Collectors’ Circle members added this image of Marilyn Monroe by Eve Arnold to the Scripps collection.
Ceramics, prints, photography, a Japanese theater robe, a one-of-a-kind artist book: A veritable treasury of works awaited the members of the Scripps Collectors’ Circle (SCC) at their recent biannual gathering. Members had arrived to choose from these works for inclusion in the Scripps collection, which is used for teaching purposes both inside and outside of the classroom. The College has never had an art acquisition fund, and no tuition monies have ever been spent on art. While understandable, this practice has unfortunately left incomplete areas in the collections, hindering their function as a complement to the curriculum. Thus, the SCC was formed, with the mission of enhancing the collection. The event was underwritten through the generosity of Ann and Jim Ach, Joanne and Dennis Keith, and Suzanne and Paul Muchnic, thereby ensuring that all membership fees were used exclusively toward the purchase of works.
In keeping with the intention of bringing the Scripps sense of style to every element of the evening, SCC event organizers Mary Weis, Eric Haskell and Mary MacNaughton arranged to have some of the unique settings at Scripps opened to the group, including the beautiful terrace of the Tiernan Field House. Members enjoyed tea and a leisurely viewing of the works at Vita Nova before gathering for discussions on the artwork. Mary MacNaughton introduced a group of presenters, all Scripps students. (While several were majoring in Art History, Art Conservation, or Studio Art, the fields of Biochemistry and Philosophy were also represented.) Each student fought for “her” work of art, exerting the power of persuasion to convince the SCC to vote to add the piece to the Scripps collection. In addition, two art conservation students, Abby Rodriguez and Mikayla Raymond, offered a description of the work they had completed with Conservator Donna Williams on the restoration of the Romeo and Juliet relief at Williams’s studio. Rodriguez and Raymond requested funds to allow the now finished work to be transported back home to Scripps.
The evening ended on a high note: Not only were the conservation projects for the Shakespeare reliefs given support (ensuring the speedy return to Scripps of Romeo and Juliet), but every piece submitted for inclusion was purchased, enriching the Scripps collection with an abundance of works that will greatly enhance the collection, and the education of our students.
The following works were purchased through the generosity of the Scripps Collectors’ Circle:
ASIAN TEXTILES
JAPANESE NOH THEATER ROBE, Japanese, early 20th c. (purchased with the equal support of the Aoki Endowment for the Japanese Arts)
BOOK ART
Zero: A Cypher Of Infinity by Suzanne Moore
CERAMICS
RICHARD SHAW, Rembrandt Pastels Teapot, 2006, Porcelain with underglaze transfers and overglaze decals, 5 x 8 x 2.5 inches.
DAVID GLUCK YUNOI COLLECTION – Ten cups:
Akio Takamori – USA Bennett Bean – USA
Robert Brady – USA Claudi Casanovas – Spain
Jiri Duchek – Czech Republic Ewan Henderson, UK
Gabriele Koch – Germany Ryoji Koie – Japan
Eva Kwong – USA Daniel Rhodes – USA
CONSERVATION
JOHN GREGORY, Shakespeare Relief, The Tragedie of Romeo and Juliet, c. 1932, plaster of paris
(Reinforcement of back, fabrication of base, reinstallation)
PHOTOGRAPHY
EVE ARNOLD, Marilyn Monroe, on set, “The Misfits,” Nevada, 1960, gelatin silver print.
MICHAEL KENNA, Coustou’s Horses , Study 2, Marly, France, 1995, edition 9 of 45, gelatin silver print, 8 x 8 inches.
MICHAEL KENNA, Park Perspective, Marly, France, 1996, edition 16 of 45, gelatin silver print, 8 x 8 inches.
TATIANA PARCERO, Cartografia Interior # 43, 1996, lambda print and acetate, Sight: 42 7/8 x 29 7/8 in.
(Framed: 44 1/2 x 31 1/2 x 1 1/2 in.), © 1996 Tatiana Parcero
WORKS ON PAPER
SAMELLA LEWIS, House of Shango, 1992, lithograph edition of 60, 24 x 18 inches
ALISON SAAR , Snake Man, 1994, woodcut and lithograph on paper, 33 1/2 x 42 1/2 in.
We are grateful to gifts from Anonymous, Ann and Jim Ach, and Michael Dewberry to provide matching funds to help acquire works.
AND FROM THE SISTERS OF BROWNING, IN HONOR OF MARY WEIS:
GEORGE HURRELL, Marlene Dietrich, 1938, vintage gelatin silver print, 10 1/4 x 13 1/2 inches.
BARBARA MORGAN, Martha Graham, Letter to the World, 1940, printed circa 1980, gelatin silver print, 13 1/2 x 15 1/2 inches on 16 x 20 sheet, ©Barbara Morgan, The Barbara Morgan Archive
Image: Eve Arnold, Marilyn Monroe, on set, “The Misfits,” Nevada, 1960, gelatin silver print.
The Gallery thanks student presenters: Taylor Carr-Howard, Moor Chen, Mary Jane Coppock, Eliza Lewis, Kaela Nurmi, Mikayla Raymond, Abby Rodriguez, Jasmine Umeno, and Maggie Wu.