The Benaki Museum || Exhibition: Καπνός | Tobacco 101 notes on oriental tobacco || until 31.08.2014 #Athens

The exhibition «ΚΑΠΝΟΣ | TOBACCO» views oriental tobacco from a variety of historical perspectives and presents it as a multifaceted commercial product. From the needles used in the stringing of the leaves, the spiking process in the villages, the ‘tonga’ process for bundling tobacco leaves and the wooden chests used in commercial processing, to the imposing tobacco warehouses of northern Greece and the intricately made cigarette cases and packs in Athens and Thessaloniki, the exhibition presents the history of tobacco and, through it, an important part of the history of Greece. 

The exhibition illuminates the different aspects of tobacco through rare objects from collections abroad, records from Greek archive holdings and photographic material from private and public collections.

Duration: 11 June-31 August 2014

Hours: Wednesday, Friday: 9:00 – 17:00
              Thursday, Saturday: 9.00 – 24.00
              Sunday: 9:00 – 15:00

Opening reception: Tuesday, 10 June 2014, 20:00
Location: Athens, Benaki Museum, Main Building

Source: The Benaki Museum

The Acropolis Museum Athens || Exhibition: Archaic Colors || until 31.12.2015

the Acropolis Museum wants to conduct research on its unique collection of archaic statues, which retain their colors to a small or large degree, and to open a very extensive discussion with the public and various experts on color, its technical issues, its detection using new technologies, its experimental use on marble surfaces, its digital reconstruction, its meaning, as well as the archaic period’s aesthetic perception of color. So far, scientific research into the color found on ancient sculpture has made great progress and reached surprising conclusions that to a large degree refute the stereotypical assumptions regarding ancient sculpture. It turns out that color, far from being just a simple decorative element, added to the sculpture’s aesthetic quality.

For ancient Greeks and their society, color constituted a way to characterize various attributes. The blond hair of the gods projected their power; the brown skin of warriors and athletes was a sign of virtue and valor, while the white skin of the korai expressed the grace and radiance of youth.

The Μuseum’s initiative on Archaic Colors is based on very careful observation, on spectroscopic analysis, on special photography sessions, on efforts to reproduce the colors of antiquity and then to apply them on Parian marble, and naturally, on searching through written sources for valuable information on the pigments.

The statues’ crisp, saturated colors, on bright garments and tender bodies, combined with the rich jewelry, frequently made of metal, and elaborately curled hair created a singular aesthetic pleasure, making the archaic statues “wonderful to behold” for the people of the period.

Gallery Talks

Brief presentations which focus on “Archaic Colors” are held by Museum Archaeologist – Hosts, with rich visual material, both in Greek and English.

For more information click here.

Family Backpack «Archaic Colors»

On the occasion of the initiative on Archaic Colors, the Museum invites families to discover the archaic colors through the following games: the game of discovering details, the painting box and the DOMINO.

For more information click here.

Color the Peplos Kore

Visitors also have the opportunity to continue participating in the “Archaic Colors“ initiative from home, through the online digital interactive game “Color the Peplos Kore“. Visitors can use the brush and colors of their choice, color the statue of Peplos Kore and finally print and save their work as many times as they wish and in several variations.

Source: The Acropolis Museum

Ashmolean Museum || #Exhibition: The Eye of the Needle || until 12.10.2014 #Oxford

The Eye of the Needle will display, for the first time in public, a selection of eye-catching, virtuoso 17th-century embroideries from the internationally renowned Feller Collection, together with outstanding examples from the Ashmolean’s own holdings.

These remarkable embroideries include colourful raised and flatwork pictoral panels, beautiful samplers and household items such as boxes and cushions and dress accessories including caps, coifs and gloves.

The exhibition will explore the context in which these dramatic and technically exacting works were made, examining their importance in creating the ideal goodly and godly woman through the discipline of painstaking embroidery, reinforcing both social status and appropriate behaviour.

Exquisite objects in their own right made with colourful silks, pearls, and semi-precious stones, the embroideries also reflect the religious, political and social concerns of the English Civil War period.

The Eye of the Needle is curated by Dr Mary Brooks, University of Durham.

