Here’s a hint: This weekend is the 100^th anniversary of the first Armory Show. You may have heard the Armory story on NPR recently. Still need more help?

You know I’m always saying that art transforms lives. The 1913 Armory Show was one of those transformational moments for art in the United States, but also for the Columbus Museum of Art. This is the art event that changed Ferdinand Howald’s life—turning him into a collector and an art patron. Howald’s collection went on to form the heart of our internationally renowned Modernist Collection. It literally transformed our destiny.

Now about those two paintings above. Both were in the 1913 Armory Show! The one on the right is Middleton Manigault’s Clown which we acquired in 1999. Manigault was the first artist that Howald purchased. The painting on the left is George Bellows’s Mrs. Albert M. Miller—for long-time Columbusites, she was Dixie Miller’s mother-in-law. Bellows entered the portrait in the Armory Show only two months after painting it. We acquired it in 1974 from the Arnold family.

And that’s the rest of the story.

- Nannette

The Institute of Museum and Library Services today announced Columbus Museum of Art, Cuyahoga County Public Library of Cuyahoga County, and The Public Library of Cincinnati and Hamilton County of Cincinnati as National Medal for Museum and Library Service finalists. The National Medal is the nation’s highest honor conferred on museums and libraries for service to the community and celebrates institutions that make a difference for individuals, families, and communities.

Medal finalists are selected from nationwide nominations of institutions that demonstrate innovative approaches to public service, exceeding the expected levels of community outreach. This year’s finalists exemplify the nation’s great diversity of libraries and museums and include an aquarium and marine science center foundation, conservatory and botanical gardens, county library systems, individual libraries, children’s museums, an art museum, science centers, and more, hailing from across the country.

“Museums and libraries serve as community gathering places and centers for lifelong learning, and we are very proud to announce Columbus Museum of Art, Cuyahoga County Public Library of Cuyahoga County, and The Public Library of Cincinnati and Hamilton County of Cincinnati as finalists for the 2013 National Medal,” said Susan Hildreth, director of the Institute of Museum and Library Services. “This year’s finalists exemplify the many wonderful ways museums and libraries can respond to the needs and wants of the communities they serve.”

“Several years ago, we decided we wanted CMA to be a resource for our community and embraced the idea of becoming a visitor-centered Museum that fostered creativity and promised great experiences with great art for everyone,” said CMA Executive Director Nannette V. Maciejunes. “We’re incredibly honored to be recognized as finalist for this prestigious award and excited that the work we’ve done is resonating with our community.”

Finalists are chosen because of their significant and exceptional contributions to their communities. IMLS is encouraging community members who have visited Columbus Museum of Art to share their story on the IMLS Facebook page, www.facebook.com/USIMLS.  National Medal for Museum and Library Service winners will be announced this spring.

To learn more about the 2013 National Medal finalists, visit www.imls.gov/medals.

The holidays are a time for giving. Here at the Museum, we are committed to giving back to our community. Here’s a year-end wrap-up of 12 gifts the Columbus Museum of Art gave to Central Ohio this year:

12. Memories. CMA gave every single Columbus City Schools 5^th grader an art experience to remember — free of charge.

11. Great art. Our Radical Camera exhibition was hailed as “stirring” and “one of the top ten photography shows” of the year.

10. Community treasures. Most of us will never own a Monet but as a community, we own seven.

9. Civic pride. Our Marvelous Menagerie exhibition showcased an ancient mosaic that toured The Met in New York City, The Field in Chicago, The Louvre in Paris and the Columbus Museum of Art in Ohio.

8. Joy. Our Sparking Imaginations tour lets people with dementia and their caregivers relax, refresh, and enjoy time together.

7. A moment of beauty.  Our new acquisition Endeavor, by glass master Lino Tagliapietra, is quickly becoming a community favorite.

6. The Wonder Room. Columbus Parent called it one of the 200 Reasons Columbus is a great place to raise a family.

5. Better doctors. Our Art of Analysis program is teaching tomorrow’s pediatricians and cardiologists how to listen and look closer.

