In 1821, an earthquake shook southern Spain and in the process exposed the entrance to Cueva de Ardales, a previously hidden cave. Inside, more than 1,000 red carvings and paintings dotted its walls, ceilings, ground rocks and other natural elements.

Archaeologists have long suspected the cave artwork to be very old, but now they believe they have a much clearer picture of exactly when and who created it. Neanderthals and later more modern humans left their artistic mark on the cave around 58,000 years ago, according to a new paper published this week in the journal PLOS One.

An international team of archaeologists explored Cueva de Ardales from 2011 to 2018, then used radiocarbon and uranium-thorium dating techniques to understand the cave’s history.

They believe Neanderthals first entered the cave in the Middle Paleolithic, or mid-Stone Age, drawing on the walls and keeping their tools inside. After that, human visits to Cueva de Ardales fluctuated until the end of the Neolithic/Chalcolithic – the last part of the Stone Age and the Copper Age – around 5,500 years ago,

Based on the items found by archaeologists in the cave, they also suspect that it was used only to create art and bury the dead, and not as a shelter. This suggests that the site was highly symbolic for its visitors.

“What is very exciting is that, as far as we can tell so far, Ardales was not a classic campsite,” said Gerd-Christian Weniger, an archaeologist at the University of Cologne and the one of the authors of the article. Gizmodois Isaac Schultz. “It was not clear before the excavations.”

Although they found no chimneys or other evidence to suggest domestic occupation of the cave, the researchers did document a deer tooth, a wildcat bone, pieces of ochre, tools and the jawbone of a 12-year-old boy, among others. artifacts. They also found a fragment of rope and some charcoal dating to the late 16th or early 17th century, suggesting that someone abseiled into the cave a few hundred years before the earthquake. land of 1821 discovers its entrance.

Natural light could not reach the cave’s deepest depths, so its prehistoric artists had to improvise to see what they were drawing. Researchers have found charcoal residue in stalagmite caps near some artworks, suggesting painters created makeshift lamps to illuminate their work area.

After the 19th century earthquake, curious tourists strolled inside Cueva de Ardales, located in Málaga, Spain, about 30 miles from the Mediterranean coast. But it took nearly 100 years for researchers to realize the value of its archaeological riches. In 1918, French archaeologist Henri Breuil recognized that the artwork inside the cave was very old, probably dating from the Paleolithic period. Despite this, archaeologists paid little attention to Cueva de Ardales until around 1990, when researchers made a comprehensive inventory of all the rock art in the cave.

Although this latest study sheds more light on the mysterious cavern, there is still an entire section that researchers have yet to investigate, for example. Gizmodo. Hopefully there’s more art — and more information about prehistoric humans, their ancestors, and their creativity — to come.

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THE ARTIST Gerard Black did not tell the stories of his native heritage for a long time because of the prejudice and ignorance of others.

“I was painting when I was in my early teens and younger, then I quit because of this whole ‘don’t tell people you’re Native’ thing,” the 38-year-old said.

“There were bad stereotypes in that, and advice that you won’t get certain jobs or certain opportunities.”

The former Torquay resident and now owner of local business Tidal Tattoo Torquay shared his story during National Reconciliation Week (May 27-June 3) and said he identifies with its 2022 theme” Be brave. Make the change.”

“Three years ago when my son Oswald was born, I realized that I couldn’t let him go through what I had been through, and I couldn’t let him grow up without feeling proud of his culture – d ‘where he comes from and who his people are,’ Mr Black said.

“Then I knew the only way to do that was to be stronger in myself and share everything I knew, just spreading it out and embracing it.”

The Worimi man has since found fulfillment using his art to help share the ancient stories of his heritage and shared history with non-Indigenous Australians, each work in its own way being a stepping stone on a journey of reconciliation.

“I guess this way of making change for me is like creating positive change and positive connections with my art by educating and talking to people and sharing stories,” he said.

“I want to do it to a point where non-Indigenous people feel as connected to the stories as we do.

“It’s like our common history and our common history, something that we share together.”