 

Source: Ashmolean Museum

Berardo Collection Museum #Lisbon || Exhibition: BES Photo 2014 || until 07.09.2014

This edition marks the 10th anniversary of the BES Photo award. The award was initially organized in collaboration with the Centro Cultural de Belém and subsequently with the Museu Coleção Berardo, in Lisbon. The first years of the award highlighted the best works produced in this field in Portugal and as we entered the new decade the scope was extended to other Portuguese-speaking countries – such as Brazil, Mozambique and Angola. It has thereby been possible to publicise current photographic practices in these countries and foster closer ties between them, which is essential in order to develop a strategy of mutual assertion within the contemporary world. The collaboration with the Instituto Tomie Ohtake has ensured such recognition in São Paulo, Brazil.

The finalists of the tenth edition were chosen by a jury consisting of Bisi Silva, director of the Centre for Contemporary Art in Lagos, Jacopo Crivelli Visconti, independent curator in São Paulo, and João Fernandes, deputy director of the Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía in Madrid. Délio Jasse, works between his home in Luanda and Lisbon. His research explores different printing techniques and their relationship with memory and identity documents. José Pedro Cortes, from Porto, studied in Kent. He has exhibited his works in several European cities, and has primarily presented his photographs in books that construct narratives about the experiences of living in different locations. Letícia Ramos, from Santo Antônio da Patrulha, lives and works in São Paulo. She has focused her work on optical devices, variations in image scale and transfer and translatability of image technologies.

These three artists have produced new works for the BES Photo 2014 award, which will be presented in the Museu Coleção Berardo in Lisbon, and later in the Instituto Tomie Ohtake in São Paulo. On 2 July, the winner of this edition will be chosen by the final selection jury, consisting of Elvira Dyangani Ose, curator of international art supported by Guaranty Trust Bank Plc at the Tate Modern in London, Luis Weinstein, photographer and organizer of the Valparaíso International Photography Festival and María Inés Rodríguez, director of CAPC, Musée d’Art Contemporain de Bordeaux.

Pedro Lapa
Artistic Director

Vista da exposição BES Photo 2014. Museu Coleção Berardo, 2014.

Source: Museu Colecção Berardo

Calouste Gulbenkian Museum #Lisbon || Meeting Point: #Rembrandt | Paula #Rego || until 21.09.2014

This is the first stage of an initiative taking place within the museum which aims to set up a dialogue (or confrontation) between the collections of the Calouste Gulbenkian Museum and the Modern Art Centre. Entitled Meeting Point, this event will allow the collections and different sectors of the public to come together and will expand the meanings of the works and their creators.

Rembrandt and Paula Rego were the artists chosen to initiate this dialogue (Portrait of an Old Man, 1645 and Time – Past and Present, 1990) in an attempt to establish a narrative that brings a contemporary artist to this museum space for the first time. United by their approach to time, the works on display allow us to reflect on the way in which, in every era, artists have worked in different ways on the same timeless themes, in an endless questioning of the perplexities that arise in the face of life and death.

The development of this project and the enthusiastic support of the artist have allowed the original concept to be expanded with the loan of a Rembrandt drawing from the British Museum, a work that has never previously been seen in Portugal, and a study, held by a private collection, for the painting by Paula Rego. By a happy coincidence, these works are being shown at the same time as the Calouste Gulbenkian Museum is exhibiting its collection of watercolours and drawings. 

Rembrandt Harmensz van Rijn (1606-1669). Portrait of an Old Man. Dated on the lower left: f. 1645. Holland, 1645. Oil on canvas. 128 x 112 cm. Calouste Gulbenkian Museum. Inv. 1489.

Paula Rego (1935- )O Tempo ­ Passado e Presente (Time ­ Past and Present), 1990. Acrylic paint on marouflé paper and canvas. 183 x 183 cm. Centro de Arte Moderna, Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation. Inv. 92P213.

Rembrandt Harmensz van Rijn (1606-1669) attrib., A SEATED OLD MAN AND A WOMAN (JACOB E RACHEL). Holland, ca. 1640-45. Pen and brown ink with brown wash, touched with white. 18 x 16.3 cm. On loan from the British Museum, London. Inv. 1861,0608.149

Paula Rego (1935). Study for the painting TIME ­ PAST AND PRESENT. London, ca. 1990. Pencil and ink on paper. 46 x 45 cm. J. S. Mills Collection, London

Source: Museu Calouste Gulbenkian

Proje4L / Elgiz Museum of Contemporary Art || #TERRACE EXHIBITIONS < 40 || until 23.08.2014

The Elgiz Museum continues its Terrace Exhibitions series in its 1500 m2 open air exhibition space amid the skyscapers in Istanbul’s business centre Maslak. Works are curated with reference to age, not a theme or concept.

