Note: All dates are subject to change.
2015 Exhibitions
The “Storytellers of the South: Voices of Women” series continues through 2015.
Standing Strong in the Spirit: Selections of Folk Art by Southern Women
June 26 – September 27, 2015
Drawing from public and personal collections, this exhibit starts from a historical perspective, with pieces by master folk artists such as Nellie Mae Rowe and Clementine Hunter. A fresh perspective is added by new artists coming from a folk tradition, including Lucy Hunnicutt and Laurie Popp, among others. Come see a variety of artistic media, from traditional painting and sculpture to textiles and found-object sculpture. This exhibition teams three curators: Jeanine Taylor of Jeanine Taylor Folk Art gallery in Sanford; Frank Holt, executive director of the Mennello Museum; and Genevieve Bernard, curator of education for the Mennello Museum.
Baskets & Boxes: The Ceramic World of Sang Roberson
June 26 – September 27, 2015
Sang Roberson’s work is greatly influenced by her love of nature and organic forms. She grew up in the Mississippi Delta surrounded by natural beauty and her goal is to re-create the simple, serene shapes of nature in her terracotta art. Roberson has exhibited at the Smithsonian Craft Show and in galleries and museums throughout the U.S., as well as in Europe and South America. She is recipient of an NEA fellowship.
Mary Whyte: Portrait of Us
October 16, 2015 – January 3, 2016
Watercolor artist Mary Whyte is a teacher and author whose figurative paintings have earned national recognition. A resident of Johns Island, S.C., Whyte garners much of her inspiration from the Gullah descendants of coastal Carolina slaves. Her portraits are included in numerous corporate, private, university and museum collections and have been featured in a variety of national and international publications and on CBS Sunday Morning. The Mennello Museum will include a series of iPad installations throughout the gallery to allow visitors to listen to audio recordings collected by Whyte that share stories behind her work. In cooperation with Coleman Fine Art, Charleston, S.C.
2016 Exhibitions
Celebrating the unique indoor and outdoor artistic treasures of the museum and its lakeside Sculpture Garden, The Mennello Museum of American Art will present the “Inside/Out: Steel, Paper, Bronze” series throughout 2016. Through exhibitions and programming, the MMAA welcomes visitors to discover and interact with the sculptural and natural outdoor amenities of the museum as well as the museum’s distinctive indoor exhibitions.
January 15−April 10, 2016
Albert Paley: Forging Sculpture 1979-2015
Forging steel in a form of plasticity and pliability, internationally renowned metal artist Albert Paley deals with the transformational change of the material through tapering, swaging, splitting, upsetting and punching. The result is sculpture developed of organic form analogous to processes seen in nature, such as the development of organic form in response to gravity with the emphasis on transition through the quality of line. This exhibition incorporates recent works Paley has completed in the forged process alongside earlier pieces and drawings. Included in this exhibition are several sculptures completed at Steneby, The School of Craft and Design at the University of Gothenburg, Sweden and other smaller works that exemplify his mastery of the forged technique. Exquisite drawings completed for finished works show the depth of his process, taking the idea from two to three dimensions. Paley’s use of steel can be described as industrial poetry: His large sculptures “Interlace” and “Star” stand in the museum’s Sculpture Garden, dedicated in the memory of the late founder, the Honorable Marilyn Logsdon Mennello.
May 6−August 14, 2016
Pop Art Prints
Pop Art took the American art scene by storm approximately 50 years ago. When New York dealer Leo Castelli first showed Pop Art in his gallery in 1962, it was embraced by the audience who responded to the familiar subjects — flat forms, bright colors and sly commentaries made on the mass culture of the era. Printmaking was an ideal medium for the Pop artists. The commercial techniques of screen printing and lithography were well suited to reproducing the magazine, newspaper and comic-strip images favored by many of the artists. From the commercial viewpoint of the galleries, print editions made this imagery more affordable to a large audience that wanted to buy the art.
Pop Art Prints presents a selection of 37 prints from the Smithsonian American Art Museum’s permanent collection. The installation includes works from primarily the 1960s by Allan D’Arcangelo, Jim Dine, Robert Indiana, Jasper Johns, Roy Lichtenstein, Claes Oldenburg, Mel Ramos, Robert Rauschenberg, James Rosenquist, Andy Warhol and Tom Wesselmann. The installation is part of a series that highlights objects from the Smithsonian’s collection that are rarely on public view. This exhibition will be the first of only three museum engagements. The prints on display were selected by Joann Moser, deputy chief curator. Pop Art Prints is organized by the Smithsonian American Art Museum. The C.F. Foundation in Atlanta supports the museum’s traveling exhibition program, Treasures to Go.
October 14−January 8, 2017
Deborah Butterfield: Horses
An enormously popular American artist, Deborah Butterfield’s work first gained wide notice at the 1979 Whitney Biennial. Since that time horses have been the single focus of her work for more than 30 years. The museum will feature works in welded metal, bronze, clay and wood and will show an evolution of her materials and scale. Working with natural materials, Butterfield creates works that are both fragile and at the same time full of strength. It is her intent to have the viewer consider that the horse is mankind’s most reliable, and yet mysterious ally. Butterfield’s sculptures convey the sense of movement, weight, energy and volume found in the horses that she lives with on her Montana ranch. The exhibition will include loans from Florida museums and private collections to include the Museum of Fine Arts, Florida State University; The Harn Museum of Art, University of Florida; the L.A. Louver Gallery, Venice, CA; and the Collection of Michael A. Mennello.
