If you missed it in its seven-year location at 601 Fifth Avenue, make a note to visit the relocating Dahesh Museum of Art, re-opening in the former IBM Gallery of Science and Art at 580 Madison Avenue. The Dahesh Museum is a treasure house of 19th-century European Academic Art. After being accepted and completing extensive and rigorous studies at such schools as the Ecole des Beaux Arts in Paris and The Royal Academy of Art in London, students emerged ready to work as professionals, enter competitions and exhibit in salons. These highly skilled painters were commissioned to work on religious buildings, public adornments, and private portraiture. The middle class was largely illiterate at this time and the works of these artists were educational as well as entertaining. It is precisely this fact — academic art is realistic art — which makes it approachable for children. There is always a story within the work that children can put themselves into. After extensive renovations by the Boston firm of Ann Beha Architects, the Dahesh is slated to open in the spring of 2003. In this fresh, contemporary setting, the museum will have abundant and elegant exhibition space, an auditorium, and education program rooms. Family programs will include storytelling, sketching, music and puppetry. The street level lobby and gift shop will lead visitors to the galleries, as well as a café on the mezzanine overlooking the bamboo atrium. Some kids inevitably groan at the mention of going to an art museum but most enjoy the experience once they have arrived. It doesn’t hurt that Niketown is around the corner and one can make an eclectic afternoon of it.
Also new on the museum scene will be the Rubin Museum of Art. This museum and cultural center broke ground in October and plans on a spring 2004 opening. It is located on the site of the former Barney’s department store at 17th Street and Seventh Avenue. A five-story tower will be home to one of the largest collections of Tibetan and Himalayan art. Donald and Shelley Rubin were attracted to the unusual beauty of Himalayan art over 25 years ago. Their collection is now one of the world’s largest. The Dalai Lama himself has acknowledged them for their “generous and insightful efforts to preserve sacred art works.” The Rubin Museum was created out of a desire not only to share these works with the public, but also to promote preservation and scholarship in the field. The building is being designed by Richard Blinder of the New York architectural firm of Beyer, Blinder, and Belle. It will include 20,000 square feet of gallery space as well as a state-of-the-art auditorium. A spiral staircase will allow visitors to metaphorically traverse the levels of meaning in Himalayan art. The museum plans to offer weekend art discovery and activity programs for families. Already in place are single-visit outreach sessions introducing children to Himalayan culture. These programs include an ornate Tibetan Trunk especially created for the museum by Tibetan schoolchildren. RMA is a key participant in the Himalayan Art Project, an online database featuring thousands of images of art from the Himalayan region. Educational activities for kids can be found at the HAP website: www.himalayanart.org/stories/e.html.
Info: • Dahesh Museum of Art 580 Madison Avenue, between 56th and 57th Streets (212) 759-0606 www.daheshmuseum.org
• The Rubin Museum of Art 138-154 West 17th Street, at seventh Avenue www.rma.org
