Museum of Fine Arts

Happy Hanukah. This is the last week of 2011, a heavy year by many accounts. Boston will have several exciting events with first night please check http://www.firstnight.org. The American Repertory Theater showcases two productions The Snow Queen and Three Pianos. The Museum of Fine Arts presents two films on the art of cooking:Three Stars and the famous restaurant El Bulli: Cooking in Progress. Happy New Year 2012....

Alas, few cultural events are taking place this week. The Food Bank has a great concert at New England Conservatory while the American Repertory Theater showcases two productions The Snow Queen and Three Pianos. The Museum of Fine Arts presents two films: Unfinished Spaces and Three Stars featuring the Michelin Chef Stars: Jean-Georges Vongerichten, Jean-Georges (New York), Yannick Alléno, Le Meurice (France), Juan Mari & Elena Arzack, Arzack (Spain), Sven Elverfeld, Aqua (Germany), Sergio Herman, Oud Sluis (The Netherlands), Hideki Ishikawa, Ishikawa (Japan), René Redzepi, Noma (Denmark), Olivier Roellinger, Le Coquillage (France), Nadia Santini, Dal Pescatore (Italy). Merry Christmas!!!!

For the past three years Mass MoCA curator, Denise Markonish, has trekked across Canada making hundreds of studio visits. When not on the road she has researched exhibitions and catalogues. Few American curators and critics are as broadly informed on the vast and complex topic of contemporary art in Canada. It is a project she took on almost by default given the general lack of interest and commitment. In June the museum will exhibit the work of 64 artists in what should prove to be an eye opening and ground breaking overview. This is the third and final segment of a critical dialogue.

A rich week of Christmas Music: Bach at the Jordan Hall with the Handel & Haydn Society; Medieval Music with the Boston Camerata; Celtic Music at the Cutler Majestic & NEC Millennium Gospel Choir at the MFA. Longy School of Music presents Antonio Cesti’s opera Orontea. The Harvard Film Archives continues Henri-George Clouzot’s retrospective while the MFA has a series of films dedicated to Architecture (Foster, Eames and Portman); Arts Emerson presents the great Katherine Hepburn. Dance is featured through Diplomacy Through Dance: 
Bringing American Modern Dance to Kazakhstan. Enjoy!

James Aponovich is regarded as among the foremost American realist painters. He is in the midst of a conceptual project to finish a painting a week for a year. It was the subject of a broadcast on Chronicle this past week. In May the entire series of 52 paintings will be shown at Clark Gallery in Lincoln, Mass. This was an occasion to catch up with a superb artist and old friend.

A series of four films about contemporary architecture and design is now being shown at the Boston Museum of Fine Arts. Including in the program are an interesting range of design, architectural practice and national attitudes. Beginning with a film about multidimensional designers Charles and Ray Eames, the next three films focus upon more architecturally-oriented subjects, the UK's Lord Norman Foster, Atlanta-based John Portman and the story of the on/off architecture for the Cuban National School of the Arts.

American Repertory Theatre presents Three Pianos – A Toast to Shubert’s Winterreise. The Goethe Institute showcases the Nobel Prize Screening. Two films retrospectives continue: The Greek Cinema at the Museum of Fine Arts and Henri-Georges Clouzot at the Harvard Film Archives. Boston Symphony Orchestra is on tour in San Francisco.

The Museum of Fine Arts presents a retrospective of Greek Cinema while the Harvard Film Archives continues Henri-Georges Clouzot retrospective. Boston Symphony Orchestra debut of Czech conductor Jiří Bělohlávek with Mahler and Harbison. WGBH proposes an evening with Rick Steves while the Boston Symphony Orchestra hosts a book signing for Ron Della Chiesa, Radio My Way.

Happy Thanksgiving to all. Numerous cultural activities across the city with France present in several venues. Boston Symphony Orchestra presents a rich program of Berlioz, Mozart, Carter, Bartók; Harbison, Ravel, Mahler under the baton of the French conductor Ludovic Morlot. The Harvard Film Archives starts a series of Henri-Georges Clouzot films while the Museum of Fine Arts pursues Catherine Deneuve's retrospective.

David Ross is less than impressed by the installation of the Museum of Fine Arts's new Linde Family Wing of Contemporary Art. He also expressed impatience with the lack of fundraising acumen by Carl Belz during his directorship of the Rose Art Museum. But Ted Stebbins of the MFA was a gentleman whom everyone loved.

Special this week events include in film Catherine Deneuve's retrospective at the Museum of Fine Arts, in opera Mozart's Don Giovanni the Metropolitan Opera Live on HD encore and Verdi's Nabuco at the Coolidge Corner Theatre; in dance Angel Reapers inspired by Ann Lee's life, founder of the Shaker movement at the Cutler Majectic Theatre; and the Untitled Still Life Collection by Trajal Harrell and Sarah Sze at the Institute of Contemporary Art.; and in music the Boston Philharmonic at Jordan Hall in a Brahms concert.

