The Fashion Arts Society was founded in 2010 as well, with great response. The organization hosted their first fundraiser for the department, an after-party for the IMA fashion show Project IMA: Fashion Unbound titled Behind the Seams. The event went off without a hitch, and enjoyed by all who attended. FAS membership is growing steadily and the FAS calendar for 2011 will not disappoint.

In November the exhibition, Read My Pins, the Madeleine Albright Collection opened at the IMA with great success. The installation is beautiful and the catalogue accompanying the exhibition is a delight.
Dr. Albright visited the museum in early November, for a book signing and lecture, which was one of the most enjoyable experiences I’ve had to date. Dr. Albright is as witty as she is smart and I think I am not alone in saying that everyone left the Toby that evening smiling.

This year the department also acquired about 45 new acquisitions, two of which is a dress (1972) by Halston (now on view on the IMA’s 3rd floor just outside the entrance for the Fashion Arts Gallery) and a complete Rudi Gernreich Japanese schoolboy ensemble (1967).

ensemble; ‘Japanese schoolboy’, 1967 by Rudi Gernreich (2010.205a-f) Caroline Marmon Fesler Fund

All of the museum’s recent acquisitions are featured on the IMA’s dashboard. However, here are just a few.

dress, 1966 by Rudi Gernreich (2010.71) Mr. and Mrs. William B. Ansted, Jr. Art Fund

The dress is a companion piece for this coat acquired by the IMA in 2008. coat, 1966, by Rudi Gernreich (2008.199) Lucille Stewart Endowed Art Fund

In 1966, Gernreich created a line featuring animal patterns of which this tiger print dress and coat are examples.  It was a Coty Award winning line.

dress, 1986 by Zandra Lindsey Rhodes (2010.74A-B) Gift of Alfred Shands

The print for this dress, style number 86/6, named ‘Peacock godets’ was inspired by a trip Rhodes took to India.

quilt; ‘Morning Glory’, 1912 by Marie D. Webster (2010.79) Webster Collection, Gift of Katherine Webster Dwight

The IMA has several of Marie D. Webster‘s quilts and patterns in the collection already. Morning Glory was published in a 1912 issue of Ladies Home Journal and the pattern for this quilt is also housed in the IMA’s permanent collection (S7289.91a-e).

purse; ‘milk carton’, 1990s by Franco Moschino (2010.213) Textile Arts Fund

The image of the cow not only indicates the symbolic contents of the bag, “milk” but it was also one of the memorable faces used to launch Moschino‘s publicity campaigns. The purse includes an “ingredients list” promoting love, peace, fun and friendship, the “recipe” and an illustration instructing the wearer to not throw the bag away.

As 2010 draws to a close, we are preparing for the spring 2011 opening of Material World, an exhibition that will feature extravagant ornamentation of textiles and personal adornment from cultures around the world.

Here’s to another productive year!

Loch Long by Robert Duncanson

The next step was to research the artist and the painting to make sure the landscape represented Duncanson’s best work. The artist traveled to Scotland many times bringing back numerous sketches that he turned into landscape paintings.  Some of these paintings are considered his most important pieces.  Research showed that Loch Long certainly belonged in this category.  Since the painting was being offered at auction, we could not bring it into The IMA to be examined by our conservation department prior to its purchase.  Our conservation department recommended a conservator near the auction who sent us a condition report.  Although the painting would require cleaning along with some additional work, this was not considered a deterrent to its acquisition.

Having taken all the necessary steps to make sure the painting would make an important addition to the collection and its condition was not problematic, I still had to decide on the maximum amount we should bid and find someone who would step in and purchase the work if the committee or the Board turned it down.  Considering all the research a curator does before suggesting a work be acquired by the museum, it is very unlikely that it would be rejected, but it is still necessary to be prepared.  I contacted a local art collector who agreed to purchase the work if it did not obtain approval.  We decided on a maximum bid, but not before researching the artist’s auction records.  It was necessary to also establish where the painting fit into previous sale prices and how much the museum, and in this case the collector, could pay.  Most auction catalogs contain estimated sale prices for each piece in the sale, but these estimates are not always reliable. It is critical to understand the art market and the painting’s place in it before deciding on a maximum bid.  I also had to determine which art acquisition fund could support this purchase.  Some of these funds are designated for specific types of art and others are general funds that can be used for any purchase. It is possible that none of the funds would be accessible, if they were already designated for other purchases.  Funds were found to be available that could be used to purchase Loch Long in the Alliance of the Indianapolis Museum of Art Fund.

I placed the bid by telephone, which is the typical method of bidding if it is not possible to attend the auction.  The final bid was double the auction house’s high estimate, which was not surprising.  Collectors and museums were beginning to recognize the significance of African American art and prices were climbing. Duncanson’s Loch Long was not only an important landscape but also a very striking one.  The final bid was one bid under the maximum the museum and collector were willing to pay, so we were extremely fortunate to be the high bidder.  The purchase was unanimously approved by the committee and the Board, which, as expected, eliminated any obligation on the part of the collector. After undergoing conservation, Loch Long was placed on view in the American galleries with the Hudson River School paintings already on display.