May @ the Utah Museum of Fine Art (SLC)

Media contact:
Shelbey Peterson, 801-585-1306
Shelbey.Peterson@umfa.utah.edu

Utah Museum of Fine Arts
May 2011

SPECIAL EXHIBITIONS:

salt 3: Cyprien Gaillard
May 26 – August 21, 2011
salt 3: Cyprien Gaillard is the third in the UMFA's new series of exhibitions that showcase the work of contemporary artists from around the world. The films and installations of French artist Cyprien Gaillard (b. 1980) examine contemporary landscapes and architectural ruins of the recent past, engaging with artistic traditions of Romanticism and Land Art. His work will be featured in this year’s Venice Biennale.

SPECIAL EVENTS:

Highlights of the Collection Tour
First Wednesday of the month at 6:30 pm and all Saturdays and Sundays at 1:30 pm • Free with paid admission
Explore the UMFA galleries through a thirty-minute tour with a trained docent. No pre-registration necessary.

Mother’s Day Sale
Wednesday, May 4 • 4-7:30 pm • FREE
Find one-of-a-kind gifts for one-of-a-kind mothers at the UMFA’s annual Mother’s Day Sale! Join us as we invite some of our favorite local consignment artists for a fun-filled shopping day. Browse through art-inspired jewelry, pottery, cards, and hand-made gifts that mom will love, and enjoy free gift-wrapping!

"Robert Smithson and the Spiral Jetty: the Center and the Circumference"
Wednesday, May 11 • 7 pm • FREE
Don't miss this lecture by Hikmet Sidney Loe, author of the forthcoming book The Spiral Jetty and Rozel Point: Rotating Through Time and Place (Utah State University Press, 2012).

Third Saturday for Families: Backpacks
Saturday, May 21 • 1-4 pm • FREE
Use the UMFA’s current exhibition, Don Olsen: Abstracts from Nature, to inspire the creation of your own backpack. Olsen made abstract expressionist works using volume, color, and shapes taken from nature. What kinds of colors and shapes will your backpack boast? Third Saturdays are funded in part by the Salt Lake County Zoo, Arts, and Parks fund.

ONGOING EXHIBITIONS

Collecting Knowledge: Renaissance Cabinets of Curiosity
On view through May 15, 2011
Collecting Knowledge: Renaissance Cabinets of Curiosity explores items that were typically found in cabinets of curiosity in sixteenth and seventeenth century Europe, including prints, books, scientific instruments, and objects obtained through travel. Organized by four graduate students from the University of Utah Department of Art and Art History, this exhibition examines the people who created cabinets of curiosity, their strategies for classifying and grouping items, and how they used this knowledge to make sense of their world.

Helen Levitt Photographs
On view through June 12, 2011
One of the great photographers of the twentieth century, Helen Levitt took the activity of city streets as her primary subject, paying special attention to the children for whom the street served as a playground. This presentation of photographs drawn from the UMFA's collection includes representative works from the late 1930s and early 1940s–when Levitt emerged as a key member of the New York School photographers–as well as later photographs from her long and accomplished career. Together these works highlight Levitt's astonishing capacity for capturing lyrical and mysterious moments in the everyday life of the city. This exhibition is presented with support from Albion Financial Group.

The Smithson Effect
On view through July 3, 2011
Experience The Smithson Effect, the most ambitious contemporary art exhibition ever organized by the Utah Museum of Fine Arts. Through sculpture, video, photography, installation, and sound art, this exhibition will introduce visitors to twenty-three of the world’s leading contemporary artists whose work is influenced by the legacy of artist Robert Smithson (1938-1973). Best known for his pioneering earthworks–the most famous is Spiral Jetty in Utah’s Great Salt Lake–Smithson’s significance extends beyond his remarkable interventions into the landscape. The Smithson Effect brings together work by an array of international artists whose practices have been critically shaped by Smithson’s art and ideas. This exhibition is generously presented by the George S. and Dolores Doré Eccles Foundation.

Don Olsen: Abstracts from Nature
On view through August 15, 2011
This special exhibition commemorates the 100th birthday of abstract Utah artist Don Olsen (1910-1983). A student of Hans Hoffmann, Olsen created abstract expressionist works using volumes, colors, and shapes derived from nature. Through large-scale paintings spanning more than forty years, Don Olsen: Abstracts from Nature will highlight prominent works from the artist’s oeuvre.


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Utah Museum of Fine Arts
University of Utah
Marcia & John Price Museum Building
410 Campus Center Dr
Salt Lake City, Utah 84112
(801) 581-7332

Museum Hours
Tuesday–Friday: 10 am–5 pm
Wednesday: 10 am–8 pm
Saturday and Sunday: 11 am–5 pm
Closed Mondays and holidays
Visit our website: umfa.utah.edu

General Admission
UMFA Members FREE
Adults $7
Youth (ages 6-18) $5
Seniors & Students $5
Children under 6 FREE
U students, staff & faculty FREE
Higher education students in Utah FREE
Thanks to the Salt Lake County Zoo, Arts, and Parks fund, the UMFA opens its doors for FREE on the first Wednesday and third Saturday of the month.