One of HUNK ANDERSON’s favorite observations about the remarkable artwork that once hung in his dining room, including Jackson Pollock’s Lucifer and Willem de Kooning’s Woman Standing – Pink, among others, is that one could enjoy a feast in the room without ever having a meal, thanks to the rich visual display. The feast proved moveable and equally rich when the paintings were relocated to the campus over the summer and served to the Stanford community and the public in a series of courses over the last week.
Opening week of the Anderson Collection at Stanford University started with a media preview, followed by the building dedication, then a dinner for museum members and donors, capped by a members opening on Saturday and the public opening on Sunday that drew capacity crowds. Reserved time slots for the public opening were all spoken for as of Sunday morning, and the slots left open for walk-up visitors were gobbled up throughout the day.
Cantor Arts Center is hosting two exhibitions related to the Anderson Collection. In celebration of the arrival of Pollock’s Lucifer on campus, Sympathy for the Devil: Satan, Sin and the Underworld explores the visual history of the devil and his realm over 500 years (through Dec. 1).All the trimmings surrounding the opening added to the feast. On public opening day there were food trucks, live music and free posters for members. In addition, the Wisch Family Gallery on the first floor is currently hosting the temporary exhibition Peaceful Presence: Leo Holub and the Artist Portrait Project, featuring portraits of 55 of the artists whose work is on view in the second-floor galleries. There is also an 8-minute video on loop in Wisch documenting the collection, the Anderson family’s passion for collecting and their commitment to share the works of art with the community.
Pop Art from the Anderson Collection at SFMOMA is an exhibition of 10 works, including Robert Indiana’s iconic 1973 painting Love and Andy Warhol’s 1967 self-portrait, celebrating the opening of the Anderson Collection and underscoring the family’s generosity throughout the region (through Oct. 26, 2015).
Farther up the road from Stanford is Celebrating the Spectrum: Highlights from the Anderson Collection at the de Young museum in San Francisco (through April 5, 2015). The exhibition features prints in the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco’s Anderson Graphic Arts Collection from the Andersons’ gift of 650 prints, multiples and monotypes to FAMSF in 1996.
The feasting continues with Sound + Vision: Arts Open House on Saturday, Sept. 27. The Anderson Collection and Stanford Live present a free event with collection viewing from 5 to 7 p.m. and musical performances at the Anderson Collection and in the Gunn Atrium at Bing Concert Hall from 5 to 8 p.m.
Inspired by the abstract expressionist art found in the Anderson Collection and the Cantor’s special exhibition Robert Frank in America, Scene in Action is the culmination of a summer Stanford Arts Intensive choreographic workshop and performance seminar by the same name. The performance is choreographed by Stanford Dance faculty member ALETA HAYES and takes place Wednesday, Oct. 29, at 6:30 p.m. and Thursday, Oct. 30, at 8:30 p.m.
The Anderson Collection at Stanford University begins regular hours this week: Wednesday through Monday, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Thursday until 8 p.m. Closed on Tuesdays. Docent-led tours beginning on Oct. 1 are on Wednesdays at 12:30 p.m. and weekends at 12:30 p.m. and 2:30 p.m.