Having commenced in 2012, the third of the Terrace Exhibitions series is taking place this year and shows the works of sculptors under the age of 40. Applications of sculptors under the age of 40 are evaluated by the Advisory Committee consisting of Seyhun Topuz, Rahmi Aksungur, Nilüfer Ergin, Haşim Nur Gürel and Can Elgiz. In 2013, Australian sculptor Andrew Rogers contributed as guest committee member raising the series to an international level. And this year, two artists have been invited to exhibit their works at the ‘La Balade de Séprais’ in the Jura region of Switzerland.

Works that challenge the notorious winds of the Ayazağa/Maslak district are on view in an extraordinary space. In the shadows of the skyscrapers and a constantly changing surrounding, spectators can view art from a different perspective.

Proje4L/Elgiz Museum of Contemporary Art proudly presents its dynamic programme for the new season in categories of contemporary art, as well as its acclaimed permanent collection. Terrace Exhibitons <40 is an opportunity for art lovers to view an exquisite selection of stunning, contemporary sculptures and installations in Istanbul’s only changing open air exhibition space.

32 sculptors’ works have been selected for this year’s Terrace Exhibitions <40. The participants are: Ahmet Özparlak, Ali Alizadeh, Aycan Güler, Ayşe Sultan Babayiğit, Bahadır Çolak, Bestami Gerekli, Caner Şengünalp, Çağdaş Erçelik, Çayan Yılmaz, Derya Özparlak, Esra Sağlık, Giorgia Razzetta, Güray Morgül, Güzin Merve Özgören, Hakan Bakır, Hakan Çınar, Halil Daşkesen, Hande Şekerciler, İmdat Avcı, Kutlu Alican Düzel, Mahmut Aydın, Meliha Sözeri, Nihan Gündüzalp Ölmez, Orkide Akkoç Sabit, Ramazan Duymaz, Saim Cem Arıkan, Şenay Ulusoy, Tanzer Arığ, Tuğberk Selçuk, Turgay Topçu, Uğur Hasekin and Ümit Turgay Durgun.

Terrace Exhibitions <40 will open on 11 June and is on view until 23 August.

For further information:

Proje4L/Elgiz Museum of Contemporary Art

Meydan Sokak Beybi Giz Plaza Maslak Istanbul

T: +90 212 290 25 25

F: +90 212 290 25 26

E:  info@elgizmuseumistanbul.org

Source: Proje4L / Elgiz Museum of Contemporary Art

Istanbul Museum of Modern Art || #Exhibition: On the Road: Images of #Turkey from the Nar Photos Archive || until 09.11.2014

An independent photography collective, Nar Photos brings together the diverse viewpoints in Turkey through their egalitarian, democratic approach and their stance for freedom since 2003 until the present. Using photography as a visual tool to understand and express the world, the agency chooses to question rather than accept facts as they are presented. By exposing the different situations in life, they create a collective memory of the recent past as well as a broad area for discussion.

The exhibition “On the Road” is a compilation from the archive of Nar Photos between 2003-2013, presenting a panorama of events and situations which took place in Turkey’s recent history or whose effects are still felt today. The photographs do not show facts as they are presented to us; rather, they display steps of a journey toward questioning the things that are accepted as facts. This visual archive does not look from without; with its sincere approach, it intervenes, rather than standing by as a mere witness. It invites us to confront and reckon with our times. The photographers in the collective take on an active role that triggers change by creating a social consciousness. Having an autonomous structure, the collective provides a stage for issues which are not shown or sufficiently spoken of to be represented. Throughout the course of an unpredictable journey, “On the Road” keeps record of stories which have been left in the shadows.

Curator: Sena Çakırkaya

 

Photo credits: Left: Tolga Sezgin

Mari Aydın gathering tomatoes in a greenhouse in Vakıflı, one of the few Armenian villages remaining in Turkey. The village has been practicing organic farming since 2004.

