South Florida Sun-Sentinel Palm Beach (Sunday)
NSU Art Museum reopening
Discount admission part of Broward Attractions and Museums Month
Not a moment too soon, there is happy news in downtown Fort Lauderdale, where NSU Art Museum Fort Lauderdale will reopen Tuesday.
Along with new COVID safety guidelines, disinfection protocols and capacity limits in place, museum visitors will find discounted admission. September is Broward Attractions and Museums Month, when nearly two dozen participating venues offer buy-one-get-one admission. For more information on BAMM, visit Facebook.com/ BAMMSFL.
It may be difficult to think back that far, but the year began with NSU Art Museum’s exhibit “Happy !” and you maybe pleased to know that the show is still up — the intervening pandemic providing a provocative new context.
Joy as an emotion is sweeter for our having experienced despair, and “Happy!” is a visceral illustration of these intertwining sentiments in dozens of works by a range of contemporary artists. They include Mark Rothko, Andy Warhol, Keith Haring, Jeff Koons, Rob Pruitt, Yoko Ono and many others.
Museum director and chief curator Bonnie Clearwater organized the show. Before anyone around here had uttered the word “COVID,” Clearwater said: “Many of these artists acknowledge that making art is an essential means for them to work out their own trauma and frustrations, and they suggest that art can provide viewers with a sense of well-being that
will help them cope with life’s challenges.”
“Happy!” was to have closed Aug. 30 but has been extended through Oct. 11. “Transitions and Transformations” will be on view through January, and the exhibits “I Paint My Reality: Surrealism in Latin America” and “William J. Glackens: From Pencil to Paint” will remain up until spring.
Admission to NSU Art Museum costs $12, $8 for seniors and military, $5 for students. Children younger than 12 and museum members get in free. Members, including NSU students, faculty and staff, will get sneak-peek access on Saturday and Sunday. Visit NSUArtMuseum.org.
Bass Museum of Art
The Bass Museum of Art on Miami Beach will reopen on Wednesday, Sept. 16, with two new exhibitions of works from its collection, “Open Storage” and “The Willfulness of Objects.” Also of interest is “Better Nights,” with works of and curated by Mikalene Thomas, and Edouard DuvalCarrié’s 2019 work “King Henri and Haiti’s Royal Court.”
The Bass also is offering free reusable face masks designed by artist Carlos Amorales, while supplies last. For information on new safety measures and admission, visit TheBass.org.
Boca Raton Museum of Art
The Boca Raton Museum of Art, which reopened in June, will continue to offer free admission through September. Exhibits include “Phyllis Galembo: Maske” and “Eye to I: Self Portraits from the National Portrait Gallery,” both running through Sept. 20, and the video installation “Solitary Acts,” up through Sept. 27. Two other shows have been extended through Jan. 3:
“Edward Steichen: In Exaltation of Flowers” and “Works on Paper: Drawn from the Collection.”
The museum’s fall season will debut Oct. 7 with three new shows: “Trine Lise Nedreaas: The Entertainers,” “All My Presidents and More Recent Acquisitions” and “Jeff Whyman: Out of Nature,” featuring the Delray Beach artist. Visit BocaMuseum.org.
Norton Museum of Art
In West Palm Beach, the Norton Museum of Art remains closed but on Friday, Sept. 18, will debut a collection of virtual programs titled “¡Vista!: A Look at People and Cultures from Central America, South America, and the Caribbean.”
The online series, pegged to Hispanic Heritage Month, explores South Florida’s cultural diversity through art, film, music and dance. Visit Norton.org.