HUNTINGTON’S UPCOMING EXHIBITIONS ANNOUNCED

Contemporary art in the Huntington mansion, the history of California wildflowers, and early American needlework highlight a lively year ahead

Left: Clara Mason Fox, “Eschscholzia californica, Silverado Canyon,” 1899, unidentified medium on paper. Collection of Rancho Santa Ana Botanic Garden. Center: Ricky Swallow, Standing Figure W/ Pockets & Buttons, 2011, patinated bronze. Edition of 3 + 1 AP. Image courtesy the artist; Stuart Shave/Modern Art, London; and Marc Foxx Gallery, Los Angeles. Photo: Fredrik Nilsen. Right: Rebecca Ives Gilman, Ives Family Coat of Arms, 1763, silk, gold, and silver thread on black silk. Promised Gift of Thomas H. Oxford and Victor Gail.

Aug. 9, 2012

SAN MARINO, Calif.—The Huntington Library, Art Collections, and Botanical Gardens announced today its slate of special exhibitions for the coming year. The previously announced pair of Civil War exhibitions presented this fall will be followed by seven new shows on topics ranging from contemporary art to early American needlework, from California wildflowers to 18th-century extra-illustrated books.

“Leslie Vance & Ricky Swallow” (Nov. 10, 2012–March 11, 2013) will place paintings and sculpture by the acclaimed contemporary artists in a room of the Huntington Art Gallery, home of the institution’s venerable collection of European art that once served as the residence of Henry E. Huntington and his wife, Arabella. The juxtaposition is intended to inspire people to look with a fresh perspective on the permanent collections of Old Master paintings, Renaissance bronzes, and 18th-century French decorative arts and British portraiture.

Spring at The Huntington will be punctuated by a major exhibition on the history of California wildflowers—“When They Were Wild: Recapturing California’s Wildflower Heritage” (March 9 –June 10, 2013) —a collaboration of The Huntington; Rancho Santa Ana Botanic Garden, Claremont, Calif.; and the Theodore Payne Foundation for Wildflowers and Native Plants, Sun Valley, Calif.

“Useful Hours: Needlework and Painted Textiles from Southern California Collections” (June 1–Sept. 3, 2013), will explore the development of the art made by young women in their early teens in the United States in the late 18th and early 19th centuries; and “Illuminated Palaces: Extra-Illustrated Books from the Huntington Library,” (July 22–Oct. 21, 2013) will bring to light for the first time The Huntington’s rich collections representing the 18th and 19th century practice of turning books into repositories for original art, prints, autograph letters, and the excised pages of other books.

Other exhibitions announced today include those focused on American artists Marsden Hartley (1877-1943) and Maurice Merlin (1909–1947) and the history of the San Marino Ranch (the property now known as The Huntington) in honor of the city of San Marino’s centennial.



[EDITOR’S NOTE: An advance exhibition schedule follows. Information subject to change. High-resolution digital images available on request for publicity use.]