The Surf Coast Shire is working on its first Reconciliation Action Plan and has adopted one of Mr Black’s artwork to help symbolize the journey.

It depicts the green of the Otways and the blue of the ocean meeting at the beach. Footprints in the sand trace from either end of the beach to a common ground that is conducive to respectful encounters, deep listening and learning – a place where the green shoots of reconciliation could grow.

Mr Black spoke at the county’s official National Reconciliation Week event held in the council chambers on Tuesday this week, which also featured wife Adnyamathanha and director and co-founder of ‘Arranyinha Marsha Uppill and Wadawurrung wife and cultural educator Corrina Eccles.

Shire Mayor Libby Stapleton said reconciliation remained one of council’s top priorities.

“Reconciliation Week opens up important conversations and learning opportunities, and challenges us to make change for the benefit of all Australians,” said Cr Stapleton.

“The more we know and understand, the better equipped we will be to achieve this ambition.”

PHOENIX — A Los Angeles museum has repaired a prized painting by Abstract Expressionist Willem de Kooning and will soon put it on display for the first time since it was stolen from the University of Arizona Art Museum there is almost 40 years old.

“Woman-Ocher” will be the focus of the Getty Museum’s exhibit titled “Conserving de Kooning: Theft and Recovery” from June 7 to August 28.

The mid-1950s oil on canvas was cut from its frame and stolen from UAMA on November 29, 1985.

It appeared at an estate sale in the small western New Mexico town of Cliff in August 2017 and was purchased along with other items by an antique dealer, who was unaware of the origin of the painting.

The dealer sought it out after being warned by customers and returned it to the Tucson Museum, which originally received it as a donation in 1958.

No one has ever been arrested for the theft.

UAMA officials turned to experts from the Getty Museum to repair the damaged artwork.

“The painting came to us in very poor condition. The brutal manner in which it was ripped from its liner caused severe peeling and tearing of the paint, not to mention damage from the blade that was used to slice it from its frame,” said Ulrich Birkmaier, senior curator of the paintings from the Getty, to the press. Release.

“To bring a painting from such a dire state to a place where it can now be safely displayed is a huge achievement.”

“Woman-Ocher” will return to Tucson after the Getty exhibit and is scheduled to be exhibited at UAMA from October 8 of this year through May 20, 2023.

“‘Woman-Ocher’ is a crown jewel of the University of Arizona Museum of Art’s collection, and we look forward to seeing it back in our galleries this fall,” said Andrew Schulz, vice-president president of the school for the arts. said in the press release.

“In the meantime, we look forward to the upcoming Getty exhibition and the opportunity to share this extraordinary work – and its equally extraordinary story – with a wide audience.”

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An “exterior paint project” on the Carnival Magic cruise ship sparked a Coast Guard investigation Thursday into a “foul odor” and illness among passengers.

There are no reports of immediate distress on the vessel, according to a tweet from the Coast Guard’s Mid-Atlantic Division.

“Some guests aboard the Carnival Magic were affected by an odor from an exterior paint project yesterday. The ship’s crew responded quickly and provided assistance to guests,” a Carnival Cruise spokesperson said Thursday. in a press release.

The nearly 4,000-passenger ship departed Norfolk on Saturday for its second voyage since the pandemic, according to a schedule of port calls from Nauticus. He returned Thursday morning. All passengers had disembarked Thursday afternoon, the Carnival spokesman said.

The boat was the first to take off from Norfolk since 2019, when it set sail on May 15, and is the largest to ever leave Virginia.

Asked to comment on the nature of the smell reported on the ship, a Coastguard spokesman declined to give a description. A Nauticus spokesperson also could not be reached for comment.

Gavin Stone, [email protected]

Ali Sullivan, 757-677-1974, [email protected]

On May 24, Prime Minister Narendra Modi presented an art painting of Gond to Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese on behalf of Indians. The leaders of India and Australia are in Tokyo for the second in-person Quad Summit. Separately, on the sidelines of the Quad Summit in Tokyo on May 24, Prime Minister Modi held “fruitful” talks with Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, during which the two leaders took stock of their multifaceted bilateral cooperation and reaffirmed their desire to deepen it.

