gauguins bedroom when he arrived.

Gauguin also claimed that it was he who encouraged Van Gogh to experiment, utilising the Dutchmans intelligence and fiery temperament. In conclusion, Gauguin wrote that when discussing Van Goghs noble nature I am forced to praise myself.

Paul Gauguins Sunflowers on an Armchair (1901) Credit: State Hermitage Museum, St. Petersburg

The year before writing Tales, Gauguin painted a series of four still lifes with sunflowers. On three of these, the flowers are placed on chairs, which represent a nod to the Dutchmans painting Van Goghs Chair (December 1888), now at Londons National Gallery.

When Gauguin painted his 1901 still lifes with sunflowers, they might be seen as representing a homage to Van Gogh. But bearing in mind his claims to Fontainas, it seems equally likely that he was appropriating his colleagues famed motif. Gauguin may have wanted to add visual credence to his claim that he had provided Van Goghs inspiration.

Gauguins attempt was doomed to failure. Van Goghs series of Sunflowers is now universally recognised as his most popular paintingsand as all his very own work.

Paul Gauguins Sunflowers on an Armchair (1901) Credit: Emil Bhrle Collection, long-term loan to the Kunsthaus Zrich

Other Van Gogh news:

Three prints of Van Goghs Old Man drinking Coffee (autumn 1882), with the promised donation on the right Credit: Van Gogh Museum, Amsterdam (Vincent van Gogh Foundation) and (right) Monique Hageman, on long-term loan to the Van Gogh Museum

Monique Hageman, a research assistant at the Van Gogh Museum since 1986, has given a rare lithograph of the artists Old Man drinking Coffee (autumn 1882) to her institution. This represents an act of huge generosity. Hageman bought the print on 10 May at the Leiden-based Burgersdijk & Niermans auction house, paying 275,000. It will eventually be bequeathed to the museum.

The museum already owns the two other extant examples of Old Man drinking Coffee (each was finished by the artists hand and is slightly different). All three lithographs went on display yesterday at the Amsterdam museum, until early in the new year.

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Gauguin's shocking claim: Van Gogh painted the Sunflowers ... - Art Newspaper

REYNOLDSVILLE Over the course of four days, Jeff Tech (Jefferson County Vocational Technical School) Art Club students have continued their tradition of painting cheerful and creative holiday designs on the windows of Reynoldsville businesses.

Jeff Techs Art Club was established in 2017, which is when they started painting windows, said art instructor Angela Dragich. Working with the Reynoldsville Community Association, students have painted windows every year since, except for 2020, along Main Street in Reynoldsville and at the Reynoldsville American Legion. Typically, Dragich says they cover about 18-19 businesses.

Some participate each year, like Reynoldsville Hardware, the Food Pantry, One Stop, The Sub Hub, S&T Bank, the Laundry Mat, District Magistrate office and others.

In January, students return to clean off the windows that still have designs on them, Dragich noted. For the most part, students decide what theyd like to paint, but there are businesses that prefer non-secular, non-religious or no Christian-themed designs.

Jeff Tech Art Club students created their own version of "the leg lamp" from "A Christmas Story." In this photo, Maria Hoch is shown painting a window.

The students sometimes get a chance to go in the business and take requests, she said.

This year, for example, the Grinch has been a popular request from both Glass Erectors and The Sub Hub, and was also painted on one of the laundry mat windows. By request, students also recreated the leg lamp from A Christmas Story on the windows next to The Sub Hub shop on Main Street.

Other designs this year include a reindeer, Snoopy, Jack Skeleton as Santa, winter houses and trees, Christmas lights, Santa with a bag of money, a gingerbread man, a farmer elf with animals and others.

A total of 12 students participated in the window painting this year, Dragich said. She noted that an Art Club alumni surprised them on Nov. 20 when they were out painting and stayed to help paint.

The students hear a lot of positive feedback from the community about the designs, she said, from both business owners and people passing by.

Jeff Tech Art Club students are shown in front of Glass Erectors in Reynoldsville, where they painted a Grinch design.

