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Bechtler Museum of Modern Art in Charlotte, NC, Reaches Out to NASCAR Visitors

Monday, May 3rd, 2010

Here’s some more news about the ever-expanding Center City Charlotte project. It’s nice to see a museum of modern art reaching out to NASCAR fans. Not all art lovers are one dimensional. I love art – I also love NFL Football. Go Panthers! Hope that youth building project works out.

Here’s the press release we received at Carolina Arts:

The Bechtler Museum of Modern Art, located at the Levine Center for the Arts in Center City, Charlotte, NC, will host a BMW Art Car May 10 through May 21, 2010. The first Art Car in the BMW’s special collection, painted by Alexander Calder in 1975, will be on display inside the museum’s lobby to coincide with the opening of the NASCAR Hall of Fame on May 11, 2010. The Hall of Fame is just two blocks away from the Bechtler and opening day ticket holders will be offered a $2 discount off regular museum admission prices.

The Art Car will be displayed for a limited time before heading to France where it will join in the debut of the recently announced 17th BMW Art Car. The newest Art Car addition will be designed by prominent contemporary artist Jeff Koons. Accompanying the exhibit at the Bechtler will be rare, behind-the-scenes video footage of Calder signing his Art Car.

It’s fitting that the Bechtler Museum of Modern Art will be the temporary home to the Calder BMW Art Car. The Bechtler collection contains works by Calder, an American artist best known for his colorful mobile sculptures. Currently on display in the museum’s fourth floor gallery is a Calder watercolor, tapestry and artist book.

The Bechtler Museum of Modern Art opened in January 2010, as the only museum dedicated to the exhibition of mid-20th-century modern art in the southeastern United States. The museum is named after the family of Andreas Bechtler, a Charlotte resident and native of Switzerland who inherited and assembled a collection of more than 1,400 artworks created by major figures of 20th-century modernism. The Bechtler collection comprises art in various media by European and American artists, including seminal figures such as Giacometti, Miró, Ernst, Warhol, LeWitt, Hepworth and Picasso. The museum building was designed by renowned architect Mario Botta.

A 35-year tradition of turning cars into canvases was initiated by one man’s intertwined love of racing and art. In 1975, French race car driver Hervé Poulain commissioned American artist Alexander Calder (1898-1976) to paint the BMW 3.0 CSL Poulain was to drive in the Le Mans 24-hour endurance race. Inspired by the car’s impact on race fans, BMW championed the continuation of the project. The collection now includes 16 works from other renowned artists including Andy Warhol, Roy Lichtenstein and Robert Rauschenberg. Each car bears the art of a notable artist from its respective decade. BMW recently announced that Jeff Koons will create the 17th Art Car in the collection. For further info visit (www.bmwusanews.com/artsandculture).

American artist Alexander Calder (1898-1976) is one of the 20th century’s most celebrated artists. He is best known for his colorful mobiles and sculptures. Calder was the first in a line of renowned artists to help marry the world of art with the world of motorsports through the BMW Art Car collection. The BMW creation was one of Calder’s last works before he died. The Bechtler Museum of Modern Art has three works by Calder currently on view.

Opening May 11, 2010, in Charlotte, the 150,000-square-foot NASCAR Hall of Fame is an interactive, entertainment attraction honoring the history and heritage of NASCAR. The high-tech venue, designed to educate and entertain race fans and non-fans alike, includes artifacts, interactive exhibits, a 275-person state-of-the-art theater, Hall of Honor, Buffalo Wild Wings restaurant, NASCAR Hall of Fame gear shop and the NASCAR Media Group-operated broadcast studio. For further info visit (www.NASCARHall.com).

Visitors to the Bechtler can view the Calder BMW Art Car during normal museum hours with the purchase of an admission ticket. The museum will open specially on a Tuesday (the day it is normally closed) to celebrate the May 11 Hall of Fame kickoff.

Museum Hours: Weekdays and Saturdays 10 a.m. – 5 p.m. Closed Tuesdays. Open Sunday 12 p.m. – 5 p.m. (Open until 9 p.m. the first and third Fridays of the month).