4. An artistic outlet. Programs and events at the Museum tap into the creativity that lives in all of us.

3. Unique experiences. Our Summer Art Workshops connected kids in Ohio with kids China via Skype.

2. Free Sundays. Enough said.

1. A promise of more to come. In 2013, we bring you our hotly anticipated Rothko show.

If you enjoyed any of these gifts, give a year-end gift of $1.20, $12, $120, or whatever you can to CMA to help us continue to make a difference.

Wishing everyone a happy, healthy, and inspiring new year.

Nannette Maciejunes
Columbus Museum of Art Executive Director

First, I need to confess that I am a royal watcher. I remember being in college in 1973 and getting up early with my friends to watch Princess Anne’s wedding and several years later watching as Prince Charles married Lady Diana Spencer. Sadly, I also remember Diana’s funeral as I was in London for a courier trip immediately following her death. I stood on the street and watched the procession and then went to Hyde Park where thousands of people gathered to watch the funeral televised on these huge soccer screens.

Today, I woke up early to enjoy a much happier occasion, the wedding of Prince William and Catherine Middleton. Her gown was stunning, the ceremony was gorgeous, however, I was horrified to hear an American commentator repeatedly refer to Westminster Abbey as having been built in the “11th century.” So, in honor of Catherine Middleton,  Her Royal Highness The Duchess of Cambridge, (who I recently discovered is a fellow art historian), I would like to clarify that,according to Westminster’s own website, “The present church, begun by Henry III in 1245, is one of the most important Gothic buildings in the country, with the medieval shrine of an Anglo-Saxon saint still at its heart.”

While Gothic architecture originated in France (think Notre Dame), those beautiful, high, pointed,  arches throughout Westminster clearly mark it as one of the great Gothic buildings of England.  Had it been constructed in the 11th century, the arches would have been rounded, characteristic of the  Romanesque (or Norman) architecture of the time.

History lesson aside, the wedding was beautiful and I join with the rest of the world in wishing the couple much happiness.

Nannette Maciejunes
CMA Executive Director

The event was incredibly energizing. Throughout the event, we were asked to examine how one individual reaching out to another individual actually creates a ripple effect that impacts and changes the lives of many people. And it’s true, each action we take toward another individual has the capacity to affect everyone in their lives.

I was able to talk to many women at the event and brainstorm ideas about how the Museum and our new Center for Creativity might be one of those catalyst for change in the lives of the people we touch. I’m excited about the many possibilities.

Art Speaks. Join the Conversation.
Nannette Maciejunes
CMA Executive Director

The Siemers are longtime supporters of the Museum. Barbara serves on our Board of Trustees and generously gives of her time and talents to support the Museum and our mission.

We are very proud of all of our Trustees and the work they do not only at the Museum, but throughout our community. Congratulations to Barbara, Al and the Siemer family.

Art Speaks. Join the Conversation.
Nannette Maciejunes
CMA Executive Director

Salvation Army Need Knows No Season Event

The Museum has developed a rhythm over the years. Every three to four months, we have a new exhibition opening and celebrate with a special preview for our members. These events have become so much a part of our lives here at CMA that, with the recent renovations, their absence impacted me more than I realized.

I’m happy to say that last night, we got back into the swing of things. Although we’re still a few months away from unveiling our renovated Elizabeth M. and Richard M. Ross building, we opened our The Bible Illuminated: R. Crumb’s Book of Genesis last night.  It’s a fantastic show, and I hope you’ll all see it while it’s here as we are the last U.S. venue for the exhibition. It was great to share the exhibition, and the special performance of our Complaints Choir, with the 500 members who joined us.

Art Speaks. Join the Conversation.
Nannette Maciejunes
CMA Executive Director

One hundred years ago, the United States was one of seventeen countries invited to present exhibitions at the grand opening of the Museo Nacional de Belles Artes in Santiago, Chile. When the museum announced that the same countries who participated in the inaugural exhibition would be invited to present the centennial exhibition, the U.S. Embassy in Santiago contacted Dr. Wayne P. Lawson, then executive director of the Ohio Arts Council (OAC) and now director emeritus of OAC and board member of the Columbus Museum of Art (CMA). The Embassy asked Dr. Lawson to produce an exhibition to represent the U.S. at the centennial. In addition, the Embassy gave OAC one of the largest grants it has ever awarded to support the creation and installation of the exhibition.

