Table Of Content

BOWDOIN COLLEGE MUSEUM OF ART A NEW BEGINNING NEW BEGINN[NG A CONTENTS Welcome The Alumni Opening At the Museum Connection Exhibitions 4 FromthePresident 27 Behindthe Scenes 11 ModernTimes 16 TheAncients 5 Fromthe Director Cometo Life 28 Faculty Salute 12 David Becker, totheVisual Arts from Student 19 Givingthe King A Proud toCollectorand his Due 28 Current Exhibitions Achievement Curator 29 Upcoming Exhibitions 7 FromtheArchitect Assyrian Reliefs The Museum 20 NewViews 30 General as Classroom ofthe Familiar Information 15 ZuckertSeminar 20 Media Gallery Room and89Seconds atAlcazar 15 The BeckerGallery 23 Visitingthe Past 15 Jessica Haymon withthe Gorlov WalkerSisters 24 AChinese Dialogue, Oldand New WELCOME FROM THE PRESIDENT The Bowdoin CollegeMuseumof And ithasbeen alongtime coming — Art'sWalkerArtBuilding,whichhas aprojectconceived inthe 1970s. beencalled the"finestpublic The effortbeganyears ago as a buildinginMaine,"is also a great challengingclimate controlprojectat theMuseum.Butasinterestgrewin pride ofBowdoin College. Butfor the endeavor,and as more and more manyithas latelybeen somethingof people came to understandthe amystery, as ithasbeenclosedfor value ofBowdoin'sartcollectionand ourtwo-yearrenovationand its importanceinundergraduate expansion.Infact,ofourcurrent education,itwas expanded into the students oncampus, onlyourseniors comprehensive $20.8 millionproject have everbeeninside. nowcompleted. Duringthis time,Ihave continuedto The entire Bowdoin College greetourfirst-yearclass outinfront community,includingeveryone on eachAugust,andwehave continued campustoday,alumni,parents, and to celebrate Commencement friends,alongwiththe Brunswick onthe stepsinMay,butourprized community,the State ofMaine, collectionofarthasbeenawayfor andthe manypeoplefi-omaround toolongas this magnificentbuilding theworldwhovisitourMuseum, hasundergone a sophisticated oweanenormousdebtofgratitude and complicatedtransformation.I to the manydonorswhomade amdelightedto saythatthe doors— thisworkpossible forthe College newdoorsinanimpressive new andforthepublic. entrancepavilion—arenowopen HarrietSarahandMarySophia once again. Walkerhadavisionforartat The goalofthisworkhasbeento Bowdoininthelate nineteenth improvevisitoraccess,toprotectthe centurywhentheyoffered the artcollectionwithamodernclimate WalkerArtBuildinginhonoroftheir controlsystemandastate-of-the-art beloveduncle,TheophilusWalker. — storagefacility,to addnewgallery Todaythatvision whichbeganwith space andvisitorfacilities, andto the"jewelbox"buildingdesigned create amodemclassroomfacility byMcKim,MeadandWhite —has withintheMuseum.The resultis all beenbeautifullyand responsibly ofthis and somuchmore! transformedinto atwenty-first- centurystructure andprogram that Thishasbeendelicate andcomplex are simplyoutstanding. workonalandmarkbuilding completed exceptionallywellbyour Iinviteyoutovisitandto seefor architects,Machado and Silvetti yourself! Associates ofBoston,ourcontractor, Consigli Construction, and ourown facilities andmuseum staffmembers. BarryMills President,Bowdoin College AND FROM THE DIRECTOR I took the helm ofthe Bowdoin and office spaces are nowelegant, CollegeMuseum ofArtin October efficient, and enviablyup-to-date 1998, havingbeenchargedwith technologically. We arenowpoised to renovating, updating, andrevivifyinga retake a leadership role among venerable institution. Ifthe amazing institutions ofoursize and scope. collectionand the extraordinarily Whyisthismuseum soimportantto handsome buildinghadn'talready the life ofthe College? Ifirmly existed, theycouldnotbeinvented believe thatmuseums are one ofthe today. Thoughtherewere deficiencies lastplacesin the contemporary (no climate control, notrulyaccessible world toprovide, even insistupon, the entrance, no loadingdock, inadequate