Displaying items by tag: henry luce III center for the study of american culture

Renowned for its collection of lamps by Tiffany Studios, the New York Historical Society on Central Park West will renovate the Henry Luce III Center for the Study of American Culture and dedicate the space to displaying the 100 lamps it owns.

Designed by architect Eva Jiřičná, the 3,000-square-foot, two-story space is scheduled to open in early 2017, and will feature the Tiffany lamps lit in a darkened gallery, creating a dramatic, glowing effect for visitors.

Dr. Louise Mirrer, President and CEO of the New-York Historical Society, today announced plans for the establishment of a new Center for the Study of Women’s History, located on New-York Historical’s fourth floor within a fully-renovated Henry Luce III Center for the Study of American Culture. A model of innovation, the new Center will include permanent and temporary exhibition galleries and a theater featuring a multimedia film, providing a venue for scholarly research, seminars, and public programs that bridge the gap between “women’s history” and American history. The new Center is scheduled to open in December 2016.

“The new Center for Women’s History will become a destination for discovery of the crucial role that New York women played in our nation’s social, political, and cultural evolution as women struggled for and eventually won the right to vote,” said Dr. Mirrer. “We will highlight the women who changed the course of our history, giving voice, in many cases, to the voiceless, who ushered in the Progressive era and emerged triumphant in the struggle for women’s suffrage.”

The New-York Historical Society is exhibiting a recently acquired sketchbook of drawings and watercolors by the Post-Impressionist American artist, Maurice Prendergast (1858-1924). The sketchbook, which is from the final years of the artist’s life, features 152 lined and paginated leaves. The volume includes many seaside scenes and park views populated by figures in endless variations.

Dr. Roberta J.M. Olson, curator of drawings at New-York Historical, said, “We are thrilled to add this volume of sketches to the collection of the New-York Historical Society, which holds the oldest public drawings collection in the United States. This sketchbook offers keen insights into Prendergast’s creative output during his final years and the intense graphomania that he demonstrated throughout his career.”

The sketchbook is currently on view in the Henry Luce III Center for the Study of American Culture. For preservation reasons, the watercolors require turning ever three months. The sketchbook’s 152 pages can be seen in their entirety on a nearby digital monitor thanks to turn-the-page technology.