“In the wake of globalization, art is the great engine of mutual understanding that connects the world and empowers societies,” said Dr.Lawson. “Through art, through this exhibition, people will learn a great deal about us as a society and the changes that have taken place over the last 100 years.  To understand each other’s culture is to respect each other.”

Dr. Lawson invited myself  and James M. Keny, co-owner of Keny Galleries, to curate the show.

I cannot tell you how proud I am to have the Columbus Museum of Art represent the United States in this wonderful exhibition

Jim and I  created 100 Years of North American Art to highlight North American artists’ responses to the myriad social challenges and changes particular to their periods of the century. Over the course of the twentieth century, artists in the United States experienced major social issues and changes, encompassing, among others, labor, immigration, and human rights.

And, of course, I took pictures while we were there to share the moment with all of you.

Art Speaks. Join the Conversation.
Nannette Maciejunes, CMA Executive Director

Exhibition Banners at the Museo Nacional de Belles Artes

Inside the Museo Nacional de Belles Artes

Another interior picture of the Museo

Our exhibition at the Museo Nacional de Belles Artes

I would also like to congratulate the other recipients including: The Arts Castle of Delaware, CAPA, Carpe Diem String Quartet, CATCO-Phoenix, Columbus Gay Men’s Chorus, the King Arts Complex, the Lancaster Festival, Mad River Theater Works, the Midland Theatre, Shadowbox, the Westerville Symphony, and Zanesville Museum of Art.

And kudos to PNC for a wonderful event and for investing in our cultural community.

Art Speaks. Join the Conversation.
Nannette Maciejunes
CMA Executive Director

City Councilmember Priscilla Tyson, CMA Executive Director Nannette Maciejunes and City Councilmember Eileen Paley

Joy Gonsiorowski, City Councilmember Priscilla Tyson, Michael Gonsiorowski, PNC central Ohio regional president

Museums fall into roughly two very broad categories. Those that are in destination cities and draw their audience from national and international tourism, such as the Metropolitan Museum of Art, and those whose primary audience is their local community. The second group may also  draw from a regional audience.

This group, to which both CMA and Brooklyn belong, is challenged with finding ways to excite and motivate their audience in hopes that they will return. For them, the experience they provide their visitors is just as important as their collection.

Brooklyn is in the unenviable position, as Graham W. J. Beal of the Detroit Institute for the Art points out in his comments, of being right across the way from two of the most prestigious museums in the country, the Met and MOMA.

The question for them has become, “How do you position yourself in a way that differentiates you from these organizations and speaks to the community you serve?”

The reality is that there is no single way to accomplish this and people disagree on how to do it. I think it was wonderful that the article included several different perspectives on this topic, from artists, to museum directors and business leaders.

Brooklyn has one of the greatest collections in the country and is working to find ways to serve their community.  CMA is constantly looking for ways to better serve our community as well. We’re thinking differently about our programming and increasingly thinking about “experiences” as something for everyone.

In years past, museums thought about experiences as they related to children. There was very little thought given to how adults experience museums. Displaying the collection was enough for adults. Now, that thought process is changing.

As Peter C. Marzio said int he article, “The Brooklyn Museum is pioneering a new path that many older encyclopedic museums will have to follow if they want to survive.”

“By looking closely at Brooklyn, by exploring the ideals and values of its citizens, the museum is opening a dialogue that is creating a sense of community ownership,” continues Marzio. “Will the museum survive following this path? I will bet that not only will it survive these difficult economic times, but it will also mutate into a new type of museum that will grow beyond anyone’s imagination.”

CMA, much like Brooklyn, is looking for ways to make our collection relevant to our community. An article in the Sunday Times talked about the recession and its effects on consumers. People have become less invested in acquiring “things” to make them happy. The focus has become experiences.

Our mission is to create great experiences with great art for everyone. It’s a statement that we try to live daily and one that I believe will serve our community well into the future.

Art Speaks. Join the Conversation.

Nannette Maciejunes
CMA Executive Director