Throughout this summer the Meadows Museum has hosted the exhibition, “Modern Mexican Painting from the Andrés Blaisten Collection.” There is a range of subject matter on view, from landscapes, portraits, and still lifes to abstract and surrealistic scenes, woven together by the shared exploration of Mexican national identity in the modern, post-Revolution era.

As an intern here at the Meadows for the last couple months, I have had the opportunity to see the exhibition more than once. With each procession through the galleries I notice something new, but upon each visit I am also drawn to the same few paintings, each time more transfixed than the last. One such piece is the large-scale oil painting Collecting Flowers (Recolección de flores), by Alfonso X. Peña. Across a large canvas, over three by five feet in size, figures work in a lush forest-like landscape. In the foreground a man and woman gather flowers as two fabric-draped and flower-laden women walk into the receding landscape in the background. The scene is portrayed in sumptuous jewel tones, figures and flora formed by patterns of layered brushstrokes. One of the things that first attracted me to this painting was the colors: rich blue-greens, purples, teals, browns, and especially the female figure’s bright coral, pink and blue clothing.

Although the colorfully rendered figures and scenery are modeled, each shape and fold of fabric also appears to be outlined, and the effect this has is flattening. There is a graphic quality to Collecting Flowers, perhaps influenced by X. Peña’s early start as a cartoonist for a periodical in Tamaulipas, where he grew up. It is as though the painting is constructed from layer upon layer, like a pop-up book. In the background two women walk, surrounded by nature, positioned behind planes of hills, leaves, and a cluster of huge calla lilies. A tree trunk curves behind the man and woman working in the foreground, and the entire scene is framed on either side by trees, purple flowers, and large green leaf faces.

Peña spent his twenties in New York with a group of Mexican modernist artists, including Rufino Tamayo, whose work is also on view in this exhibition. During his career Peña painted murals and exhibited paintings in Mexico, the United States, and across Europe. Like other artists in “Modern Mexican Painting from the Andrés Blaisten Collection,” he seems to have applied modern influences from Mexico and overseas toward a dialogue with his own sense of cultural identity. Other paintings by Peña in the Andrés Blaisten Collection, such as Mercado (Market), on display in the same gallery at the Meadows, are focused on simple scenes of daily life and work, often with small details that help to situate the figures in Mexico.

Collecting Flowers is a romanticized story of Mexican people working in a beautiful, rural Mexican landscape. It is certainly enchanting. The natural space the figures occupy appears magical to me – quiet and softly shaded by immense trees, far away from the modern city. Everything in this place is organic and curvilinear, and the leaves and flowers all seem oversized, perhaps an emphasis on the special nature of their surroundings. It is fantastical, and yet not unreal, as trees and calla lilies truly can be that strikingly large. Peña thus presents an idealized yet still realistic picture of Mexico.

Of course, this painting is only one of eighty in “Modern Mexican Painting from the Andrés Blaisten Collection” at the Meadows Museum, and it will not be on view much longer. The chance to see this and other answers to questions of national identity in the first half of the twentieth century ends on August 12.

Last month we presented a special tasting of wines from La Mancha which celebrated the closing of the tapestry exhibition.  An exclusive seminar was led by renowned wine expert and educator Michael Green, followed by a grand tasting of D.O. La Mancha wines from 15 wineries from around the region.  Free to members, this was a fabulous way to spend a Saturday afternoon.  Guests mingled and munched on regional cheeses and meats as they sipped and soaked in the ambiance.  Everything from “knock your socks off” Syrah to delicious dessert wines made it difficult for revelers to depart.

Yes, as the Membership Manager, I must point out that these sort of events have to be some of the best entertainment values in town!  Also, after so many wonderful “foodie experiences” here at the Meadows I have to wonder, does the gorgeous backdrop here make things tastier?  My guess is a wholehearted yes!

We have one-of-a-kind spaces that ensure memorable and stunning events.  Most recently we had a gorgeous couple get married upstairs in our gallery spaces.  The photos speak for themselves!

Ceremony set up in Virginia Meadows Galleries

Anyone who is familiar with the Meadows knows that this museum houses exemplary works of Spanish art from medieval times to the twenty-first century.  El Greco, Velázquez, Goya, and Picasso are all represented in the collection.  But there are many more, although probably less known, masters of Spanish art whose work is no less deserving of recognition, like Luis de Morales, Juan Pantoja de la Cruz, Juan Bautista Maino, Juan Carreño de Miranda, Vicente López y Portaña, Ignacio Zuloaga, and Juan Gris, just to name a few.  I hope that my work in the museum will contribute to our knowledge of these masters and their production.  All hispanophiles, lovers of art, Dallas residents, and visitors should be immensely grateful to Algur H. Meadows (1899-1978) whose vision and love of Spanish art and culture are responsible for the magnificent collection that we enjoy today.

This entry is my first contribution to Tabula Rasa, the new Meadows Museum blog.  I will write regularly during the next year, and will share with you my thoughts on the experiences I will be living as the Meadows/Kress/Prado Fellow.  Insights on the permanent collection, special exhibitions, and my experiences at the Prado are some of the topics I plan to share with you.   I look forward to reading your comments, or answering any questions you might have.  Finally, I would like to take this opportunity to give my heartfelt thanks to the Meadows Foundation, the Samuel H. Kress Foundation, the Museo Nacional del Prado, the Meadows Museum, the Eugene McDermott Foundation, and all who have made this fellowship possible.   To say that I will take full advantage of this opportunity that I was so fortunate to receive is a great understatement.

Diego Rodríguez de Silva y Velázquez, "Female Figure (Sibyl with Tabula Rasa)"

Welcome everyone to the new blog of the Meadows Museum at SMU! Here you’ll see periodic posts from various staff members, giving you a little more informal, “behind-the-scenes” look at museum life and how we go about our mission of art education. Why the name Tabula Rasa? Well for one, it’s a great name for a blog, as it means “a blank slate.” Secondly, because it relates to one of our favorite works in the collection, Velázquez’s “Sibyl with Tabula Rasa.” (If you’re like most of our visitors, she’s probably one of your favorites, too!)

We hope you’ll enjoy your visits here; feel free to ask us questions!

Carrie Hunnicutt
Marketing & PR Manager