Tour “The Tile Club” Discover the Exhibition for Free! Tyler Museum of Art

J. Alden Weir (American, 1852-1919). "The Marine (Portrait of Arthur Quartley)". “The Tile Club Afloat,” Scribner’s Monthly, March 1880, Vol. XIX, No. 5, pp. 641-671. Reproduction/engraving, 2 x 1 7/16 inches. Collection of the Jean and Graham Devoe Williford Charitable Trust.

     (TYLER, TX) January 3, 2011 – Visitors will enjoy a free, guided First Friday Art Tour of the Tyler Museum of Art’s exhibition titled “Studiously Slangy and Bohemian” The Tile Club­–Artists of America’s Aesthetic Movement from the Graham Williford Collection beginning at 11 a.m. at the Museum on Friday, January 7. The tour, guided by a member of the TMA education staff, will last under an hour and will feature selected works from the Tile Club exhibition. First Friday Art Tours are offered free of charge every first Friday of the month, and there is no admission fee for this exhibition.

           

      “This is a perfect way for members of the community to experience art in a museum setting under the guidance of an art professional at no cost! Just drop by, take a small break from your daily routine, and discover a few of this country’s most influential and entertaining artists,” said Ken Tomio, TMA Head of Education. “By organizing this exhibition, we hope to reveal the personality and influence of a group of artists who banded together and did a lot of interesting things over 100 years ago.”

Tile Club members were arguably the first group of artists who succeeded in creating a “cult of the artists” against the backdrop of America’s “Aesthetic Movement” during the late 19^th Century. Their group, based in New York, was primarily made up of artists but also included other professionals such as an architect and two writers. This motley crew may be best described in the words of the artists themselves, “studiously slangy and bohemian.” With a tongue-in-cheek pronouncement of “Let us be decorative!” the small group gathered together at regular soirées to paint decorative tiles. Participants of the First Friday tour will learn how the Tile Club members used the allure of their own social activities to propel their artistic agenda.

           

         The exhibition will be on view through February 20, 2011 in the Museum’s Bell Gallery. In addition to the two rare examples of the exhibition’s namesake tiles, over 80 paintings, sculptures and prints from the Tile Club artists will be on view. The exhibition is organized by the Tyler Museum of Art.

Admission to “Studiously Slangy and Bohemian,” The Tile Club–Artists of America’s Aesthetic Movement from the Graham Williford Collection is free. The exhibition is presented with support from the Jean and Graham Devoe Williford Charitable Trust. Collectors’ Circle Sponsors are Otis and Claudia Carroll, Steve and June Hillis, Amy and Vernon Faulconer, and Mrs. Watson Simons.

The Tyler Museum of Art, accredited by the American Association of Museums, is supported by its Members, Tyler Junior College, and the City of Tyler, and is located at 1300 S. Mahon Ave., adjacent to the Tyler Junior College campus off East Fifth Street. Regular hours are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday, and 1 to 5 p.m. Sunday. (The Museum is closed Mondays and major holidays.) Lunch is available in the Museum Café from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Tuesday through Friday, and the TMA Gift Shop is open during Museum hours. For more information, call (903) 595-1001 or visit www.tylermuseum.org.