Admission: $8 for adults, $6 seniors, students and educators, free for members and children 10 and under, $4 youth 11-18 years old.

For further information call the Museum at 704/353-9200 or visit (www.bechtler.org).

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Let’s Hope the Musical Chairs Name Game is Over in Charlotte, NC

Monday, April 26th, 2010

We’ve been reporting on the new complex of art facilities in Uptown Charlotte, NC, ever since we started this blog – almost two years ago. The complex which includes the new Harvey B. Gantt Center for African American Arts + Culture (formerly the Afro-American Cultural Center); the new Bechtler Museum of Modern Art; and the new Mint Museum Uptown (scheduled to open this October) was first called the Wachovia Cultural Campus. But then Wachovia was purchased by Wells Fargo, the name changed to the Wells Fargo Cultural Campus. From now on, the complex will be known as the Levine Center for the Arts – and for good reason.

In an article offered by the Charlotte Observer on April 21, 2010, we learned that a contribution of $15 million from the Leon Levine Foundation and a second $5 million contribution from Duke Energy, topped off an $83 million arts-endowment drive launched by the Arts & Science Council in November 2006.

Of course in the future – down the road – once the $85 million endowment isn’t producing enough money to keep the complex going – if someone wanted to contribute $200 million in our name, I’m sure they would change it to the Carolina Arts Unleashed Cultural Outlet Mall.

Like I’ve always said – money is the Mother’s milk of the arts and money talks.

You go girl – Charlotte! $85 million for an endowment for the arts. Who else can do that in the Carolinas? Who?

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Come See Dale Chihuly Chandelier Disassembled at Mint Museum of Craft + Design – April 6, 2010

Monday, April 5th, 2010

We received this press release at Carolina Arts while I was out delivering papers. I’m sorry for the late notice.

On April 6, 2010, workers from Seattle-based Chihuly Studios will disassemble Dale Chihuly’s renowned Royal Blue Mint Chandelier, which hangs in the lobby of the Mint Museum of Craft + Design in downtown Charlotte, NC. Weighing 2,200 pounds, the Chihuly chandelier is made up of hundreds of delicate, asymmetrical glass pieces that fuse craft, art, ornament and design. Chihuly’s chandeliers have become icons of architecture throughout the world, and Royal Blue Mint Chandelier will be reinstalled in the entry gallery of the new Mint Museum Uptown, opening October 1, 2010, at the Wells Fargo Cultural Campus.

For more info on that move visit this link.

The Mint Museum of Craft + Design lobby will be open from 10am to 5pm, so that the public can observe Chihuly Studios at work. The museum’s galleries are currently closed to pack the collections for their move down Tryon Street to the Mint Museum Uptown. The Mint Museum Shop on Hearst Plaza remains open until June.

For further info visit (www.mintmuseum.org).

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Mint Museum in Charlotte, NC, Offers Special Hours to View Fiber Artist at Work

Friday, March 19th, 2010

We received this press release at Carolina Arts and it’s not often you get to watch a world-class artist at work, but here’s an opportunity. It’s just part of the built up to the exciting opening of the new Mint Museum Uptown, the third visual art component of the Wells Fargo Cultural Campus, joining the new Harvey B. Gantt Center for African American Arts + Culture (formerly the Afro-American Cultural Center) and the new Bechtler Museum of Modern Art. Both of these facilities are open now.

Here’s that press release:

The Mint Museum in Charlotte, NC, is offering special viewing hours this month to allow the public to observe the artistic process behind a commissioned work that will be installed in the new Mint Museum Uptown this fall. On Mar. 26-27 and Mar. 29-30, 2010 (from 2-6pm each day), the public is invited to observe Icelandic fiber artist Hildur Bjarnadóttir working in the lobby of the former Mint Museum of Craft + Design location (220 North Tryon Street), which will be transformed into a temporary studio during the artist’s visit.

