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Gari Melchers Home and Studio opens thought-provoking 'Aphrodite Among Us' exhibition Date published: 5/21/2009
BY CLINT SCHEMMER Beginning Saturday, a brand-new show at Belmont will reveal a little-appreciated aspect of Gari Melchers' artistry. His nudes. The celebrated American painter was famous for his depictions of Europe's noble peasantry, and beloved for his idyllic scenes of gardens and country life. But as this season's exhibition at Gari Melchers Home and Studio makes clear, he also loved to paint the human figure--and excelled at it. "It's a facet of his work that really hasn't been evaluated until now," said Ted Minniear, the show's guest curator. "It speaks to his capabilities as an artist and to his various interests. I think that when people walk into the galleries, it's going to be hard for them to believe that all of the works were produced by the same artist." Minniear, an art history major and rising senior at UMW who aspires to go into the curatorial profession, spent much of the past year creating this retrospective of the celebrated Impressionist's female nudes. Its 45 works, all Melchers originals, range from charcoal sketches to life-size oil-on-canvas easel paintings. Many are going on display for the first time, Minniear noted. Classically trained in Germany and Paris as a figure painter, Melchers painted the female nude throughout his long career. In his later years, he turned to the subject with greater regularity. Over his lifetime, he produced a surprisingly large number of nudes considering that few sold, Minniear said. As best as can be determined, none of them were commissioned. Melchers was certainly aware the subject could be controversial, as he learned in 1912 when he included a female nude in a gallery of his works at a prestigious Berlin art exhibition that Kaiser Wilhelm II invited him to participate in. The kaiserin, Augusta Victoria, was offended by the painting when she had a private preview of the show. Frantic officials telegraphed Melchers in Holland about the imperial request. He wired back: "You can remove the room, but not the nude." The painting stayed put. Titled "Young Woman at Her Toilet," it is included in Belmont's new show.
Date published: 5/21/2009
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