Tour of the West Collection at SEI.  Oaks, PA

An exciting and innovative corporate collection of paintings, sculpture, photography and mixed media.  Works by several women artists figure prominently in the collection. Special tour by Lee Stoetzel, Director of the West Collection and luncheon.

Art History Mini-Course: “Women in Art”
Main Line Art Center, Haverford, PA 

Lecturer: Susanna T. Saunders, Ph.D.
This course presents many women artists who are receiving major acclaim in exhibitions and films such as Mary Cassatt, Frida Kahlo, Alice Neel, Louise Bourgeois and Anne Truitt, as well as some of the newest additions to the international art scene.  Discussions also reference Artemisia Gentileschi, Angelica Kauffmann, Berthe Morisot, among others, to provide an historical perspective.  Trips to local collections give a unique hands-on experience. Partnership with the Main Line Art Center (MLAC), Haverford.

Berthe Morisot
The Cage, 1885
Oil on canvas, 19 7/8 x 15 in.
Gift of Wallace and Wilhelmina Holladay

Private Tour of two exhibitions, Alice Neel & Mary McFadden
The Galleries at Moore College of Art, Philadelphia, PA

Alice Neel, (1900-1984) a Philadelphia native, is known for her bold drawing approach and for her psychologically charged portraits and still life.  Mary McFadden’s stunning exhibition has gowns, ensembles and jewelry spanning the renowned fashion designer’s 35 year career.  Also on exhibit are McFadden’s personal collection of art and textiles from ancient Egypt, Greece, India, and several other civilizations. Tour chair: Catherine Ward.

Trip to NMWA Washington, D.C. – Two Exhibitions: Mary Cassatt & Photography. Visit to Private Modern Art Collection

Mary Cassatt: Friends & Family and Role Models: Feminine Identity in Contemporary American Photography.  Lunch on one’s own in NMWA's handsome café.  Also, a very special visit to Glenstone, the private art collection and 150 acre estate of Mitchell P. Rales in Potomac, MD.  The collection includes major works by Henri Matisse, Jackson Pollock, Willem De Kooning, Donald Judd, Jeff Koons, and Mark Rothko.  Outdoor sculptures are by Richard Serra, Tony Smith and Ellsworth Kelly among others.  Partnership with MLAC.

*  Fall Fling at Fleisher. Tour of the “Wind Challenge Exhibition” with curator, Warren Angle.  Partnership with the Fleisher Art Memorial. This excellent group exhibition featured several women artists, and was juried by Jane Irish, Eileen Neff, Phil Simpkin, Jacqueline van Rhyn and Lee Stoetzel.

*  Private tour of the Allentown Art Museum with curator Jacqueline Atkins; art exhibition by Linda Lee Alter, the founder of the Leeway Foundation, which has awarded almost $2 million in grants to women artists.  Alter works in both fiber and acrylic.

*  A trip to Washington D.C. for a private tour of the National Museum of Women in the Arts, including Dawn’s Wedding Feast by Louise Nevelson, Paula Rego’s dramatic retrospective, and Women to Watch, followed by a luncheon with NMWA founder Wilhelmina Cole Holladay.  The trip included a rare look at the private art sanctuary in Potomac of collector Mitchell Rales.

*  Women to Watch: Photography in Philadelphia, the Pennsylvania State Committee’s first exhibition in Philadelphia, at The Galleries at Moore College of Art.  This was an exhibition featuring new or recent work by five established women artists (Alida Fish, Eileen Neff, Clarissa Sligh, Ruth Thorne-Thomsen and Deborah Willis) and three emerging women artists (Genevieve Coutroubis, Sarah Stolfa and Zoe Strauss).  Over 1,600 visitors viewed the exhibition.  Related activities included an exhibition preview and curator’s tour, reception and a panel discussion moderated by Susan Fisher Sterling, NMWA Director, with Katherine Ware of the Philadelphia Museum of Art, Denise Bethel of Sotheby’s, and Julie Saul of the Julie Saul Gallery in NYC.

*  Women to Watch 2008 a photography exhibition at NMWA featuring an installation by Philadelphia artist Zoe Strauss, a recent recipient of the United States Artists Fellowship.

*  On Collecting Women’s Art presented in conjunction with the Philadelphia Art Alliance and featuring top tier collectors, gallery owners, artists and NMWA Director Susan Fisher Sterling.

*  An exclusive full day tour of three outstanding private art collections with major works by women artists, and a visit to the Locks Gallery to view exhibitions of Philadelphia Artists Neysa Grassi and Edna Andrade.  Followed by lunch at the Acorn Club.

*  A special screening of Mirror Dance a documentary by Philadelphia Women Filmmakers Frances McElroy and Maria Teresa Rodriguez, presented in partnership with the Bryn Mawr Film Institute and followed by a wine and dessert reception.  The subject of the film and her family joined us for the event.

*  A visit to the Georgetown residence of NMWA’s Founder, Wilhelmina Cole Holladay, to view her personal art collection, and a private tour of the Museum’s exhibition Italian Women Artists for Renaissance to Baroque with the Museum’s Director and the Director of Education.

*  To commemorate the 20th anniversary of NMWA, the PA State Committee acquired two photographs by renown Philadelphia photographer, Ruth Thorne-Thomsen: “Chicago Head, View from the Shoreline” and “Flora Bella, Views from the Shoreline.”  With the assistance of the Schmidt/Dean Gallery, Philadelphia.

Ruth Thorne-Thomsen
Small Dog from the Agua Tierra Series 1999-2001
Iris print, 24 x 28 inches
Courtesy Schmidt Dean Gallery