During her visit to Charlotte, Bjarnadóttir will be creating a fiber art work for Project Ten Ten Ten, a series of commissions created especially for the new Mint Museum Uptown galleries by 10 of the world’s most innovative craft and design artists. Visitors to the craft museum will be able to observe Bjarnadóttir making natural dye from local plants and ask questions about the artistic process. The dye will be incorporated into the commissioned work, which will be unveiled at the new facility’s grand opening.

“Project Ten Ten Ten will catapult the Mint Museum of Craft + Design to the highest level of artistic excellence by commissioning 10 of the most important craft and design artists from around the world for site-specific work,” said Annie Carlano, Director of Craft + Design. When the doors open on Oct. 1, 2010, visitors will see spectacular works by glass artist/designer Danny Lane (United Kingdom), conceptual jewelry artist Ted Noten (The Netherlands), and furniture maker/designer Joseph Walsh (Ireland), in addition to the fiber work by Hildur Bjarnadóttir. Equally striking commissions by Kawana Tetsunori, Kate Malone, Tom Joyce, Cristina Córdova, Susan Point and Ayala Serfaty are also being planned for the new facility.

Bjarnadóttir learned crocheting, knitting and embroidery as a child from her mother, and came of age during the flowering of fiber art in Europe. In her native Iceland she saw museum exhibitions of contemporary textiles and assumed the medium was exalted in the art world. She later learned that this is not the predominant view, and creates work that is a reaction to the commonplace negative comparison of textiles to “fine art.” Whether affixed to a wall or placed upon a pedestal, her needlework creations tell stories of traditional women’s work with a cutting-edge, even macabre, twist.

Accommodations for Bjarnadóttir are being generously provided by Catalyst Condominiums (www.catalystcharlotte.com). Her fiber art commission is being funded by Mr. Wesley Mancini and the International Textile Market Association.

For further information check our NC Institutional Gallery listings, call the Mint Museum at 704-337-2009 or visit (www.mintmuseum.org).

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Some Update News on the Mint Museums in Charlotte, NC

Friday, January 22nd, 2010

We have received some updated info on what’s going to be happening this year with the Mint Museums – Mint Museum of Craft + Design and Mint Museum Randolph. We have been talking about the newly opened Harvey B. Gantt Center for African-American Arts + Culture and the Bechtler Museum of Modern Art – mentioning that the new Mint Museum Uptown will be coming later this year.

Pay close attention to the part about the Mint Museum of Craft + Design Shop staying open a few more months. That’s where you can pick up a copy of Carolina Arts in the heart of Uptown Charlotte – as well as some pretty nifty artworks, art objects and art books.

So here’s some news about the Mint Museums.

The Mint Museum of Craft + Design in Charlotte, NC, will close to the public on Feb. 7, 2010, to prepare to move its collections to the new Mint Museum Uptown. Opening in October 2010, the Mint Museum Uptown will house the Mint Museum of Craft + Design collections, as well as significant collections of American Art, Contemporary Art and a selection of European Art in a new five-story, 145,000-square-foot facility located in the heart of Charlotte’s business district.

The Mint Museum of Craft + Design Shop will remain open for several more months, with a firm closing date to be announced later this spring.

To celebrate the grand opening of the Mint Museum Uptown, the Mint Museum of Craft + Design has launched Project Ten Ten Ten, a series of commissions created especially for the new Mint Uptown galleries by 10 of the world’s most innovative craft and design artists. When the doors open in October, visitors will see spectacular works by glass artist/designer Danny Lane (United Kingdom), conceptual jewelry artist Ted Noten (The Netherlands), furniture maker/designer Joseph Walsh (Ireland) and fiber artist Hildur Bjarnadttir (Iceland). Equally striking commissions by Kawana Tetsunori, Kate Malone, Tom Joyce, Cristina Córdova, Susan Point and Ayala Serfaty are also being planned for the new facility.