The business owners and volunteers are happy to see the students return each year to paint their windows, she said.

Dragich noted that Glass Erectors even took a photo of its windows, and made an appreciation post on Facebook.

Some students sign up to window paint every year they are in Art Club, and/or every day, she said.

Dragich asked her art students why they choose to paint windows in the cold, rainy, and sometimes snowy weather conditions.

Jeff Tech student Trinity Britton is shown painting a Grinch hand.

Junior cosmetology student Aubrey Dinger said, Window painting is an opportunity to make friends with people. I love to paint, and its awesome to see each others artistic abilities.

Brooke Farmery, senior student in health assisting, said, It gives us a way to spread kindness and holiday cheer throughout the community.

Its a great way to practice and share your art and holiday cheer, added senior engineering student Trinity Britton. Its (also) a great way to meet new people, and make their holidays full of cheer.

Noah Webster, a junior in digital media arts, said he enjoys when he is able to be creative, and doesnt let the weather stop him. This is his second year window painting.

Gabby Phillips, a junior in welding shop, said that she enjoys missing class, but also just very much enjoys painting windows. This is her third year painting with Art Club.

Jeff Tech student Sara White is shown painting houses on the windows of a beauty shop in Reynoldsville.

The RCA provides the paint for these projects, said Dragich, and replenishes it when needed. The RCA also kindly provided lunch for the students on one of their painting days at Main Street Pizza.

The Reynoldsville American Legion also provided a donation to the art department for its appreciation of the window painting, and the Food Pantry provided snacks for students.

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Jeff Tech Art Club students continue window painting tradition in ... - The Courier-Express

The advent of anamorphic advertising hails exciting prospects for brands. But where does it leave age-old crafts like hand-painting murals?

Hand-painted advertising has experienced a global resurgence, and its momentum, further buoyed by social media, shows no signs of waning. These murals are a testament to human artistry, offering a tangible, authentic touch that resonates deeply with audiences, Eric Sas, co-founder and CEO of anamorphic 3D technology company BCN Visuals, tells Jing Daily.

Handcrafted murals, for example, have recently experienced virality. Their popularity shows that theres still an appetite for the human touch, even among the younger generations.

Last year, a clip documenting artists hand-painting a mural in New Yorks Soho from TikTok account Soho Suiting circulated in November. Featuring a lifelike image of Bella Hadid for Swarovski, the video racked up over 20 million views.

The account has since continued to follow the ever-changing canvases dotted around the city after recognizing there was demand for such content, from Gucci trunk murals to Longchamp campaigns.

[Mural art] is doing well because its so human, Lee Bofkin, CEO and co-founder of Global Street Art tells Jing Daily. The London-based advertising agency specializes in hand-painted advertising and public murals, and has created works for the likes of sneaker label On and Wedgwood.

Bofkin outlines how the craft can act as an antidote to todays digital overload.

Human-powered skills are still as relevant as ever, if not more relevant in a time when digital creativity is so increasingly disposable, he says. Its incredibly impactful; its the easiest type of outdoor advertising to share online. People stop and take photos all the time when were painting, and long after.

Global Street Art are the brains behind some of the UKs biggest handprinted murals, including Wedgwoods street art. Photo: Sam Berry/LinkedIn

Where old meets new

With both traditional craft and emerging innovation at the forefront of advertising, brands are opting to harness both.

In essence, both mediums cater to different aspects of marketing and, rather than compete, can coexist harmoniously and offer diverse brand expression, Sas says.

Loewe is exploring both ends of the spectrum. The Spanish fashion house employed both mediums for its widely popular Howls Moving Castle campaign earlier this year. In Chengdu, the brand captivated passersby with a 3D billboard inspired by the anime classics distinct visual cues. Meanwhile, it went back to basics with hand-painted advertisements for the streets of London.

Bofkin argues that deploying a mix of modes may help a brand avoid getting lost in the noise, but this approach doesnt guarantee staying power.

Brands need to be more relevant in culture and isolated messaging only goes so far. The things that work best are integrating outdoor (like mural painting) within wider parts of the campaign, he says.

