South Florida Sun-Sentinel (Sunday)
Winnie-the-Pooh celebrated in new exhibit
BOSTON — When people care too much, Winniethe-Pooh argues it’s just love.
That bit of time-tested wisdom is as relevant today as it was nearly a century ago, when the beloved teddy bear and main character in A.A. Milne’s children’s books series first appeared in print. Now Pooh and pal Christopher Robin are starring in “Winnie-the-Pooh: Exploring a Classic,” an exhibit that runs through Jan. 6 at Boston’s Museum of Fine Arts.
“The exhibit addresses the fact that Winnie-thePooh is a global phenomenon,” said Meghan Melvin, who curated the show. “Surprisingly, many people are not that familiar with the origin of the story.”
While the original Winnie-the-Pooh books were published nearly a century ago, the narrative of the befuddled bear and his adventures with Piglet, Tigger, Eeyore and Rabbit remains popular with families and young children. This year, Disney released the movie “Christopher Robin,” in which Ewan McGregor, who plays a family man living in London, receives a surprise visit from his childhood teddy bear.
In curating the show, Melvin’s goal was to reconnect visitors with an iconic story and introduce the books’ endearing characters to a wider audience.
“These are classics worthy of revisiting,” Melvin said. The MFA show is not connected with the movie, but it’s a “nice coincidence,” she added.
The exhibition is divided into five themes examining how Milne and illustrator E.H. Shepard dreamed up Winnie-the-Pooh and brought him to life. It’s composed of nearly 200 original drawings, letters, photographs and early editions on loan from London’s Victoria and Albert Museum and other lenders. The “Winnie-the-Pooh: Exploring a Classic” exhibit examines the origin story at the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston.