MORRIS MUSEUM OF ART EMBARKS ON HISTORIC RE-INSTALLATION OF ITS COLLECTIONS

THE MORRIS MUSEUM OF ART, AUGUSTA, GA, HAS BEGUN CLOSING GALLERIES IN PREPARATION FOR PHASE I OF THE RE-INSTALLATION OF THE MUSEUM'S PERMANENT COLLECTION. THIS IS A THREE-PHASE PLAN, WHICH HIGHLIGHTS WORKS OF ART THAT HAVE NOT BEEN EXHIBITED FOR SOME TIME OR HAVE NEVER BEEN EXHIBITED AT ALL. THE GALLERIES WILL BE OPENED ON, 5.MARCH.2010, FOR THE MORRIS MUSEUM'S SEVENTEENTH ANNUAL GALA. THIS IS THE FIRST TIME SINCE THE MUSEUM OPENED ITS DOORS IN SEPTEMBER 1992, THAT A COMPLETE RE-INSTALLATION OF ITS PERMANENT COLLECTION HAS BEEN UNDERTAKEN. PHASE I BEGAN 14.DECEMBER, WHEN THE MUSEUM CLOSED GALLERIES DEVOTED TO 19th AND 20th CENTURY LANDSCAPE PAINTINGS AND CONTEMPORARY PAINTINGS. PHASE II BEGINS ON 24.JANUARY.2010, WITH THE CLOSING OF GALLERIES DEVOTED TO ANTEBELLUM PORTRAITURE, IMAGES OF THE CIVIL WAR, GENRE PAINTING, 19th AND 20th CENTURY STILL LIFE PAINTINGS, IMPRESSIONISM IN THE SOUTH, REGIONALISM AND ABSTRACTION IN THE SOUTH. PHASE III INVOLVES THE CLOSING OF THE MUSEUM'S TEMPORARY EXHIBITION GALLERIES ON 1.FEBRUARY.2010, WHEN THE SPECIAL EXHIBITION 'RESPONSE AND MEMORY: THE ART OF BEVERLY BUCHANAN' COMES TO AN END. THROUGH THE MONTH OF FEBRUARY, THE MUSEUM'S COGGIN'S GALLERY, WHICH CURRENTLY FEATURES 'DEEP SEA: DRAWINGS BY WILLIAM GOLDING', AND ITS FIRST FLOOR EDUCATION GALLERY WILL BE OPEN, AND THERE WILL BE A FULL AND ACTIVE ROSTER OF PUBLIC PROGRAMS TAKING PLACE. IN ADDITION TO THE REOPENING OF THE PERMANENT COLLECTION GALLERIES ON THE NIGHT OF THE ANNUAL GALA, THE MUSEUM WILL ALSO OPEN A SPECIAL EXHIBITION THAT NIGHT ENTITLED, DIALECT: AMERICAN SCENE PAINTINGS FROM THE JOHN AND SUSAN HORSEMAN COLLECTION', WHICH FEATURES A SELECTION OF FIFTY-SEVEN IMPORTANT WORKS OF ART BY 43 OF THE MOST INFLUENTIAL ARTISTS WHO WORKED OUTSIDE THE MAJOR ART CENTERS BETWEEN THE WORLD WARS.