Alongside the brightly colored Dala horses, large-scale woven artworks, and fabulous furniture featured in the Scandinavian Design and the United States, 1890–1980 exhibition are eight publications from the Milwaukee Art Museum Research Center—two magazines, an exhibition catalogue, three books, a beautiful serigraph, and an interactive ergonomics manual. Why, you may be asking, are these publications on display in an exhibition with works of art and design? The Research Center works closely with the Museum’s curatorial team to build a collection of rare books, academic texts, exhibition cat ..read more

For many Milwaukeeans, the renowned architect Santiago Calatrava needs no introduction. As the designer of the Museum’s Quadracci Pavilion, he is synonymous with the crisp, expansive, and sweeping white building often called “the Calatrava.” In September, we celebrated the building’s 20th anniversary with a visit from the architect—his first since the Quadracci Pavilion’s grand opening. As part of the celebration, we asked the Museum’s social followers to submit questions for the architect to answer during his visit. Keep reading to see how our conversation reflected on the building’s preserv ..read more

Photo of Isabel Bader and Dr. Alfred Bader by Front Room Studios We at the Milwaukee Art Museum were deeply saddened to learn of the recent passing of Isabel Bader, a loss that is greatly felt within our Museum family. A longtime patron and friend of the Museum, Isabel was known for her remarkable passion and steadfast commitment to the arts, which had a profound impact on our institution and our community. For decades the Museum has benefited from the boundless generosity and invaluable support of Isabel, her late husband Dr. Alfred Bader, and the Bader Family’s charitable foundation, Bader P ..read more

True or false: the Museum’s collection galleries always stay the same? False! As the Milwaukee Art Museum’s curators continue updating the contemporary galleries and preparing for the upcoming exhibition The Ashcan School and The Eight: “Creating a National Art,” many artworks have come out of the vault and into the galleries for visitors to enjoy. Keep reading to see some of the newly installed works on view, including those by artists with connections to Milwaukee. Selected works by John Wilde, 1948–2002 Explore gallery K219 to see rotating artworks, including paintings and prints, by Mil ..read more

The Milwaukee Art Museum is thrilled to announce our very own Marcelle Polednik, Donna and Donald Baumgartner Director, has been honored with a Milwaukee Business Journal Women of Influence Award for her significant contributions to the arts and our community. Every year, the Milwaukee Business Journal celebrates prominent female leaders from across the city with their annual Women of Influence Award. From the 150 nominations, 30 women were awarded. “It is a tremendous honor to be in this group of very talented and very accomplished women. Being part of this wonderful cohort means being a sta ..read more

Wilhelm Ludwig Friedrich Riefstahl (German, 1827–1888), Wedding Procession in Tyrol (detail), ca. 1866. Oil on canvas. Gift of the René von Schleinitz Foundation, M1962.90. Periodically in the past, the blog has featured a series of posts called “Questions of Provenance,” which discussed issues related to provenance, or the history of ownership of a work of art. Over the next few months, this series will continue with posts highlighting recent research into works in the Milwaukee Art Museum’s collection. In case you missed it, the first one was published in January. The last story I shared was ..read more

Local artist Klassik performing in front of Untitled Anxious Audience (detail), 2017, by Rashid Johnson (American, b. 1977). Ceramic tile, soap, and wax. 95 1/2 × 159 × 2 1/2 in. Purchase, with funds from Mark and Debbie Attanasio, Marianne and Sheldon Lubar, Joanne Murphy, the African American Art Alliance, and the Modern and Contemporary Art Deaccession Funds, M2017.60 © Rashid Johnson The Milwaukee Art Museum is excited to introduce Spotlight Sessions, a virtual series featuring an artist or local luminary interpreting or responding to an artwork in the collection. This series captures the ..read more

Paul Jenkins (American, 1923 – 2012), Phenomena 831 Broadway, 1963. Acrylic on canvas. 111 × 69 in. (281.94 × 175.26 cm). Gift of Jane Bradley Pettit, M1975.187. © Estate of Paul Jenkins/Licensed by ADAGP, Paris/Artists Rights Society (ARS) New York The Museum’s collection of more than 32,000 works of art spans from antiquity to the present and includes gifts and purchases dating from 1888 to today. There are the favorites that everyone looks forward to seeing with each visit, yet works come in and out and are frequently moved about. They rest (in the vault), travel to other institutions, and ..read more

Ludwig Knaus (German, 1829–1910), Dance under the Linden Tree, 1881 (detail). Oil on canvas. Gift of the René von Schleinitz Foundation M1962.31. Photo credit: John R. Glembin. Ludwig Knaus (German, 1829–1910), Dance under the Linden Tree, 1881. Oil on canvas. Gift of the René von Schleinitz Foundation M1962.31. Photo credit: John R. Glembin. Periodically in the past, the blog has featured a series of posts called “Questions of Provenance,” which discussed issues related to an artwork’s provenance, or its history of ownership. Over the next few months, this series will continue with monthly po ..read more

This summer the Milwaukee Art Museum hosted Lakeside at MAM, an opportunity to enjoy the Museum’s lawn; performances by local musicians, dancers, and poets; yoga; and art making with the Kohl’s Art Studio. Inspired by 19th– and 20th-century painters and travelers, Studio visitors thought about the time it took to send correspondences, including artwork, back home. Artists of all ages painted watercolor postcards with a variety of subjects, such as Lake Michigan, Milwaukee skylines, rainbows, sunny faces, and many ..read more