The Mint Museum expansion includes the construction of a new building in uptown Charlotte and the reinstallation of the historic US Mint facility on Randolph Road in Charlotte. When the expansion is complete, The Mint Museum’s total combined square footage will grow by more than 60 percent, allowing opportunities to showcase more works from the permanent collection and better accommodate significant traveling exhibitions.


A postcard of the original Mint Museum – former US Mint facility.

You can see photos of the building progress of the new Mint facility at this link.

The Mint Museum Uptown will be part of the new Wells Fargo Cultural Campus. In addition to the Mint, the completed campus will include the Bechtler Museum of Modern Art, the Harvey B. Gantt Center for African-American Arts + Culture, the Knight Theater (housing the North Carolina Dance Theatre) and the Duke Energy Center. Following the grand opening of the Mint Museum Uptown, collections at the Mint Museum Randolph will be reinstalled with a fresh new vision. Galleries there will feature the Mint’s superb Ceramics, Art of the Ancient Americas, and Historic Costume and Fashionable Dress collections.

The Mint Museum Uptown is scheduled to open just one year prior to the Mint’s 75th anniversary. Designed by Machado and Silvetti Associates of Boston (design architect), Clark Patterson Lee Design Professionals of Charlotte (architect of record), and George Sexton Associates of Washington, D.C. (museum consultant), the new facility will combine inspiring architecture with groundbreaking exhibitions to provide unparalleled art experiences for its visitors. The Museum expansion will provide larger and more flexible space to showcase the permanent collections and Mint-organized special exhibitions, as well as major touring exhibitions organized by other venues. The new facility will also house a Family Gallery to reinforce the Museum’s dual priorities of art and education.

For more information, visit (www.mintmuseum.org).

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Bechtler Museum of Modern Art Unveils Charlotte, NC’s Newest Public Art Piece

Sunday, November 22nd, 2009

Over the next two years, Center City Charlotte will be transformed by the development of the Wells Fargo Cultural Campus (formerly the Wachovia Cultural Campus), which will include an expanded Mint Museum of Art, the new Harvey B. Gantt Center for African American Arts + Culture (formerly the Afro-American Cultural Center) and the new Bechtler Museum of Modern Art. What a boon this is for the visual arts in the Charlotte area and the Carolinas.

The new Harvey B. Gantt Center for African American Arts + Culture opened in Oct. 2009 and now we have another announcement about the Cultural Campus. Stay tuned to Carolina Arts Unleashed for all the latest updates on the Cultural Campus.

The new Bechtler Museum of Modern Art has unveiled The Firebird, a playful, monumental outdoor sculpture that will greet visitors on their way to the museum when it opens on Jan. 2, 2010.

The Firebird is Charlotte’s newest work of privately-owned public art and is a permanent fixture in the Bechtler Museum of Modern Art collection. Standing 17-feet 5-inches tall, the sculpture is a whimsical, bird-like creature covered from top to bottom in pieces of mirrored and colored glass. The Firebird was installed on the plaza of the Bechtler Museum of Modern Art facing South Tryon Street and overlooking the new Wells Fargo Cultural Campus where the museum is located.

Created in 1991 by French-American artist Niki de Saint Phalle (1930-2002), the sculpture was purchased by museum patron Andreas Bechtler specifically for placement in front of the Bechtler Museum of Modern Art. Bechtler, a Charlotte resident and native of Switzerland, was looking for a sculpture to serve as a counterpoint to the geometric lines of the museum’s architecture, designed by renowned Swiss architect Mario Botta.

“When I saw The Firebird, I knew it was outstanding. I knew it would be great for the museum,” Andreas Bechtler said. “The Firebird is joyful, uplifting and engaging. It makes you feel that life is good.”

The unveiling ceremony included remarks from Cyndee Patterson, Board Chair of the Bechtler Museum of Modern Art; Heinz Roth, Honorary Consul of Switzerland; Urs Ziswiler, Swiss Ambassador to the United States; Andreas Bechtler and John Boyer, President and CEO of the Bechtler Museum of Modern Art. Also in attendance was Laura Gabriela Duke, the daughter of The Firebird artist Niki de Saint Phalle.

