[Henri Matisse’s large-scale ceramic La Gerbe (The Sheaf) (1953), installed in the Brody house. Photo is from the archives of Frances L. Brody. The piece is now part of LACMA's permanent collection.]
Thinking about collecting couples, like the Vogels, my mind wandered to Sidney and Frances Brody of L.A. Different in terms of means and lifestyle, both couples enjoyed remarkable journeys as part of the 20th Century art scene. In case you missed this in 2010, LACMA's senior curator and department head of Modern Art, Stephanie Barron, wrote a great blog post about the late Mrs. Brody's gift to the Museum -- Matisse's monumental La Gerbe. Commissioned by the Brodys in the early 1950s for the large patio of their mid-century A. Quincy Jones-designed (and Billy Haines-decorated) house, the piece remained, according to Mrs. Brody, the heart of their home for more than 50 years.
[Henri Cartier-Bresson, 1944, Henri Matisse, Vence, France
from the exhibition, Henri Cartier-Bresson: The Modern Century.]
There's a wonderful transcript of Mrs. Brody's detailed recollections of the entire process -- conceptualizing the commission, visiting the octogenarian artist in France, communicating the vision, working out the incredible logistics of shipping and installing the precious ceramic pieces -- made available by LACMA here.
For background on the Brody art collection, check out this Christie's video. Further details can be found here.
Posts
11 comments:
I did not see Ms. Barron's post about the Brody gift. I will have to pop over there to check it out. How amazing that they were able to commission a piece from Matisse!
OK - had to stop back after reading Barron's wonderful post - how amazing. Seeing the piece on the crane hovering over the trees reminded me of that scene in Fellini's Dolce Vita with the statue! Without the Italian crowds of course.
Stacey -- I know! The whole thing is amazing. Glad you had a chance to check it out. I'm adding a link to a Christie's video about the Brody collection.
That courtyard is one of the most fabulous things I have ever seen!
Frances Brody (nee Lasker) and my grandmother, Peggy Fulenwider (nee James), traveled the world together with her family when they were quite young. My grandmother, who passed away this past September at age 95, kept her travel journals from that trip. When we were cleaning out her house, we found a huge picture of this Matisse in the courtyard that Frances sent my grnadmother....So lovely.
I hope they having fun together in heaven....I miss them here!
Cyn --
What a wonderful part of your family history. And what a treasure that picture -- and the journals --must be! So glad you shared.
Courtney
The transcript of Mrs. Brody's memories -- her own words -- really is terrific. Apart from the rich story, her strength, vision and flair comes through well.
Matisse is such an inspiration!
Come visit my blog, I am doing a painting giveaway and would love to have you enter!
http://bonjourfrenchie.blogspot.com/
Hi Jessica, i agree with you. inspiring me also
What a very fantastic art collection.
So inspiring, talk about outdoor living. I absolutely love the Brody space with the Matisse installation.
Post a Comment