February 24, 1931: The Brooklyn Museum announces as its next major exhibition in the large galleries on the fourth floor, an exhibition of Persian art and its influence on the Western world, to open with a private view on Monday, March 16th and to the public on Tuesday the 17th. This exhibition was decided on in view of the success of the large Dutch East Indies Exhibition last season. Persia was chosen as a country which had created and developed many forms of art. WhiIe the large exhibition of Persian treasures now going on in London was gathered together to show the finest Persian has produced, the Brooklyn Museum's exhibition will be organized to demonstrate Persian art from an ethnological and educational standpoint and to show the typical rather than the extremely rare object in numerous varieties of designs of pottery, miniature paintings, textiles, rugs, carpets, etc. Along with the ancient art which will be on exhibition there will be a section showing the influence of Persia's artistic past on western textiles, etc.
Brooklyn Museum Archives. Records of the Department of Public Information. Press releases, 1931 - 1936. 01-03_1931, 037.
March 4, 1931: From the day-to-day occurrences at the Brooklyn Museum it is becoming more and more evident that the projected exhibition of Persian art which is to open on the 16th of March will be an even finer show than was realized at the time it was planned, More and more contacts are being made with collectors of rare Persian objects so that the sum total at the time of opening will be an imposing list of exhibits.
There are, for instance, several objects of archaeological importance related to the earliest days of Sumeria, Babylonia, Assyria, the Hittites and the Elamites, as well as from the earliest periods of the Persian kings of the Archimedes. These various countries and periods will be represented in stone sculpture, inscriptions on stone, and seals of jade and stone. One particularly important item is a collection of five golden objects which are large and handsome pieces of jewelry representing an animal, an animal mask, a necklace, etc., dating from about 600 B.C. Then there will be thirty pieces of bronze excavated at Luristan, dating from between 500 and 1500 B.C. Another division of the exhibition will be a beautiful collection of unglazed colored pottery excavated from tombs and representing periods all the way up to the 18th Century. They will represent Rakka ware, Rhajas and Sulthanabad and will number from 150 to 200 pieces. Included in the pottery will be a collection of early Persian and Arabian tiles and among the glass specimens will be one extremely valuable piece of the 11th Century from Jerusalem. All the objects mentioned above are in addition to the action of textiles which will make up a large part of the exhibition and will demonstrate how Persian art has affected this industry down to the present day.
The exhibition will open with a private view on Monday the 16th and will be open to the public on Tuesday the 17th.
Brooklyn Museum Archives. Records of the Department of Public Information. Press releases, 1931 - 1936. 01-03_1931, 043.
March 9, 1931: The New Yorker
25 West 45th Street
New York City
Attention Art Critic
Dear Sir:
Opening to the public on March seventeenth, the Brooklyn Museum will present a superb exhibition of Persian art.
Although one of the purposes of the exhibition is to show the influences of the art of that country on the commercialized design of today, the richness of the exhibits is justification enough. Things too fragile or too rare to risk on the long voyage to the London show have been gladly loaned to supplement the Museum's material.
It is to be understood that this show attempts in no way to rival or duplicate in purpose or exhibit the London Exhibition but was conceived at the end of the highly successful Dutch East Indies Exhibition of last year, by Dr. Tassilo Adam, curator of Oriental Art and an eminent authority in that field.1
May we suggest a mention in your calendar of "coming events" and in your "Current Exhibition" columns.
Should your critic care to adventure to Brooklyn, every aid will be given him.
Sincerely yours,
(E.L.M. Taggart)
ELMT:RM
Brooklyn Museum Archives. Records of the Department of Public Information. Press releases, 1931 - 1936. 01-03_1931, 053.
March 13, 1931: In connection with the Exhibition of Persian Art now current at the Brooklyn Museum, a series of lectures relative to the history and development of oriental textiles will be presented at the Museum during the months of March and April. Professor Rudolf Meyer Riefstahl, one of the leading authorities on the textile art of the Near East and who has lectured with great success in various colleges and museums here and abroad, will deliver the first two of the series. Prof. Riefstahl is a Professor of Fine Art at New York University author of numerous books and articles on textiles and three times organised research expeditions to Turkey and Persia. Miss Gertrude Waiting whose lectures at the Museum two years ago on laces were very well attended will deliver the last last two of this series of four. One of the attractive features of her talk at that time was the costume she wore of that of a Swiss lace maker. Miss Whiting is an authority on lace and textiles and author of numerous books on the subject, the most recent of which is the book "Toys and Tools of Stitchery"
The schedule for the talks follows.
Brooklyn Museum Archives. Records of the Department of Public Information. Press releases, 1931 - 1936. 01-03_1931, 050.
Date unknown, approximately 1931: Current Exhibitions at the Brooklyn Museum include the following:
The first important exhibition of the American Union of Decorative Artists and Craftsmen, commonly known as AUDAC, will be presented on the third floor of the Museum from May first through July first. Modern decoration in both house and office furnishings will be shown, as well as group arrangements of specially designed furniture. Other exhibits include textile designs, applied art of various forms and an interesting section devoted to the graphic arts including an unusual collection of book illustration and design. All the exhibitors are members of the Union and are leaders in their individual fields
Until May 28h the Exhibition of Persian Art will be on view in the fourth floor galleries. The exhibition includes a good chronological review of Persian art in its various forms from 3500 B.C. until the present time. The effect on present day design is indicated. Exhibits include sculpture and bronzes of the very early periods, potteries of various leading schools and periods, textiles, rugs, jewelry and a splendid collection of miniatures. The Museum's collections are supplemented by loans from important private collectors and commercial houses.
The Hispano-Peruvian Collection of furniture, paintings and decorative objects will continue on view until autumn. The influence of Spanish art on the native design and the interesting combination of the two schools is shown in this group lent by Mrs. Frank Barrows Freyer.
On April 30th a practical demonstration of Indian handicraft will be presented by a group of native Navajo Indians in costume.
An Exhibition of Pictorial Drawings, work of the elementary classes in the public schools will be hung in the Library Gallery until April 30th.
The collection of Russian National Art is reinstalled in the basement of the museum and will remain on view here for an indefinite time. Examples of peasant craft-work in embroideries, woven materials, ikons, decorative objects and costumes. Particularly interesting for design both traditional and occasional.
The Mary Hoyt Wiborg loan collection of modern paintings will continue on view for some time. Representatives of such famous leaders as Leger, Vlaminck, Picasso, Chirico and Madeleine Luka are shown. There are also two highly interesting screens by Natalia Goncharova.
Brooklyn Museum Archives. Records of the Department of Public Information. Press releases, 1931 - 1936. 04-06_1931, 075.
