What would the fabric of the creative community, both in Athens and around the state, look like today without the founding of the Georgia Museum of Art by Alfred Heber Holbrook? Looking back at the museum’s 75-year history shows its paramount role in fostering the long-standing, vibrant creative community that Athens is known for today and its part in increasing knowledge of and appreciation for art around the state.
UGA Museums Before the Georgia Museum of Art Well before the museum’s founding, there were other early museums on campus—mainly the Georgia Museum of Natural History and a portrait gallery that was housed in the building we now know as the Holmes-Hunter Academic Building but was then the library. The gallery featured life sized portraits of “distinguished” figures of the time. In 1905, the library moved to a new building, thanks to funding from George Foster Peabody, that now serves as the administration building and was the first home of the Georgia Museum of Art.
Holbrook’s initial visit to campus–where he first met famed artist, UGA School of Art namesake and soon-to-be close friend Lamar Dodd–was the result of a conversation with Franklin Roosevelt’s Federal Arts Program director, Holger Cahill, who suggested UGA as an ideal location. With one visit, Holbrook fell in love with the community and decided that it had “more evidence of genuine art culture” than any university he had visited in the South. He soon moved to Athens, enrolled in UGA art classes and was a beloved classmate, despite his age differ - ence. He was known for donning a pink smock and smoking his pipe in class. The 1947 class of UGA students even dedicated the Pandora Yearbook to him. As director, Holbrook went above and beyond to make the museum known throughout the state. He was known to load up paintings from the collection into the trunk of his car and travel around Georgia to visit with civic groups and share his art. Often, it was the first time some people were able to view works by prominent artists up close and in person. The museum quickly became an established part of the campus fabric, showcasing an ever-evolving display of unique works and serving as a popular venue for meetings, visiting speakers and conferences. Early exhibitions included everything from works by local artists, UGA faculty and Brazilian and Indonesian artists to ceramic artists and even exhibitions featuring artifacts about the history of UGA and Athens. In 1952, Holbrook announced that the Georgia Board of Re- gents had agreed to renovate the current building and expand the museum once the new UGA library had been built. In 1958, construction of the Ilah Dunlap Little Library was completed, and the museum was able to add new galleries. The location on North Campus served as the museum’s home until the mid-1990s. Holbrook worked tirelessly to raise the museum’s profile. Lloyd Goodrich, then associate director of the Whitney Museum of American Art in New York City, made remarks at a dedication ceremony that honored Holbrook and Dodd. Goodrich highlighted the significance of the museum for Georgia, the value of art for society at that time and praised “the diversity of style in modern American art as a sign of freedom and progress in this country.” The 1960s: Elevated Art In the 1960s, the Georgia Museum of Art found its footing as a major museum and hosted exhibitions by internationally renowned artists alongside local and regional works. It contin- ued to expand its permanent collection with works such as the 12 Italian Renaissance and baroque paintings received as a gift from the Samuel H. Kress Foundation. Much like the rest of the country, the UGA campus experienced shifts in cultural norms in the 1960s. Exhibitions at the museum reflected those changing times, showcasing abstract expressionism, pop art and more. One exhibition featured works by 17 artists NASA invited to Cape Kennedy to record their impressions of the space program.
Museum Beginnings: The 1940s and 1950s
When the Georgia Museum of Art opened on November 8, 1948, Holbrook saw his dreams realized. For the next 21 years, he served as director of the museum and poured his heart into es- tablishing it as a source for free public access to art. While small details differ in the accounts of Holbrook's decision to make UGA the home of his new museum, there’s one common thread among them: his unwavering love of art. By donating his own collection of art, assembled in honor of his late wife Eva, this New York City lawyer pursued his passion to give everyone the experience of joy and inspiration that art had given him.
11
Made with FlippingBook - professional solution for displaying marketing and sales documents online