What is Gond Art paint?

Gond paintings are a popular tribal art form that originated in Madhya Pradesh. The word “Gond” is derived from the word “Kond”, which means “green mountain”. Gond art is believed to be quite similar to Australian Aboriginal art. The Aborigines, like the Gonds, have their own creation stories. These two art forms are separated by thousands of miles in terms of geographical distance between their creators, but they are strongly linked in their sentimentality and emotional core, which are the distinguishing characteristics of each art form.

Gond paintings are composed of dots and lines and were used as pictorial art on Gond walls and floors. This is done during the construction and reconstruction of each house, using locally available natural colors and materials such as charcoal, colored earth, plant sap, leaves, cow dung, limestone powder, etc.

Prime Minister Modi recognizes dedication of Prime Minister Albanese

At the Quad summit, Prime Minister Modi praised Albanese, saying his attendance at the summit just 24 hours after taking the oath demonstrated his dedication to the Quad. On Monday, Anthony Albanese was sworn in as Australia’s 31st Prime Minister. In Saturday’s election, his centre-left Labor Party defeated his predecessor Scott Morrison’s Conservative coalition. For nine years, the coalition was in power under three prime ministers.

According to the Foreign Ministry, the two prime ministers expressed their willingness to maintain the positive momentum in bilateral relations. Furthermore, Prime Minister Modi has invited the Australian Prime Minister to visit India as soon as possible. The MEA said in a press release: “The two leaders reviewed the multi-faceted cooperation within the framework of the comprehensive strategic partnership, including in trade and investment, defense manufacturing, renewable energy, including including green hydrogen, education, science and technology, agricultural research, sports and people connections to people.”

Image: AP/ANI

On-site review and photos by Rick Russack, additional photos courtesy of Grogan & Company

BOSTON — The May 1 sale of Grogan & Company continued the company’s streak of grand slam home runs. According to the revised schedule, this sale had only 211 lots, only jewelry and paintings, and brought in just under $3 million. Five lots fetched over $100,000 each, four of which were jewelry, with over 40 lots winning five-figure prizes. Using these numbers, the average sale price per lot was over $13,000. Only 20 batches were passed. Estimates were conservative and GIA documentation was available for many jewels. The online catalog descriptions are detailed and include several photographs of each item.

Four of the lots that sold for more than $100,000 each were fine jewelry. The sale was led by a Van Cleef & Arpels 18-karat gold and diamond “Fuchsia” pendant/brooch and necklace, which fetched $537,500, and a pair of 18-karat gold and diamond “Fuchsia” ear clips. diamonds, also from Van Cleef & Arpels, which made $375,000. . The two lots had been bought by the seller’s husband as a present for his 40th birthday. The fuchsia flower head pendant/brooch and necklace were both signed and the diamonds weighed a total of 19.02 carats. To make the brooch more versatile, the couple had commissioned Van Cleef & Arpels to design a complementary necklace, adapting the brooch to be worn alone or on the necklace. This lot came with a letter discussing the order, the fitting of the brooch and a rendering of the necklace. Taylor See, director of the jewelry department, noted that the necklace and brooch, being a custom design, had never been seen before by collectors, which adds to the interest. The next lot, also signed, was a pair of 18-karat gold and diamond “Fuchsia” clip-on earrings, intended to be worn with the necklace, with diamonds weighing a total of 15.43 carats. He made $375,000.

Two platinum and diamond rings also fetched over $100,000 each. One was centered on a round brilliant cut diamond weighing 5.19 carats flanked by tapered baguette cut diamonds weighing an additional 4.22 total diamonds. The accompanying GIA report indicated that the large diamond was E, VVS2, with no fluorescence. The E indicates that the diamond is colorless and the VVS2 indicates “very slightly included”. In other words, the stone in this ring was high quality and it sold for $175,000. The second ring was centered on a pear-shaped diamond weighing 6.00 carats, flanked by trillion-cut diamonds weighing around 1.00 carats in total. The GIA report for this ring said the diamond was D, VVS1, with low fluorescence, also a very fine diamond and it fetched $150,000.

