Constructed in 1723, the Brafferton Indian School remains a strong visual symbol on the campus of the College of William & Mary. This is the first exhibition to examine the history of the Brafferton within the wider trans-Atlantic networks of trade, politics of church and state, and Great Britain’s colonial enterprise in North America. New research … Read more
The Muscarelle Museum of Art is pleased to announce the North American premiere of Museumscopes: Photography by Massimo Pacifico, a colorful exhibition on the surprising theme that laughter, tears, sleeping and dancing happen every day – even in museums. In his worldwide travels to shoot stories on five continents, renowned Italian photographer Massimo Pacifico discovered … Read more
Our signature series, Curators at Work, returns in its sixth installment and features significant works from the permanent collection as well as exciting recent acquisitions. This annual exhibition provides the opportunity for undergraduate students from the College of William & Mary to serve as curators under the direction of Dr. John T. Spike in his … Read more
From Eadweard Muybridge’s 19th-century photographic studies of animal locomotion to Richard Misrach’s contemporary chromogenic prints, Light Works explores the history of photography. Alfred Stieglitz, Edward Curtis, Ansel Adams, Dorothea Lange, Diane Arbus, Richard Avedon and many other celebrated photographers are highlighted in this exhibition. Drawn primarily from the Kalamazoo Institute of Arts, Light Works also … Read more
Recent works of the teaching studio art faculty including visiting instructors and emeriti professors of The College of William & Mary are featured in Faculty Show 13. This exhibition encompasses a variety of media including ceramics, drawing, painting, photography, printmaking and sculpture. A long-standing collaboration between the Museum and the Department of Art & Art … Read more
This exhibition is the culmination of the Curating, Collecting and Connoisseurship seminar taught under the tutelage of Dr. John T. Spike. Fifth in the series, students have the opportunity to step into the role of exhibition curators as they select prints and drawings from the permanent collection. The Museum serves as a laboratory for experiential … Read more
The Muscarelle Museum of Art, in its first collaboration with the Marshall-Wythe School of Law at the College of William & Mary is pleased to present Matilda of Canossa and the Origins of the Renaissance. This is the first monographic exhibition in the United States ever dedicated to Matilda, one of the great leaders and … Read more
On view through January 2016, Twilight of a Golden Age: Florentine Painting after the Renaissance, Masterworks from the Haukohl Family Collection provides the opportunity to see some of the finest examples of paintings and objects from the Florentine Baroque period. Florentine Baroque paintings, dating from the late sixteenth to early eighteenth centuries, utilize vibrant colors and … Read more
Hiroshige’s 53 Stations of the Tokaido explores the most traveled road in old Japan with fresh eyes. This exhibition presents five distinct complete sets of Hiroshige’s The 53 Stations of the Tokaido Road never before displayed together. Centering on the fifty-five woodblock prints of Hiroshige’s famed first set, the Hoeido Tokaido (1832-1833, oban), the four … Read more
On loan from the National Scouting Museum in Irving, Texas, are nine paintings by Rockwell (1894-1978), famed for his nostalgic and patriotic depictions of 20th-century American life. The National Scouting Museum contains the largest collection of Rockwell’s Scout paintings anywhere in the world.
Organized by the Muscarelle Museum of Art, this unprecedented selection of more than twenty-five masterpiece drawings by Leonardo da Vinci and Michelangelo from Italian museums is the first exhibition to explore Leonardo’s philosophy of beauty as contrasted with his rival Michelangelo. Also featured will be Leonardo’s renowned Codex on the Flight of Birds, containing a … Read more
This exhibition celebrates the work of renowned Japanese printmaker Toshi Yoshida exploring the artist’s process, as well as his international travels. Yoshida’s woodblock prints are associated with the sosaku-hanga movement in Japanese art, which re-imagined the collaborative enterprise of printmaking by focusing on the artist as the sole creator versus traditional methods which compartmentalized skills … Read more
This exhibition highlights the idea of the beauty of nature in art, a key theme of 19th-century American landscape painters. Generously lent from the Owens Foundation, works by Thomas Cole, Robert Henri and Edward Potthast are among the artists represented.
The paintings and watercolors in this exhibition were commissioned by the Federal Arts Project (1935—1943), a sector of the Works Progress Administration that promoted the creation of hundreds of thousands of works of art around the country for display in schools, libraries, and other public buildings. This collection of works, on loan from U.S. General … Read more
This exhibition is comprised of a selection of European landscapes, portraits and religious images, from the Baroque and Renaissance periods. The paintings come from the permanent collection and loans from Thomas D. Dossett and Associates and The Lauro Collection. Works by Titian, Diego Velázquez, and Luca Giordano are among the important artists on view.
Kabuki (its name comprised of the Kanji characters for “sing”, “dance”, and “skill”) is a form of Japanese theatre known for its elaborate costumes, striking makeup, and intricate choreography. The ancient celebration of the beautiful and the bizarre is immortalized in this exhibition of Kabuki theatre woodcuts from the permanent collection.
This collection of etchings, by the 17th-century French printmaker Jacques Callot, represents a significant acquisition for the Museum. A variety of series that Callot completed over his career are on view, including a pristine impression of one of his best-known works, the etching of Saint Amond. Shown in the Herman Print Study Room, the viewer … Read more
Guest curated by Kathryn H. Floyd, visiting instructor at the College of William & Mary, 21st Century Diplomacy featured more than four dozen images of culture, politics and war captured by photographers affiliated with the global affairs magazine Diplomatic Courier as well as William & Mary students. Through this multi-national collaborative effort, photographers shared their … Read more
Contemporary artist Kay Jackson portrays Eight Endangered Species using ancient techniques and creative variations on traditional frames. Since the 1990s, Kay Jackson has been quietly paying her respects to disappearing flora and fauna by making icons, one for every species. Their meticulously worked surfaces and gilt carved frames recall the sacred relics of early art. … Read more
This is the fourth installment of our Curators at Work exhibition series. The exhibition which runs from April 19, 2014 — May 18, 2014, will focus on new acquisitions to the permanent collection. As in past years, this show will be curated by the Muscarelle’s own Assistant Director & Chief Curator Dr. John T. Spike … Read more
February 8 to April 6, 2014, visitors coming to the Muscarelle Museum of Art at the College of William & Mary will have a rare opportunity to view three famous paintings by, or attributed to, Caravaggio and take sides in an intense debate among the world’s leading authorities on Italian paintings. Two nearly identical versions … Read more
The Muscarelle Museum of Art will host Glenn Close: A Life in Costume, featuring selections from Close’s personal costume collection. It consists of ensembles worn by some of the most iconic characters from Close’s career in film, theatre and television, including Norma Desmond (Sunset Boulevard), Albert Nobbs, Alex Forrest (Fatal Attraction), Cruella De Vil (101 … Read more
More than twenty contemporary artists will be represented in the upcoming exhibition In Tandem: Established and Emerging Contemporary Artists from the Permanent Collection, September 29, 2013 — January 12, 2014. This multi- generational show includes works from the 1950s until the present by leading and emergent artists working in a variety of media and styles. … Read more
Curators at Work III: New Acquisitions, on view April 26 to May 26, 2013, will display a number of masterpieces that have been newly acquired for the permanent collection. The show will span seven consecutive centuries of art and a variety of media. These works are not featured merely for their significance to the art … Read more
Organized by the Muscarelle Museum of Art, Michelangelo: Sacred and Profane Masterpiece Drawings from the Casa Buonarroti will open February 9 and be on view through April 14, 2013. This landmark exhibition is being organized in honor of the 30th anniversary of the foundation of the Muscarelle Museum of Art in 1983. Sacred and Profane … Read more
Paintings from North American collections in honor of the 400th anniversary of his birth.
Works of the teaching studio art faculty including visiting instructors and emeriti professors at William & Mary were featured in an exhibition at the Muscarelle Museum of Art from October 27, 2012 through January 6, 2013. William & Mary was the first American university to create a department of fine arts and the Muscarelle was … Read more
The vases in this exhibition, from Virginia collections, were selected to display not only a variety of subjects and shapes, but also the principal techniques used to decorate them. Arranged in an approximate chronology, starting with prehistoric pottery and ending with high classical-era red-figure pottery, Athenian Potters and Painters was organized in connection with the … Read more
William D. Barnes: Three Decades of Still Life and Landscape, was an exhibition of paintings and monotypes by Professor William Barnes – on view from April 14 to June 24, 2012. Barnes retired from the Department of Art and Art History at William & Mary after thirty-seven years of dedicated teaching and mentoring students in the … Read more
