February

Terracotta figurine depicting a dog nursing two puppies on her left side.
Our calendar is filling up with events to make for an exciting February. Join curators to get a closer look at ancient life in A World Within Reach: Greek and Roman Art from the Loeb Collection. Visit during the week for a gallery talk that reframes a selection of 19th-century paintings with a complicated history or come in on the weekend to imagine yourself in one of Kehinde Wiley’s powerful portraits.

No matter when you visit, you will leave the Harvard Art Museums with new perspectives on art—from the ancient to the contemporary.
This oil painting depicts several robed figures and cherubs in the sky.

Get ready next month for the special exhibition From the Andes to the Caribbean: American Art from the Spanish Empire, opening March 3. Presenting 26 paintings from the Carl & Marilynn Thoma Foundation, the exhibition will reveal a more complete story of art from the Spanish Empire—and a broader definition of American art.

A square portion of a striped woven textile with light yellow, light green, and light blue lines.

INSTALLATION

Artisanal Modernism

Bauhaus lovers rejoice! Now on view, Artisanal Modernism offers visitors a more inclusive and expansive history of the development of modernism since the later 19th century—one that better articulates the labor of women as artists and artisans.

 

 

A partial terracotta sculpture of a muscular man, as seen from the back.

Come see ancient Greece and Rome with fresh eyes! Drawn from the collection of James Loeb (1867–1933), A World Within Reach features 60 ancient Greek and Roman objects that are small in size but expansive in possibilities—from a mirror with an image of Medusa on the back to a sculpture of a weary Herakles. Who used these objects and for what purpose? The exhibition explores human concerns then and now. Bring a friend on a gallery talk to get a closer look at these small-scale wonders.
 

A young, dark-skinned girl strikes a sophisticated pose in front of a colorful painted mural.

ACTIVITY

Step into Art!

Let your imagination soar! In this special drop-in event presented by the organization Step Into Art, you’re invitedto contribute to a multidimensional community art installation in the Calderwood Courtyard inspired by Kehinde Wiley’s Portrait of Asia-Imani, Gabriella-Esnae, and Kaya Palmer, on Sunday, February 12.

Tall yellow pentagonal panel painted with an image of a man on a cross surrounded by three figures.

GALLERY TALK

Symbolism Demystified

In this first installment of our Meet Me at the Museums series, join Clara Guzman on Sunday, February 26 as she decodes several crucifixion scenes laden with symbolism. She will also share how her research has been informed by her experience studying art history at Harvard and working as a student assistant here at the museums.

A watercolor drawing depicts flowers, butterflies, and other insects on a ledge.

Don’t miss a special interactive online talk on Wednesday, February 15 that combines art looking and writing, led by two graduate students. Together as a group, attendees will consider the relationship between looking, describing, and imagining.

A group of men and women are gathered in front of a peak-roof building with an American flag on top.

This spring, aspiring U.S. citizens can register for a free 10-week course at the Harvard Art Museums to prepare for the citizenship exam. Special tours of the American art galleries, led by Harvard students, will deepen the lessons taught by teachers from St. Mark Community Education Program in one of our museum classrooms. The course begins February 18.

A large, colorful painting of a Black man holding a palette and paintbrush can be seen through an interior entryway to a museum gallery.

AT NIGHT

Night Vision

Last month’s At Night event was a smash hit, so be sure to plan ahead for the next one, on Thursday, February 23. Explore the galleries, including the new exhibition A World Within Reach: Greek and Roman Art from the Loeb Collection, and take in one of the gallery tours happening throughout the night.

A color photograph of a woman staring directly at the camera.

On Saturday, February 25, join the Harvard Art Museums Student Board for its highly anticipated annual public lecture, featuring artist Pao Houa Her in conversation with Makeda Best, the Richard L. Menschel Curator of Photography.

A woman in a black shirt cuts a display mount with a hacksaw, with a work cart next to her.

Our most recent Index article, by assistant director for exhibitions Elie Glyn, celebrates the excellent craftsmanship of the people who build custom furnishings (such as pedestals, mounts, and cases) for our galleries.

From Our Friends: On Monday, February 6, from 4 to 6pm, the Center for African Studies will host its African Studies Workshop, which is open to the public. The workshop will focus broadly on the general theme of Africa’s political economies and cultures and their global implications. South African scholar and curator Khanyisile Mbongwa will present a paper, and Sarah Clunis, curator from Harvard’s Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology, will moderate a discussion that draws on Mbongwa’s current work. 

 

Images: (Header) Dog feeding her puppies, Greek, Boeotia (modern Greece), 5th century BCE. Terracotta with traces of pigment. Staatliche Antikensammlungen und Glyptothek München, SL 120, TL42482.19. Photo: © Staatliche Antikensammlungen und Glyptothek. Re-examining Empire: Unidentified artist, Spanish Colonial, Peru, Annunciation to the Virgin Mary with Saints Catherine and Gertrude. Oil with gold on canvas. Collection of Carl & Marilynn Thoma, TL42430.15. Artisanal Modernism: Gunta Stölzl, Textile sample, 20th century. Textile fibers. Harvard Art Museums/Busch-Reisinger Museum, Association Fund, BR49.697. © Stölzl Estate, VG Bild-Kunst, Bonn/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York. Power, Desire, Wonder, in Miniature: Weary Herakles, Hellenistic, Smyrna (modern Izmir, Türkiye), c. 50–25 BCE. Terracotta. Staatliche Antikensammlungen und Glyptothek, Munich, SL 257, TL42482.39. Photo: © Staatliche Antikensammlungen und Glyptothek. Step into Art! © Photo by Mike Ritter; www.mikeritterphoto.com. Night Vision: Photo: Caitlin Cunningham Photography. Crafting Magic: Photo: R. Leopoldina Torres.

Loans and exhibition coordination for From the Andes to the Caribbean: American Art from the Spanish Empire courtesy of the Carl & Marilynn Thoma Foundation. Support for the exhibition is provided by the Henry Luce Foundation Fund for the American Art Department; the Bolton Fund for American Art, Gift of the Payne Fund; the Alexander S., Robert L., and Bruce A. Beal Exhibition Fund; and the Gurel Student Exhibition Fund. Related programming is supported by the M. Victor Leventritt Lecture Series Endowment Fund.

Support for A World Within Reach: Greek and Roman Art from the Loeb Collection is provided by the Kelekian Fund.







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Harvard Art Museums · 32 Quincy Street · Cambridge, Massachusetts 02138 · USA