Loewe painted the city of London and beyond with its Howls Moving Castle handprinted murals earlier this year. Photo: Marketing Interactive

Combating fatigue

Today, brands are looking for ways to combat waning interest, especially as they strive to capture the vacillating attention of Gen Z and Gen Alpha. But with consumer advertising burnout rife, can novel advancements like 3D billboards offer a solution?

Yes and no, marketing and brand strategist Leland Grossman says. In some regards the gimmicky nature only reinforces the fatigue. On the flip side, the technology has the potential to truly wow folks, as I believe the MSG Sphere has done.

Sas believes that theres a place for newness and old-school craft in todays marketing playbook, but harnessing new technologies is what will keep brands ahead of the curve and the competition.

Ultimately, as the marketing landscape shifts towards more interactive and immersive experiences, pivoting to 3D digital displays is not just a progressive step; its imperative for brands aiming to maintain a competitive edge and offer an unparalleled brand experience in a Web3 and AI-centric world, he says.

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From Loewe to Swarovski, hand-painted murals get a luxury upgrade - Jing Daily

DIYers looking for faster results with less mess can benefit from using an electric paint sprayer, such as the ones offered by SPRAYIT, as these devices offer quick results with little learning curve.

They are affordable, efficient, and simple t operate, making them perfect for DIY enthusiasts!

When using an electric paint sprayer, hold your gun approximately 12 inches away and spray n long consistent movements while always moving perpendicular t the surface being painted; this will help minimize overspray and ensure a smooth, even finish.

Metal surface finishing aims t produce products with special properties, such as protection from corrosion, enhanced texture, r improved aesthetics.

Surface spray finishing machines for metal utilize a controlled stream f paint r other coating materials t achieve the desired finish.

An effective surface spray finishing machine for metal should provide uniform coverage, consistent color, and minimal overspray.

HOMAG offers several models f surface spray finishing machines for metal designed specifically t handle heavy production environments, providing deburring, dross removal, calibration/dimensioning, edge radiusing, painting/surface preparation r finishing/polishing services.

Furthermore, our machines incorporate powerful industrial dust collection systems for added safety; this ensures that abrasions wont release dangerous particulates into the air that could spark fires thus helping prevent workplace accidents.

Abrasive blasting involves firing an abrasive media stream against surfaces under pressure to clean, roughen, or alter their shape.

First patented over 150 years ago, this surface preparation technique can be used to prepare steel and aluminum components for painting, strengthen metal surfaces and adhesion as well as remove contaminants such as rust or grease that have built up on them just to name a few benefits of this surface treatment method.

Abrasive blasting is an efficient and economical method of eliminating paint, oil, organics, oxidation and salt buildup that interferes with coating adhesion and helps the finishing process proceed more successfully.

Dry ice and soda blasting offer an alternative approach, reducing dust emissions while requiring less containment; however, these techniques tend to be slower.

A retrofit device known as a water curtain may be fitted over the blasting nozzle in order to minimize premixing of water with the abrasive.

This has been found to cut airborne dust emissions by 50-75% while simultaneously shortening cleaning times without diminishing effectiveness of blasts.

Powder coating is a dry finishing process applied electrostatically and baked in an oven to form an extremely durable finish. Applied to any surface, powder coating resists corrosion, scratching, chipping, fading and wear with ease perfect for exterior use!

Powder coating is also environmentally-friendly. Liquid paints contain solvents which emit hazardous emissions when dry; in comparison, powder coating releases minimal or no Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) into the atmosphere; this helps improve air quality and minimize environmental contamination at work sites.

Powder coating application processes are efficient and create minimal waste, as powder can be recycled for reuse in future applications and overspray is typically collected and recycled as well.

All this adds up to savings on materials as well as equipment maintenance fees and electricity usage costs for running them.

Metal products can be found everywhere from homes and businesses alike, yet their raw state can be hard, unattractive, and hard on the wallet.

To make them more functional and visually appealing, various finishing techniques have been implemented that also protect them against corrosion, abrasion, and other physical damages.

