Time and Transformation in 17th Century Dutch Art Exhibition at the Ringling Museum

August 20 - October 30, 2005

SARASOTA, Fla. – July 18, 2005 – The John and Mable Ringling Museum of Art will offer a far-reaching exhibition when it presents Time and Transformation in Seventeenth-Century Dutch Art, on view from Aug. 20 through Oct. 30. This landmark exhibition is the first to examine how 17^th century Dutch artists included the effects of time and circumstance upon the physical world into their work.

Landscape paintings with ruins, scenes of weathered cottages, still lifes that feature human skulls and pictures of newsworthy catastrophes were among the notable subjects of Dutch art of the Old Masters. 

Time and Transformation draws together a wide range of exceptionally fine art work from The Frances Lehman Loeb Art Center at Vassar College, Poughkeepsie, N.Y., from private holdings and from collections of more than a dozen major American museums, including the Ringling Museum of Art. It was organized with support from the Samuel H. Kress Foundation. The exhibition encompasses some 90 paintings, drawings, prints and illustrated books ranging from 1600 to 1690.  Among the artists represented are Rembrandt van Rijn, Jacob van Ruisdael, Aelbert Cuyp, Joachim Wtewael, Abraham Bloemaert, Hercules Segers and Daniel Vosmaer.

“The Dutch used this kind of imagery both to recall their communal past and to reflect upon the varied conditions of life in the present,” said Susan Donahue Kuretsky, the Sarah Gibson Blanding Professor of Art at Vassar, the exhibition’s organizer. “This exhibition focuses broadly on this material and its inclusion may allow us to further understand the story of the complex relationship between art and life in the Dutch Republic.” 

Ringling Museum Associate Curator Joanna Weber, Exhibition Curator for this traveling show, said, “We have exquisite Dutch art in our own permanent collection that works beautifully with this exhibition. This magnificent array of artwork affords us the rare chance to see how time transforms the physical world with decay and deterioration.”       

Complementing the exhibition’s dramatic impact, Vassar College has published a catalogue featuring entries and an overview by Susan Kuretsky as well as essays by five noted scholars. One member of that group, Dr. Arthur Wheelock, Curator of Northern Baroque Painting, National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C., will present a ViewPoints lecture at the Ringling Museum of Art on Oct. 8. For information about this event and other enrichment programs, call 941- 358.3180. The catalogue is available for purchase in the Ringling Museum Store. Following its presentation at the Ringling Museum of Art, the exhibition will be on display at the J.B. Speed Art Museum in Louisville, Ky., from Jan. 10 – March 26, 2006.

General Admission includes the special exhibition, Ringling Museum of Art, Cà d’Zan mansion, Circus Museum, Mable’s historic Rose Garden, and Florida’s only rose test gardens all on 66 acres of lushly landscaped grounds.  Adults are $15; senior citizens (65 and over) and Military are $12.  Free admission for children 12 and under accompanied by an adult, Museum Members, and Florida students and teachers with valid ID cards.  Advance Tickets are recommended: 941.358.3180.

The Museum’s exhibitions and programs are made possible in part through support by the Sarasota County Tourist Development Tax through the Board of County Commissioners, the Tourist Development Council and the Sarasota County Arts Council; the State of Florida, Florida Department of State, Division of Cultural Affairs, and the Florida Arts Council; and the Institute of Museum and Library Services, a federal agency that fosters innovation, leadership, and a lifetime of learning.   Related educational programs received additional support from The Cowles Charitable Trust and The New York Times Company Foundation on the recommendation of the Sarasota Herald-Tribune. 

The John and Mable Ringling Museum of Art, Florida State University, is the state art museum of Florida.  It preserves, develops, and enhances the legacy of John and Mable Ringling and engages and educates a large and diverse audience in a world-renowned collection of art, Cà d'Zan (the Ringlings’ mansion) and its historic contents, collections documenting the circus and its history, the Historic Asolo Theater, and the architecture, courtyard, gardens, and grounds overlooking Sarasota Bay.

General Admission includes the Ringling Museum of Art, special exhibitions, Ca' d’Zan Mansion, Circus Museum, and Mable’s historic Rose Garden, all on 66 acres of lushly landscaped grounds. Adults are $25; senior citizens (65 and over) are $20; children ages 6-17 are $5.  Free Admission for children 5 and under accompanied by an adult, museum members.  Advance tickets are available by calling 941.358.3180. Visit Ringling.org for more information.

The John and Mable Ringling Museum of Art, Florida State University, is one of the largest museum/university complexes in the nation.  It preserves the legacy of John and Mable Ringling, educating and enabling a large and diverse audience to experience and take delight in a world-renowned collection of fine art; Ca' d’Zan, the Ringling historic mansion; the Circus Museums; the Original Asolo Theater; and historic architecture, courtyard, gardens and grounds overlooking Sarasota Bay.
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