Ruth Chandler Williamson Gallery | Essays on Artists & Acquisitions

April 2, 2019

Highlights of the Collection: Peking Opera Robe

The amazing colors, juxtapositions of images, and metamorphic potential of this costume continue to provide a window into the splendor of Beijing opera today.

January 6, 2019

Kingfisher Hair Ornament

Crafted in the 19th century and consisting of copper inlaid with kingfisher feathers, this decorative hairpin reveals much about the society in which it was produced.

November 14, 2018

Photo by Susan Einstein Douglas Humble Untitled (Broken Cups and Saucers), n.d. Porcelain 4 5/8 x 8 1/2 x 6 1/2 in. Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Fred Marer Scripps College, Claremont, CA In a recent interview, Douglas Humble described his artistic processes as freeform and spontaneous: “I like to work with the material and […]

August 1, 2018

The Highlights of the Collection: Jacques Lowe

With “Walter Kerr during first-night intermission,” Jacques Lowe captures at once Kerr’s unpretentiousness and authoritativeness at the height of his influence in the mid-fifties.

The Highlights of the Collection: Noh Theater Robe

The robe is decorated with wisteria flowers and fans with maple leaves, motifs dating back to the Heian period (c. 794–1185 CE) and associated with feminine refinement, elegance, and sensitivity.

May 2, 2018

The Floating World of Video Games

Ukiyo-e and video games both went through a similar artistic evolution. Like ukiyo-e, video games have grown in cultural value.

February 21, 2018

Artists in the Collection: John T. Scott

A sort of jack-of-all-trades, the breadth of John T. Scott’s artistic mastery includes drawing, painting, printmaking, and sculpture; his subject matter ranges from self-portraiture to work with important political and social messages.

January 8, 2018

Highlights of the Collection: Letter to the World

Photographer Barbara Morgan translates the brilliance of Martha Graham into a black-and-white image.

October 2, 2017

Ilse Bing, the “Queen of Leica”

Ilse Bing’s photograph, Paris, Eiffel Tower with Branches, was taken in 1933 during the midst of her own self-discovery. Bing was born into an upper middle class Jewish family in Germany in 1899. Her family encouraged her academic education as well as her development in the arts and music. She enrolled in University of Frankfurt […]