When, after the sale, See was asked if any of the items in her department surprised her, she mentioned a platinum “fruit cart” brooch, set with gems and diamonds, which reached 16 $250. “It was a very well done and very colorful piece,” she said. “He got a lot of attention.” It included rubies, diamonds, emeralds and sapphires and had an indecipherable maker’s mark as well as French test marks. When See was asked at the preview what her favorite item in the sale was, she picked up a South Sea pearl necklace with a white gold clasp set with diamonds. With 37 cultured pearls, it sold for $4,375.

Since four of the five lots selling for six-figure prices were jewelry, the fifth was a painting, “Wild White Rose” by Marsden Hartley (1877-1943), which fetched $343,750. The painting depicted a single white rose and its leaves on a bright dark red background. The catalog noted that this painting is included in the Marsden Hartley Legacy Project: Complete Paintings and Works on Paper. It was an important painting for Hartley personally, as noted in the catalog. “Hartley painted ‘Wild White Rose’ in 1936. In September of that year, Hartley was living in Nova Scotia with the Mason family when their two sons and nephew drowned at sea. The deaths of his dear friends deeply touched Hartley, as evidenced by his repeated portrayal of the iconic wild rose, or “rosa rugosa,” which blooms along the Atlantic coast. In the years that followed, Hartley produced many iterations of the rose to commemorate the event. The stark contrast, bold colors, exaggerated form, bold black outlines and flattened space of ‘Wild White Rose’ exemplify his work from this period.

Many paintings fetched over $10,000, with two completely different works earning $50,000 each. One was a tempera on Masonite, “Cambridge in May” by Grandmother Moses (1860-1991), signed and dated 1943. It depicted a rural town scene in summer, with cultivated fields in the background, as well as horse-drawn wagons, many houses, a large barn, etc. Most of his scenes are in winter settings, which makes this work a bit unusual. Cambridge, NY is only a few miles from her home in Eagle Bridge, NY The other painting at the same price, $50,000, was a 1928 work by Austrian artist Rudolf Wacker (1893-1939). This painting was an example of the scenes for which he was best known – the homes and backyards of working-class neighborhoods. Another work by Wacker fetched $34,375. Both were descended in the artist’s family and both sold to buyers in Europe.

An oil on canvas, “Mountainside Road,” a rural landscape by Marguerite Thompson Zorach (1887-1968), a pioneer of modernism in America, fetched $25,000. Her well-known resume includes her appearance at the 1913 Armory Show, and she was the only female exhibitor at the Forum of Modern American Painters Selective Exhibition of 1916.

There were a number of paintings by Rockport School artists, the most popular of which, selling for $11,875, was Emile Albert Gruppe’s depiction of Smith Cove in Gloucester, Mass. This is the type of port scene for which Gruppe (1896-1978) is well known. Two autumn scenes by Antonio Cirino (1889-1993) were sold. One won $2,500, and the other, a sunset street scene with several houses, a large church, and people going about their business, won $3,438.

Georgina Winthrop, vice president and director of fine arts, said she especially loves paintings, like the Hartley, with stories to tell. “Another I really liked was ‘Monhegan Burial’ by James Edward Fitzgerald (1899-1971). For me, that scene really told its own story – mourners on a rainy day, in yellow oilskins moving a coffin in a village street with a harbor full of boats. You could feel the emotion in this painting. And I think the price, $34,375, reflected that emotion.

A few days after the sale, Michael Grogan said he was understandably pleased with the results. “One of the things that really caught my attention was the fact that we sent around 145 invoices,” he said. “This indicates that most of our sales are to people with a very specific appeal for what they buy, as opposed to resellers who buy multiple items for inventory. We’re very selective in what we sell, and I think our customers know they’re looking at things they may not see again any time soon. They decided that it was worth researching these select items. Sometimes this makes it difficult to accurately predict what an item will sell for.

The prices shown include the buyer’s commission as quoted by the auction house. For information, www.groganco.com or 617-720-2020.

Sissi Abascal, a young Cuban woman who started protesting at 16 and hasn’t stopped

“That day we were at home and I connected to the internet through my mobile phone. There I started seeing the videos of the protests”

By Yoani Sanchez (14ymedio)

HAVANA TIMES — At 16, Sissi Abascal Zamora wasn’t, like any other teenager, walking around with her friends or wearing new clothes. At this age, she joined the Ladies in White Movement and she lived between arrests and police operations. On July 11, 2021, her participation in the popular demonstrations of that day landed her in prison with a six-year sentence.

Her mother, Annia Zamora Carmenate, has no doubt: “Sissi is a political prisoner”. From this quiet girl, who stood out from her brothers for her calmness, she became one of the most consistent activists in the province of Matanzas. In the small town of Carlos Rojas, the young woman – on 11J (July 11^and) she was 23 – performed in an intense protest with dozens of neighbors.

“That day we were at home and I connected to the Internet through my mobile phone. There I started seeing the videos of the protests, first in San Antonio de los Baños, then in Havana , so I talked to my husband, Armando Abascal Serrano about it,” Zamora tells 14ymedio. “Then Sissi told me that people were gathering in Carlos Rojas Park.”

The family lives on the outskirts of town and when they got out on the road there were already other people waiting for them. “They know that on other occasions we have also protested.” In November 2020, the Abascal family was part of the group of residents of this community, belonging to the municipality of Jovellanos, who demonstrated in the streets against the long blackouts.

For a long time, saying the surname Abascal among the neighbors is like remembering that the first name of the town was Cimarrones, from the name of the slaves who did not accept the actions or the whip of the foreman and fled into the surrounding mountains . But these rebels today are not confronted by slavers with dogs, but by gendarmes brandishing their tonfas and locking them up in dungeons.

“We continued and arrived at the park. It was great. Everyone joined us. Immediately, two State Security officers appeared and took my husband to the station in front of the park. The arrest emboldened the protesters. “We were joined by people we had never seen at other protests we have led.”

Sissi climbed onto a bench, “Suddenly a sheet appeared. We put it on the sidewalk and wrote ‘Patria y Vida’ [Homeland and Life] on it.” She took off her shoelaces and I gave her mine too. With this we tied the fabric to a branch of a flaming tree on one side and on the other we tied it to a crutch We put the sign on a bike and started riding around the park. Homeland and Life is a Grammy-winning song by popular Cuban artists that synthesizes discontent on the island.

This month of July, the town of Carlos Rojas, like the whole island, was going through critical days. “In the municipality of Jovellanos there was a very intense epidemic of covid-19, we had no medicine, the isolation centers had very bad conditions,” Zamora recalls. The lack of freedoms combined with the economic crisis and the epidemiological situation. That Sunday, patience reached its limits.

Zamora closes his eyes and seems to be reliving that day. “People gathered in the park and shouted Food! Freedom! Down with the dictatorship! We want medicines”, also “Patria y Vida!, this slogan was the one that was repeated the most, the one that will go down in history: there were old people, children and many young people too”.

Then the patrol car arrived to transfer Armando Abascal Serrano from the city police station to Jovellanos. “People stood in front of the vehicle to prevent it from moving, but the police inflicted many blows on it and finally took it away,” she said. For the rest of the afternoon, those who remained continued chanting until around 6:30 p.m. when a bus and a truck with shock troops arrived.

“In the bus and the truck were Yonaikis Villegas Oviedo, the mayor of Jovellanos, also the representative of the Communist Party, the director of Inder (National Institute of Sports, Physical Education and Recreation), members of the political police dressed in civilian clothes, the members of the Government, of the Party and the head of the Communals”, lists the mother of the family.

“They came with sticks and stones in their hands, later we learned that they were even carrying bottles. It was a very strong attack. They hit me and I fell against the bicycle holding the sheet, Sissi fell on top of me. Zamora adds that the communal official attacked her in the head, eyes, arms and stomach. “I had just had surgery and passed out so I couldn’t see my daughters anymore.”

