April/May

I’ve remarked before that one of the pleasures of studying history-and art history-is that things are always shifting, with established events acquiring new and different meanings as values change and different contexts are provided. It is, as they say, very much a case of history being a mirror we hold up to our own times. Along these lines, not too many years ago, I would have greeted the information that I would enthusiastically embrace an exhibition of Norman Rockwell’s work with appalled disbelief: "Rockwell! That corny, sentimentalizing illustrator!? You must be joking!" Rockwell stood for everything antipathetic to contemporary art: highly realistic, sunny in disposition, technically polished, his work had nothing to do with the avant-garde art around him; the proletariat-minded social realism of the 1930s and early ’40s; the angst-ridden abstraction of the 1950s; the irony-drenched representations of the ’60s; the rigorously cerebral formulations of the Conceptual artists. Rockwell’s work seemed entirely beside the point. And though, as far as mainstream art is concerned, I believe it still is, his success within his own field is a phenomenon we decided, when offered the opportunity, to explore. Exactly how did he create such a persuasive vision of what, in the last election, some might have held up as "real" America? Like most conceptions of what is "real," Rockwell’s world was, in fact, narrowly defined and, until the later years of his career, rarely moved beyond the confines of his native New England. Even so, he parlayed an essentially local vision into a widely cherished national identity, a fact that is explored in the DIA’s presentation of his work.

Originally we had intended to "pair" the Rockwell exhibition with one focusing on Andy Warhol-the polar opposite of Rockwell and increasingly regarded within the art world as the most significant artist of the last thirty years of the twentieth century. Warhol even started life as a designer/ illustrator (of shoes) but went on to question what can seem like every preconceived notion, relentlessly probing what constituted a work of art and mocking the idea of celebrity. "In the future," he most famously said (even as he turned out endless series of portraits of the rich and famous), "everyone will be famous for fifteen minutes." It seemed absurd at the time, thirty plus years ago but, if nothing else, Warhol accurately prophesied such TV programs as American Idol, Survivor, and The Biggest Loser. When the opportunity arose for the Warhol show to be presented at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, we had to choose between our original schedule and the New York venue. We chose the latter.

In looking for a replacement show, we joined with the Victoria and Albert Museum in London and a major Canadian museum in planning a massive exhibition about the baroque style as it found expression around the world. When, in the teeth of the financial disaster precipitated last year, the Canadian venue had to pull out in December because of the collapse of the Canadian dollar, we were confronted with another decision: whether or not to pick up the total transatlantic costs. Although we had adequate money in our Special Exhibitions Restricted Fund, I decided against committing so much of it to a single exhibition. This left a large gap in our fall 2009 schedule-the proverbial tomorrow in terms of exhibition organizing-but as we contemplated leaving the galleries "dark" we were offered an exhibition of the fashion photography of Richard Avedon, which we decided made a nice, if not as dramatic, contrast to Mr. Rockwell.

The next edition of Your DIA, covering the summer months, will be the last in a printed format. We went to a bi-monthly schedule earlier this year as a cost-saving move, but financial pressures and greater acceptance of e-mail technology have prompted us to move to an electronic publication, which will allow us to provide more timely program information and more frequent member contact. For members unable to take advantage of e-mail, we will continue to periodically produce and mail a printed piece that will provide an activities calendar and other important information. We are making these and other changes to help meet the financial challenges ahead. Our commitment is to provide all members and visitors with exceptional experiences at the DIA. I hope you understand and will continue to support us as generously as you can. Please sign up for our new electronic newsletter for members by completing and returning the postcard inside the front cover, calling the Membership HelpLine at 313.833.7971, or e-mailing us at dharting@dia.org.

Graham W. J. Beal
Director