American artist Philip Evergood’s 1936 oil on canvas “Street Corner” is among many significant works acquired recently by the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts in preparation for its grand opening May 1. The painting is the first major Depression-era Urban Realist canvas to enter the collection and was painted in the same year VMFA opened its doors.
Also added to the collection is Italian artist Pio Fedi’s plaster study for “The Sacrifice of Polyxena,” circa 1885; “Mirror with Three-light Sconce,” an American work dating from circa 1800-1820; and an array of additional American, European, Asian and African works.
Here is a listing of the recent VMFA acquisitions.
AMERICAN:
“Street Corner,” 1936, by Philip Evergood (American, 1901-1973); oil on canvas mounted to board; 30 by 55 inches; acquired through VMFA’s J. Harwood and Louise B. Cochrane Fund for American Art.
“Mirror with Three-light Sconce,” circa 1800-1820, by an unknown American, possibly Eastern Massachusetts; eastern white pine, gessoed and gilded, and iron wire with a gilded plaster ornament and with gilt brass candleholders and a mirrored plate; 54-1/2 by 26 by 10-7/8 inches; acquired through VMFA’s J. Harwood and Louise B. Cochrane Fund for American Art.
“Mother and Child” (also known as “Mother and Babe”), 1902, by Bessie Potter Vonnoh (American, 1872-1955); bronze; 10-7/8 by 8 by 9-1/2 inches; acquired through VMFA’s J. Harwood and Louise B. Cochrane Fund for American Art.
“Night Shadows,” 1921, by Edward Hopper (American, 1882-1967); etching on paper; 6-15/16 by 8-1/8 inches (plate); gift of Malcolm Bradley of Richmond, Va.
“Construction,” 1958, by Ralston Crawford (American, 1906-1978); silver print on paper; 10 by 8 inches; gift of Neelon Crawford of Fort Washakie, Wyo.; and “Construction,” 1958, also by Crawford; pen and ink on paper; 11 by 9 inches; director’s discretionary purchase.
Set of six tablespoons, circa 1815-1820, Norfolk, Va., in the Fiddle pattern in coin silver by Joseph Clarico (American, died 1828); and a set of six dinner forks in coin silver, circa 1850, by Joseph Moseley Freeman (American, 1806-1882); gift of Suzanne Freeman of Richmond, Va.
MODERN AND CONTEMPORARY:
“A Screwing,” 1995, by Richard Carlyon (American, 1930-2006); wood, hinges and screws; approximately 4-1/2 by 8 feet; gift of Jean and Robert Hobbs of Richmond, Va.
“Lincoln 1861-1865,” 2006, by Tomas Lasansky (American, born 1957); color intaglio, four copper plates with etching, drypoint, soft ground, mezzotint, aquatint and color pencil (unique impression #80 from a series of 100 plus two trial proofs); 36 by 24 inches (plate); gift of Joseph S. Czestochowski of Memphis, Tenn., in honor of Muriel B. Christison.
Two photographs, “Hephaestus,” 2008, and “Was Ever Love,” 2009, both from the series “Proud Flesh” by Sally Mann (American, born 1951); silver-gelatin contact prints from collodian wet-plate negatives; each 15 by 13-1/2 inches; director’s discretionary purchase through VMFA’s Kathleen Boone Samuels Memorial Fund.
Four photographs, “Nude,” 1934, by Edward Weston (American, 1886-1958); silver gelatin print; 3-1/2 by 4-1/2 inches; “Weeds and Wall,” 1972, by Brett Weston (American, 1911-1993); 13-1/2 by 10-1/2 inches; silver gelatin photograph; “8th Street Movie Theatre,” 1938, by Ruth Bernhard (American, born in Germany, 1905-2006); silver gelatin print; 7-1/2 by 9-1/2 inches; and “New York, 1951,” 1951, by Aaron Siskind (American, 1903-1991); silver gelatin print; 24 by 20 inches; director’s discretionary purchases with VMFA’s A. Paul Funkhouser Endowment Fund.
