The 2009 Season opens with an exhibition of paintings from the Hudson River school from the collection of Dr. Michel Hersen and Mrs. Victoria Hersen.
In May, the museum will again host the Outdoor Sculpture Invitational. The museum’s permanent collection of outdoor sculptures grew in 2007 and again in 2008. Through gifts such as these, thousands of visitors will be able to enjoy this awe-inspiring work in the gardens at Maryhill.
Later in the season the museum will present photography by Ansel Adams and a very special exhibit of paintings from the museum's permanent collection depicting The Good Life.
Download the 2009 Exhibits Brochure (PDF) for additional information.
Jasper Francis Cropsey (1823–1900), Misty Afternoon, 1873, oil on canvas.
From the Collections of Dr. Michel Hersen and Mrs. Victoria Hersen.
March 15 – July 8
The Hudson River School, comprising two generations of artists inspired and influenced by the awesome beauty of America’s unspoiled wild areas, came to prominence during the 19th and early 20th century. Working primarily in the Hudson River Valley, as well as in the Catskill, Berkshire and White Mountains, and in the newly opened West between 1825 and 1915, the Hudson River School firmly established the first American landscape painting tradition. Their beautifully composed pastoral paintings are filled with dramatically lit mountains, waterfalls and old growth forests, which evoke an idealized and romantic landscape where humans and nature co-existed peacefully.
Charles Henry Gifford (1839–1904), Hauling Nets, 1874, oil on canvas, 9” x 14”.
Photo by Paul Foster.
Drawn from the collection of Dr. Michel Hersen and Mrs. Victoria Hersen, Hudson River School Sojourn showcases 34 works by Hudson River School artists Jasper Francis Cropsey, Asher Brown Durand, William Hart, David Johnson, and Jervis McEntee, among others.
Download exhibit brochure (PDF)
View a 5-minute video presentation of the Hudson River School Sojourn exhibit presented by Lee Musgrave, curator of exhibits. Video production, Mike Midlo.
May 16 – October 4
First conceived to complement the museum’s extensive collection of Rodin sculptures, Maryhill’s Outdoor Sculpture Invitational has become one of the premier venues for Northwest artists who create and exhibit large-scale works. The dramatic and rugged setting, with majestic views of the Columbia River Gorge, provides a unique environment for visitors to experience the diverse works created especially for the exhibition.
In 2009 the Outdoor Sculpture Invitational will feature works by Northwest sculptors Lance Carleton (Everett, WA), Matt Cartwright (Portland, OR), Tom Herrera (Mosier, OR), Ed Humpherys (Walla Walla, WA), Jay Moody (Portland, OR), Francisco Salgado (Portland, OR), Julie Speidel (Vashon, WA), Mike Suri (Portland, OR), Jeff Tangen (Shoreline, WA), and David Wagner (Portland, OR).
In addition, Gregory Glynn (Bainbridge Island, WA) in this year’s Outdoor Sculpture Invitational is going to stay through next year and will be in the 2009 Sculptural Invitational.
Gregory Glynn, Tuft, 2008, milled Madronia.
The work Tuft (above) is made of 300 milled Madrona 2x2’s and was designed to be changed by how the wood reacts to the environment. It is just now starting to do that… so Gregory and Curator Lee Musgrave felt that it should be left in place for another year so that its transformation can become more apparent.
Gregory has been receiving a lot of media attention recently as an artist that specializes in “sustainable green art” and he will be conducting a panel discussion, Green Art: What Does Sustainable Design Mean In Public Art, for the Office of Arts and Cultural Affairs in Seattle on November 10 that will include references to this project.
July 18 – September 13
Ansel Adams, Monolith, the Face of Half Dome, Yosemite National Park, California, April 17, 1927, photograph.© 2008 The Ansel Adams Publishing Rights Trust.
Ansel Adams is one of the few American artists to become a household name. Certainly he is the only photographer to have reached such heights of popular recognition. And for good reason. His breathtaking black and white images of pristine landscapes and natural vignettes strike a primeval chord, highlighting the essential connection between human beings and the natural world.
The 47 photographs featured in Ansel Adams: Masterworks are part of a larger group called “The Museum Set,” which Adams personally selected to serve as a succinct representation of his life’s work. The exhibition presents a special opportunity for the public to see photographs that the artist viewed as his best. Included are images of Yosemite, where Adams spent many seasons living and working as a youth, National Parks throughout the American West, as well as photographs captured in New Mexico, the Great Smokey Mountains, New York City, Hawaii and on Cape Cod.
Ansel Adams: Masterworks was organized by the Turtle Bay Exploration Park, Redding, CA. Exhibition tour management by Landau Traveling Exhibitions, Los Angeles, CA.
Edgar Bundy. The Musical Trio, 1897, oil on canvas.
Collection of Maryhill Museum of Art.
September 26 – November 15, 2009
During Pacific Northwest summers, winter rain becomes a distant memory, fading away as we take time to enjoy friends, family and the outdoors. It’s this sentiment that is at the heart of the exhibition The Good Life, which features approximately 30 paintings, drawings and prints drawn from Maryhill’s permanent collections.
Created between 1850 and 1950 by American and European artists, these works celebrate life in all of its impulsive, joyful and nostalgia-infused glory. The Good Life is divided into three sections: gatherings where family and friends are depicted dancing, playing music together, sewing, socializing and enjoying each other’s company; still life paintings, created not only for the sake of painting, but to celebrate abundance and to be consumed and enjoyed; and, people in the landscape, relishing nature and relaxing out of doors.
