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At Gari Melchers Home and Studio in Falmouth, new Smithsonian show depicts American artists in their special places of toil and inspiration

Date published: 9/25/2008

By CLINT SCHEMMER

Become interested in artists, and it's only natural to wonder about their lives and working environments.

Now, without going far, you can peer over the shoulder of greats like Alexander Calder, Roy Lichtenstein, Grant Wood and John Singer Sargent, getting a feel for their personalities, methods and inspirations.

It's all there in an intriguing new exhibit at American impressionist Gari Melchers Home and Studio in Falmouth. "Artists in Their Studios" reveals the working spaces crucial to the creative output of dozens of U.S. artists, many of whom are household names.

You'll see Melchers dwarfed by the murals he's painting for the World's Columbian Exposition in 1893; New Yorker illustrator Saul Steinberg donning one of his famous paper-bag masks; and Grant Wood, in overalls, inside the Cedar Rapids, Iowa, carriage house he converted into a home and studio.

Each behind-the-scenes image fascinates.

On loan through Nov. 23 from the Smithsonian Institution, this major show features 55 vintage photos from the mid-19th century through the 1970s. Immerse yourself in these rarities from the Arch-ives of American Art and whole periods in art will take form.

Smithsonian curator Liza Kirwin said she hopes visitors get "the idea that there's a lot of physical labor involved with the creation of a work of art. From these photographs, you can see that it's quite difficult to produce something. I guess people are used to seeing things in galleries, or out of context."

Belmont curator Joanna Catron said that "what really strikes me most is that the artists approach their work in such different ways. Some are prima donnas; it's all about them. Others have utilitarian, businesslike workspaces."

Sargent, William Merritt Chase and N.C. Wyeth toiled in sumptuous studios, crowded with props. Wood and Jackson Pollack plied their craft in austere, no-frills workrooms.

A smaller room off the main gallery holds more treats, including photos of a young Gari Melchers in his New York City and Holland-seaside studios, and original letters and small studies by other artists.

A 1930 letter by Grant Wood is especially poignant. "Hurray!" he writes in bright orange, celebrating the selection of two works, "Stone City, Iowa" and "American Gothic," by the Art Institute of Chicago.

A few steps away is Melchers' studio. Its soaring space, fine art and unique furnishings are perfect accompaniment to the exhibit--a real, three-dimensional example of what's shown in the photos.

Dr. Kirwin, who co-wrote a 2007 book about the subject, will give an illustrated gallery talk at 2 p.m. Sunday in Belmont's Studio Pavilion. A Marylander, she is also the author of "With Love: Artists' Letters and Illustrated Notes."

garimelchers.org tinyurl.com/melchers

Clint Schemmer: 540/368-5029
Email: cschemmer@freelancestar.com

Presentation: 2 p.m. Sunday, Dr. Liza Kirwin, curator of manuscripts at the Smithsonian's Archives of American Art, offers an armchair tour of artists' studios from mid-19th century to present day. Included with admission. Concert: 3 p.m. Oct. 5, Fredericksburg Chamber Chorale, "Celebrating Voices and Visions." $8/person, concert and exhibit tour. Reservations: 540/898-0458. Family Day: 1-4 p.m. Oct. 12. See artist Bruce Day paint from life, create Calder-inspired sculpture, join a scavenger hunt, have your face painted, view Alexander Calder's film "The Circus." Details: 540/654-1851.

Date published: 9/25/2008

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