Milwaukee Art Museum Fully Reopens to the Public July 15

Milwaukee, Wis. – July 8, 2021 – Visitors to the Milwaukee Art Museum will soon be able to view the art throughout the collection galleries, as well as three new exhibitions, when the Museum fully reopens to the public on July 15, 2021.Opening for the first time since March 2020, the Museum’s Mezzanine level will again showcase works from one of the nation’s premier collections of folk and self-taught art. Visitors can also explore the paintings and sculptures from one of the world’s foremost collections of 20th-century Haitian art.

On Level 2, favorite works from the Bradley Collection by artists including Marc Chagall, Helen Frankenthaler, Georgia O’Keeffe, Gabrielle Munter, Pablo Picasso and Pierre-Auguste Renoir will be accessible, along with the Museum’s extensive American and European collections. Visitors will be able to see the Arts and Crafts gallery, Jules Bastien-Lepage’s The Wood Gatherer, and the new acquisition Study of a Model (1885) by German painter Max Pietschmann, as well as numerous works from The Layton Collection and Chipstone Foundation.

“We’re thrilled to welcome visitors back to a fully reopened Museum,” said Robert Stein, Deputy Director and Chief Experience Officer. “This is a fantastic opportunity for the community to reconnect with many of their favorite works of art that they haven’t seen in over a year. We’re especially excited for guests to experience Pauline Parker’s incredible quilts first hand.”

Originally scheduled to open in March 2020 in the Bradley Family Gallery, The Quilts of Pauline Parker features more than 30 objects that showcase the artist’s expressive approach to quiltmaking. The installation illustrates how Parker transformed a traditionally domestic craft into one that highlights current events, historical and biblical figures, and her own travels and experiences. Parker studied painting at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, but her work in fabric began in Wisconsin, where she moved upon retirement. The exhibition will be on view through December 5, 2021.

A new three-part exhibition, American Memory: Commemoration, Nostalgia, and Revision, seeks to explore and reveal the selective editing of historical narratives in America’s past through drawings, prints, and paintings from the Museum’s collection. On view beginning July 15, on the Museum’s first floor, Chapter 1: People and Identity features works that explore the nature of portraiture, those who make portraits and the stories they tell about their subjects. Chapter 2: Activism and Terrorism, also opening July 15, in a second-floor gallery, studies the normalization of racist, violent imagery. Chapter 3: Responses and Revisions will open October 1. Chapter 1 will be on view through October 31; Chapter 2 will continue through December 5; Chapter 3 will extend through January 16, 2022.

July 15 will also mark the opening of First Impressions: Early Printed Books in Europe in the European Art Galleries on Level 2. The development of the printing press, in 1450s Germany, revolutionized the production and dissemination of the written word. No longer dependent on time-consuming, handwritten manuscripts, communication went through a major transformation—much like the introduction of social media has done in our time. The 25 objects on view, including individual leaves and bound books, were created during the first century after the adoption of the printing press and provide an opportunity to explore the art and context of early printed books.

Through August 29, Byrdcliffe: Creativity and Creation will again be on view in the Godfrey American Art Wing on Level 2. Through drawings, designs, ceramics and furniture, the Layton Art Collection Focus Exhibition highlights the creative output of the utopian Byrdcliffe Arts and Crafts Colony during the growing popularity of the Arts and Crafts movement in the first decades of the twentieth century.

Museum Members are invited to be among the first to revisit the fully reopened galleries during special Member Early Access Hours, from 9 a.m. to 10 a.m. on Saturday, July 17, and Sunday, July 18, thanks to PNC.

On view in the Baker/Rowland Galleries, Americans in Spain: Painting and Travel, 1820–1920 is the first major exhibition to focus on the extensive impact of Spanish art and culture on American painters in the 19th and early 20th centuries. Through October 3, more than 100 paintings, photographs and prints will be presented chronologically and organized to emphasize migration, tourism and travel in 19th-century Spain.

The Museum Store is open in its new location in Windhover Hall, across from the Baker/Rowland Galleries. Shoppers will find unique gifts and exclusive products inspired by the Museum’s architecture and collection. The East End has reopened with house-made tapas, sandwiches and salads inspired by the Americans in Spain exhibition.

Outdoors, the public is invited to visit the Museum’s east lawn for Lakeside at MAM. Throughout the summer during Museum hours, the community is invited to relax, enjoy snacks and refreshments, and experience a wide variety of programming opportunities like live music and yoga. Families can take part in art-making activities with the Kohl’s Art Studio, and orders from the East End can be enjoyed on the Museum’s patio area.

The Museum continues to balance welcoming increasing numbers of visitors while supporting a safe environment for staff and the community. A significant proportion of visitors are families with children ages 12 and under, not yet eligible for the vaccine. Inside the Museum, face coverings are required for staff and visitors. In the East End, masks may be removed while guests eat and drink. Outdoors, visitors will be asked to follow social distancing protocols, and Museum staff will be masked.

The Milwaukee Art Museum extends its sincere thanks to the 2021 Visionaries: Donna and Donald Baumgartner, Murph Burke, Joel and Caran Quadracci, and Sue and Bud Selig. The Visionaries support the Museum through annual sponsorship of three critical pillars within the Strategic Direction: Art Relevant to the Community, Robust Community Programming and Expansive Hospitality.

Americans in Spain: Painting and Travel, 1820–1920 is made possible in part by a major grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities: Exploring the human endeavor. The Henry Luce Foundation is the National Presenting Sponsor of Americans in Spain, which also is supported by an indemnity from the Federal Council on the Arts and the Humanities. Supporting Sponsors are the Wyeth Foundation for American Art, the Milwaukee Art Museum’s American Arts Society, and Tourist Office of Spain in Chicago; Contributing Sponsors are Christie’s and The Gladys Krieble Delmas Foundation.

The Quilts of Pauline Parker is made possible thanks to the support of The McCombe and Pfeifer Families and the Gottlob Armbrust Family Fund in Memory of Helen Louise Pfeifer. Supporting Sponsors include Milwaukee Art Museum’s Friends of Art, and the Milwaukee Art Museum’s Garden Club. First Impressions: Early Printed Books in Europe is made possible thanks to the support of Kenneth R. Treis. Byrdcliffe: Creativity and Creation is made possible thanks to the support of Barbara Nitchie Fuldner and the Layton Art Collection, Inc. Lakeside at MAM is made possible thanks to support from BMO Harris Bank.

Ticket reservations to visit the Milwaukee Art Museum can be made at mam.org/visit.

Hours
Thu, 10 a.m.–8 p.m.
Fri–Sun, 10 a.m.–5 p.m.

General Admission Pricing
$19 Adults
$17 Students (w/ID), Seniors (65+), Military
Free for Kids 12 & under every day thanks to Kohl’s
Free to Members
Free to Wisconsin K–12 teachers with valid school ID or pay stub

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