Antakya, 2008

 

Right: Serpil Polat

Constructed for the Dersim Operation of 1938, the barracks building was turned into staff housing in 1950 and accommodated thousands of civil servants and their families. The barracks building now shelters low-income groups and the urban poor.

Tunceli, 2013

 

 

Source: Istanbul Museum of Modern Art

Wine cup used by Pericles found in grave north of Athens.

A cup believed to have been used by Classical Greek statesman Pericles has been found in a pauper’s grave in north Athens, according to local reports Wednesday.

The ceramic wine cup, smashed in 12 pieces, was found during building construction in the northern Athens suburb of Kifissia, Ta Nea daily said.

After piecing it together, archaeologists were astounded to find the name “Pericles” scratched under one of its handles, alongside the names of five other men, in apparent order of seniority.

Experts are “99 per cent” sure that the cup was used by the Athenian statesman, as one of the other names listed, Ariphron, is that of Pericles’ elder brother.

“The name Ariphron is extremely rare,” Angelos Matthaiou, secretary of the Greek Epigraphic Society, told the newspaper.

“Having it listed above that of Pericles makes us 99 per cent sure that these are the two brothers,” he said.

The cup was likely used in a wine symposium when Pericles was in his twenties, and the six men who drank from it scrawled their names as a memento, Matthaiou said.

“They were definitely woozy, as whoever wrote Pericles’ name made a mistake and had to correct it,” he said.

The cup was then apparently gifted to another man named Drapetis (“escapee” in Greek) who was possibly a slave servant or the owner of the tavern, said archaeologist Galini Daskalaki.

“This is a rare find, a genuine glimpse into a private moment,” she said.

Ironically, the cup was found on Sparta street, Athens’ great rival and nemesis in the Peloponnesian War that tore apart the Greek city-states for nearly 30 years.

General of Athens during the city’s Golden Age, Pericles died of the plague in 429 BC during a Spartan siege.

The cup will be displayed in the autumn at the Epigraphical Museum in Athens.

 

Source: ekathimerini.com

Museum of Modern Art (#MoMA) || #Exhibition: Lygia Clark: The Abandonment of #Art, 1948–1988 || until 24.08.2014

The Museum of Modern Art presents a major retrospective devoted to the art of Lygia Clark (Brazilian, 1920–1988), the first comprehensive exhibition in North America of her work. Lygia Clark: The Abandonment of Art, 1948–1988 comprises nearly 300 works made between the late 1940s and her death in 1988. Drawn from public and private collections, including MoMA’s own, this survey is organized around three key themes: abstraction, Neo-Concretism, and the “abandonment” of art. Each of these axes anchors a significant concept or a constellation of works that mark a definitive step in Clark’s career. While Clark’s legacy in Brazil is profound, this exhibition draws international attention to her work. By bringing together all parts of her radical production, the exhibition seeks to reintroduce her into current discourses of abstraction, participation, and a therapeutic art practice.

Lygia Clark (1920–1988) trained in Rio de Janeiro and Paris from late 1940s to mid-1950s and was a leading abstract artist at the forefront of the Neo-Concretist movement in Brazil, fostering the active participation of spectators through her works. From the late 1960s through the 1970s she created a series of unconventional artworks in parallel to a lengthy psychoanalytic therapy, leading her to develop a series of therapeutic propositions grounded in art. Clark has become a major reference for contemporary artists dealing with the limits of conventional forms of art.

Museum facilitators will be present in the galleries to help visitors experience of a selection of Clark’s “sensorial objects.”

Facilitator schedule:

Mondays, 2:00–5:00 p.m.
Tuesdays, 12:00–3:00 p.m.
Wednesdays, 2:00–5:00 p.m.
Thursdays, 12:00–3:00 p.m.
Fridays, 2:00–5:00 p.m.
Saturdays, 11:00 a.m.–2:00 p.m.
Sundays, 1:00–4:00 p.m.

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Organized by Luis Pérez-Oramas, The Estrellita Brodsky Curator of Latin American Art, MoMA; and Connie Butler, Chief Curator, Hammer Museum; with Geaninne Gutiérrez-Guimarães, Curatorial Assistant, and Beatriz Rabelo Olivetti, Curatorial Assistant, Department of Drawings and Prints, MoMA.

