Month: October 2018

Exclusive Show from Tate, London to Highlight Select Works from Artist’s Personal Collection

Mystic, Conn. (October 16, 2018) – Mystic Seaport Museum, in partnership with Tate, London, will host a major monographic exhibition devoted to the watercolors of one Britain’s greatest painters: J.M.W. Turner (1775-1851). Mystic Seaport Museum will be the only North American venue for J.M.W. Turner: Watercolors from Tate, which will be on display October 5, 2019-February 23, 2020.

The exhibition – curated by David Blayney Brown, Tate’s Manton Senior Curator of British Art 1790-1850 – will provide an exceptional opportunity to see key works spanning the entire career of the famous artist. A unique collection of about 90 works, the selection will provide a view into the evolution of the artist’s vision and creative process.

“Few artists have captured the beauty and majesty of the sea as J.M.W. Turner. Anyone who has sought art that accurately represents their personal experience of the sea has had to contend with the sheer genius of his lifelong look at that subject,” said Steve White, president of Mystic Seaport Museum. “This is not an exhibition of the sea, but Turner represents for so many the most sublime representation of that feeling in art, and this remarkable exhibition is a unique opportunity to step into his world and view in this country some of the riches he left his nation upon his death.”

The exhibition at the Museum – divided into six thematic sections – focuses on the critical role played by watercolors in defining Turner’s deeply personal style.

The works have been selected from the vast legacy that comprises more than 30,000 works on paper, 300 oil paintings, and 280 sketchbooks, known as the “Turner Bequest,” donated to Great Britain after the artist’s death in 1851 and mostly conserved at Tate Britain. The bequest includes the entire body of works housed in the artist’s personal studio and produced over the years for his “own pleasure,” to cite the words used by the critic John Ruskin.

While Turner is perhaps better known for his oil paintings, he was a lifelong watercolorist and fundamentally shaped what was understood to be possible within the medium during his lifetime and after. An inveterate traveler, Turner rarely left home without a rolled-up, loose-bound sketchbook, pencils, and a small traveling case of watercolors. These memories of journeys, emotions, and fragments of landscapes seen during his long stays abroad illustrate the development of Turner’s stylistic language focused on experimenting with the expressive potential of light and color.

The intimate and personal character of the works on display will also provide an opportunity to explore the man himself, gaining an understanding of how the radical developments in Turner’s style anticipated trends of the late 19th century. From his love of seaside towns to his interest in depicting atmospheric English and Alpine landscapes, and his detailed study of domestic interiors and architectural reliefs, the artist devoted himself tirelessly to experimentation, particularly in watercolors, with a compositional and stylistic freedom and an innovative and surprising use of colors that led his peers to believe that Turner “appeared to paint with his eyes and nose as well as his hand.”

Deemed to be an extraordinary artist ever since his own time, Turner has had a profound and continuing influence on artists that continues to this day.

The exhibition will be accompanied by a major new publication edited by Nicholas Bell, the Museum’s senior vice president for Curatorial Affairs. Titled Conversations with Turner: The Watercolors, the book will bring together scholars of Turner’s art from around the world to engage with each other about the force of his paintings and why they continue to serve as a touchstone for Western culture.

This exhibition is made possible by the generous support of:

Leadership Circle

Alexander and Amanda Bulazel
Charles and Irene Hamm
Ken and Dina Siegel
Chubb, the global insurance company, in honor of Robert G. Stone, Jr.

Patron Circle

Grant and Peggy Cambridge
Cape Branch Foundation

About Mystic Seaport Museum

Mystic Seaport Museum, founded in 1929, is the nation’s leading maritime museum. In addition to providing a multitude of immersive experiences, the Museum also houses a collection of more than two million artifacts that include more than 500 historic vessels and one of the largest collections of maritime photography. The iconic Thompson Exhibition Building is a state-of-the-art gallery that will host Death in the Ice: The Mystery of the Franklin Expedition, a major exhibition of one of seafaring’s most mysterious tragedies December 1, 2018 through April 28, 2019. Mystic Seaport Museum is located one mile south of Exit 90 off I-95 in Mystic, CT. For more information, please visit https://mysticseaport.wpengine.com/ and follow Mystic Seaport Museum on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and Instagram.

Mystic, Conn. (October 5, 2018) — Mystic Seaport Museum honored Dawn Riley and Oakcliff Sailing with its 2018 America and the Sea Award. The prestigious award recognizes those individuals and organizations whose extraordinary achievements in the world of maritime exploration, competition, scholarship, and design best exemplify the American character. The award was presented at a gala fundraiser at the Metropolitan Club in New York City October 3.

Riley stands alone as the first woman to compete in both the America’s Cup and in the Whitbread Round the World Race, two of the pinnacles in the sport of sailing that prior to her had been all but closed to women sailors. Riley also went on to become the first American, male or female, to sail in three America’s Cups and two Whitbread Round the World Races.

