Curating the West
What event (gallery show, museum exhibit, etc.) in the next few months are you looking forward to, and why?
I am looking forward to the fall opening of By Western Hands: Inspired Western Designs.
The premiere exhibition in the new By Western Hands Design Museum, By Western Hands, will examine the legacy of furniture entrepreneur Thomas Molesworth and his contemporaries and their influence on the making of modern, Western furniture created by a broad community of craftspeople, each however inspired by the West. The materials displayed promise to include singular examples of Molesworth furniture, vintage pieces by other builders, and modern interpretations from the collections of the Buffalo Bill Center of the West’s vaunted Switchback Ranch Collection of Western Decorative Arts.
What are you reading?
I am currently finishing Leonardo Da Vinci by Walter Isaacson.
Then, following the passing of Tom Wolfe, perhaps a reread or two?
Interesting exhibit, gallery opening or work of art you’ve seen recently.
I recently saw the Chihuly Collection at the Morean Art Center in St. Petersburg, Florida. Beyond the obvious appeal of the Chihuly installation, the building itself was designed specifically to become an envelope for the exhibition. To gain an understanding of the creative processes used by Chihuly, connected to the exhibition is the Art Center’s Glass Studio and Hot Shop where glass blowers both demonstrate and create singular pieces.
What are you researching at the moment?
I continue to be drawn to the survey and study of Western decorative arts, its designers, makers, and yes, the buyers. That scholarship will seek to enhance the interpretive narrative of By Western Hands.
What is your dream exhibit to curate? Or see someone else curate?
A retrospective exhibition of the work of artist Olive Fell.