Powder coating, silk screening and painting are among the most widely utilized finishing methods, used to improve metal products while simultaneously decreasing weight, cost and time spent production.

Furthermore, these methods may even increase corrosion resistance and electrical conductivity.

Machinists utilize other processes to prepare the surface of metal components besides traditional finishing processes. Pickling removes dirt and rust while electropolishing smooths it; both procedures ensure high-quality and long-term use for finished products.

Furthermore, depending on the hardness of metal chosen for finishing processes differ; some processes work better with hard metals while others might better suit soft ones.

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Painting Perfection with Electric Paint Sprayers: A Comprehensive ... - Robotics and Automation News

More than 40 years ago, Pro Football Hall of Famer and former Eagles Head Coach Dick Vermeil labeled local artist Joe Venditti as the "Official Painting Coach" of the team.

In 1979, Venditti was working at the Sign Shack, his art store at Oregon Avenue and Percy Street in South Philadelphia, when a man came into the shop with an offer that the artist could not refuse.

Stanley "Bow Wow" Wojtkiewicz, a publicist for the Eagles, asked Venditti if he would be interested in painting for the team.

Venditti started by painting signs around the training facility and doing any small job that the organization needed.

That stemmed into a bigger opportunity for Venditti, who was then asked to design game balls and ultimately paint the field.

"It was so cool," said Danielle Venditti Hurd, Joe's daughter. "It made us feel like we were somebody. I was in grade school at the time, so I felt like a big shot."

Venditti was known for delicately painting commemorative game balls with Kelly Green paint and the vintage Eagles logo.

The Sign Shack owner would paint all the footballs at his shop. Game balls would be given out to players, coaches, and staff members after big games. In 1980, after the Eagles beat the Cowboys in the NFC Championship Game, Vermeil ordered 138 game balls, one for every member of the organization including Joe.

Eagles Chairman and CEO Jeffrey Lurie received a game ball from Venditti after purchasing the team in 1994. United States President George H. W. Bush is the owner of one as well.

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Joe Venditti's legacy as the Eagles' 'Official Painting Coach' lives on - PhiladelphiaEagles.com

The Huntington Library, Art Museum, and Botanical Gardens announced that it has acquired a historic portrait by Spanish master Francisco Jos de Goya y Lucientes (Goya) (17461828). Portrait of Jos Antonio Caballero, Second Marqus de Caballero, Secretary of Grace and Justice was painted in 1807, a time when Goya was renowned for his portraits of the Spanish nobility and just before the Napoleonic invasion of Spain profoundly altered the nature of his later work. While The Huntington holds a number of Goyas etchings and aquatints, Portrait of Jos Antonio Caballero is the first Spanish oil painting to join The Huntingtons art collection and will complement its extensive holdings of Library materials on Spanish imperial history. The paintingwhich will go on view in the Huntington Art Gallery on Nov. 29, 2023is The Huntingtons third masterpiece acquired through a gift from The Ahmanson Foundation.

Once again, The Ahmanson Foundation has proven to be an invaluable strategic partner, helping us reach our goals of broadening our collections with significant works and inviting new, interdisciplinary connections, Huntington President Karen R. Lawrence said. We couldnt be more grateful to them for making possible the acquisition of such a superb and historically significant masterpiece.

Considered one of the last Old Masters and one of the first and most influential great modern painters, Goya was celebrated during his lifetime for his ability to capture his subjects innermost personalities as well as their grandeur and political poweralbeit with what has been perceived as an occasional layer of satire. He is also acclaimed for his virtuosic painterly style; flickering, impressionistic brushwork; and, in his later years, revolutionary subject matter.

Trained in Madrid and inspired by travels in Rome, Goya became a Spanish court painter in 1786, and he soon became known for such royal and aristocratic portraits as Portrait of Jos Antonio Caballero. But after the 1808 French invasion of Spain that began the Napoleonic Wars, Goya turned his artistic attention to portraying the horrors of war in paintings and prints.

Portrait of Jos Antonio Caballero is historically fascinating and a prime example of Goyas genius as a portraitist, said Christina Nielsen, the Hannah and Russel Kully Director of the Art Museum at The Huntington. Along with the exquisite French portrait by lisabeth Louise Vige Le Brun acquired with The Ahmanson Foundation last year, it will add an important international perspective to our outstanding collection of 17th- and early 18th-century British portraits.

The Ahmanson Foundation funded The Huntingtons acquisition of Portrait of Joseph Hyacinthe Franois-de-Paule de Rigaud, comte de Vaudreuil (ca. 1784) by Vige Le Brun (17551842), the most important female artist of 18th-century France, in 2022, and the monumental Portage Falls on the Genesee (ca. 1839) by Anglo American painter Thomas Cole (18011848) in 2021.

The sitter in the Goya painting, Jos Antonio Caballero (17541821), was from the minor nobility in Spain. He studied law and went on to a successful career in the royal court, holding four secretary positions. His accomplishments included convincing King Charles IV of Spain to conduct a vaccination campaign against smallpox that extended to the Spanish territories in North and South America and Asia. Goya painted the portrait when Caballero was the secretary of state and had just inherited the title of Marquis de Caballero from his uncle.

In the portrait, Caballero is depicted in a highly decorated ministerial uniform and seated in a red armchair. His black coat and bright red waistcoat are extensively embroidered with gold decoration. He looks directly at the viewer, conveying a sense of stature and power, with his right hand at his waist and his left hand holding papers. A powder-blue-and-white sash is draped across his chest, pinned with the Order of the Grand Cross of Charles III. The bright white insignia of a knight of the Order of Santiago is pinned to his coat.

Portrait of Jos Antonio Caballero will be installed in the Huntington Art Gallery, the former residence of founders Henry E. and Arabella Huntington, in a paneled room that was once Henry Huntingtons private office.

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The Huntington Acquires Historic Portrait by Renowned Spanish ... - The South Pasadenan

This is a love story.

Multiple love stories, actually.

They begin with Susan Fuller Palmer, a newly minted docent at Philbrook Museum of Art.She never does anything lackadaisically.She catapulted from being a personal trainer to owning Firm by Susan Fuller, one of Tulsas earliest fitness centers. In preparation for a trip to France, she took college French classes and also became a certified sommelier in French wines.

So naturally she began her volunteer work at Philbrook with the ardor of a new love affair.

Susan Fuller Palmer with "The Little Sheperdess."

Palmer fell in love with The Little Shepherdess, an 1889 painting by William-

Adolphe Bouguereau. For decades the painting has been a pillar of the Philbrook collection and a longtime favorite of visitors, says Susan Green, who holds the solemn Philbrook title of Marcia Manhart endowed associate curator for contemporary art and design, who fizzes and bubbles with enthusiasm for art. Children copy the shepherdess costume for Halloween, Green says, and visitors mimic her pose.

And then Palmer noticed in tiny, tiny lettering on the identifying plaque that the painting was part of the Laura Clubb Collection. Who was Laura Clubb? What was her collection?

For information, she went to the Philbrook library and archives to research with the help of Saige Blanchard, library and collection information specialist. There she discovered another love story.

Laura Abigail Rutherford was born in 1873 in Missouri. Her father came to Oklahoma Territory for the Run of 1889 and the family lived near Kingfisher. She was a 16-year-old teacher in a one-room, sod schoolhouse when she met a cowboy from the neighboring claim, Ike Clubb, 10 years older and wearing a 10-gallon Stetson. Two years later they married. He was no more than a boy when he left home in Arkansas to drive cattle herds. He wanted his own spread and was building his own herd. They moved to a corner of Osage and Kay Counties, acquired 1,280 acres of grassland and buckled down to the hard pioneer life.

Laura continued to teach school and as a ranchers wife, cooked for the ranch hands and ran the ranch alone when Ike was away on cattle business. She took the weak, sickly calves Ike culled from the herd, fattened them to health and sold them back to him at $3 each. With that money and what she made selling chickens, eggs and butter, the 33-year-old woman who had been married 14 years went back to college in 1906 at Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois. In 1908, she joined her much younger graduating class on a European tour of museums and galleries and saw, for the first time, great works of art.