“The Bechtler is excited to celebrate the great legacy of Niki de Saint Phalle with the placement of The Firebird – a piece that we trust will serve as an exciting and welcoming gesture to Charlotte visitors and everyone who comes to the Wells Fargo Cultural Campus,” said museum President and CEO John Boyer.

The Bechtler Museum of Modern Art is named after the family of Andreas Bechtler. Bechtler assembled and inherited a collection of more than 1,400 artworks created by major figures of 20th-century modernism and committed it to the city of Charlotte.

The Bechtler collection comprises artworks by seminal figures such as Alberto Giacometti, Joan Miro, Max Ernst, Andy Warhol, Le Corbusier, Sol LeWitt, Edgar Degas, Nicolas de Stael, Barbara Hepworth and Picasso. Books, photographs and letters illustrating personal connections to the Bechtler family accompany some of the works in the collection. Only a handful of the artworks have been on public view in the United States.

The Bechtler Museum of Modern Art is located at 420 South Tryon Street in uptown Charlotte. The museum opens to the public on Jan. 2, 2010. For museum details visit (www.bechtler.org).

To read an entry we posted about the Bechtler Museum of Modern Art, just click this link.

To read an entry we posted about the Harvey B. Gantt Center for African American Arts + Culture, just click this link.

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Juried Show Opportunity For NC and SC Visual Artists

Saturday, August 15th, 2009

During the month of October historic Atherton Mill, located in Charlotte, NC’s SouthEnd District, will host a month-long art event named Carolina’s Got Art!. Larry Elder, owner of Elder Gallery in Charlotte, has fashioned the exhibition after a long running annual art exhibit which was at one time sponsored by Springs Mills in SC. The juried show has since been discontinued but exciting memories still exist for those who participated. The eagerly anticipated “Springs Show” provided an opportunity for artists to compete for prize money and prestige. The objective of Carolina’s Got Art! is similar.

“Through Carolina’s Got Art! we hope to see the diversity of artwork being produced throughout the two Carolinas. Both states are rich in visual art history and have produced artists who have achieved national and international acclaim,” says Elder. A South Carolina artist recently reflected that his participation in the “Springs Show” was instrumental in one of his paintings being included in the Guggenheim Museum’s permanent collection. Acceptance into the exhibition will allow artists, both amateur and professional, to offer their work for sale, as well as evaluation by New York art critic, Brice Brown, who will serve as juror. The main goal of the event is to generate a spark of excitement within the visual arts community that has suffered due to the economic downturn.

“Our hope is that Carolina’s Got Art! will be the first of many 21st century visual art exhibitions to showcase the vast amount of talent being created in the two Carolinas. Now is a great time for residents and businesses of the Carolinas to step up and offer a strong show of support for the visual arts,” says Elder. Submissions for the exhibition can be made via (www.carolinasgotart.com). Deadline for entries is September 1, 2009.

The Juror: Brice Brown received his BA from Dartmouth College and his MFA from Pratt Institute. His work has been reviewed in the New York Times, Art in America and The Village Voice, among others, and is in numerous public collections such as Baltimore Museum of Art, The Speed Art museum, and Yale University. As a writer and art critic, he has been a regular contributor to The New York Sun, and The New York Press, and has written numerous exhibition catalogue essays. He also publishes and edits an annual arts journal called The Sienese Shredder.

Carolina’s Got Art! will take place from Oct. 2 – 30, 2009 at Atherton Mills, 2000 South Boulevard in Charlotte.

Round One: All work submitted as per the terms of the Entry Instructions will be viewed by the exhibition juror with assistance from Elder Gallery. All best efforts will be made to keep judging impartial and fair. Our goal is to select an exhibition that is broad in scope and reflects the very best quality of work submitted.

Round Two: New York art critic and writer, Brice Brown, will select prize winners from the exhibition.

Round Three:  Elder Gallery will select up to fifty pieces to be included in its November, 2009 exhibition.

