Displaying items by tag: ancient art

The Dallas Museum of Art acquired a marble head of Herakles, the Greek hero the Romans called Hercules, at a Sotheby’s, New York auction of Egyptian, Classical, and Western Asiatic Antiquities in June. The marble head is from the late 1st century A.D. and is set upon an unrelated bust from the mid-2nd century A.D. This ensemble was composed by the 18th-century French sculptor Lambert-Sigisbert Adam (1700–59), who created sculptures for King Louis XV of France and Frederick the Great of Prussia.

The acquisition is a gift of David T. Owsley through the Alvin and Lucy Owsley Foundation, and strengthens the Museum’s collection of ancient art of the Mediterranean, of which a selection is on view in the Museum’s Level 2 Classical galleries.

Recent additions of artwork representing medieval Europe, the Ancient Americas, 20th-century photography, and contemporary art further enhance the Cleveland Museum of Art’s permanent collection. World-renowned for its quality and breadth, the collection represents almost 45,000 objects and 6,000 years of achievement in the arts.

The latest acquisitions include a Virgin and Child, a rare 13th-century wooden sculpture from the Mosan region of Europe; a Standing Female Figure, a clay figure representative of the Classic Veracruz period on Mexico’s Gulf Coast; and Just the two of us, one of contemporary artist Julia Wachtel’s first paintings to employ cartoons. The museum also announced the addition of eight photographs by Ansel Adams, a gift from Frances P. Taft, a longtime museum supporter and trustee.

From ancient cave drawings to Leonardo da Vinci’s flying machines, birds have always played a central role in art and imagination. “For millennia, humans have been fascinated by birds,” says Joanna Marsh, curator of “The Singing and the Silence: Birds in Contemporary Art,” opening Friday at the American Art Museum. “Birds can fly, while we’re stuck in our own earthbound existence. They are accessible to us yet out of reach — a paradox that is fruitful creatively.” The new exhibit features 46 works by 12 artists.

First, there was light. Then, a night sky filled with stars and a luminescent moon. Soon after? Art.

Since ancient times, communities have used art to relay stories and make sense of the world around them — particularly when interpreting the heavens and giving form to perceived deities ruling the forces of nature.

A new exhibition at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, "African Cosmos: Stellar Arts," showcases 40 rare objects in gold, silver, bronze, stone, beads and wood that collectively illustrate the history of African cultural astronomy, from ancient Egypt to the present day.

Frieze has announced the participating galleries for Frieze Masters. Following acclaim for the first two editions of the fair, this year sees not only a particularly strong representation of galleries from the UK and US but also an ambitious global reach. Dedicated to art from ancient to modern, Frieze Masters will take place October 15–19, 2014 on Gloucester Green, Regent’s Park, London, and is sponsored by Deutsche Bank.

Described by the Financial Times as ‘Unrivalled among fairs worldwide for its quality, range, seductive displays and scholarly interest’, Frieze Masters is a carefully selected presentation of over 120 of the world’s leading galleries. Taking place at the same time as Frieze London, the two fairs ensure that London is the destination for the broadest international art audience and benefits from a crossover between audiences of contemporary and historical art.