A blog by staff and others about the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts
Nightfall: Rockwell Kent’s Starry Night
November 16, 2015
This post is one in a series highlighting the special exhibition Nightfall: Prints of the Dark Hours, which explores evocative artistic images of night, called nocturnes. The exhibition is on view through March 22, 2016, in the VMFA Works on Paper Focus Gallery. Admission is free. Rockwell Kent’s Starry Night: What to Do at Night?…
Nightfall: Curator’s Introduction
November 16, 2015
Curator’s Introduction The firelight, the darkness and the stars: no wonder if to some of us there comes the recollection of some poet’s lines . . . morning finds the artist re-invoking to himself its mood and trying with his pencil to recapture it. Yet the problem is not alone the re-creation of those natural…
tripadvisor Certificate of Excellence 2015 Winner
September 25, 2015
Thank you everyone for your feedback and making this possible! “Historic and Artistic wonders to be seen” So much to see in this well maintained museum. I could use another day or two to fully comprehend all there is to offer here Well worth the visit. “Better than expected – a must see” Great…
Beecycle at VMFA: Here’s What All the Buzz Is About!
September 3, 2015
The “Beecycle” concept has been appearing in Matt Lively’s work since college when he created a sculpture of his first bumblebee cleverly augmenting his wing power with a wheel. “I’ve always been interested in man using science to change nature,” says Lively, whose biologist dad originally inspired his interest in this mashup of science and…
“Thank you”
September 3, 2015
We are proud to announce the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts was responsible for generating more than $145 million in economic impact for both the Commonwealth and the Richmond Region in the past year. In the years since its expansion, VMFA has continued to broaden its program offerings. This has resulted in attendance increasing by…
Fellowship Winner Greig Leach’s Art Gains Momentum with UCI Road World Championships
August 14, 2015
When painter Greig Leach won his Fellowship in 1986, it gave him a great deal of credibility in the art world. The honor landed him representation with a gallery in New York City’s Greenwich Village, led to multiple exhibitions throughout Virginia, and helped place his work in a number of private and corporations. “It was…
$10,000 Scholarship Awarded to 2013 Teen Stylin’ Winner
July 23, 2015
Former Teen Stylin’ McLean Project for the Arts alumni and award winner Mia Rickenbach just won a $10,000 scholarship from Duck Brand duct tape for her prom dress creation made entirely of the colorful tape. Read more about the teen from Chantilly High School in the Washington Post story. The photo at right is Mia’s…
VMFA’s Youngest Visitors Play House While Learning about South African Culture
July 23, 2015
It started with a great idea from a VMFA educator. The African Art curator then vetted the idea, suggesting authentic Ndebele patterns. The VMFA Shop created blueprints and built three tiny houses. Interns and staff drew the Ndebele designs on the houses. Kids at the Celebrate African and African American Art Family Day painted the…
Photographer Will May Gains Professional Legitimacy from Two-Time Fellowship Win
July 16, 2015
In 2004, VCU graduate student Will May received a VMFA Visual Arts Fellowship. The award was of such benefit to him as a student that the photographer applied again in 2014, once he was established in his career. And like 139 artists who have received multiple Fellowships in the 75-year history of the program, May…
Find Art Doors . . . and Open Doors for People in the Community
July 9, 2015
If you’ve strolled through the VMFA Sculpture Garden recently, you may have noticed a lone purple and green door standing in the grass, seemingly leading nowhere. But nothing could be further from the truth. Part of the Find Art Doors project, this door, along with 39 others decorated by local artists and installed at museums,…