The Steins Collect
May 21-Sept 6 2011
DUE Monday August 29th (2nd day of
school)
Almost everyone likes to collect, and what we collect varies from
person to person: cats, earrings, key chains, stuffed animals,
cookbooks, sports team paraphernalia, etc. Gertrude Stein, her
younger brother Leo, their older brother Michael and his wife Sarah,
lived in Paris at the beginning of the 20th century and collected art—
tons of it! They focused mainly on Picasso and Matisse, but you’ll also
see (and hopefully recognize!) works by Cézanne, Renoir, ToulouseLautrec plus many others. This exhibit is huge—as you visit, imagine
living with all this art on your own walls! The Steins’ encouragement,
influence and financial support of these “just-starting-out” artists
helped give birth to modern art. The exhibit contains not only
paintings and sculptures but also photographs of the Steins, both in
the US and in Paris; we actually get to see photos of the collections
on the walls of their homes in Paris—oh là là!
Objectives
1. To understand the relationship between artist and collector
2. To understand what it is to be an art collector
3. To become familiar with the concepts of “le salon” and “avant-garde” (Note: This “salon” is different from
the salon we studied connected to the Impressionists).
4. To see and appreciate the art of Matisse, Picasso, and other Parisian avant-garde artists
Ticket Cost:
•
Normal student price with student ID is $18,
•
$12.50 on Thursday evenings from 6-8:45 pm,
•
$7.00 all day on the first Tuesday of the month.
PLEASE email me immediately [email protected] if this price is problematic. I cannot stress enough the
importance of taking care of your ticket as soon as it is possible!
DUE DATE: August 29th—the second day of school). Buy your timed ticket immediately for June, July or
August. You will visit this exhibit (exhibit=exposition) at SFMOMA, in downtown San Francisco. Take this
paper with you to the museum and answer all the questions including pre-visit question. (See question section)
Final Product: 60 PTS. You must keep your ticket stub to get full credit for this assignment. SEE
RUBRIC BELOW FOR GRADING DETAILS. On the due date hand in, stapled, in the following order:
rubric w/ ticket stub attached, typed answers to questions, and original pencil notes. (No photo this time )
SFMOMA: 3rd Street between Mission & Howard. Please take MUNI or BART if possible to help the
environment. Best time to visit is when museum first opens or the hour before it closes; avoid weekends if
possible. The museum is closed on Wednesday. Please consult website for hours & other important information:
www.sfmoma.org. Because this exhibit will be very popular, you have to buy timed tickets—you can’t just walk in
and see this collection; once there, you can stay as long as you want, but you MUST order a timed ticket, either
on line or at SFMOMA. Be sure and stop by the Martin Luther King Memorial & Yerba Buena Gardens (free
concerts some days: www.YBGF.org) while you’re there. Go with friends and/or family.
La Visite: Take this paper and extra paper with you + a PENCIL and a hard surface to
write on. You’ll have to hand in these pencil notes so make sure they’re complete, legible,
and contain all the information you need to type up your answers. Read ALL QUESTIONS
BELOW BEFORE THE VISIT. With these “big picture” questions in mind, move through the exhibit observing,
reflecting, and taking notes as you go along. Following the visit (right away—don’t wait) compile all the
information from your notes and observations to respond fully to the questions.
LES QUESTIONS Answer ALL of the following questions IN ENGLISH.
(Remember: Include your museum notes and be sure to TYPE final answers)
Pre-visit questions to be completed at home:
1.
Research the word “salon”. As you will learn from this exhibit the Steins hosted a weekly “salon”.
What does the word “salon” mean in this context? Research this term before your visit and explain in
a paragraph the following: Why were these “salons” important in the art world? What did people do at
them? Who was invited?
2. Research the word “avant-garde”. Explain the meaning of this word in 2-3 sentences.
Les Questions au Musée
3. Who were the Steins? You learned a little from our intro, but read the signs at
the beginning of the exhibit, look at the old photos, and tell us more about this
family. Where were they from? When and why did they go to Paris? Include their
French addresses here too. How did they get started collecting art?
4. Why did they collect the avant-garde art they collected? From your observations,
(both from the art work and from the information presented) what made this art
avant-garde?
5. The salons hosted at that time were private. If you had been invited to the salon
at Gertrude and Leo’s home, what would you have seen? What would you have talked
about?
6. If you had been invited to the salon at Michael and Sarah’s, what would you have seen and talked about?
7. What would you rather do, host a salon or be a guest? Why?
8. What was the relationship like between the collector and the artist? How did the collector help the artist?
You will find part of this answer in the room titled “Sarah and Académie Matisse.
9. In the room titled “Matisse and Picasso”, you will see the painting that launched the Steins’ commitment
to collecting the most radical art of the day. Name it. Name the painter. It probably doesn’t look revolutionary
to you—why did it then?
10. In the same room you will learn about the relationship between Picasso and Matisse. How did they meet?
Briefly describe their relationship.
11. Favorite Paintings: Imagine you’re a collector of these Parisian avant-garde artists. Choose one painting
that you would buy by Matisse, one by Picasso, one by Renoir, and one by one other artist. Name them. (Be sure
to include the artists’ names and dates the piece was painted.) Explain briefly why you would buy each one. Be
specific. Be descriptive. “I like it” is not an acceptable answer.
12. As the artists became more well-known, their prices rose and eventually the Steins couldn’t afford to buy
any paintings. When Ernest Hemingway complained about this to Gertrude, she advised him to “buy the people
of your own age…there are always good new serious painters”. SO, please go to the 2nd floor and browse the
museum’s collections of new artists. Choose 2 whose work you’d like to own and tell why you chose them.
Include the artists’ names, title of piece, and the date the artist created it.
13. What do you collect and why? How long have you been collecting it?
Rubrique: 60 pts
***Read this rubric and the objectives on page 1 carefully in order to understand the
expectations of the assignment.
Note: MUSEUM TICKET MUST BE ATTACHED TO THIS PAGE FOR FULL CREDIT.
Excellent
Quality of
content*
(see
objectives
listed below)
Completeness
Instructions
followed
All questions answered
thoughtfully & thoroughly;
excellent content
throughout; answers
demonstrate clear
understanding of the exhibit
and all objectives from page
1*.
-typed and pages in order
-ticket stub
-pencil notes taken while at
museum
Bien
All or most questions
answered; good content
throughout; answers
demonstrate a good
understanding of
exhibit and objectives;
Some responses
demonstrate good
reflection and detail.
Comme-ci Comme ça
Some or most
questions answered
but lack the detail
depth and reflection
needed to
demonstrate
understanding of the
exhibit and objectives
of this project.
Faible
Not all questions answered and
those that are answered are weak
in depth and lacking in reflection;
unclear that an attempt was made
to understand the exhibit and the
objectives.
Not all instructions followed
Missing ticket stub
Organization
*Objectives:
1. To understand the relationship between artist and collector
2. To understand what it is to be an art collector
3. To become familiar with the concepts of “le salon” and “avant-garde”
4. To see and appreciate the art of Matisse, Picasso, and other Parisian avant-garde artists