AFRICAN:
“Chevron Bead Necklace,” 19th-20th century, possibly earlier, of West African provenance, with beads created in Venice or Murano, Italy; glass “chevron” beads; necklace 14-1/2 inches long, beads approximately 3/4 inch in diameter; gift of Sandra Anderson Taylor of Richmond, Va.
“Healer or Diviner’s Calabash,” 19th-20th century, Mambila culture (Nigeria, Cameroon); calabash, wood, wicker, shell, horn, bone and other natural substances; approximately 23 inches tall; director’s discretionary purchase.
EUROPEAN:
“The Sacrifice of Polyxena,” circa 1855, by Pio Fedi (Italian, born Viterbo 1825, died Florence, 1892); plaster study; 33 by 17-1/4 by 18-1/2 inches; VMFA purchase.
“Study for the Monument to Claude Lorrain,” modeled 1889, by Auguste Rodin (French, 1840-1917); bronze, Musée Rodin cast 5 of 8 in 1992, Godard Foundry; 19-4/5 by 8 by 8 inches; gift of Iris and B. Gerald Cantor Foundation, Los Angeles, Calif.
“Les Vieilles Histoires” (“The Old Stories”), 1893, by Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec (French, 1864-1901); lithograph, first state of two, printed in green; approximately 17-1/2 by 25 inches; gift of Frank Raysor of New York, N.Y.
“Le Bonheur du Jour, ou, Les Graces à la Mode” (“Daytime Delights, or, Fashionable People”), 1924, by George Barbier (French, 1882-1932), published by Chez (Jules) Meynial, Paris; portfolio, engraved by Henri Reidel, comprising decorated paper wrappers, two illustrated pages, table of contents page and 16 loose plates of colored pochoir (stenciled) prints, edition of 300; oblong folio, approximately 12-1/2 by 17-3/4 inches; gift of John and Maria Shugars in memory of Christina Louise (Dittmer) Shugars.
Ten publisher’s certificate proofs from the series “Emotions de Chasse” (“Hunting Incidents”), 1858, by Honoré Daumier (French, 1808-1879); lithographs with handwritten notations; approx. 10-1/2 by 8 inches; gift of VMFA’s Friends of Sporting Art by director’s discretionary purchase.
EAST ASIAN:
“Bowl with Design of Chrysanthemum,” Chinese, Qing dynasty, Yongzheng mark and period (1723-1735), from Jingdezhen, Jiangxi province; porcelain with molded and incised decoration under celadon glaze; 1-13/16 inches tall by 4-9/16 inches diameter; gift of Frank Raysor, New York, N.Y.
“Mirror with Design of a Dragon Boat,” 12th-13th century, Korean, Goryeo period (935-1392); bronze; 6-1/5 inches diameter; gift of Kang Collection Korean Art, New York, N.Y.
“Orchids and Rocks,” circa 1910, by Kim Gyu-jin (Haegang) (Korean, 1868-1933); hanging scroll, ink on paper; 58-1/2 by 15-3/4 inches (image); gift of Kang Collection Korean Art, New York, N.Y.
SOUTH ASIAN:
Three necklaces, late 19th-20th century, from Nagaland, India; made variously of coral and glass beads, fiber, metal and leather; one 15 inches long, another 16-1/2 inches long, and another 14 by 11 inches; gift of the estate of Barbara Watson via Eileen Dooley of Sheperdstown, W.Va.
ANCIENT:
“Lamp House in the Form of a Shrine,” 2nd century, Roman Egypt; terra cotta; 5-1/3 inches tall; gift of Dr. Margaret Ellen Mayo, former VMFA curator of Ancient art, Richmond, Va.
VARIOUS:
Works of Modern furniture purchased by VMFA in the mid-1950s for the 1954 expansion and now accessioned for the collection, comprising a table, circa 1954, by Florence Knoll (American, born 1917); an upholstered chair, designed 1941, by Jens Risom (active in America, born 1916); a stacking chair, designed 1947, by Andre Dupre (French, dates unknown); and a ‘Barcelona” chair, designed 1929, by Mies van der Rohe (German, active America, 1886-1969).
The Virginia Museum of Fine Arts is at 200 N. Boulevard in Richmond, Va. VMFA’s holdings include more than 22,000 treasures spanning more than 5,000 years.