When she came to, she heard someone yell at her that Lisi, her other daughter, had been injured after being hit several times in the head with a bottle. The mother ran to the Polyclinic and on the way her shoes came undone, the shoes whose laces had helped to tie the sign. She found her daughter there, who was having her head bandaged. “She also had a hand with backward facing fingers that the orthopedist had to fix to put them back forward.”

Shortly after, Sissi also arrived at the polyclinic, having been beaten. Half an hour later, the three women were transferred by ambulance to Jovellanos. “There were a lot of injuries there because the police had dealt many blows. They gave my daughter Lisi a certificate of injury, because they had to put stitches on her head, but they didn’t want to give anything to Sissi and me.

That day they were able to return home and on Tuesday July 13 they went to the municipal police station to file a complaint for Lisi’s injuries. “Even today, ten months later, neither the police nor the prosecution give details, they are still elusive,” laments Zamora.

The family patriarch disappeared for 14 days. “We brought him some clothes at Jovellanos police station and they stole them, they never gave them to him. He was imprisoned for two months in the Combinado del Sur, then he was fined,” the woman explains. “On the morning of September 20, an official from the Municipal Court of Jovellanos arrived and knocked on the door of our house. She had in her hands a request from the prosecutor for a six-year sentence against Sissi.

The trial took place on November 3. During the trial, they judged not only the young woman, but also Frank Ernesto Trujillo Hervis and Yoendris Torres Corría, as well as 11J demonstrators. “Frank – when my daughter was beaten up – he took her out of the women’s group. He is now sentenced to six years in prison.

During the trial in the Municipal Court of Jovellanos, Zamora attended as a witness: “I entered, I made my statement and then I could only come back to hear the conclusions. It almost gave me a heart attack to hear so many lies. Prosecutor Odilia Casallas García blatantly lied. She said that since 1959 no one had been mistreated and beaten by the police in Cuba.

Sissi’s sister couldn’t stand this, she got up from her seat and contradicted the prosecutor. “Our family has been hit several times. I still have stitches on my head from being hit with a bottle. Immediately, the guards took him out of the room.

Interior Ministry mayor Silvia Martínez Montero has charged Sissi with assault and contempt, although the family insists the officer was not present at Carlos Rojas Park on Sunday. “The trial was a farce, a clown show. Even the defense lawyers couldn’t do their job,” denounces Zamora.

The appeal trial was held on December 27, under an intense security operation, and the six-year prison sentence was confirmed. The young woman was incarcerated in the women’s prison of Matanzas, Labiotec. “It’s an unpleasant and sad place. There are two buildings and she is in one of them in cabin three on the third floor.

But during the phone calls, the great concern of the young woman is not the conditions of detention but her family. To calm her mother, she repeats: “Don’t worry, remember the number of dungeons, beatings and detentions that I suffered. She also wants to know the details of the other prisoners of this historic day of protests.

When Annia Zamora Carmenate asks her daughter what she wants her to bring in the bag of food she tries to pack every visit, the young woman asks little or nothing. Although her mother insists, she responds in monosyllables. In these moments, she becomes again the shy and quiet girl of the city of Carlos Rojas.

Learn more about Cuba here on Havana Times

WINONA — “Washington Crossing the Delaware,” a renowned painting that has been on display at the Minnesota Marine Art Museum in Winona for several years, sold for $45 million on Thursday at Christie’s auction house in New York.

The amount was a record for the artist, German immigrant Emmanuel Leutz, and sold for more than double the high estimate before the auction.

Christie’s had estimated the value between 15 and 20 million dollars.

The smaller version hung in the White House from the 1970s to 2014 in the West Wing Reception Room. The collector had loaned it to the White House and sold it to Bob Kierlin and Mary Burrichter, the founders of the Winona Museum of Marine Art.

In 2015, the painting moved from the walls of the White House to a museum spot along the Mississippi River in Winona.