Major support for the exhibition is provided by Ricardo and Susana Steinbruch, The Modern Women’s Fund, Patricia Phelps de Cisneros, Jerry I. Speyer and Katherine G. Farley, Vicky and Joseph Safra Foundation, and the Diane and Bruce Halle Foundation.

Additional funding is provided by The International Council of The Museum of Modern Art, Johanna Stein-Birman and Alexandre Birman, Consulate General of Brazil in New York, Patricia Fossati Druck, Roberto and Aimée Servitje, Frances Reynolds, The Junior Associates of The Museum of Modern Art, Fogo de Chão, the MoMA Annual Exhibition Fund, and an anonymous donor.

Research and travel support was provided by the Patricia Cisneros Travel Fund for Latin America.

The related film series is supported by Richard I. Kandel.

Source: Museum of Modern Art

Museum of Modern Art (#MoMA) || #Exhibition: Alibis: Sigmar Polke 1963–2010 || until 03.08.2014

The Museum of Modern Art presents the first comprehensive retrospective of Sigmar Polke (German, 1941–2010), encompassing Polke’s work across all mediums, including painting, photography, film, drawing, prints, and sculpture. Widely regarded as one of the most influential artists of the postwar generation, Polke possessed an irreverent wit that, coupled with his exceptional grasp of the properties of his materials, pushed him to experiment freely with the conventions of art and art history. Constantly searching, Polke studiously avoided any one signature style or medium; his method exemplified the definition of alibi, “in or at another place,” which also suggests a deflection of blame. This exhibition places Polke’s enormous skepticism of all social, political, and artistic traditions against German history and the country’s transformation in the postwar period. Four gallery spaces on MoMA’s second floor are dedicated to the exhibition, which comprises more than 250 works and constitutes one of the largest exhibitions ever organized at the Museum.

The exhibition is organized chronologically and across mediums, ranging from the intimacy of a notebook to pieces that test the architectural scale of most museum galleries. Among the many noted works on view are 13 films by Polke, including eight which have never before been available; a performance made for West German television that was last seen when it aired in 1972; and a group of monumental paintings made entirely of soot on glass that have never been exhibited in the United States.

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The exhibition is organized by MoMA with Tate Modern, London. Organized by Kathy Halbreich, Associate Director, MoMA; with Mark Godfrey, Curator of International Art, Tate Modern; and Lanka Tattersall, Curatorial Assistant, Department of Painting and Sculpture, MoMA.

The exhibition is made possible by a partnership with
Volkswagen of America.

Major support is provided by

The Museum acknowledges generous funding from the Mimi and Peter Haas Fund, Jerry I. Speyer and Katherine G. Farley, Marie-Josée and Henry Kravis, Anna Marie and Robert F. Shapiro, Sully Bonnelly and Robert R. Littman, and The Contemporary Arts Council of The Museum of Modern Art.

Additional support is provided by The Charles Lafitte Foundation, The Junior Associates of The Museum of Modern Art, and the MoMA Annual Exhibition Fund.

Support for the publication is provided by The International Council of The Museum of Modern Art and by the Jo Carole Lauder Publications Fund of The International Council of The Museum of Modern Art.

Park Hyatt®, through Hyatt, is the hotel sponsor of Alibis: Sigmar Polke 1963–2010.

Sigmar Polke. Watchtower (Hochsitz). 1984. Synthetic polymer paints and dry pigment on fabric, 9′ 10″ x 7′ 4 1/2″ (300 x 224.8 cm). The Museum of Modern Art, New York. Fractional and promised gift of Jo Carole and Ronald S. Lauder. © 2013 Estate of Sigmar Polke/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York/VG Bild-Kunst, Bonn

Sigmar Polke. Mao. 1972. Synthetic polymer paint on patterned fabric mounted on felt with wooden dowel, overall: 12′ 3″ x 10′ 3 1⁄2″ (373.5 x 314 cm). The Museum of Modern Art, New York. Kay Sage Tanguy Fund. © 2014 The Estate of Sigmar Polke/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York/VG Bild-Kunst, Bonn, Germany

 

Source: Museum of Modern Art