ART IN FOCUS features works from a variety of mediums and themes. The six galleries focus on: Mississippi’s first true modern artist, Dusti Bongé; American Prints; American Glass; the world of Still Lifes; Childhood; and our faithful friends and companions, Pets! The installations include works by notable figures in the history of art and design, as well as lesser-known artists. Many traditional and unique works fill these galleries designed to excite and stimulate your creativity. Just a few of the artists in these exhibitions are Walter Cade III, BettySueMatthews, Joe Price, Mark Rothko, Tut Altman Riddick, John Paul Thomas, Sabrina Knowles, Bruce Larsen, Walter Inglis Anderson, Raymond Creekmore, and Karel Appel.
Plan your visit to see ART IN FOCUS in MMofA’s Katharine C. Cochrane Gallery.
Dusti Bongé: The Creative Life provides a look at the creative evolution of a woman who has been called Mississippi’s first true modern artist. Expanding on the success of our recent Spotlight installation, this new exhibition presents some of her early realist watercolor and mixed media compositions, four large Abstract Expressionist paintings, and an oil on masonite inspired by a trip to Mexico, all on loan from the Paul Bongé Collection. The newly installed gallery includes a Mississippi Public Broadcasting documentary that features the artist at work in her studio, as well as labels that tell the story of her journeys to the height of the New York art world and back home to Biloxi.
The video is used by courtesy of Mississippi Public Broadcasting
Artwork featured in thumbnail: Middle- Dusti Bongé, American (1903 – 1993), Windows, 1952. Oil on Masonite, 73″ x 49″. Right- Inside the Skull, 1954. Oil on Masonite, 49″ x 37″. On loan from the Paul Bongé Collection.
The American South Consortium is a multi-year partnership of Mobile Museum of Art, the Wadsworth Atheneum Museum of Art (Hartford, CT), the Columbia Museum of Art (Columbia, SC), and the Montgomery Museum of Fine Arts (Montgomery, AL). Working collaboratively, we created a series of exhibitions shaped by each of our collections to broaden the story of American art. (more…)
Mobile Museum of Art proudly presents a site-specific art installation titled A Nest of One’s Own, created and installed by Alabama-native Dixon Stetler.
Stetler’s work combines recycled and discarded materials in new and innovative ways to address community and social issues of today. With a strong relationship with people and place, she can employ everything from Christmas lights, rope, Mardi Gras beads, hoses, and electrical wires, weaving what was once trash into new dreams and fantasies.
“A Nest of One’s Own offers a safe haven when the world feels out of control,” Stetler says. “The fundamental drive to gather and assemble is a function of both nest building in nature and my artistic process. Inspired by what society deems as no longer useful, I collect recognizable materials from construction and industrial sites. Without altering the found materials, I present a new beginning for them. Dirty and scarred objects have a built-in history. They represent resilience, strength, and an unapologetic identity that is worthy of appreciation. The unsavory can be made more palatable — even comforting — when we have a shared experience with it. A Nest of One’s Own is a celebration of self soothing, a place for self reflection, and peace.”
This site-specific installation is made possible through the generous support of the Alabama State Council on the Arts, Dr. G. Douglas Hungerford, the National Endowment for the Arts, and the City of Mobile. Support for this, and all museum exhibitions and programs, is provided by the Alabama State Council on the Arts, the National Endowment for the Arts, and the City of Mobile. A Nest of One’s Own is on view from April 26, 2022 through April 2023.
Some critters in the Fantastical Forest are updating their habitats, which means the exhibition is currently closed while they finish their renovations. We will reopen again soon with more accessibility, but until then, keep an eye on our website for updates. Thank you to everyone who booked a timed ticket, and we look forward to seeing you again soon!
Mobile Museum of Art presents Fantastical Forest, an interactive installation that explores where nature and art meet. Lucy Gafford designed the site-specific installation, and it was funded by area organizations. The magical space was created with the help of local artists Ben Kaiser and Vanessa Quintana. Audio design is by The Company Retreat and Octopus Prime.
Fantastical Forest is an enchanted installation full of friendly creatures, colorful birds and flowers, and secret nooks where surprises wait. Visitors can see the entire by climbing a treehouse and looking at the floor below.
“We deeply appreciate the Mobile Museum of Art for entrusting us to create this large-scale installation,” Gafford says. “The many months of hard work that have gone into this project have been an incredible learning experience for everyone involved, and we foresee it making new opportunities for us as artists in the future. We hope you visit and experience the magic of the Fantastical Forest!”
Fantastical Forest is interwoven with Alabama’s State Board of Education standards: themes of ecology and the importance of the environment; math; geography; language arts; creative writing; and visual arts.
Fantastical Forest support
MMofA gratefully acknowledges the support of the following for this installation: The Mary Josephine Larkins Charitable Foundation, The J.L. Bedsole Foundation, The Ben May Charitable Trust, The Rotary Club of Mobile, The C.D., Helen and Jeff Glaze Foundation, and The Moses Foundation.
The educational video made for this project was directed by Joseph Brennan and is generously supported by Art Bridges. The artists responsible for this project are Lucy Gafford (lead concept and artwork) with assistance from Ben Kaiser and Vanessa Quintana. Audio design is by The Company Retreat and Octopus Prime, and sound is by Michael Francis. Support for this, and all museum exhibitions and programs, is provided by the Alabama State Council on the Arts, the National Endowment for the Arts, and the City of Mobile.
Content created for the installation
Generous support for this video provided by Art Bridges.
MMofA’s exhibition, FOR CHILDREN, is an exhibition organized by the Mobile Museum of Art specifically designed for kids!
The exhibition presents a maze of galleries for children to experience immersive, creative, and wacky visual environments. It is designed for fun, yet teaches kids the basic elements of creative art and design (Line, Texture, Color, Scale, and Shape), as well as relationships between science and art. The exhibition includes hands-on experiences and photo opportunities for parents and grandparents!
FOR CHILDREN 2020 features more immersive installations, interactive elements like a giant LITE BRITE, video projections, miniature environments designed by local artists, and different themed rooms.
FOR CHILDREN is generously sponsored by several foundations, businesses, and organizations in Mobile:
The Crampton Trust, established by Katharine Cochrane Crampton
Spire Energy
The Caring Foundation
ServisFirst Bank
Hand Arendall LLC
The exhibition is conceived and organized by Museum director Deborah Velders and designed by Don Bowden Architecture with additional design assistance from Star Design Graphics of Mobile.