Back home she taught oratory at Oklahoma State Baptist College in Blackwell. They kept the ranch, but moved into the town of Kaw City when their three adopted children were school age, and there she took in boarders.

Laura Clubb in 1906

Ike chose a prime tract of grassland in Kay County, but someone with political connections rookie-dooed him out of it, so he settled for an adjacent tract nobody wanted. (Authors note: His leases were not illegally obtained Osage land. I checked.) In 1920 oil! Frank Phillips said Ikes 80-acre tract was the richest in the (Burbank) Field. The tract he first chose had no oil.

In what seems a remarkable marriage of equality for the time, Ike and Laura agreed to split the oil profits 50-50. Ike used his share to buy more land and cattle, Arabian horses, an orchard in Texas and to develop Kaw City where in 1924 he built a four-story hotel at a cost of $136,600 $2.3 million in todays cash equivalent.

Laura spent her oil money on art.

She had pinched pennies; now she bought rare books, antiques and fine linen. Paintings were her first love and she bought hundreds of them, accumulating one of the finest private collections of American and European paintings in the world. Much of her collection was European (Joshua Reynolds,

Bartolom Esteban Murillo, John Constable, William Hart) but she also bought Oklahoma paintings (Nan Sheets, Frederick W. Becker, Oscar Jacobson, Emil W. Lenders) and other Americans (George Inness, Thomas Moran). She owned more Moran paintings than any collector and filled two hotel rooms with them, including her favorite, Grand Canyon.

The Clubbs decorated their new home in Kaw City floor to ceiling with paintings until the art overflowed into the Clubb Hotel and filled it. The one-street town with a peak population of 1,001 became famous for Lauras art collection.

Hotel residents could rent a room for $2 a night, spend 75 cents for a meal in the dining room and look at a $50,000 Thomas Gainsborough (Milking Time) for nothing. People from all over the world streamed through the hotel, open 24 hours a day, free of charge to see the art. Sundays drew 500-1,000 people. If they wanted more information, Laura took off her apron and walked over to the hotel to give a private tour. Newspaper reporters described her as charming, gracious and motherly. She certainly looked it with her puff of white hair and a figure as soft and round as a pudding.

Laura had always been vivacious and outgoing with a beautiful voice and a gift for storytelling. Ike was a quiet, dyed-in-the-wool cowboy who loved his horses and never learned to drive a car because the contraption didnt understand Whoa there. He was a member of the Cherokee Strip Cowpunchers Association, friends with Gordon W. Pawnee Bill Lillie and Zack Miller of the Miller Brothers 101 Ranch. Sometimes he and other old cowpokes retreated to a private space at the hotel filled with a buffalo hide and cowboy memorabilia and sipped snake medicine. When Laura bought a pastoral painting by mile van Marcke for $12,000, he laughed, For that amount I could have bought a train car of cattle. But he was proud of her and her accomplishment. Laura never learned to drive either; she had a chauffeur.

As she aged, Laura made plans to secure her collection after her death. She was a pioneer who loved Oklahoma and wanted it to stay in Oklahoma, said her granddaughter Annette Pittman, now 92 and living in Texas. Laura offered the collection to Ponca City, but town fathers said they would accept it only if she built a building for it. She was so disgusted, she got up and left, Pittman says.

Laura tried to loan it to Oklahoma Citys new Historical Society, but the official in charge, former Gov. Robert L. Williams made a fuss, Laura said, about insuring it. He thought a fireproof building with guards on duty was sufficient safety.

Philbrook hosted a dinner for Laura Clubb (pictured upper left) when she donated her collection.

