Having just seen Wagner’s opera, “Twilight of the Gods” at Atlanta Opera last week, imagine my astonishment when I discovered this cabinet in the Taft Museum of Art’s new exhibition, “The Scandinavian Home: Landscape and Lore.” It depicts King Håkan the Good riding across the Gjallerbrui, and Gondal and Skogul — two Valkyries — Riding into Valhalla, from the ancient Norse saga, Hákonarmál. It appears that a Norwegian cabinet maker and carver John Borgersen made the cabinet to the designs by artist Gerhard Munthe (Norwegian, 1849–1929).
Cabinet, 1910, pine with gouache on glass. From the Collection of David and Susan Werner, on display at the Taft.
Watch for my article next week in the Business Courier about the show.
Epco Runia, curator of the exhibition and Head of Collections at the Rembrandt House Museum
I didn’t know what to expect when I asked Epco Runia, the Head of Collections at the Rembrandt House Museum in Amsterdam, to show me his favorite etching in the fascinating exhibition he curated, “Rembrandt: Masterpieces in Black and White—Prints from the Rembrandt House Museum,” at the Taft Museum of Art February 7 through May 17.
It would probably be like asking a musician for their favorite composition. But he went right to the most miniature of the nearly 50 small masterpieces in the exhibition in Fifth Third Gallery. There it was, “Sleeping Puppy” (about 1640), an etching of about three inches in length, with the charming subject curled up in a corner.
Rembrandt (Dutch, 1606–1669), Sleeping Puppy, about 1640, etching and drypoint, 1 9/16 x 3 3/16 in. Rembrandt House Museum, Amsterdam
“It’s a sleeping puppy, a small dog in a kind of little corner of a room, and that’s why I like it so much. It’s such an intimate scene,” he said. “It gives the impression that this is really something he saw, his own dog in his house. And then, out of an impulse, he must have decided to make an etching out of it. Read Leah Zipperstein’s story today in the Business Courier for great information about the technique.)
“And the light is beautiful on this dog — on the head, and the shadows in back and, well, I love dogs. So, the way his head is on his paw resting, those kind of details are so typical for a dog resting. That Rembrandt is interested in something ordinary like this, makes this into such a beautiful thing. That is, for me, very much what I appreciate about Rembrandt. I love the way he brought everyday life into his art.”
That point is well taken when you stroll through the exhibition, which includes self portraits, biblical scenes, landscapes and everyday people. There is a section illustrating Rembrandt’s pioneering art of print-making, with examples of the actual copper plates that he used.Read More »
View of the CSO performing a livestreamed concert in Nov. 2020
I’ll never forget the fear in the eyes of both performers and audience members in the first few live, indoor performances I saw in the early months of the pandemic in 2020. We were masked, spaced vastly apart and there was no intermission to avoid viral spread. Otherwise, many performances were livestreamed online, with musicians masked and separated by space and screens.
Then in 2021, as vaccines became available and theaters began to reopen to full audiences, there was elation and relief by many who were able to finally attend a show in person.
Every concert, play, ballet or art exhibition I attended in 2021 was deeply moving because it showed the perseverance of artists — indeed of all humanity — during this unprecedented time. I feel that we’ve come a long way.
Now, we are buffeted again by the Omicron variant. Just announced, there are at least two museum “pauses” (Cincinnati Art Museum is closed Jan. 3-12 and the Taft Museum of Art is closed Jan. 3-13).
“Hairspray” is postponed to a later date due to Covid in the cast.
There are also a few postponed performances. At the Aronoff Center, “Hairspray” scheduled to play January 4 – 9, 2022 is being rescheduled due to breakthrough positive Covid cases within the company of “Hairspray.” Ticket holders are encouraged to hold onto their tickets while the engagement is being rescheduled.
At Music Hall, the Vocal Arts Ensemble of Cincinnati is postponing its January 8 and 9 performances of “The Song Among Us” to a later date, to be announced. The release states that the postponement “is prompted by production challenges exacerbated by the recent rise in positive Covid cases across the nation.” Ticket holders may complete this form or call the box office at 513-381-3300 for ticket options, including donations, exchanges, and refunds.
I prefer to see the glass half full. I believe we will get through this, and the arts will persevere.
Singers Michelle DeYoung and Sean Panikkar share bows in Mahler’s “The Song of the Earth” with the CSO. (Photo by Lee Snow)
I wrote a list of some of my favorite performances in 2021 in a column for the Business Courier. My list begins with Mahler’s “Das Lied von der Erde” by the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra in Music Hall last March, and ends with “The Marriage of Figaro” at CCM in November. I’d like to know some of yours, too. (Let me know here, or on Facebook.)
And looking ahead, here is my list of “best bets” in 2022. It’s really just a broad sweep — because there are so many chamber music, vocal concerts, art exhibitions and dance performances that have yet to be announced. I think we have a lot to anticipate.