sensuous scrutinyofreality. When and dangerous artstorage sites, a youareface-to-facewith an cramped classroom, too manydark unmediatedobject, with the Real and low-ceilinged galleries), Iwas Thing, somethinghappens thatdefies excited bythe challenge and leaptin, words. Thatobjectis tellingyou the fullyexpectingthatthe project storyofits making; itengagesyou would take, atmost, a couple ofyears. Time and thecomplexities ofthe intimatelyinitsparticularmomentin processhave proved mewrongabout time. You share the same air. Students often tellus thatthis close exposure to the schedule, butthe outcomewas artand artifacts in the collection worththewait! connects them tohumanhistoryin Today, Istandastonished atwhatwe waystheydon'totherwise experience have accomplished. Through the intoday's image-laden,virtual culture. vision ofCollege leadershipand the In theworld ofmuseums today, those supportofmanydonors, large and housedwithin a college enjoya special small, thevisionaryartistryofarchitect freedom. Oursis awide-openspace Jorge Silvetti andhisteamhas forinvestigatingthewhole range of managedtoretainthe original dignity and integrityoftheMcKim building, humaninquiryand expression. Whenyouvisitthe Bowdoin College while addingbeautiful exhibition Museum ofArt, Ihopeyouwill spaces, dramatic sightlines, open bevariouslyseduced, moved, tickled, access, and inviting, rational circulation throughout. Somehow, perplexed, excited, and, mostofall, engaged. through theimaginative geniusof architects and engineers and the skill andpatience ofhundreds of constructionworkers, massive systems and equipmenthave beendeftly KatyKline ' shoehornedinto ceifings, walls, and Director, floors, sothatmuchofthe beautyof Bowdoin CollegeMuseumofAit whatyouseeis due towhatyou don't see. Ourpublic, teaching, storage, FROM THE A R C H T E CT. A PROUD ACHIEVEMENT I . . At ourfirst project meetingsnearlyfour The resultingdesign proposed a ground-level years ago, none ofus could have anticipated the entrance to the buildingbeneath the historic vastdiversit)"ofchallenges thatlayahead or loggia. While this plan efficientlysolved the excitementand satisfaction thatwould the problems ofaccess, itbecame clear to us come fromworkingthrough themwith such (and manyothers) thatthe droppingofthe a dedicated team ofclients, consultants, and entryinto the plinth dramaticallyaltered contractors. Throughoutthe design and the characterofthe building. Togetherwith construction process, this group has been the College, we determined thatthe front united bya shared respectforthe beautyand elevation ofthe historicWalkerArtBuilding historic importance ofthe 1894Walker should notbe modified. Instead, a newentry ArtBuildingaswell as a strongcommitment pavilion, designed to symbolize the exciting to the teachingmission ofthe Bowdoin future ofBowdoin'sMuseum ofArt, should be CollegeMuseum ofArt. constructed on the south lawn. Ourfirstchallenge involved providinguniversal The design ofthe newentrypavilion and equal access to a free-standingbuildingof presented uswith a second unique challenge. thepurestclassicalformsittinghighona podium The structure needed to be simultaneously above the campus lawn. We studied more than deferential to the highlyrefined WalkerArt a dozen approaches in detail, hoping to Buildingto its northwhile boldlyannouncing maintain a central axial entrv^ from the Quad. itselfas the newentrance to theMuseum. The pavilionwas conceived ofas a monolithic plane, sheared and folded to become a strictlysymmetrical sculptural elementin the campus. The nested bronze and blackened steel formations orientthe pavilion toward the historicWalkerArtBuilding, collectpaths from the town and campus, and guidevisitors through the new entrysequence. The dynamic playoflightoffthe pavilion's surfaces ofglass