BAM review: “Julius Shulman” and “Passport to Paris”
This untitled photo by Julius Shulman pictures the State Capitol Bank in Oklahoma City. It was designed architects Bailey, Bozalis, Dickinson & Roloff; Shulman photographed the building on May 11,1963. (J. Paul Getty Trust. Used with permission. Julius Shulman Photography Archive. Research Library at the Getty Research Institute.)
My younger son, Gabe, 2, and I attended this week the Members’ Preview for the Oklahoma City Museum of Art’s two new special exhibitions: “Julius Shulman: Oklahoma Modernism Rediscovered” and “Passport to Paris: 19th Century French Prints from the Georgia Museum of Art.”
The Shulman exhibit proves wonderful on more than one level. Organizing curator Brian Hearn told me that community members who love Shulman’s work set into motion the work to bring the exhibit to Oklahoma City. That’s inspiring.
Plus, the images are stunning. The exhibit includes about 60 images of 21 different architectural projects in six Oklahoma communities. The structures depicted include homes, banks, churches and more, and all are beautiful examples of mid-century modernism, with clean, geometric lines and real sense of aesthetic balance.
Shulman took the photos between 1950-80, and his distinctive, dramatic sense of style is evident in every image. My favorite photo in the exhibit shows the State Capitol Bank, which looks like a landing platform for flying saucers.
Also of keen interest are images of legendary architect Bruce Goff’s model of the Crystal Chapel, a building that was set to be built on the University of Oklahoma campus but never came to fruition.
The exhibit includes several photos of the Greene Residence (aka the “Prairie Chicken House”) in Norman. Architect Herb Greene designed it, and Shulman’s photos of it are featured in the documentary “Visual Acoustics: The Modernism of Julius Shulman.”
The fascinating film is showing at the museum through Sunday and definitely is worth seeing, particularly in conjunction with the exhibit.
Shulman is best known for his photos of Southern California modernist architecture, though he took photographs all over the world. This is the first time his Oklahoma photos have been exhibited, and the show should not be missed.
The other exhibit, “Passport to Paris,” focuses on lithographs, etchings and one woodcut from the 19th century, mostly from French artists. The exhibit includes more than 40 prints from the Georgia Museum of Art; the subject matter includes portraits, landscapes and satires.
As promised, the exhibit does give a different perspective on some of the most famous artists to come out of France, who mostly gained their renown through painting. Among the artists whose work is featured in the exhibit are Édouard Manet, Pierre-Auguste Renoir, Charles François Daubigny and sculptor Auguste Rodin.
It is interesting to see how the artists’ distinctive styles come through in the different medium of printmaking. For instance, the carefree flair of Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec’s posters also can be seen in his prints.
Gabe in particular enjoyed looking at the printmaking equipment, including a press, in the exhibit.
The highlight of the show is Mary Cassatt’s “The Coiffure,” one of the few color works in the exhibit, which features her signature delicate lines on a female figure.
The exhibits are on display at the Oklahoma City Museum of Art through June 7, and I recommend them both.
- BAM
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