Fall Opening Celebration–The Philosophy Chamber, September 27
The Philosophy Chamber: Art and Science in Harvard’s Teaching Cabinet, 1766–1820
 
Our current special exhibition unites long-forgotten icons of 18th- and 19th-century art and technology and presents new findings on a 250-year-old space. Equal parts laboratory, picture gallery, and lecture hall, the Philosophy Chamber stood at the center of artistic and intellectual life at Harvard and in New England for more than 50 years. The Philosophy Chamber exhibition is on view through December 31, 2017.

In this evening’s celebration, contemporary artist Simon Starling will discuss his own practice in light of the range of objects, voices, and ideas that animated Harvard’s 18th-century Philosophy Chamber. Following his presentation, Starling will be joined in conversation by Ethan Lasser, head of the Division of European and American Art and the Theodore E. Stebbins Jr. Curator of American Art at the Harvard Art Museums, and Jennifer L. Roberts, the Elizabeth Cary Agassiz Professor of the Humanities at Harvard University.

Wednesday, September 27, 2017
Doors open: 5pm
Lecture hall opens: 5:30pm
Artist talk: 6–7:30pm
Open galleries and reception: 7:30–9pm


Harvard Art Museums
Menschel Hall
32 Quincy Street
Cambridge, MA


The lecture will take place in Menschel Hall. Free admission, but tickets are required. Tickets will be distributed beginning at 5pm, outside the lecture hall. Complimentary parking available in the Broadway Garage, 7 Felton Street, Cambridge.



 

#PhilosophyChamber


Further Reading

The exhibition’s accompanying catalogue—available in our shop—advances new understandings of early American art history and will serve as a rich resource for any reader interested in the art and culture of the Atlantic World.

Visit our calendar for more information on the exciting lineup of exhibition-related lectures, gallery talks, and other events.
 

 

 
 

Support for the lecture is provided by the M. Victor Leventritt Fund, which was established through the generosity of the wife, children, and friends of the late M. Victor Leventritt, Harvard Class of 1935. The purpose of the fund is to present outstanding scholars of the history and theory of art to the Harvard and Greater Boston communities.

Major support for the exhibition has been provided by the Terra Foundation for American Art and the Henry Luce Foundation.

The exhibition and catalogue were also supported in part by the following endowed funds: the Bolton Fund for American Art, Gift of the Payne Fund; the Henry Luce Foundation Fund for the American Art Department; the William Amory Fund; and the Andrew W. Mellon Publication Funds, including the Henry P. McIlhenny Fund.

Image: Prepared by Charles Willson Peale, Long-Eared Owl (Asio otus) (detail), 1786–1827. Museum of Comparative Zoology, Ornithology Department, Harvard University, 67850. Photo: Jeremiah Trimble; Courtesy of the Ornithology Department, Museum of Comparative Zoology, Harvard University.



 
           
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