While Linda and I were ending our visit of the exhibit, Brian Rutenberg: Tidesong, (on view in the Gibbes’ Main Gallery through Jan. 10, 2010) last Saturday, just before we left the building I noticed a couple of paintings hanging on the wall across from the recently remodeled Gibbes Museum Store. One painting was by Mary Whyte and the other by Jill Hooper. Both artists have distinctive styles so I didn’t have to look at the tags, but when I did it said that I could make a sealed bid on either of the two works – details were available in the Museum Store.
Since we had other places to go – exhibits to see I decided to find out about this later and after an e-mail to Marla Loftus, Director of Communications, at the Gibbes Museum of Art – I have the details.
Loftus told me that Gibbes, etc. a member auxiliary group (of the Gibbes Museum of Art) based on Kiawah Island, has launched this sealed bid art auction in conjunction with their 10th Annual Kiawah Island Art and House Tour slated for April 9, 2010, from 2-6pm.
Gibbes, etc. has placed on view at the Gibbes, two works of art that will be sold through a closed bid auction to benefit the museum. Charleston artists Mary Whyte and Jill Hooper, both represented in the Gibbes permanent collection, have donated works of art to the auction. Lower Church Street, Morning Light, a watercolor painting by Mary Whyte, has a retail value of $4,500 and a minimum bid of $2,700. Still Life with Bread, an oil painting by Jill Hooper, has a retail value of $4,000 and a minimum bid of $2,400.
Lower Church Street, Morning Light by Mary Whyte
Mary Whyte is represented in Charleston by Coleman Fine Art and Jill Hooper is represented by Ann Long Fine Art.
I also noticed that the Gibbes Museum Store and Coleman Fine Art are exclusively offering holiday cards featuring the watercolor, Paper Angel, by Mary Whyte. The holiday cards sell for $10 for ten cards with all proceeds benefiting art education programs at the Gibbes Museum of Art.
Visitors to the Gibbes can view the paintings through Apr. 8, 2010 and place their sealed bids in a container at the museum. On Apr. 9, 2010, the paintings will be moved to Kiawah Island where they can be viewed and bid on during the Kiawah Island Art and House Tour. The highest bidders for each painting will be recognized at the conclusion of the tour at 6pm. In the event that more than one person has the same high bid, the painting will go to the earliest high bidder.
Gibbes, etc. is a group of Kiawah Island women dedicated to supporting the Gibbes Museum of Art. Members gather monthly to enjoy a variety of programs and speakers that range from medical research to current artists. The organization hosts an Annual Art and House Tour held in the spring for the benefit of the museum.
Gibbes, etc. was founded in Jan. 2001 by Ellen Walkley, Ruth Baker, Ann Trees and Cathy Marino, all experienced volunteers in the Charleston community. They saw a need for a cohesive volunteer organization to involve the women of Kiawah Island. Ellen Walkley was a board member of the Gibbes Museum of Art and felt that Kiawah women could greatly enhance the museum by forming their own auxiliary and enjoy volunteer work and programs without leaving the island.
You can visit the Gibbes Museum Store Tue. – Sat., 10am – 5pm and Sun., 1-5pm, free. The two works are right outside the store on the opposite wall. The good thing about a sealed bid auction is that you can make a bid (above the minimum) that you want to pay and that’s it. You don’t have to compete with other bidders on a sign-in sheet or in public – you just make the bid that you are willing to pay and you just might be the highest bidder at the end. It’s simple and you don’t have to get caught up in the excitement of the moment. And, it’s all for a good cause – the Gibbes Museum of Art.
Finally, I added a new category to this blog – Commercial Art Community Helping Out. It will help readers see how commercial artists, commercial galleries, and other commercial art related businesses – like Carolina Arts are always helping out the non-profit sector of the arts and the community in general. It’s not always about the bottom line, but we have to be profitable in order to be able to help. A factor some folks in the general art community never seem to understand. The commercial art community just doesn’t get the credit they deserve for their contributions to the over all art community and the general community. We want the public to be more aware of that fact.