April 2, 2010 When the doors of the expanded Virginia Museum of Fine Arts open on Saturday, May 1, the first work of art that visitors will see is "Art History is Not Linear (VMFA)," a Ryan McGinness painting commissioned by the museum. The monumental work, which is in the entry concourse of the new James W. and Frances G. McGlothlin Wing, will serve as an introduction to the expanded museum and will measure 8 by 32 feet - 16 panels altogether, layered with 200 images based on objects in the VMFA collection. This marks the first time that McGinness has created an installation in which the imagery is site-specific and directly linked to a diverse museum collection. The project is funded by the National Endowment for the Arts Fund for American Art. "McGinness has received international acclaim for his unusual marriage of abstraction and representation," says VMFA Director Alex Nyerges. "He has drawn inspiration from more than 5,000 years of art in our collection to create a completely contemporary expression. This no painting will be an ideal welcome for visitors." McGinness, 37, is a New York artist who was born and raised in Virginia Beach. He creates paintings, sculptures and environments by using the visual language of public signs, corporate logos and contemporary iconography. He says his work evolved from his interest in design, illustration and popular culture. McGinness develops his initial hand-drawn sketches into more finished drawings and then digitally scans them. Once these computer versions are complete, he regenerates them as silk-screens to be printed onto canvases, or, in this case, 16 acrylic-on-birch-plywood panels, each 4 feet square. "McGinness favors a dense, layered approach, often piling up his images to achieve an exuberant, decorative result," says John Ravenal, VMFA's Sydney and Frances Lewis Family Curator of Modern and Contemporary Art. "The various iconographic images he uses represent the VMFA collection - from ancient to modern works - in a lively, contemporary manner. Literally at the front door, visitors will have a preview of what else awaits them as they explore the new galleries," Ravenal says. McGinness studied VMFA's collection for several years through direct observation, research, and visits to the museum's Web site. He reinterpreted the works through a process of hand drawing and computer design, producing a repertoire of new representational icons. With intuition as his guide, he then collaged the new images through the silkscreen-printing process to create a set of vibrant, densely layered paintings. McGinness says his VMFA commission marks "the first time where I'm kind of making a series - of drawings and screens and paintings, of course - based on one kind of body of work." He told curator Ravenal in a videotaped interview last year that "what's also funny about that is that I don't really like art about art, like I really don't like 'inside' art . . . and here I am making this whole body of work in this piece based on that idea. So I've kind of had to come to terms with that." (The videotaped interview with Ravenal can be seen on the Web at www.youtube.com/watch?v=MMr4YXznEGs.) In early 2006, as McGinness' work was rapidly gaining national attention, VMFA acquired his painting "He Who Pays the Piper, Names the Tune." Now, just three years later, McGinness is one of the top artists of his generation, according to Ravenal. "This newly commissioned work is a key addition to the museum's Contemporary collection, and, because it will be the first work seen inside by visitors, it will represent the fresh, new face of VMFA for years to come. "Our
commission will feature an internationally acclaimed contemporary
artist while also celebrating a Virginian. In addition, it will
offer our public a work that combines beauty, enjoyment and art
history in equal measures," Ravenal says. Watch
the Ryan McGinness video interview FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:
Suzanne Hall, 804/204-2704; or Sarah Pennington, 804/204-2701;
Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, 200 N. Boulevard, Richmond VA 23220-4007;
FAX 804/204-2707; e-mail suzanne.hall@vmfa.museum.
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CAPTION: A
VMFA art handler installs the first of 16 panels in "Art History
is Not Linear (VMFA)," a Ryan McGinness painting commissioned
by the museum. When visitors enter the museum's main entrance, it
is the first work of art they will see. The full work is 8 by 32
feet. (Photo by Travis Fullerton, © Virginia Museum of Fine
Arts)
CAPTION: Artist
Ryan McGinness (left) visited VMFA in 2009 for a tour of the McGlothlin
Wing with curator John Ravenal. (Photo by Travis Fullerton, ©
2009 Virginia Museum of Fine Arts)
CAPTION: This
"Page from the Shangri Ramayana," ca. 1690–1700,
is one of some 200 icon images Ryan McGinness used to represent
the VMFA collection in his commissioned work for the museum. The
opaque watercolor on paper is by an unknown artist (Indian, Punjab
Hills, Kulu). (Photo by Travis Fullerton; © 2009 Virginia Museum
of Fine Arts)
CAPTION: This is the iconograph made by Ryan McGinness from the Indian watercolor above. The iconograph is part of a commissioned work that will serve as an introduction to the expanded museum and will measure 8 by 32 feet. (Working drawing courtesy of Ryan McGinness)
CAPTION: VMFA's "Buffalo Mask," 1800s-1900s, is by an unknown artist (Bamum Culture, Cameroon) and is made of wood, feathers, burlap and string. An iconograph from the mask created by Contemporary artist Ryan McGinness is part of a commissioned work for the museum. (Photo © 2009 Virginia Museum of Fine Arts)
CAPTION: Ryan McGinness created this iconograph, basing it on VMFA's African "Buffalo Mask" pictured above. (Working drawing courtesy of Ryan McGinness)
CAPTION: American artist Adolph Gottlieb painted "Rolling," 1961, in oil on canvas. It is represented in a new work that VMFA has commissioned from Ryan McGinness. (Photo © 2009 Virginia Museum of Fine Arts)
CAPTION: This iconograph based on the painting by Adolph Gottlieb shown above is one of some 200 in a new work by Ryan McGinness commissioned by VMFA for its new James W. and Frances G. McGlothlin Wing opening May 1. (Working drawing courtesy of Ryan McGinness)
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