Mid-century Modernism has taken over my life! I eat, sleep, and even dream Modernism these days. In my role as Head Archivist, I wear many hats – the most recent being to assist the Michigan Modern curatorial team by locating all the cool “stuff” in our Archives related to the upcoming exhibition, which will be opening at the Cranbrook Art Museum on June 14, 2013. This includes photographs, of course, but the most fun for me is finding correspondence, articles, and ephemera that when put together create a mosaic of a time or place. Continue reading
Cranbrook and the Car, Part 1: The Aristocrat of Small Cars
In its 100-year history, Cranbrook has been known for producing artists, designers, scholars, athletes, and leaders. But cars? An upcoming exhibition mounted by the Center for Collections and Research (that’s us!) at the Cranbrook Art Museum will explore the relationship between Cranbrook and the automobile industry. Called A Driving Force: Cranbrook and the Car, it will highlight the history of Cranbrook through the lens of the automobile, detailing the ways that members of Cranbrook’s community have innovated and influenced the auto industry for the past 100 years. You can learn more about the exhibition at Cranbrook Art Museum’s website here.
As we prepare to open A Driving Force: Cranbrook and the Car on June 12, we’ll be writing up occasional posts about the exhibition, highlighting bits and pieces of our research and providing glimpses into the down-and-dirty world of museum exhibiting. And we’re going to kick it all off with the story of James Scripps Booth and the Scripps-Booth Company.
James Scripps Booth (behind the wheel) with brother Warren Scripps Booth in a Scripps-Booth 4-cylinder Model C at Tower Garage at Cranbrook House. Their father George Gough Booth stands next to the car, partially hidden by the windshield. Circa 1917, Cranbrook Archives.
Photo Friday: Keith Haring, Elementary School Art Teacher
During a visit to the Cranbrook Academy of Art in 1987, the legendary artist and social activist Keith Haring took a break to get back to basics and teach Brookside 5th graders a bit about art. September, 1987. Cranbrook Archives.
Cranbrook Kitchen Sink 