Show awards include:
Best in Show – $2,500; First Place – $2,000; Second Place -$1,500; Third Place – $1,000; and Honorable Mention(s) – $500 gift certificate from Williamsburg Oil Paints and $500 gift certificate from Campania Fine Moulding.

For further info contact Larry Elder at 704/370-6337 or e-mail to (lelder@mindspring.com).

P.S. To read some of the buzz this juried show is generating check out the Charlotte Observer article about Carolina’s Got Art!.

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New Bechtler Museum of Modern Art in Charlotte, NC, Launches Website

Sunday, June 28th, 2009

Over the next two years, Center City Charlotte will be transformed by the development of the Wells Fargo Cultural Campus (formerly the Wachovia Cultural Campus), which will include an expanded Mint Museum of Art, an expanded Harvey B. Gantt Center for African American Arts & Culture (formerly the Afro-American Cultural Center) and the new Bechtler Museum of Modern Art. What a boon for the visual arts in the Charlotte area and the Carolinas.

The Gantt Center will open later this year, the Bechtler Museum will open in Jan. 2010, and the Mint in the fall of 2010. I can hardly wait. But I guess I’ll have to.

To introduce the Bechtler Museum of Modern Art and its collection to the public, an interim website has been launched at (www.bechtler.org). Created by MODE, a Charlotte-based branding and interactive agency, the site highlights artists in the collection, provides architectural information, describes museum offerings and gives visitors the opportunity to sign up for e-mail updates regarding programs, exhibitions, membership, facilities rental, volunteering and educational opportunities. The website will continue to expand in the months ahead.

While on the website look for the “Firebird” – a while back I came across a story about its restoration – this is really something.

But here’s some other info to get you interested.

The Bechtler Museum of Modern Art, the only museum dedicated to the exhibition of mid 20th-century European modern art in the southeast, will open to the public on Jan. 2, 2010.

Construction of the museum’s distinct four-story, 36,500 square foot building in downtown Charlotte is nearing completion. Museum staff is slated to move into the facility this summer and the collection is scheduled to arrive in the fall. The building, designed by world renowned Swiss architect Mario Botta, is destined to become an iconic structure with its boldly cantilevered fourth floor exhibition gallery, soaring glass and steel atrium and terra cotta exterior.

The museum is named after the family of Andreas Bechtler, a Charlotte resident and native of Switzerland who assembled and inherited a collection of more than 1,400 artworks created by major figures of 20th-century modernism and donated it to the public trust. The Bechtler collection reflects most of the important art movements and schools from the 20th century with a deep holding of the School of Paris after World War II.

The collection is comprised of artworks by seminal figures such as Alberto Giacometti, Joan Miro, Jean Tinguely, Max Ernst, Andy Warhol, Le Corbusier, Sol Lewitt, Edgar Degas, Nicolas de Stael, Barbara Hepworth and Picasso. In many instances the holdings by a particular artist are across various media (painting, sculpture, drawing, prints and decorative arts). Some works in the collection are also accompanied by books, photographs and letters illustrating personal connections to the Bechtler family.

Only a handful of the artworks in the Bechtler collection have been on public view in the United States. Until now, the collection was privately held by the Bechtler family and has since been committed to the city of Charlotte.

From time to time as we get news we’ll keep you posted about this exciting project.

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Bank of America Gives Free Admission

Thursday, July 17th, 2008

Bank of America’s Museums on US program has come to Charlotte, NC. Charlotte residents and any holder of a Bank of America ATM, credit or debit card can receive free admission to the Mint Museum of Art, Mint Museum of Craft + Design, and the Levine Museum of the New South, during the first Sat. & Sun. of the month – each and every month.

BOA is giving free admission to museums (70) all across the US. Sorry, South Carolina is not included yet. But anyone in South Carolina who has a BOA card can visit Charlotte for a free admission. So it’s not all bad for those who don’t live in the states with this program. Free admission helps pay for more gas.

For more information about Museums on US, visit (www.bankofamerica.com/museums/).

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