The David and Alfred Smart Museum of Art is an art museum located on the campus of the University of Chicago in Chicago, Illinois. The permanent collection has over 15,000 objects. Admission is free and open to the general public. The Smart Museum and the adjacent

Cochrane-Woods Art Center The University of Chicago (UChicago, Chicago, U of C, or UChi) is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois. Its main campus is located in Chicago's Hyde Park neighborhood. The University of Chicago is consistently ranked among the be ...

were designed by the architect Edward Larrabee Barnes.

History

The University of Chicago began seriously planning to build an art museum and establish a permanent art collection in the 1960s (the Renaissance Society was founded in 1915, but does not collect art). The founding gift came from the Smart Family Foundation in 1967 and construction began in 1971. The museum was named after

David A. Smart David Archibald Smart (October 4, 1892 – October 15, 1952), co-founder of '' Esquire'' magazine, and, with his brother Alfred Smart (1895–1951), co-publisher of '' Esquire'' and ''Coronet''. Biography He was born in 1892 to Mary Aronson (born ...

(1892–1952) and his brother Alfred Smart (1895–1951), the Chicago-based publishers of ''

Esquire Esquire (, ; abbreviated Esq.) is usually a courtesy title. In the United Kingdom, ''esquire'' historically was a title of respect accorded to men of higher social rank, particularly members of the landed gentry above the rank of gentlema ...

'', '' Coronet'', and, with Teriade, ''

Verve Verve may refer to: Music * The Verve, an English rock band * ''The Verve E.P.'', a 1992 EP by The Verve * ''Verve'' (R. Stevie Moore album) * Verve Records, an American jazz record label Businesses * Verve Coffee Roasters, an American coffee ho ...

'', as well as the founders of Coronet Films. David Smart was an art collector and owned paintings by

Picasso Pablo Ruiz Picasso (25 October 1881 – 8 April 1973) was a Spanish painter, sculptor, printmaker, ceramicist and Scenic design, theatre designer who spent most of his adult life in France. One of the most influential artists of the 20th ce ...

, Renoir, and Chagall. However, the founding gift was of Esquire stock and did not include any works from his personal collection. Instead, the collection was initially assembled from a variety of sources, including works of art in various university departments and gifts from foundations and individual donors. The Smart's founding director was the art historian and professor Edward A. Maser and the museum was originally associated with the university's department of art history. In 1983, the museum became a separate unit of the university devoted to serving the entire community, including educational outreach activities in local public schools. In its early years it was known as the Smart Gallery but was renamed the David and Alfred Smart Museum of Art in 1990 to reflect the expanded mission.

Collection

There are over 15,000 objects in the Smart Museum's collection, which are often used in exhibitions and for courses taught at the University of Chicago.

Modern art

The museum's modern art collection features paintings by

Paul Delvaux Paul Delvaux (; 23 September 1897 – 20 July 1994) was a Belgian painter noted for his dream-like scenes of women, classical architecture, trains and train stations, and skeletons, often in combination. He is often considered a surrealist, alt ...

, Arthur Dove, Childe Hassam, Walt Kuhn, Norman Lewis, Roberto Matta, Joan Mitchell, Jean Metzinger, Diego Rivera, and Mark Rothko, while the Joel Starrels, Jr. Memorial Collection includes sculpture by

Jean Arp Hans Peter Wilhelm Arp (16 September 1886 – 7 June 1966), better known as Jean Arp in English, was a German-French sculptor, painter, and poet. He was known as a Dadaist and an abstract artist. Early life Arp was born in Straßburg (now Stras ...

Edgar Degas Edgar Degas (, ; born Hilaire-Germain-Edgar De Gas, ; 19 July 183427 September 1917) was a French Impressionist artist famous for his pastel drawings and oil paintings. Degas also produced bronze sculptures, prints and drawings. Degas is es ...

Henry Moore Henry Spencer Moore (30 July 1898 – 31 August 1986) was an English artist. He is best known for his semi- abstract monumental bronze sculptures which are located around the world as public works of art. As well as sculpture, Moore produced ...

, Jacques Lipchitz, and

Auguste Rodin François Auguste René Rodin (12 November 184017 November 1917) was a French sculptor, generally considered the founder of modern sculpture. He was schooled traditionally and took a craftsman-like approach to his work. Rodin possessed a uniqu ...

. One of the most notable items in the collection is the original dining room furniture designed by Frank Lloyd Wright for the Robie House, which is more or less on permanent display. Most of the original Robie House furniture as well as a few window casings were transferred into the museum collection before it opened in 1974. At that time, the Robie House was still being used as offices for the University of Chicago.

Asian art

The Asian collection includes literati scroll paintings from China, Japan, and Korea, Buddhist sculpture, ceramics, and '' ukiyo-e'' prints. The museum also has a large contemporary Chinese photography collection.

European art

Cecco Bravo Angelica y Ruggiero 1660 David and Alfred Smart Museum of Art

The European collection focuses on art created before 1900. Twenty-one works from the Kress Collection were donated to the Smart when it opened, including paintings by

Cecco Bravo Cecco Bravo (15 November 1601 – 1661) was an Italian painter of the Florentine Baroque school. His true name is Francesco Montelatici. Biography He trained with Giovanni Biliverti and was also close to Sigismondo Coccapani. In the early 16 ...

