We are delighted to welcome back to the Dutch and Flemish galleries masterpieces from the collection of Rose-Marie and Eijk van Otterloo, including Rembrandt’s sublime Portrait of Aeltje van Uylenburgh (1632) and Dou’s sympathetic little Sleeping Dog (1650). These favorites and dozens...
Shambhala is a Sanskrit word describing a mythical land whose exact location is hidden behind mist of snow-capped mountains, where peace reigns, wealth abounds, and there is no illness. The West was first introduced to the concept as “Shangri-la” in the 1930s book and film Lost...
Images of fashion exploded in the 20th century with the proliferation of ready-to-wear and glossy fashion magazines. As photography gradually became the medium of choice for fashion advertising, artists who worked by hand began to emphasize interpretation and impression over pure likeness. They...
Edouard Manet’s friend, the poet Charles Baudelaire, described black as the color of the nineteenth century. Manet was a master in the use of black, asserting his bold and subtle imprint on a range of subjects, from exotic Spanish dancers to the horses and spectators at a thrilling Paris...
“Paper Zoo” brings together prints, drawings, and photographs of the animal kingdom (including birds and marine creatures) dating from about 1500 to the present. Featuring some 30–40 works by Rembrandt, Audubon, Picasso, and others, this delightful exhibition highlights...
The invention of photography in 1839 was a pivotal achievement that changed the course of cultural history. The early years of the medium were rich in experimentation. As each process and technique was invented, artists enthusiastically explored new possibilities for visual recording and...
Organized by the SMFA, “Histories of Now: Six Artists from Cairo” is an exhibition of recent video and multimedia installations by some of Egypt’s most important and influential contemporary artists. Signaling the myriad of social and political circumstances that preceded the 2011...
Since receiving his BFA from the School of the Museum of Fine Arts in 1998, Los Angeles–based artist Jedediah Caesar has gained international recognition for sculptures that amass found materials into systems that reveal new patterns, often abstract, sometime social. Gathering natural and...
“Gems of Rajput Painting” features the MFA’s superb collection of paintings made for the princes of Rajasthan and the Punjab hills (known as “Rajputs”). The kingdoms of these art-loving princes shared a common elite culture, though, by the early 1700s, each court had...
Known today as the goddess of love and beauty, Aphrodite, or Venus as she was known to the Romans, was one of the most powerful ancient Greek divinities and a favorite subject in ancient art. This is the first exhibition about the powerful goddess that both ancient writers and artists described...
The nude figure was critical to the art of Edgar Degas from the beginning of his career in the 1850s until the end of his working life, but the subject has never before been explored in a Museum exhibition. “Degas and the Nude,” co-organized by the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, and the...
The British experience during and after WWII was quite different from that of Americans. From the fall of 1940 through the spring of 1941, Britain was subjected to relentless bombing in a terror campaign known as the Blitz. Even after the Allied victory, Britain continued to suffer shortages of...
The 30 wood sculptures that Ellsworth Kelly has made over the course of his esteemed career are among his most beautiful and evocative works. Despite Kelly’s work being the subject of major retrospectives worldwide, this is the first museum exhibition to focus on the essential and beguiling...
This exhibition, on hiatus during summer construction, reopens with the new Linde Family Wing on September 17, 2011. Under the guidance of artist Raul Gonzalez, students from eight after-school community organizations in the Boston area will create family portraits using pen, ink, and color in...
The embroideries of colonial Boston girls and women have long been treasured family possessions and are now much sought after by collectors. The charm and craftsmanship of the Adam and Eve samplers, pastoral pictures with leaping stags and galloping hunters, as well as crewelwork bed hangings and...
About the Prize: Established in 1993 in recognition of New England artist Maud Morgan (1903–1999), the Maud Morgan Prize honors a Massachusetts woman artist who demonstrates significant vision, creativity, and contributions to contemporary art in the Commonwealth. As of 2011, $10,000 is...