The Heckscher Museum of Art presents Modernizing America: Artists of the Armory Show. On view from December 8 through April 14, 2013 this Museum Permanent Collection exhibition celebrates the centennial of the Armory Show featuring works by American artists who participated in the legendary exhibition that introduced modernist art to America. In 1913, the American public was introduced to avant-garde European art styles at the International Exhibition of Modern Art, held at the Lexington Avenue Armory and known as the Armory Show. Organized by the Association of American Painters and Sculptors, the Armory Show created a sensation; the controversial and radical art displayed there proved to be a watershed in the development of 20th-century American art. Modernizing America: Artists of the Armory Show focuses on American artists who participated in the exhibition. In talking about the significance of the Museum’s exhibition,
Curator Lisa Chalif remarked “The Armory Show was a transformative event in the history of art in America. Artists, critics, and the public were exposed to avant-garde Futurist, Cubist, and Fauve work by European artists that challenged America’s conservative outlook. Scandalous works like Duchamp’s Nude Descending a Staircase were lampooned in New York’s daily press. In Chicago, copies of Matisse paintings were burned and a mock trial was held, finding the artist guilty of ‘artistic murder’ and ‘general esthetic aberration.’ Many American artists responded favorably to the exhibition, developing progressive styles that helped lay the groundwork for America’s artistic predominance later in the century.” Drawn exclusively from the Museum’s Permanent Collection, this exhibition explores the impact of modern European art movements on American art in the early years of the 20th Century.
Joseph Stella
Water Lily. n.d.
Pastel on paper.
Gift of the Baker/Pisano Collection 2001.9.231
Marguerite Zorach
Moonlight. 1910.
Oil on panel.
Gift of the Baker/Pisano Collection 2001.9.288
Arthur B. Carles
Nude with Red Hair. n.d.
Oil on canvas.
Gift of the Baker/Pisano Collection 2001.9.42
Bernard Karfiol
Portrait of Robert Laurent. n.d.
Oil on canvas.
Gift of the Baker/Pisano Collection 2001.9.137
Walt Kuhn
Dancing Figure. n.d.
Painted wood.
Gift of the Baker/Pisano Collection 2001.9.146
Charles Sheeler
Interior. n.d.
Pencil on paper.
Gift of the Baker/Pisano Collection 2001.9.223
About The Heckscher Museum of Art:
The Heckscher Museum of Art, founded in 1920 by August Heckscher, serves the people of the Town of Huntington and surrounding communities. Through exhibitions of its permanent and loan collections of art and related programs, it seeks to provide inspiring and transformative educational experiences to encourage a broader understanding of our past and present and enrich the quality of life of the individuals it serves. The Museum Permanent Collection contains more than 2,200 works from the early 16th century to present.
Museum Hours Wednesday - Friday | 10:00 am - 4:00 pm * Saturday and Sunday | 11:00 am - 5:00 pm * Monday and Tuesday | Closed *