Verdi’s opulent “Aida” will be presented at Cincinnati Opera in summer 2022. Photo courtesy of Opéra de Montréal, Yves Renaud
Vincent Van Gogh, Undergrowth with Two Figures, at Cincinnati Art Museum — and also online. Image provided.
It’s not only the performing arts that are closing down operations. Today, Cincinnati’s three major art museums — Cincinnati Art Museum, the Contemporary Museum of Art and the Taft Museum of Art — sent out a joint statement that they will be closed through April 3.
Cincinnati Art Museum has suggestions for exploring art at home:
Explore Cincinnati Art Museum’s permanent collection artworks that have been digitized and are available for viewing on our website.
The museums hope you’ll explore their news and collections online at their respective websites, cincinnatiartmuseum.org, contemporaryartscenter.org and taftmuseum.org. At Cincinnati Museum Center: In the interests of guest health and safety, Cincinnati Museum Center will temporarily close effective Saturday, March 14. CMC will continue to monitor the developments around the COVID-19 Novel Coronavirus and will evaluate a prudent date to reopen.
In addition, the Nancy & David Wolf Holocaust & Humanity Center will temporarily shut down its museum operations. The museum will close to the public on Saturday, March 14, through April 3. There are tentative plans to reopen the museum on April 4. The Holocaust & Humanity Center believes halting operations is the most effective way to safeguard guests and staff in response to the COVID-19 Novel Coronavirus.
So, earlier this week I took a peek at the environmental stick work sculptures that are going up on the lawn of the Taft Museum of Art. It was interesting to see the scaffolding-like structure that the sculptures were being created around.
Sculptor Patrick Dougherty happened to be there, working hard with his crew of volunteers, so I asked him what anchors them down. The saplings are actually planted into the ground. They don’t have roots, but sometimes they actually do sprout roots, he said.
Ready or Not, (2013) North Carolina Zoo, Asheboro, NC. Used by permission. Photo: Juan Villa
The Taft Museum of Art is seeking volunteers to work outdoors at the museum this April on a monumental art installation by Patrick Dougherty. Dougherty, who was born in Oklahoma and raised in North Carolina, specializes in creating large interactive sculptures out of tree saplings.
The sculpture will take three weeks to create — with your help — and it will last for two years. Visitors will be able to touch and walk through the sculpture.Read More »
Young Professionals Choral Collective performing at Rhinegeist Brewery. Provided: YPCC
Innovative OTR chorus to host national directors, singers: The Young Professionals Choral Collective (YPCC), the innovative local choir that is led by KellyAnn Nelson, plans to bring together more than 150 young professionals and choir directors from across the country for a weekend of song and exploring the “City that Sings.”
The event, Oct. 21-22, will share the innovative choral collective model with national choral leaders.
YPCC artistic director KellyAnn Nelson
What makes this choir so special? The group appeals to 20-to-40-somethings who love to sing and socialize — sometimes simultaneously. They rehearse, perform concerts and — yes, party too — in bars, breweries and other alternative venues in the OTR area. The chorus is diverse, with as many men as women. They perform demanding literature, and do it well. Since Nelson founded it in 2012, membership has swelled to more than 900.Read More »
Lady Mary’s gown with her maid, Anna Smith’s uniform.
All of our old friends are there: Lord and Lady Grantham. the Dowager Countess, the daughters, their heartthrobs, Cora’s American mother and of course, all of our favorite servants.
Well, it’s not exactly them — but their exquisite clothing, worn by life-sized mannequins. “Dressing Downton: Changing Fashion for Changing Times,” a traveling exhibition of dazzling costumes, jewelry, film stills and accessories, opens at the Taft Museum of Art on Saturday, July 2, and is here through Sept. 25.
Matthew Crawley’s wartime uniform, with Lady Mary’s costume.
After yesterday’s press tour, it’s clear that the Taft Museum has another hit on its hands. Even before the show opens, they’ve sold more than 6,000 advance tickets, and the teas are completely sold out! (More could be added, so stay tuned.)
But do make a reservation in the cafe, where you can lunch on Mrs. Patmore’s pasty, and other British delicacies.
Elizabeth McGovern as Cora Crawley, Countess of Grantham, and Hugh Bonneville as Robert Crawley, Earl of Grantham, wore these outfits in Season 2.
This show of 36 elegant, finely detailed costumes is not only enormous fun for fans of PBS Masterpiece’s “Downton Abbey” — Read More »
Having just seen Wagner’s opera, “Twilight of the Gods” at Atlanta Opera last week, imagine my astonishment when I discovered this cabinet in the Taft Museum of Art’s new exhibition, “The Scandinavian Home: Landscape and Lore.” It depicts King Håkan the Good riding across the Gjallerbrui, and Gondal and Skogul — two Valkyries — Riding into Valhalla, from the ancient Norse saga, Hákonarmál. It appears that a Norwegian cabinet maker and carver John Borgersen made the cabinet to the designs by artist Gerhard Munthe (Norwegian, 1849–1929).
