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Taubman Museum of Art

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Coordinates: 37°16′22″N 79°56′18″W / 37.2728°N 79.9383°W / 37.2728; -79.9383
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37°16′22″N 79°56′18″W / 37.2728°N 79.9383°W / 37.2728; -79.9383

Taubman Museum of Art
Map
Established1951
Location110 Salem Avenue SE
Roanoke, Virginia, 24011
United States
TypeArt museum
DirectorCindy Petersen
CuratorKarl Willers, Chief Curator and Deputy Director of Exhibitions and Collections
Websitewww.taubmanmuseum.org
Taubman Museum of Art

The Taubman Museum of Art, formerly the Art Museum of Western Virginia, is an art museum in downtown Roanoke, Virginia, United States.[1] Formally established in 1951, the museum was housed in several locations around Roanoke before moving in 2008 to its current home, a contemporary architecture building designed by Randall Stout. The museum specializes in American art, and provides free general admission daily.

History

In 1947, the Roanoke chapter of the American Association of University Women requested a major exhibition from the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, which moved part of its staff and permanent collection to the Hotel Roanoke for a period of time.[2] In 1951, the Roanoke Fine Arts Center was incorporated as an independent organization.[3] The institution used the City of Roanoke's main library for exhibitions during the early 1950s.[4] The center rented a building on Franklin Road in 1954, and in 1955, moved into a new facility at the corner of 25th Street and Carolina Avenue in South Roanoke.[5][6] The building was donated by Mr. and Mrs. J. Meade Harris.[4]

In 1965, the Roanoke Fine Arts Center and the Junior League of Roanoke Valley purchased Cherry Hill, a former residential home.[7] The house's owner sold it to the arts center for $90,000, far below its appraised value.[8] The museum's first exhibition at Cherry Hill was of works by Thomas Eakins, borrowed from his Roanoke relatives.[9][10] The institution changed its name to the Roanoke Museum of Fine Arts in 1979.[6]

In 1983, the museum relocated to the new Center in the Square building on Market Square in downtown Roanoke.[11] The new location, larger in size and with more gallery space for the permanent collection, also aimed to provide a venue where "art happens".[12] The institution changed its name again in 1992, becoming the Art Museum of Western Virginia.[13] In 2001 the museum received the long-promised Peggy Macdowell Thomas bequest, which included 27 works associated with Ms. Thomas's relative Thomas Eakins and his circle along with funds to support a named gallery.[14]

By the late 1990s, the museum had outgrown its space in Center in the Square, and was considering moving to the site of a building donated by the owners of Grand Home Furnishings.[15] However, it was announced in 2000 that the city was donating a site as well as $4 million for a new home for the museum, which was to be paired with an IMAX theater.[16] In 2002, the art museum declared that Randall Stout had been selected as design architect for its new facility,[17] and construction began in May 2006.[18] Stout's avant-garde design was controversial,[19] but its architecture has since received international praise.[20][21] In February 2008, the Board of Trustees of the institution announced that the new building was to be named in honor of the former CEO of Advance Auto Parts and later the U.S. Ambassador to Romania, Nicholas F. Taubman and his wife Eugenia Taubman.[22] The pair donated over $15 million towards the project's $66 million overall cost.[22] The Taubman Museum of Art opened to the public on November 8, 2008.[23]

The 75,000-square-foot (7,000 m2) facility houses twelve galleries hosting 12–15 exhibitions annually.[24] It also includes the City of Roanoke Atrium, a 77-foot-tall (23 m) space used for large, temporary installations, and Art Venture, an interactive gallery aimed at younger visitors.[25][26] The IMAX theater was not included in the building's final design; the area intended for it was made into gallery space and a multipurpose hall.[27] Corporate donations have provided free admission to the museum's permanent galleries since 2012.[28]

Collection and exhibitions

The permanent collection of more than 2,000 works of art includes prominent 19th- and early 20th-century American art, as well as significant modern and contemporary art, photography, design, and decorative arts, and several smaller collections including Southern folk art.[29] The American art collection dates from the mid-19th through the second quarter of the 20th century, providing works from the Hudson River, American Realism, American Impressionism, and Arts and Crafts art movements. American artists in the museum's permanent collection include Thomas Eakins, Winslow Homer, Childe Hassam, Maurice Prendergast, John Singer Sargent, Robert Henri, Norman Rockwell, George Inness, Eduard Steichen, and Thomas Hart Benton.[29] The modern and contemporary collection includes works by Jasper Johns, Robert Rauschenberg, Jacob Lawrence, Romare Bearden, John Cage, Audrey Flack, and Dorothy Gillespie.[30][31]

