Monday, August 20, 2012

Makeover



If you're a regular visitor to our blog, you may well have noticed the new look and new name, both recently implemented. After years of the blog going by "Curator's Corner," we realized that wasn't always accurate. Paul Manoguerra, our chief curator and curator of American art, originally started this blog, back in the days when he had more time to write for it. But he has exhibitions to plan and books to write and many other things to do that interfere with his blogging duties. Paul still contributes occasionally, as does Lynn Boland, Pierre Daura Curator of European Art at the museum, but this blog is now overwhelmingly written by our wonderful students in the department of communications.

A fresh look complements the new name: Holbrook's Trunk. Alfred Heber Holbrook, pictured above, was the founder and first director of the Georgia Museum of Art. A retired New York lawyer, he devoted the second half of his life to collecting art and then to evangelizing about it. We are forever thankful that he met Lamar Dodd and decided to give his collection to the University of Georgia to establish a museum for the citizens of the state. Since 1945, when the museum was made official (despite the fact that it didn't have a building until 1948), we have been directed by his philosophy. Holbrook was so dedicated to promoting the importance of art that he used to load paintings into the trunk of his car and take off around the state, spreading the gospel to whoever would listen. That kind of carefree behavior with works of art is, somewhat unfortunately, no longer a possibility, but the impulse behind it—to sing the praises of the visual arts across the state, in as relatable a way as possible—still drives us and this blog.

We hope you like the rebrand. Let us know what you think in the comments.

1 comment:

Michelle Shutzer said...

Love the Blog and the new name. Keeping it fresh GMOA! Good on you.