The Observer, November 9, 2007
Volume XL, Issue 10
Arts and Culture in Cleveland: Exhibition at the CMA
It is frustrating for many of us who have grown up with the Cleveland Museum of Art that it has been closed for so long. Fortunately, it has been hosting exhibitions from time to time, the last of which was "Monet in Normandy." The museum has also been hosting other art-related events while its renowned collection has not been on view. The latest exhibition opened at the CMA on Oct. 21: "Impressionist and Modern Masters from the Cleveland Museum of Art," highlighting some of the best pieces from its prestigious collection of 19th and 20th century European art.
The 144-plus pieces in the show are from a traveling exhibition which has already shown in Beijing, Tokyo, Seoul, and Vancouver, where it has drawn over 700,000 visitors. While it is being shown in Cleveland, there will be additional pieces on view which are not traveling with the rest of the exhibition. After it closes in Cleveland on Jan. 13, it will go to three other North American cities.
The exhibition is also called "Monet to Dalí" at other museums. One piece by Claude Monet included in the show is The Red Kerchief: Portrait of Mme. Monet. This painting shows a rare interior view by an artist famed for his landscapes. The Poplars at Saint-Rémy, by Vincent Van Gogh, is an exemplar of his heavy style; it was painted shortly before his death. Fan, Salt Box, Melon is an early Cubist piece by celebrated Spanish artist Pablo Picasso. Its abstraction shows what changes were taking place in the art world on the whole during the early 20th century. There are also pieces by Cézanne, Dalí, Degas, Duchamp, Gauguin, Magritte, Matisse, Modigliani, Mondrian, Renoir, and Seurat, among others.
This exhibition is an exciting revitalization for art lovers throughout Cleveland. It is good to see pieces by these masters brought together to better understand how modern art came into being, where it is now, and where it will go in the future. Impressionists such as Monet pioneered the modern style by painting their impression of the subject instead of a naturalistic representation. The Post-Impressionists continued this theme, and soon artists such as Matisse and Gauguin began simplifying the subjects to basic form and color. Later came movements such as Cubism, which strove to pare forms down to their individual shapes. Soon there were artists such as Mondrian, who painted not recognizable forms, but colored blocks separated by thick black lines. There are also the Surrealists, such as Dalí, who painted things according to their own minds without regard for the real world.
This show, having examples of all these things and more, is not to be missed, especially for those who have never seen the museum prior to its closure in 2005. Tickets to the exhibition are free and can be obtained at the box office in the CMA lobby. The exhibit is open during regular museum hours. Don't forget that this includes the late closure on Fridays (9 p.m.) and the museum closure on Mondays. For more information visit www.clevelandart.org.