  • Gentleman and a Dog (1878) by Susan Macdowell Eakins
    Gentleman and a Dog (1878) by Susan Macdowell Eakins
  • Two Sisters (Mary & Elizabeth Macdowell) (1879) by Susan Macdowell Eakins
    Two Sisters (Mary & Elizabeth Macdowell) (1879) by Susan Macdowell Eakins
  • William H. Macdowell (1891) by Thomas Eakins
    William H. Macdowell (1891) by Thomas Eakins
  • Alfred Reynolds (1902) by Thomas Eakins
    Alfred Reynolds (1902) by Thomas Eakins
  • Walter Macdowell (1904) by Thomas Eakins
    Walter Macdowell (1904) by Thomas Eakins
  • Happy Days (c. 1910-20) by Edward Henry Potthast
    Happy Days (c. 1910-20) by Edward Henry Potthast

References

  1. ^ "The Taubman Museum of Art". Roanoke Valley in Virginia's Blue Ridge Mountains. Retrieved 4 August 2016.
  2. ^ Ellett, Katherine T. (1978). The Roanoke Fine Arts Center History 1952 1977. Roanoke, Virginia: Roanoke Fine Arts Center. pp. 1–2.
  3. ^ "Fine arts center to map program". Roanoke Times. 13 October 1951. p. 4.
  4. ^ a b "Fine arts center studio will be opened tonight". Roanoke Times. 31 March 1955. p. 4.
  5. ^ White, Clare (1982). Roanoke 1740–1982. Roanoke Valley Historical Society.
  6. ^ a b "Art Museum of Western Virginia: 50 Years". Roanoke Times. 20 March 2005. p. 6.
  7. ^ Beagle, Ben (30 January 1966). "Everybody gets into sports, arts act". Roanoke Times. p. 42.
  8. ^ Armistead, Mary Bland (7 December 1980). "Museum unsure about future of Cherry Hill". Roanoke Times. p. 67.
  9. ^ Ellett. RFAC History. pp. 14–19.
  10. ^ "Thomas Eakins paintings to be exhibited". Roanoke Times. 26 May 1966. p. 35.
  11. ^ Rippe, Peter (1983). "Director's Statement". Roanoke Museum of Fine Arts Annual Report (1982/83): 2.
  12. ^ Harris, Sally L. (4 December 1983). "A walk through galleries of Museum of Fine Arts". Roanoke Times. p. 133.
  13. ^ DeBell, Jeff (20 September 1992). "Mill Mountain tries to upstage RSO brochure". Roanoke Times. p. 69.
  14. ^ Kittredge, Kevin (27 January 2002). "Peggy's gift". Roanoke Times. p. 75.
  15. ^ Kittredge, Kevin (31 January 1999). "Seeking a better showcase". Roanoke Times. p. 1.
  16. ^ Schnabel, Megan; Kittredge, Kevin (6 June 2000). "Museum, theater merge". Roanoke Times. p. 1.
  17. ^ Kittredge, Kevin (12 June 2002). "Designing Roanoke". Roanoke Times. p. 39.
  18. ^ Kittredge, Kevin (12 May 2006). "Museum a work in progress". Roanoke Times. p. 11.
  19. ^ Podger, Pamela J. (29 December 2007). "With Bold Museum, a Virginia City Aims for Visibility". The New York Times. ProQuest 433734189. Archived from the original on May 20, 2023. Retrieved May 20, 2023.
  20. ^ Allen, Mike (15 October 2009). "Architect wins award for Taubman". Roanoke Times. pp. A8.
  21. ^ Heilman, Christian (2018-08-28). "Taubman Museum of Art in Roanoke named best designed museum in Virginia". WDBJ7. Archived from the original on May 18, 2023. Retrieved 2023-05-18.
  22. ^ a b Kittredge, Kevin (7 February 2008). "New art museum to carry Taubman name". Roanoke Times. p. 2.
  23. ^ Kittredge, Kevin (9 November 2008). "Taubman unveiled". Roanoke Times. p. 1.
  24. ^ "Taubman Museum of Art". downtownroanoke.org. Downtown Roanoke, Inc. Retrieved 17 January 2024.
  25. ^ Kittredge, Kevin (20 March 2005). "A bold vision". Roanoke Times. p. 1.
  26. ^ "The Taubman Museum of Art". visitroanokeva.com. Virginia's Blue Ridge. Retrieved 17 January 2024.
  27. ^ Kittredge, Kevin (11 August 2008). "No IMAX? No problem". Roanoke Times. p. 31.
  28. ^ Allen, Mike (22 November 2015). "Taubman turns seven". Roanoke Times. p. 49.
  29. ^ a b "Taubman Museum of Art | Downtown Roanoke, VA". www.downtownroanoke.org. Retrieved 17 January 2024.
  30. ^ Allen, Mike (30 November 2019). "Taubman awards honor longtime arts supporters". Roanoke Times. pp. A2.
  31. ^ Allen, Mike (19 June 2020). "Taubman to open in time to share Gillespie shows". Roanoke Times. pp. A2.
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