The Art Museum at Princeton University: A Selection from the Collections

The Art Museum at Princeton University: A Selection from the CollectionsAuthor(s): H. R. H.Source: Art Journal, Vol. 26, No. 2 (Winter, 1966-1967), pp. 172+174+176+178Published by: College Art AssociationStable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/775045 .

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THE ART MUSEUM AT PRINCETON UNIVERSITY

A SELECTION FROM THE COLLECTIONS

in its new surrounding was a happy and rewarding experience. As Mr. Kelleher re- minded his audience this is one of the old- est university museums. In the earlier years of the century, thanks to, the devotion of Allan Marquand and then of Frank Jewett Mather, it acquired some great works like the Hieronymus Bosch and the extraordi-

nary collection of old master drawings re-

Fig. 3. Hellenistic, 2nd century B.C. BUST OF ATHENA. On a pair of gold lids. Diameter 3 '/ in. Museum purchase 1938

The new building of the Art Museum at Princeton University was formally opened on October 29 with a brief speech to the as- sembled guests and dignitaries by P. Joseph Kelleher its director. (See Art Journal Fall, 1966 for an account of the building, its various galleries and general distribution

of the collections.) In the present issue we illustrate some of the major works of art including the recently acquired Prometheus and the Vulture by Jacques Lipchitz which

appears on our front cover. It has been a long wait and for the mu-

seum's many friends the reopened collection

Fig. 4. Egyptian, Saite period. STATUETTE OF A CAT. Silver, h. 123/8 in. Given by J. Lionberger Davis in 1952

Fig. 2. Roman, 2nd century A.D. THE RAISING OF THE HERM OF DIONYSOS. Detail of the front panel of a sarcophagus that served as model for parts of Donatello's bronze pulpit for San Lorenzo, and for other works. H. 151/e in., preserved length 59 in. Museum purchase 1949

Fig. 5. Greek, late 6th century B.C. PANATHENAIC AM- PHORA. H. 243/8 in. Bequeathed by Mrs. Allan Marquand in 1950

ART JOURNAL XXVI 2 172

Fig. 1. Greek, mid-5th century B.C. STATUETTE OF ZEUS. Bronze, h. 6 in. Museum purchase 1937



Fig. 6. Italian, Lorenzo di Credi, MADONNA WITH CHILD AND TWO ANGELS.

Diameter 331/2 in. Given by Stanley Mortimer in 1957

cently exhibited at the Metropolitan Mu- seum. Under the direction of Ernest De- Wald and in recent years P. J. Kelleher im-

portant new acquisitions have come along with satisfying regularity-particularly thanks to the great generously and discriminating taste of Otto von Kienbusch. The areas of

strength and quality are the Oriental with

splendid paintings, scrolls and screens from

China and Japan as well as ancient bronzes, Han & T'ang clay figures, a fine Kuan Yin and numerous other sculptures including some Indian pieces as well as Chinese and

Japanese. The gallery of Greek and Roman Fig. 8. Spanish, 17th century. MARTYR SAINT. Polychrome and gilt wood, h. 735/8 in. Museum purchase 1940

Fig. 7. German, late 15th century, attributed to the

Master of the Dangolsheimer Madonna. MADONNA AND

CHILD. Polychrome and gilt wood, h. 34 in. The Carl

Otto von Kienbusch Jr. Memorial Collection, 1954

Fig. 9. Dutch, Hieronymus Bosch, CHRIST BEFORE PILATE. H. 3112 in., w. 41 in. Given by Allan Marquand,

founder and first director of the Museum




Fig. 13. English, John Constable, HAMPSTEAD HEATH. H. 251/4 in., w. 30 in. Given

by Mr. and Mrs. John Randall Munn in 1955

Fig. 10. Italian, Alessandro Algardi. ST. GREGORY THE GREAT. Terracotta, h. 35 in. Museum purchase 1965

Fig. 11. French, Jean-Marc Nattier, Mile de FLESSELLES. Dated 1747, h. 533/8 in., w. 401/2 in. Given by Mrs. H. Clinch Tate in 1964

Art is enhanced by several of the splendid statues in wood and a superb polycromed Roman floor mosiacs from Antioch which bust from Germany-a reflection of Prince- came from the collective dig of a number of ton's great tradition of teaching in the medie-

years ago. In addition to a collection of vases val field. The painting galleries are hung ac- and of small bronzes, there are some good cording to schools-Italian (Primitives to 16th marble sculptures-particularly a head of Sept- century), French (19th century), American mus Severus and a sarcophagus. The me- (18th to 19th century). For the opening ex- dieval gallery is handsomely installed and hibition a number of pieces were borrowed of excellent quality-several fine Gothic from Princeton alumni and other friends of

Fig. 12. American, John Singleton Copley, ELKANAH WATSON. 1783, h. 583/4 in., w. 475/8 in. Given by the Estate of Josephine Thomson Swann in 1964




the museum-including some pre-Columbian and African sculptures and objects, and a few

modern paintings: a pleasant Renoir from . Robert Oppenheimer and a fine Beckman t

'

from the Seeger collection. ' The building follows a trend in museum

architecture-that may be described as compe- titive with the contents (an outstanding ex-

ample of this trend the Guggenheim Mu-

seum and an outstanding exception to it is

Fig. 16. Chinese, Shang dynasty, late An-yang period, im a DOUBLE-OWL YU. Bronze, h. 87 in. with handle. Given

by the Friends of the Museum (part of the acquisition, through various donors, of the Carter Collection of early :,..iiiii?

:.

Chinese bronzes) .

: ......... ... . ....... i: . .......ii i

Fig. 17. Japanese, Chin-kai, BODHISATTVA MANJUSRI. Dated 1202. Ink on paper, h. 19 in., w. 111/2 in. Given

by Mr. and Mrs. Wen Fang

gallery at Princeton the vertical bands of ano-

dyzed aluminum make an unpleasant back- wall to the dozen works of sculpture dis-

played there. The incandescent spotlights on the ceilings of every gallery look like festoons of black cans and are an irritant that can be ignored only with effort. Nor do

Fig. 14. Italian, Guercino, THE MARTYRDOM OF St. the display cases do justice to the objects BARTHOLOMEW. Pen and brown wash, h. 8 in., w. 10 within them-some, such as the Pre-Colum-

.Bequest oaf Dan Fellows Platt, 1948 bian and the groups of Greek vases are

overcrowded, others like those holding small .....~'~ ">:?~ ""--"panel paintings and wooden reliefs in the

medieval room are poorly lighted. But nev- ertheless this is the handsomest room in the

building thanks to the splendid objects, the architectural fragments: niches, windows, col- umns, and staircase, and to the discreet re-

painting in white of the black lighting fix- tures.

We did not have occasion to visit the stor-

age rooms, but one hopes they are adequate, as indeed the galleries for temportary exhibi-

t ls.~~~tions seem to be. In a university museum it

is good to find a library, a print and draw- ::' Bequest afDan Feling study room and an area for secondary

objects-which presumably can be used for seminars. In summary, it may be said that

the new building is an enormous improve- ment over the old one. With time and encour-

agement the staff will surely be able to cor- Fig. 15. Dutch, Rembrandt van Rijn, ST. FRANCIS PRAY- rect the few minor shotcomings that impair ING BENEATH A TREE. Etching, B. 107, H. 292, 2nd this otherwise excellent small museum. state. H. 71/2 in., w. 9314 in. Given by James A. Lock- HR.H. nar _ r_ in, H.R.H


hart, Jr. in IY5Y



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The Art Museum at Princeton University: A Selection from the Collections