Tucson Museum of Art - 12/07/14

Today we visited the Tucson Museum of Art. There are permanent collections and currently 6 temporary exhibitions. There are multiple buildings to explore, so be sure to pick up a museum guide in the main lobby. Docents are available there as well to provide information regarding the exhibits.

El Nacimento: This exhibit is located in the La Casa Cordova building and is on display 11/22/14-06/01/2015. El Nacimento is a unique creation of a traditional Mexican nativity scene. This one is comprised of hundreds of miniature figures combining the symbolism of Spanish Colonial Catholicism and simple, rural Mexican life.

Next we returned to the primary museum building and saw the The Figure Examined: Masterworks from the Kasser Mochary Art Foundation exhibit. It is comprised of 120 works of art that examine the portrayal of the human figure through painting, sculpture, and paper. Here are some of our favorites.

The Eternal Idol, 1893, Auguste Rodin

Reader, 1919 (left) and Harlequin with Clarinet, 1919, Jacques Lipchitz

Celise Receives Germeuil's Letter, 1968, Salvador Dali

Head of Venus, 1915, Pierre-Auguste Renoir

Adam, 1881, Auguste Rodin

La Vida Fantastica: Selections for Latin American Folk Art (10/18/14-06/30/2015). On the lower level, is this colorful and interesting exhibit.

Nativity Set, 1974-78, Vilia Villasenor de Alba

Brass Band Tree of Life Candelabra, 1996, Francisco Flores

Masks from various dances and performances.These things were amazing!

Animal figures.

Demon-like scupltures (alebrijies) have become a common part of Mexican folk art. Here are two examples.

Shadow Play: Selections from the TMA Collection (9/20/14-6/15/15). This exhibit explores the interplay between material objects and qualities of light and shadow.

Head #1, 1992, Robert Lowe

Southwest Anthems: Landscapes of a Region (10/05/14-02/08/15).

Hiss, 2005, Karen Kitchel

Deep Canyon Morning, 1984, Merrill Mahaffey

The permanent Pre-Columbian exhibit is located on the second floor of the main museum building. The collection features approximately 600 objects of jewelry, ceremonial vessels, figurines, masks, sculptures and textiles. It represents 3,000 years of history and 30 cultures of Mesoamerica. Fascinating. Here are some of the artifacts we really enjoyed seeing.

Standing Female Effigy Figure made of basalt (volcanic rock), Costa Rica, 1000-1400 AD

Saint Catherine, artist unknown, Peruvian, 18th century

Pottery, Cocle Culture, Panama, 1000-1200 AD

Vessels of Moche Culture, North Coast Peru, 100 BC - 600 AD

Jewelry of Peru and Mexico, 100 - 1500 AD

Animal and bird masks used in Carnival dances in the eastern Sierra Madre Mountain region of Mexico. 20th century.

Horse Masks, Mexico

Virgin of the Immaculate Conception, South American, 17th Century

The Art of the American West Collection is a permanent collection and is housed in the Stevens/Duffield House.

Riding High, E. E. Heikka, 1974

Geronimo, Joe Beeler, 2005

Westering, Robert Grieves, 1977

Black-on-black Pueblo pottery by Maria and Julian Martinez. I don't know why, but I just love this pottery.

Along the San Pedro and Three Crossing, Howard Post, 2013. We also really like these simple but beautiful paintings by this artist.

Whirlwind, Oreland C. Joe (Navajo and Ute descent), 2001

Navajo Chiefs Blanket, 1860-1880

Olla, Kereson Tribe, New Mexico, 1845

Return of the Hunters, Duane Bryers, 1977. Loved this painting.

Below are two impressive pieces located in the courtyard.

Prayer Song, Alan Houser (Apache), 1983

Cowboy Hang Time, Hern Mignery, 1998

Across the hall from the American West Collection is a display of the studio of Duane Breyers (1911-2012). He was a beloved artist of Tucson who produced both illustrations and fine art.

We stopped in at the Cafe a la C'art for a late lunch. I had a salmon BLT with a glass of wine and John an angus burger. Actually, the food was very good and in a lovely setting. You order and pay at a counter inside and the food is then delivered to your table.

This interesting steel sculpture was in the courtyard outside the cafe.
Opposed Tensions, Dennis Jones, 1979.

I love to check out the gift shops in art museums because they always have unique and beautiful items for sale. This one was no exception, although I only bought some postcards!

Our last stop for the day was the J. Knox Corbett House. 

This is an elegant two-story, stucco-covered home built in the mission revival architectural style in 1907. The first floor is open to the public.

Entry

Dining Room.

Living Room

Walk-in closet in the bedroom (nice!)

This home even had air-conditioning, one of the first in Tucson to have this luxury in 1907!

Admission to the Tucson Museum of Art is $10/adult. We used a voucher from our coupon book for a complimentary admission with a paid admission. Better yet, the first Sunday of the month are half-price so we ended up paying only $5 for both of us. Also, metered street parking around the museum is free on Sundays.

We always enjoy checking out art museums in the cities we visit. Neither of us are great art connoisseurs, but we love the diversity of works that we get to see in various geographic locations in the U.S. It was interesting to see several Rodin pieces in one of their temporary exhibits as we have visited the Rodin Museum in Philadelphia several times and love his work.

Website: www.tucsonmuseumofart.org