Boston selection of events: Trisha Brown Dance Company returns to Boston after over a decade hiatus at the Institute of Contemporary Art; not to miss Jean Yves Thibaudet and Angelika Kirchschlager at Jordan Hall part of the Boston Celebrity Series; the Jewish Film Festival continues at the Museum of Fine Arts and the Harvard Archives resumes its retrospective on Sergio Leone cinematographic oeuvre.

The Boston MFA has made a serious commttment to contemporary decorative arts. This has been a cumulative effort by Director Malcolm Rogers over the last decade and half. With the opening of the Linde Family Contemporary Art Wing in October, there was the opening of the first dedicated gallery to contemporary decorative art, the Farago Gallery. To curate this gallery and to integrate contemporary decorative arts, craft and design with the rest of contemporary visual art, the museum hired Emily Zilber as the first contemporary decorative arts curator. And this isn't all.

Gernan Films in conjunction with the 23rd Jewish Film Festival. Harvard Film Archives retrospective of Sergio Leone films and Nicholas Ray "We Can’t Go Home Again". Don’t miss Blanchard and Sanchez, with the backing of the Poncho Sanchez Latin Jazz Band, as they unleash an unforgettable evening of high-energy Afro-Cuban jazz.

A week full of exceptional films: Andy Warhol at the Harvard Film Archives; The Palestinian Film Festival at the Museum of Fine arts, Trisha Brown dance performance at the ICA; Shumann and Strauss at The Boston Symphony Orchestra and much more....

This week highlights are: "Women of Will" at Central Square Theatre; Berlioz: Beatrice et Benedicte at the Cutler Majestic Opera Boston; the Palestinian Film Festival at the Museum of Fine Arts; ICA Art Music: Babaa Maal

This week highlights are the not to be missed MFA Christian Marclay’s video: “The Clock”; Central Square Theatre “Women of Will” play; Fenway Theater MET High Definition screening “Anna Bolena”; Harvard Film Archives “Dreamlife of Angels” and ICA Live performance “Knitting Nation Phase 7”.

Mary Zimmerman has adapted and directed the production of Candide which is enjoying a successful run at Boston's Huntington Theatre. During an extensive dialogue she discussed the controversy of her three Met productions which were harshly reviewed by critics and opera traditionalists. She is negotiating with the Met for a new production as well as revivals. She also spoke about working with and creating an opera with Philip Glass.

An exceptional week of cultural activities in Boston & Cambridge: Trisha Brown’s Floor of the Forest, a mixture of sculpture, dance & performance at the ICA. The Harvard Film Archives showcase the work of the British filmmaker Ben Rivers and Romanian Andrei Ujica.

The first special exhibition in the newly renovated Linde Family Wing of Contempoary Art is a survey of wood sculptures by Ellsworth Kelly. With this project the MFA honors one of the most distinguished among the alumni of its Museum School. During the opening Kelly spoke with the media about studying with Boston Expressionist Karl Zerbe.

A day by day calendar of selected cultural events from concerts, musicals, plays, and films in Boston and Cambridge.

On the occasion of the opening of the Linde Family Wing of Contemporary Art we reflect on a troubling history. There has been a struggle going back to the 1930s and the founding of the Institute of Contemporary Art. There has been an awkward relationship between the ICA, MFA and other museums in the area. It is now time for art workers to unite and throw off their chains.

Many scoffed that the MFA didn't have any contemporary art. The new installation of the collection proves that the old dame has more than Morris Louis. Bostonians are among the best-educated and most sophisticated people in America and they don’t need to be treated as if they are grade school children when it comes to contemporary art.

Directed by Susan Vogel (2011, 53 min.). Filmed over three years in Venice, Nsukka, and the United States, this is a powerful portrait of Africa’s most widely acclaimed contemporary artist El Anatsui. Fold Crumple Crush gives an insider’s view of the artist’s practice, the ingenious steps and thousands of hours of labor that convert used bottle tops into huge, opulent wall hangings. Anatsui explains how his artworks have become a marriage of painting and sculpture—objects that speak of African history but also reach for the ethereal—and he talks about his aspirations for artworks he has yet to make.

Transforming a user-unfriendly I.M. Pei designed (1981) West Wing into a permanent location for its contemporary collection of art, decorative objects and design, the Boston Museum of Fine Arts has unveiled a new comfortable setting for visitors. With care and sensitivity, seven new gallery spaces have opened up the possibilities of contemporary art and craft never before presented in such depth and variety by the MFA. Kudos to the Boston Museum of Fine Arts.