When the sale was announced late last month, it created a jolt in the art world with CNN, Barron’s, The New York Times and state and local media all reporting stories about the sale. one-of-a-kind buying opportunity.

When it was auctioned off in the 1970s, it fetched $260,000, a record sum at the time for an American painting, said Paige Kestenman, American painting specialist at Christie’s.

“Washington Crossing the Delaware is one of those images that transcended artist Emmanuel Leutz,” Kestenman said. “It’s an image that has become so central to how America imagines its history.”

The painting, one of two extant versions, then depicts Gen. George Washington standing in a row boat on the freezing Delaware River as they head towards the Battle of Trenton during the American Revolutionary War.

But one person’s gain is another institution’s loss. The breathless headlines created nationally by the impending sale have overshadowed the changes taking place within Winona’s arts-oriented community.

Kierlin is the founder of Fastenal, a Fortune 500 company that sells fasteners and other hardware supplies.

The listing of Leutz’s painting was part of a larger decision by the couple to remove all of their loaned paintings from MMAM, according to local media. The collection included paintings by Claude Monet, Pablo Picasso, Vincent van Gogh, Georgia O’Keeffe and others.

Kierlin and Burrichter did not respond to voicemails seeking comment. But in statements to the Winona Post last month, Kierlin explained that the decision to remove their holdings from the Winona Museum stemmed from a belief that MMAM had failed to achieve the economic development goals the couple had hoped for.

When he lent his collection of paintings to the museum, the hope was to make the Winona Museum a national and international artistic venue that would attract up to 100,000 visitors a year. The number of visitors has instead hovered around 30,000 visitors per year, more than three times less than the expected number of people.

“For all the money we’ve put into it, it hasn’t had a great return on its own,” Kierlin told the Winona Post. “So we thought, what could we do to get more tourism to Winona?”

The couple decided to use their collection as the cornerstone of a new downtown music and art gallery project called Minnesota Masterpiece Hall. The $35 million arts edifice would include both a music hall and a visual gallery.

Some of their collection will be on display in the new gallery space in Masterpiece Hall, while others, such as “Washington Crossing the Delaware”, will be sold to fund its construction. The venue will combine Sunday afternoon musical performances with art exhibits featuring paintings from the couple’s collection.

“It should be a shot in the arm for downtown on Sunday,” Burrichter told the Post.

The question is whether the change in strategy will diminish MMAM, a museum that has long outgrown its weight class given its distance from a metropolitan area. Or will the combination create a synthesis that makes Winona a greater artistic destination?

Roger Boulay, an assistant professor at Winona State University and the gallery coordinator, said Leutz’s painting was a “singular attraction” to the museum and a “very popular piece.” The community will miss it.

But he thinks the Masterpiece Hall, rather than being a competitor that will eclipse the MMAM, could complement the museum. For foreigners, it might change their calculations to take a trip to Winona, a 45-minute drive east of Rochester.

Rather than a two-hour drive for an hour-long art exhibit at one location, families could make a day of it: an hour at the Minnesota Marine Art Museum, then lunch, followed by an afternoon in the new room, Boulay said.

“I think there’s room for a variety of arts institutions in Winona,” Boulay said. “The Marine Art Museum has brought a lot of tourism to Winona, and Masterpiece Hall will inevitably have a different feel, atmosphere and tenor.

“It will make Winona’s visit richer,” he said.

For Scott Pollock, who became MMAM’s new executive director in January, all the change and turmoil felt like “drinking from a fire hydrant.”

He said the museum would maintain its “trajectory” and mission as a smaller market place that engages visitors “with work you wouldn’t expect in these spaces.”

In fact, the circumstances could present an opportunity for the museum, he said. He notes that many public museums and collectors have collections that are in basements, invisible to the public. The MMAM offers them a destination and a showcase.

“I think that’s part of the big story here. We know that 95% of most museum collections never see the light of day. And we’re talking about masters from Monet to Picasso,” Pollock said. “We want to be seen as one of the problem-solving institutions that works in conjunction with all of these other museums around the world.”