By Sandra Schulman It’s been a long hot summer, so the cool breeze of a new art season is a welcome relief. Major collections figure in shows at the Norton, while the Boca Museum conjures up a little mystery. Bicycles, natural flora, fiber art and art fairs all make appearances. Norton Museum of Art With a new director and curators, the Norton has a new energy going … [Read more...]
Mr. Ho’s Orchestrotica promises out-of-the-box music-making at the Norton
In 1971, British comedy troupe Monty Python released And Now For Something Completely Different, its absurdist first feature film. Roughly 35 years later, percussionist Brian O'Neill formed Mr. Ho's Orchestrotica (orchestrotica.com), a group that's taken that title concept into musical terrain ever since. Featuring O'Neill on vibraphone and hand percussion, Geni Skendo … [Read more...]
Season Preview 2022-23: The season in Palm Beach art
` By Christina Wood Moving forward from the darkest days of the pandemic, the arts in general --- as well as many of the artists and arts organizations specific to Palm Beach County --- seem to be more conscious of the steps they take. This season, you can count on the arts to provide perspective along with inspiration – from the Boca Raton Museum of Art’s … [Read more...]
Norton deepens collection with absorbing Dürer, Rembrandt and Picasso exhibit
There are some times when a celebrated turn of phrase from literature perfectly sums up an experience, and for a current exhibition at the Norton Museum of Art, the magic words come from Christopher Marlowe, writing in 1589: Infinite riches in a little room. The West Palm Beach museum has been promised prints by three supreme masters of the genre — Albrecht Dürer, Rembrandt … [Read more...]
Young artists do Purcell proud at Palm Beach Opera opener
By Rosie Rogers Although the exact circumstances of the composition of Henry Purcell’s Dido and Aeneas have been contested over the last 30 years, the first verifiable performance of the work was given in London by the students at Josias Priest’s School for Girls in 1689. The lively cast of Palm Beach Opera’s 60th anniversary production of the opera on Dec. 11, made up … [Read more...]
At the Norton, it’s TGIF: Thank God it’s Frida
In the universe of Mexican art, one petite star has shined consistently bright despite the eclipse caused by male counterparts. If it were a constellation, its shape would be a thick unibrow and its name Friducha. That was famed Mexican muralist Diego Rivera’s name for his painter wife Frida Kahlo. Both are now the focus of a new exhibition organized by the Norton Museum of … [Read more...]
Norton’s all-woman exhibit sets the record straight
Bronze limbs shaped as rustic geometric figures form an abstract construction that is darkened and firm, primitive and totem-like. Gender doesn’t come into it, but if it did, assigning female to this sculpture would be unlikely. Certainly, a woman’s artwork is more organic, erratic, softer, and emotional. That erroneous assertion is still common, even if it’s now voiced … [Read more...]
Norton digs deep for ‘Art Finds a Way’
By Sandra Schulman Pulling from a deep collection and even deeper current events, the Norton’s curator Cheryl Brutvan has amassed a stellar exhibit of works from African-American artists. In Art Finds a Way, she builds on some of the buzzier names the Norton owns – Nick Cave’s zany tribal Space Suits, Mickalene Thomas’s hyper-decorative collage paintings – and adds in … [Read more...]
Norton’s new CEO: The museum as hub for creativity and dialogue
Early into a recent interview, it becomes clear why Ghislain d'Humières landed the job of director and CEO of the Norton Museum of Art. A native of France with a last name that exudes harmony and elegance, d'Humières is grounded, energetic and has the well-rounded business acumen to take one of Palm Beach County’s most precious cultural jewels to the next level. This … [Read more...]
Season Preview 2020-21: Palm Beach art institutions forge ahead
By Sandra Schulman Palm Beach is counting on the arts and art lovers to rebound this season, with ambitious shows planned, and plenty of outdoor art viewing available. The Norton Museum plans to reopen this month, and the Boca Museum has been renovated and is offering several new exhibits. Palm Beach’s Worth Avenue emerges as a new gallery hotspot. Norton Museum of … [Read more...]