Corporate Social Responsibility Press Release
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8.25.2008 - 11:39am ET
News from:
Minneapolis Institute of Arts
Past Presidents Make an Appearance at the Minneapolis Institute of Arts during the Republican National Convention
Hail to the Chief features Paintings, Sculpture, Prints, Photographs, and Decorative Arts Representing Our Country's Presidency from George Washington to George W. Bush
(CSRwire) MINNEAPOLIS, Aug. 25 /PRNewswire/ -- Past American presidents make an
appearance at the Minneapolis Institute of Arts during the Republican
National Convention. Hail to the Chief: Images of the American Presidency
presents our nation's presidential history through art and artifacts.
Featuring paintings, sculpture, prints, photographs, posters, manuscripts,
and decorative arts, Hail to the Chief represents our country's presidents
from George Washington to George W. Bush. This exhibition is organized by
the Minneapolis Institute of Arts and is on view through September 21.
"This presidential-themed exhibition is fitting for an historical moment
for our state and country," said Brian Palmer, Chair of the Board of
Trustees at the Minneapolis Institute of Arts. "We want to welcome the
thousands of people from around the world who will be here in September
for the Republican National Convention-delegates, media, and others -- in
a way only this museum can offer."
Envisioned as a non-political, bipartisan exhibition, Hail to the Chief
draws from major private collections of American presidential material and
the museum's varied permanent collections. More than seventy objects will
bring together the artistic and historical focuses of these collections.
"We applaud the Minneapolis Institute of Arts for embracing its role as
one of the region's most important cultural institutions during a time of
historical significance," said Cynthia Lesher, President of the 2008
Minneapolis-Saint Paul Host Committee for the Republican National
Convention. "This will compliment CivicFest as another way to give
Minnesotans an opportunity to join in the festivities around the
Convention."
Highlights from the private collection include an excellent example of the
United States President's flag believed to be from the Kennedy-Johnson
administration. Recently restored and mounted, this flag is richly
embroidered with the American presidential seal and is trimmed in gold and
silver bullion fringe. Also featured will be an assortment of political
convention badges from the past 100-plus years, each a work of art in
itself. An exceptional example is a gold delegate pin probably dating
from the late nineteenth century, in the form of an eagle holding banners
reading "Republican National Convention." This pin was made by prominent
silver firm of Mermod, Jaccard and Co. of St. Louis, whose work was
featured in the 1893 and 1904 World's Fairs.
Material from the MIA's permanent collection includes John Frederick
Peto's Reminiscences of 1865 (after 1900), which features a portrait of
Abraham Lincoln. Others are significant works rarely on view, including
Hiram Power's Bust of George Washington (1853) depicting our first
president in Neoclassical drapery. This sculptural portrait graced the
interior of the obelisk-shaped Foshay Tower, Minneapolis's architectural
homage to Washington, when the building was finished in 1929.
Showcasing the power of presidential appeal during wartime are a selection
of posters from the First and Second World Wars, culled from the museum's
Department of Prints and Drawings. Various photographs, including works by
Edward Steichen and Arnold Newman, of modern presidents Franklin Delano
Roosevelt (1938) and John F. Kennedy (1953), respectively, show both
contemplative and personal sides of our nation's Commanders-in-Chief.
Curators for this exhibition are Dennis Michael Jon, Acting Co-Curator of
Prints and Drawings at the MIA, and Jennifer Komar Olivarez, Associate
Curator of Architecture, Design, Decorative Arts, Craft and Sculpture at
the MIA.
About the Minneapolis Institute of Arts
The Minneapolis Institute of Arts (MIA), home to one of the finest
encyclopedic art collections in the country, houses more than 80,000 works
of art representing 5,000 years of world history. Highlights of the
permanent collection include European masterworks by Rembrandt, Poussin,
and van Gogh; modern and contemporary painting and sculpture by Picasso,
Matisse, Mondrian, Stella, and Close; as well as internationally
significant collections of prints and drawings, decorative arts, Modernist
design, photographs, textiles, and Asian, African, and Native American art.
General admission is always free. Some special exhibitions have a nominal
admission fee. Museum hours: Sunday, 11 a.m.-5 p.m.; Tuesday, Wednesday,
Friday, and Saturday, 10 a.m.-5 p.m.; Thursday, 10 a.m.-9 p.m.; Monday
closed. For more information, call (612) 870-3131 or visit http://www.artsmia.org.
For more information please contact:
Lynette Nyman, Press and Public Relations Manager
MIA
+1-612-870-3173
Gwen Chynoweth, Vice President
Maccabee Group
+1-612-337-0087
News Categories:
Community Development and CSR - General
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