and folded metal produces an effectoflightness and dematerialization thatis designed to contrastwith the monolithicweightofthe left: above: Adramaticnewhandicap- TheWalkerArtBuilding WalkerArtBuilding. — accessibleentrypavilion duringconstruction welcomesvisitorsfrom theflooroftheoriginal The routingofthe newentrysequence beneath boththecampussideand lower-levelgallerieshad the original terrace presented uswith the publicside. tobedroppedbymore thanfourfeet. third and mostdauntingstructural challenge of Ninegallerieshave becomefourteen,and the project. Itbecame clearto us thatdie entire storagespaceforartworks floorofthe lower level gallerieswould need hasbeencustomdesigned andclimatecontrolled. 7 A PROUD ACHIEVEMENT to be dropped bymore than fourfeetto representthe tremendous scope ofissues that provide adequate head clearance to the entry. this team has been asked to address. As I This gave us the opportunityto transform the mentioned to KatyKline, "...thiswill be a lower-level spaces intowell-proportioned projectIwill use to teach architecture students gallerieswith high ceilingsworthyofBowdoin's foryears to come. Ithas everything." From the exceptional artcollection. The arduous process technicalresolution ofgeothermalwells, ofhand diggingthe alternatingfour-foot-wide infiltration beds, and othersustainable building pits beneath the granite footings and pouring systems to the carefiil selection ofhistorically ofcarefullysequenced concrete underpinnings accurate, dynamic, and art-sensitive galleryand reminded us all ofthe monumental nature loggia colors, this seeminglystraightforward ofthis project. projectcalled upon the full range ofourteam's design expertise. Afourth technical and architectural challenge involved the mandate to provide state-of-the- Greatbuildings cannothappenwithout artclimate control for theMuseum. The exceptional clients, and lookingbackon the nineteenth-centurybrickand stone building pastfouryears, we have to saythatthe Bowdoin wasnotdesigned forthis type ofclimate projectteam has been amongtheverybestwe control system, however. Workingwith our have everworkedwith. The manycomplex engineers, we designed newwalls to be design, technical, and constructionchallenges constructed inside the old brickbuildingshell could nothave been resolvedwithoutthe clear to create an aircavitybetween the plaster- and pragmatic direction ofthe program coated brickand the newlyconstructed gallery committee orthe commitmentto qualityon the partitions. Conditioned return airis drawn partofthe contractor, Consigli Construction. rapidlythrough this cavityfrom a floor-level Today, we stand together and share a profound slotaround the perimeterofthe galleries to sense ofpride inwhathas been accomplished. pressurized return ducts thathave been Jorge Silvetti installedwitha greatdeal ofeffortinto the MachadoandSilvettiAssociates, Boston historicframingofthevaulted galleryceilings. This strategysandwiches artworksafely between layers ofclimate-controlled airwhile simultaneouslyprotectingthe five-brick-wide exteriorwalls from freeze-thaw damage by maintainingthe building-sidewarmingthey left: Interiorviewofthe have historicallyenjoyed. refurbished Rotunda right: While the four examples I listabove illustrate Anexpansiveglasscurtain the range ofdesign challenges this project wallwindowonthestreet presented us with, theydo notaccurately sideoftheMuseuminvites passersbywithaviewof thenewAssyrianGallery. 8 InordertogivetheWalker "beautiful,muscularbut ArtBuildingsomething delicatebronzedoor — — ithasneverhad atruly anelegant,geometric distinguishedfrontdoor grilleoverglass"thatbrings — thearchitectsdesigned inlighttotheRotundaand whatMuseumDirector providesavisualconnection KatyKlinedescribesasa totheQuadfromwithin. mm fmwi [ACH FEAR W read mi I Mm. IN THE ^EC^ET \