“Dawn Riley has blazed the trail for women in sailing over the course of nearly three decades, and has had a tremendous impact on the sport, both as a competitor and as a teacher,” said Steve White, President of Mystic Seaport Museum. “She is in a class by herself, serving as an inspirational role model for young women and all sailors.”

Riley trains premier-level American sailors for future Olympic, America’s Cup, and other world-class level sailing competitions, and leads a movement to reinvigorate the sport in this country. One nexus of this movement is Oakcliff Sailing in Oyster Bay, N.Y., where she serves as Executive Director. A high-performance training center for sailors who have progressed beyond traditional coaching methods, Oakcliff’s vision is to “Build American Leaders through Sailing.” Riley’s leadership and the quality of the programs she oversees were recognized recently by New York Yacht Club’s American Magic, which is currently preparing a challenge for the 36th America’s Cup. This syndicate partnered with Oakcliff to recruit and train members for their America’s Cup Team.

Riley pursued an impressive racing career on the water punctuated by unprecedented accomplishments such as her role as the watch captain/engineer on Maiden, the first all-women’s team in the 1989-90 Whitbread Round the World Race; pit person for America³, winner of the 1992 America’s Cup and first woman to have an active role on an America’s Cup team; skipper of Heineken, the only all-women’s entry in the 1993-94 Whitbread Race; team captain of America³, the women’s team in the 1995 America’s Cup; 1999 US Sailing’s Rolex Yachtswoman of the Year; America True CEO and Captain in the 2000 America’s Cup; and winning skipper at the 2002 IC45 World Championships.

Past recipients of the America and the Sea Award include philanthropist and environmentalist David Rockefeller, Jr. ; oceanographer and explorer Sylvia Earle; historian David McCullough; legendary yacht designer Olin Stephens; President and CEO of Crowley Maritime Corporation, Thomas Crowley;  philanthropist William Koch; former Secretary of the Navy John Lehman; WoodenBoat Publications founder Jon Wilson; yachtsman and author Gary Jobson; maritime industrialist Charles A. Robertson; author Nathaniel Philbrick; and Rod and Bob Johnstone and their company J/Boats.

About Mystic Seaport Museum

Mystic Seaport Museum, founded in 1929, is the nation’s leading maritime museum. In addition to providing a multitude of immersive experiences, the Museum also houses a collection of more than two million artifacts that include more than 500 historic vessels and one of the largest collections of maritime photography. The iconic Thompson Exhibition Building is a state-of-the-art gallery that will host Death in the Ice: The Mystery of the Franklin Expedition, a major exhibition of one of seafaring’s most mysterious tragedies December 1, 2018 through April 28, 2019. Mystic Seaport Museum is located one mile south of Exit 90 off I-95 in Mystic, CT. For more information, please visit https://mysticseaport.wpengine.com/ and follow Mystic Seaport Museum on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and Instagram.

Mystic, Conn. (October 1, 2018) — Mystic Seaport Museum announces the return of its Halloween theatrical production, Nautical Nightmares, beginning October 12

The performance is a dramatic experience that explores ghost tales, legends and unsolved mysteries of days gone by. This year’s show, “Nautical Nightmares: Madness on the Mystic River,” is inspired by the works of H. P. Lovecraft, who, according to Stephen King, was “the 20th century’s greatest practitioner of the classic horror tale.” Visitors in small, guided groups join the alienists of Arkham to investigate a haunted whaleship and the madness that has descended throughout the town of Mystic. The story is related through a series of scenes as the group navigates a path through the Museum’s village and waterfront.

Performance nights are October 12-13, 19-20, and 26-28. Tours run 6-10 p.m. and leave every 15 minutes from the Museum’s main entrance.

Ticket prices are $25 for adults ($21 for Museum members) and $20 for youth ages 12-17 ($16 for Museum members). Tickets can be purchased online at mysticseaport.org/nauticalnightmares or by calling 860.572.5331. Advance registration is required.

Nautical Nightmares is recommended for children ages 12 and older. Visitors will be walking outdoors along both dirt and stone paths and are encouraged to wear appropriate footwear.

About Mystic Seaport Museum

Mystic Seaport Museum, founded in 1929, is the nation’s leading maritime museum. In addition to providing a multitude of immersive experiences, the Museum also houses a collection of more than two million artifacts that include more than 500 historic vessels and one of the largest collections of maritime photography. The iconic Thompson Exhibition Building is a state-of-the-art gallery that will host Death in the Ice: The Mystery of the Franklin Expedition, a major exhibition of one of seafaring’s most mysterious tragedies December 1, 2018 through April 28, 2019. Mystic Seaport Museum is located one mile south of Exit 90 off I-95 in Mystic, CT. For more information, please visit https://mysticseaport.wpengine.com/ and follow Mystic Seaport Museum on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and Instagram.