(Published on the Jakarta Post)
Features News, Sunday, June 20, 2004
Elvera N. Makki, Contributor, Chicago, Illinois
Chicago is a paradise for both local and international glamorpusses. Along North Michigan Avenue, there are 14 blocks from Oak Street to Chicago River, with about 400 brands on both sides of the avenue showcasing their collections.
Yet in the midst of the avenue known as "The Magnificent Mile", there is a place that seems to get the brush-off from ardent shoppers.
"Hi, welcome to Terra Museum of American Art."
A woman in her mid-40s greeted me with a wise smile, as if she understood my bewilderment. How could they let people get pleasure from hundreds of pieces of artwork for free?
"Admission is always free. The museum started on the second floor to the fifth". She smiled again and pointed to a huge 5 x 5m wooden-made elevator.
While the first floor was small and only functioned as a gift shop, the second was more like a warehouse, mostly because of the minimalist concept design.
Here was an exhibition exploring modernism in American art, themed A Transatlantic Avant-Garde: American Artists in Paris, 1918-1939.
During that period between the world wars, American artists traveled to Paris for an artistic adventure rather than for academic training. Entering into a transatlantic dialog with the Parisian avant-garde, artists sought to express their own ideas of modernity.
In the approximately 150 paintings, sculpture and works on paper, the focus was on three successive aspects of the Parisian avant-garde: Cubism, Geometric Abstraction and Surrealism. I checked out a painting by Charles Demuth in 1921 titled Street of the Monkey who Fishes, which indicated his knowledge of avant garde and surrealist trends.
Patric Henry Bruce drew my attention as well with his unique technique of drawing -- oil on canvas with a pencil under-drawing, making his painting titled Still Life inventive.
It is obvious the museum tries to emphasize the idea of purism, a distinctly modern art in stride with the technological advances of the day.
Going up to the third floor, there was Carl Van Vechten's Portrait of Man Ray, with several other pictures of the artist with Spanish surrealist exponent Salvador Dali.
What made the portraits unique were the technique of picture-making that used gelatin silver print.
On the fourth floor, a giant painting of transatlantic cultural exchange from Samuel F.B Morse (1791-1872), Gallery of Louvre, evinces the vibrancy of the Paris museum more than 170 years ago.
On the fifth floor there was the exhibition A Narrative of American Art, led by Thomas Hart Benton with his series of paintings titled The American Historical Epic.
What struck me most about Benton's works was the exploration of economic exploitation through the brutalizing effects of slavery in America.
Yet there was something that hit me even more when the woman museum employee innocently announced to me in the elevator, "We're closing down this museum in October, forever".
The history of the museum is tied to Daniel J. Terra, who was born in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, in 1911 and raised in Philadelphia. A son of Italian immigrants, he started a business in 1940, Lawter International, Inc., which grew to 22 branches in 12 countries.
Terra and his first wife, Adeline Richard Terra (1910-1982), acquired two studies by John Singer Sargent (1856-1925) for The Oyster Gatherers of Cancale (1878) at a 1971 auction -- the genesis of a 25-year mission to form a notable collection of American art.
Terra then sold all of his European art collection and acquired only American art. Why?
"As a first-generation American, Terra saw American art as an expression of patriotism and a means to promote the country's cultural heritage," explained the museum employee.
In 1977, Terra's American art collection was displayed publicly for the first time. Terra saw a terrific opportunity to share his collection in Chicago, which had become his hometown, when he realized that the city lacked a museum devoted to American art. Less than a year later, The Terra Foundation for the Arts was founded.
Terra felt a strong attachment to France, especially after he was honored in 1985 by the French government with the Commander of the Order of Arts and Letters. He opened The Muse‚ d'Art American Giverny in Paris in the summer of 1992, four years before his death.
So why is this museum closing?
"The foundation is refocusing its activities as the best solution to leveraging the long-term value of the endowments," the employee said. "It's been decided by the Board of Trustees to close it down, in order to expand foundation activities."
"Meanwhile, they will review the use of the museum's building here on North Michigan Avenue," she continued. "Nothing to worry about since the foundation's core mission is still the same: to promote a greater understanding and appreciation of American art".
She added that with resources of approximately US$200 million, the foundation was expected to continue as one of the leading foundations in the world dedicated to American art.
The Terra Museum will continue to present its scheduled exhibitions until Oct. 31.
After the museum closes, the foundation will place a revolving selection of up to 50 paintings, as well as 350 works on paper, on a renewable 15-year loan to the Art Institute of Chicago.
The Terra collection of more than 700 artwork will remain under the ownership and management of the foundation. The Muse‚ d'Art American Giverny will keep on exhibiting works from the collection.
"So how about you?" I asked her gently.
"I guess I have to find another job. Likewise, I need a secure place, too."
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