And so, in 1947, she donated 86 paintings, and many rare books, to the young Philbrook Museum of Art, a gift to the city of Tulsa by Waite and Genevieve Phillips that had opened eight years earlier. It was transformative, one of the museums largest gifts and, according to Thomas Young, Philbrooks librarian/assistant registrar, the backbone of the museums collection. Some reports said its appraised value was about $1.5 million (almost $14 million in todays purchasing power). Philbrook kept some paintings and sold others to fund upgrading its collection. Philbrook still has 59 paintings from the Clubb Collection.

One painting not included in her donation was Christ and the Childrenby Franck Kirchbach, a public favorite. At 9.5 feet by 12.5 feet, it covered an entire wall of the hotel. In 1950, she agreed to sell it to a group of Tulsans Mrs. Eugene Lorton, Mrs. F. B. Parriott and Mr. and Mrs. John Zinke who bought it for Philbrook. Young speaks reverentially of that long-dead generation. This is the third love story: community-minded citizens with a love for a cultural institution.

Philbrook was managed at the time by Victor C. Hurt, a former football coach (Oklahoma Baptist University and University of Tulsa) known as the gentleman coach. With more public decorum than art knowledge, he had clothing painted on the naked children in the painting. Laura hit the ceiling, her granddaughter said, and made them repaint it.

Years later during a renovation, the massive painting was taken down, stored and eventually sold. By 1952, another painting from the Clubb Collection rose to take its place in popularity: The Little Shepherdess.

Philbrook Museum vistors view William-Adolphe Bouguereaus "The Little Shepherdess."

Each February, Philbrook visitors are given a paper heart to lay on the floor below their favorite work of art, curator Green says. Some tear their heart into pieces to spread the love around. In recent years, Kehinde Wileys Equestrian Portrait of Philip IV, a 2017 acquisition, has received the most hearts. The Little Shepherdess is a close second. Last year, a top contender was Worthington Whittredges Morning in the Woods, another painting from the Clubb Collection. Laura had an eye for art, Green says, and a heart for art.

Laura died Jan. 13, 1952, at age 78. Ike had died four months earlier. In the late 1960s, with the Arkansas Rivers Kaw Dam near completion, Ikes beloved hotel was demolished and Kaw City was flooded.

The hotel is gone, the original town is gone, only Lauras paintings live on in fact and in the hearts of the public.

So does docent Palmers love affair with Laura Clubb, Bouguereaus shepherdess and Philbrook. Being among the museums collection, she says, takes me out of my daily routine and into an alternate universe.

The museum loves its docents right back. They are crucial, says Melissa Ski, manager of tours and school programs, vital to our mission and some of the most dedicated people I have worked with. I say that out of my heart. That is the fifth love story.

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An Oklahoma love story: How an early Oklahoman's collection of ... - tulsapeople.com

FORT WORTH Escaping the winter chill with an hours pleasurable immersion in the warm light and color of France is reason enough although by no means the only reason to visit the Kimbell Art Museums exhibition of 70 paintings by Pierre Bonnard.

Bonnard whose long career lasted from the late 19th century until his death in 1947 was known for his intense, saturated color, which is on vibrant display in the Kimbells Piano Pavilion. Like the 19th-century post-impressionists Gauguin and Van Gogh, Bonnard exploited colors subjective, emotional aspect. His vibrant gardens and voluptuous bathtub scenes teem with vital energy; looking at them is like peering into a rainforest or sauna that radiates the heat and light of life.

The paintings colors are so punchy, in fact, that it is easy to overlook another fine aspect of Bonnards work: his genius for composition. Each picture is filled with carefully arranged details that reward close attention.

The paintings corners and edges, for example, are often enriched with small bonus figures that provide a counterpoint to the main subject, such as the cat at the bottom of The Open Window (1921) and Fruit and Fruit Dishes (1930). The unity and graceful balance of each composition also make it easy to overlook just how many disparate elements the artist has integrated into the overall scheme. Try to count, for example, how many different plants are visible in The Garden (1937), or how many different buildings are rendered in the townscape of The Palm (1926).

