When she was Romania’s crown princess (1893–1914), Marie of Edinburgh (later Queen Marie of Romania) began wearing peasant-inspired clothing from the country’s eastern provinces — a fashion trend long promoted by Elisabeth of Wied, Queen of Romania, and her court. A Particular Beauty draws from Maryhill’s collection of more than 450 items of Romanian clothing and textiles. The display will include about 20 fully dressed mannequins, and numerous individual garments such as coats, vests, shirts and blouses.The exhibition will showcase a remarkable variety of Romanian embroidery techniques, mediums, and styles that have evolved through the influences of adjacent ethnic populations, resident invaders, other outsiders, and—in recent decades–urbanization. Contextual labels and photographs will tie the objects to specific villages, counties, geographical regions, and artisan workshops.

Major sponsors of the exhibition are Bill and Cathy Dickson with support from the Romanian American Society (Portland) and the American Romanian Cultural Society (Seattle).  Partners include Atlianta, Washington D.C., the American Romanian Cultural Society (ARCS) Seattle; the Romanian American Society (RAS) Portland; and, the Romanian Cultural Institute (CRCI) New York.   

Two- and three-dimensional works by prominent women artists including Gene Kloss, Katja Oxman, Betty LaDuke, Frances Senska, and Meta Vaux Warrick Fuller among them. While the exhibition celebrates the passage of the 19th amendment and women’s right to vote, it’s important to note that African-American women such as Meta Vaux Warrick Fuller and Native American women were not universally free to vote until after the passage of the 1965 Voting Rights Act.

Image: Sarah Horowitz (American, b. 1977), Blue Magnolia Blooms, 2008, gouache on iron gall ink-dyed paper, 20” x 14”; Collection of Maryhill Museum of Art

In 1926, when Queen Marie of Romania traveled to the Pacific Northwest to dedicate Maryhill Museum of Art for her friend Samuel Hill, she carried with her a variety of art objects that became the nucleus of the museum’s permanent collection. Included in this material were some fine Russian icons. The icon collection has since grown, through donation and purchases, and now includes more than 25 items. This selection of Maryhill’s Orthodox icons features images of St. Nicholas, St. John the Baptist, the Mother of God, and other subjects.

Image: Unknown Russian artists, Icon of the Mother of God of the Sign (Platytera) with beaded riza, c. 1800–1850, tempera on wood panel and glass beads, 9” x 8”; Collection of Maryhill Museum of Art

The 2021 installation in the Laura and John Cheney Gallery will present the work of P.K. Hoffman, an important ceramic artist from The Dalles, Oregon.

Hoffman was introduced to ceramics at the University of Oregon during the 1960s and worked with Los Angeles-based ceramic artists Joe Soldate and Jerry Rothman. He taught at the Glasgow School of Art and has led hundreds of pottery workshops throughout the U.S.

Hoffman spent 42 years teaching at Columbia Gorge Community College and his work has been featured in numerous exhibits. After building his studio and kilns on Mill Creek, he focused on raku and wood-fired salt techniques.

Image: P.K. Hoffman (American, b. 1943), Sculpted Fish Pot No. 4, 1985, raku ceramic, 13⅝” tall

During the pandemic Maryhill Museum of Art, in partnership with artist Molly Johnson and Monmouth Arts, Red Bank, NJ, connected coasts through the Exquisitely Connected Project. Artists of all ages and from all across the country created small-scale artworks reflecting their feelings during these tumultuous times. They were digitally connected to create a large, virtual mural. This exhibition features a selection of the works submitted to the project.

Explore the interplay between clothing and identity as seen through Maryhill Museum of Art’s varied collections. Speakers are Simona Laiu (Romanian folk clothing), Sandra Ericson (haute couture), Steve Grafe (historic Native American attire). Free with admission. This event will be presented ONLINE. Thank you for your flexibility at this time. 

Presenters:

Simona Laiu holds an MLA from Stanford University. For the last 20 years, she has been owner of Gradina Hestiei, through which she researches, collects, restores, and promotes 19th and early-20th-century Romanian folk textiles.

Sandra Ericson is an educator who taught fashion design, pattern making, draping, and other courses at City College of San Francisco for more than 30 years. She is founder of Antiquity Press, a small publishing company for out-of-print fashion books.  Until 2017, she was co-owner of the Center for Pattern Design.

Steve Grafe is Curator of Art at Maryhill Museum of Art. He is a longtime student of Indigenous American art and author of the essay about historic Columbia River Plateau dress in Vol. III (United States and Canada) of the Berg Encyclopedia of World Dress and Fashion (2010).

Ready to build on your skills? Use both painting and drawing techniques to explore light and shade, vegetation and architecture, and the beautiful rock and cloud formations of the Columbia River Gorge. This six-week class, led by Chris Pothier, will be held outdoors on the grounds of Maryhill Museum of Art, with your safety the highest priority.

Pothier has exhibited nationally and internationally and has been an instructor in drawing and painting at the New Hampshire Institute of Art, University of Massachusetts, St. Paul’s School, and more recently, The Dalles Art Center.

All skill levels welcome.

Cost: $215 museum members / $235 non-members

Note: Fee does not include supplies. A supply list will be emailed from the instructor after registration.