Events
Friday, June 26th, 6-8 p.m.
Opening Reception for “Standing in the Spirit: Selections of Folk Art by Southern Women” and “Baskets and Boxes: The Ceramic World of Sang Roberson”
Admission is $5, and free to MMAA members. Exhibition continues through September 27.
Sunday, July 12th
Free Family Day on the Second Sunday
The make-and-take craft table is open from noon-2:30 p.m., and docents are available to give mini-tours of the museum. Then it’s open house in the galleries until 4:30 p.m.
Tuesday, July 28th, 6 p.m.
$5, free to MMAA members
Gallery Talk with Jeanine Taylor
The owner of Jeanine Taylor Folk Art Gallery in Sanford was co-curator of Standing in the Spirit: Selections of Folk Art by Southern Women, and she shares her wealth of knowledge and passion about the folk artists represented in the exhibition.
Sunday, August 9th
Free Family Day on the Second Sunday
The make-and-take craft table is open from noon-2:30 p.m., and docents are available to give mini-tours of the museum. Then it’s open house in the galleries until 4:30 p.m.
Tuesday, August 18th, 6 p.m.
$5, free to MMAA members
Collector’s Talk with CJ Williams
Join CJ Williams to hear more about the folk art pieces he loaned from his collection for Standing in the Spirit: Selections of Folk Art by Southern Women.
Sunday, September 13th
Free Family Day on the Second Sunday
The make-and-take craft table is open from noon-2:30 p.m., and docents are available to give mini-tours of the museum. Then it’s open house in the galleries until 4:30 p.m.
Saturday, September 26th, 10:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m.
Smithsonian Magazine’s Museum Day Live!
Visit the Smithsonian Magazine’s Museum Day Live! website to download a ticket for you plus a guest to visit the Mennello Museum at no charge on this one-day annual promotion.
October 2, 2015
Fall Fashion Show presented by The Friends of the Mennello Museum of American Art
Four Seasons Resort Orlando at Walt Disney World Resort 10100 Dream Tree Blvd. Lake Buena Vista, FL 32836 Annual lunch and fashion show to benefit The Mennello Museum of American Art.
Sunday, October 11th
Free Family Day on the Second Sunday
The make-and-take craft table is open from noon-2:30 p.m., and docents are available to give mini-tours of the museum. Then it’s open house in the galleries until 4:30 p.m. Friday,
October 16th, 6-8 p.m.
$5, free to MMAA members
Opening Reception for “Mary Whyte: A Portrait of Us” Exhibition continues through January 3, 2016.
Saturday, October 17th, 11 a.m. and 1 p.m.
Included with admission; free to MMAA members
Gallery Tours with Mary Whyte Visiting from South Carolina, watercolor artist Mary Whyte leads two tours, at 11 a.m. and at 1 p.m., of her exhibition “Mary Whyte: A Portrait of Us,” which continues through January 3, 2016.
Sunday, November 8th
Free Family Day on the Second Sunday
The make-and-take craft table is open from noon-2:30 p.m., and docents are available to give mini-tours of the museum. Then it’s open house in the galleries until 4:30 p.m.
Sunday, December 13th
Free Family Day on the Second Sunday
The make-and-take craft table is open from noon-2:30 p.m., and docents are available to give mini-tours of the museum. Then it’s open house in the galleries until 4:30 p.m.
Friday, January 15th , 2016, 6-8 p.m.
Opening Reception: Albert Paley: Forging Sculpture 1979-2015
$5, free to MMAA members Exhibition continues through April 10.
Saturday, February 13th , 2016, noon-5 p.m.
Indie-Folkfest at the Mennello Museum
Free admission
Last year’s debut Indie-Folkfest put a twist on our traditional Orlando Folk Festival turning it into a Valentine’s Day-themed family folk picnic that features local music, art and food. We partnered with East End Market for food, Joseph Martens for the music lineup, as well as local bars to throw a fun-filled picnic in the beautiful Sculpture Garden of The Mennello Museum of American Art. Approximately 3,000 guests – including plenty of dogs and kids – spread out picnic blankets, made Valentine cards and enjoyed a daylong lineup of music against the backdrop of Lake Formosa in the winter sunshine. Join us for the second annual day dedicated to Music + Art + Picnic + Love.
February 27, 2016
13th Annual Evening With Fabulous Friends Gala, presented by The Friends of the Mennello Museum of American Art
Four Seasons Resort Orlando at Walt Disney World Resort 10100 Dream Tree Blvd. Lake Buena Vista, FL 32836 The elegant annual dinner and auction benefits The Mennello Museum of American Art.
Sunday, March 13 th, 2016, 2 p.m.
Artist Talk: Albert Paley
$5, free to MMAA members Internationally renowned metal artist Albert Paley talks about the works in his new traveling exhibition: Albert Paley: Forging Sculpture 1979-2015. Exhibition continues through April 10.
Friday, May 6, 2016, 6-8 p.m.
Opening Reception: Pop Art Prints
$5, free to MMAA members. Exhibition continues through August 14.
October 14, 2016, 6-8 p.m.
Opening Reception: Deborah Butterfield: Horses
$5, free to MMAA members. Exhibition continues through January 8, 2017.