, Luca Cambiaso, Donato Creti,

Pordenone Pordenone (; Venetian and fur, Pordenon) is the main ''comune'' of Pordenone province of northeast Italy in the Friuli Venezia Giulia region. The name comes from Latin ''Portus Naonis'', meaning 'port on the Noncello (Latin ''Naon'') River'. ...

Girolamo da Santa Croce Girolamo da Santacroce (c. 1480/85 – c. 1556) was a 16th-century Italian painter of the Renaissance period, active mainly in Venice and the Venetian mainland.Jan Steen, and

Paolo Veronese Paolo Caliari (152819 April 1588), known as Paolo Veronese ( , also , ), was an Italian Renaissance painter based in Venice, known for extremely large history paintings of religion and mythology, such as ''The Wedding at Cana'' (1563) and ''The ...

. Other notable works include Goya's ''

The Disasters of War ''The Disasters of War'' ( es, Los desastres de la guerra) is a series of 8280 prints in the first published edition (1863), for which the last two plates were not available. See "Execution". prints created between 1810 and 1820 by the Spanis ...

'' and paintings by Gustave Caillebotte, Louis Dupré, and Jean-Baptiste Regnault.

Contemporary art

The contemporary collection includes works by John Chamberlain,

Antony Gormley Sir Antony Mark David Gormley (born 30 August 1950) is a British sculptor. His works include the ''Angel of the North'', a public sculpture in Gateshead in the north of England, commissioned in 1994 and erected in February 1998; ''Another Pla ...

, Robert Irwin, Sylvia Sleigh, Andy Warhol, and

Claire Zeisler Claire Zeisler (April 18, 1903 – September 30, 1991) was an American fiber artist who expanded the expressive qualities of knotted and braided threads, pioneering large-scale freestanding sculptures in this medium. Throughout her career Zeisler ...

. The museum has a notable collection of Chicago artists, with concentrations of works by the Chicago Imagists, the Monster Roster, and self-taught artists like Henry Darger and

Lee Godie Lee Godie (born Jamot Emily Godee; September 1, 1908 – March 2, 1994) was an American self-taught artist who was active in Chicago during the late 1960s until around the early 1990s. She was a prolific artist who was known for her paintings and ...

. The collection also includes more recent works by Dawoud Bey,

Nick Cave Nicholas Edward Cave (born 22 September 1957) is an Australian singer, songwriter, poet, lyricist, author, screenwriter, composer and occasional actor. Known for his baritone voice and for fronting the rock band Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, Ca ...

, Theaster Gates, Richard Hunt, Laura Letinsky, Kerry James Marshall,

Dan Peterman Dan Peterman is an internationally known artist who is recognized for his work with ecologically themed installation art. Additionally, he is employed as associate professor of art at the University of Illinois, Chicago. Work Peterman's work is an ...

, and

Tony Tasset Tony Tasset is an American multimedia artist. His works consists mainly of video, bronze, wax, sculpture, photography, film, and taxidermy. He has had exhibitions in Dallas, Chicago, Milwaukee, New York, Los Angeles, Germany, Canada, Portugal, ...

. The museum maintains an archive of artwork, sketchbooks, letters, tools, original woodblocks, and other personal material related to the life and work of

H. C. Westermann H. C. Westermann (Horace Clifford "Cliff" Westermann) (December 11, 1922 – November 3, 1981) was an American sculptor and printmaker. His sculptures frequently incorporated traditional carpentry and marquetry techniques. From the late 1950 ...

. Much of it was given to the Smart by Westermann's wife, Joanna Beall Westermann, and sister, Martha Renner.

Architecture

The Smart Museum and the adjacent

, which houses classrooms and offices for the University of Chicago's department of art history, were designed by the Chicago-born architect Edward Larrabee Barnes. The unadorned modernist buildings are linked by covered walkways and face a common outdoor sculpture garden. The buildings are clad in Indiana limestone. They "seem simple but the design is sophisticated" and relate to the gothic architecture and quadrangles found elsewhere on campus. The lobby of the museum features a vaulted ceiling with a north facing clerestory window. A renovation in 1999 reconfigured and expanded the public gallery spaces within the building's existing footprint. At the 1971 groundbreaking for the building, Edward H. Levi, the president of the University of Chicago, noted that the design was meant "to display rather than to distract from the works exhibited, and to enhance communication among the scholars" inside. Levi also noted that the project was originally intended to be much larger. Barnes had designed never-realized plans for music, theater, and library facilities extending to the north.

Operations

The Smart Museum is wholly part of the University of Chicago. Its exhibitions and operations are funded through a variety of university, foundation, and individual contributions. It has a board of governors, a membership program, and faculty and student advisory committees. The museum is open to the public. There is no general admission fee or special charge for exhibitions. It is accredited by the American Alliance of Museums.

References

External links

Smart Museum websiteHistory of the Smart video
{{authority control Art museums and galleries in Chicago Hyde Park, Chicago University of Chicago University museums in Illinois Art museums established in 1974 1974 establishments in Illinois Art museums and galleries in Illinois Institutions accredited by the American Alliance of Museums Edward Larrabee Barnes buildings