The seed of the present exhibition was planted when the Kimbell acquired Landscape at Le Cannet (1928) in 2018. This grandly panoramic, 9-foot-wide painting inspired curator George Shackelford, the Kimbells deputy director, to put together a show celebrating Bonnard, whose talents have often been overshadowed by more ostentatious artists like Picasso or Matisse.

Shackelford has organized the exhibition not by chronology or geography but by the different spaces, or worlds, that Bonnard evoked on canvas. Each gallery in the exhibition is devoted to a particular kind of space, beginning with the most public (the landscapes of Paris, Normandy and the French Riviera) and ending with the most private (bedrooms, bathrooms and self-portraits).

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Although the organization makes it a challenge to keep track of where, geographically, each painting originated, it shows how strikingly consistent Bonnards vision was. All the different landscapes have been assimilated to the artists aesthetic, yet without losing their detail.

Like so many modern painters, he turned away from grand subjects of history or mythology in favor of direct personal experience. The results are powerful, but it can be unsettling to realize that neither World War I nor World War II, whose battles raged not far from Bonnards homes, made any evident impact on his work. For such reasons, Bonnard and painters like him have occasionally been accused of escapism.

The journey from public to private also highlights the psychological aspect of Bonnards work. His scenes tend to have a certain amount of ambiguity, even hints of mystery. For all the wealth of color and detail in his settings, Bonnard can be reticent about the personal details of the people we find in them details of identity, context and personality.

For example, Marthe de Mligny was Bonnards model and life partner for almost 50 years. (They married in 1925, halfway through that period.) De Mligny is present throughout the show, and her iconic nude figure dominates the stage in its penultimate, highly intimate section. Yet her personality remains hidden.

This hiddenness gives an ironic twist to the term intimism, coined to describe the aptitude for interior scenes shown by Bonnard and douard Vuillard. Although viewers are shown the most private places in the artists home, the souls of those who live there remain closed off. The last section of the show, devoted to a few careful self-portraits, modifies, but does not entirely dispel, this impression.

Bonnards Worlds will be seen only in two cities: Fort Worth and Washington, D.C., at the Phillips Collection, whose founder Duncan Phillips was among Bonnards first American champions. The exhibitions quality is a reminder that the Kimbells prowess extends well beyond the Old Masters into the field of modern art, and that it is well worth a trip to visit.

Bonnards Worlds continues through Jan. 28 at the Kimbell Art Museum, 3333 Camp Bowie Blvd., Fort Worth. kimbellart.org.

Artist Felipe Velez linked his passions for welding and abstract art and founded his company AperZaper.

The free screening is from a partnership between The Modern, the Lone Star Film Festival and the Fort Worth Film Commission.

Everything is more expensive these days, but experiencing arts and culture in North Texas doesnt have to be. Thats why we put together this list so you dont break the bank.

Houston-based artist Ryan Hawk's work is on display at Sweet Pass Sculpture Park, a surprise clearing among woods and gritty West Dallas commercial buildings.

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Pierre Bonnards paintings brim with vitality in Kimbell exhibition - The Dallas Morning News

The Adel Public Library has a couple of events happening later this week.

Patron Services Manager Amy Puck says the Teen Painting Contest will take place on Thursday from 4-5pm. Any 6th-12th grader is invited to free-hand paint one of three holiday-themed creations. Puck points out that artwork will then be on display in the young adult section of the library.

Well, well have the paintings available so that patrons can vote on their favorite painting. And then well notify the winner once the voting will be done, which will be early the following week.

Puck adds the prizes of food and entertainment, along with some holiday items as well will be included.

Another event is happening on Friday to kick-off the Adel Partners Chamber Hometown Holiday Celebration. Puck says on Friday from 1-3pm will be when their activities take place.

We will have cookies and treats. We will have different types of seasonal games and some crafts for the kids to do. Well also have Mrs. Claus here twisting balloon creations for people. And then just all kinds of other fun stuff, (including) they can wander through the library (and) they can still check out books because we will be open for the day.

Puck says both the Teen Painting Contest and Fridays activities are free and no registration is required.

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Adel Library to Host Teen Painting Contest and Hometown Holiday ... - Raccoon Valley Radio