007 Monuments Men

One Book, One Community 2014:  
Monuments Men Programs

The plan was to devote my blog to the topic of quantum mechanics; however, the events for One Book, One Community are rapidly approaching so I decided I should discuss the upcoming One Book programs. Actually, one movie was shown last week.

I have been a member of the One Book steering committee since it began twelve years ago.  Our objective is to have the entire community reading together.  Each year we chose a book and schedule programs about the book.  This year we are reading Monuments Men by Robert Edsel.

Tuesday, September 16

Museum of the Shenandoah Valley
6 p.m. Tour the museum, enjoy refreshments provided by MSV
7 p.m. Marisa Bourgoin

Storing Paintings from the Corcoran Gallery at

Handley High School during World War II

Battersea Reach by James McNeill Whistler was

stored at JHHS during World War II

Marisa Bourgoin is currently the Chief of Reference Services, Smithsonian Archives of American Art. She was Archivist at the Corcoran Gallery of Art from 1994 to 2007. She is returning to Winchester and repeating the very successful program she gave a few years ago. Marisa researched the art that the Corcoran Galley stored at Handley High School and gives a fascinating account.

  Schiele's Portrait of Wally (Valerie 

Neuzil, was a woman he met in 

1911. She was a model for a number    

       of his most striking paintings.)             

Saturday, September 20
Handley Library Auditorium
6:30 p.m.

Portrait of Wally

This film, jointly sponsored by One Book, Magic Lantern, and the Beth El Congregation, traces the long legal battle of one family to regain ownership of a painting seized by the Nazis in 1939. Portrait of Wally is a 1912 oil painting by Austrian painter Egon Schiele.

The painting was purchased by Rudolf Leopold in 1954 and became part of the collection of the Leopold Museum, an Austrian government museum. A story in The New York Times,

http://www.nytimes.com/1997/12/24/arts/zealous-collector-special-report-singular-passion-for-amassing-art-one-way.html

published during a 1997-1998 MOMA exhibit of Schiele's work, revealed the painting's history. After the publication of the article, the heirs of Lea Bondi Jaray claimed that the painting was Nazi plunder and should be returned to them.

Tuesday, September 23
John Handley High School
6 p.m. Tour the vault where Corcoran art was stored during WWII
7 p.m. Nancy Yeide and Michael Kurtz

Monuments Men, the Background Story

It may seem odd that we have scheduled the tour of the Handley vault this week, but there is a good reason. Nancy Yeide is researching art from the National Gallery that was stored at the Biltmore estate during World War II and asked to see the Handley vault. She had not known about the Corcoran art at JHHS. We will start the tour at 6 p.m. with the program in the auditorium at 7 p.m.

From right to left, Edsel, Yeide, and Kurtz

I am especially interested in this program since I recruited the speakers after hearing them speak on a panel with Monuments Men author, Robert Edsel, at a February 2014 National Archives program that was aired on CSPAN. 

In 1979, Michael Kurtz began his research on art recovered after World War II. Edsel credits him as being one of the first researchers in this area and helping to spark interest in the art. Michael’s work in the National Archives, where he worked with captured 

documents and the records from the Monuments Men, was ideal for him to complete his dissertation and the subsequent book, America and the Return of Nazi Contraband.

Currently he serves as a Visiting Professor at the University of Maryland’s College of Information Studies. Prior to this position, he worked for 37 years as professional archivist, manager, and senior executive at the National Archives and Records Administration. 

Since 1997, Nancy Yeide has conducted World War II era provenance research on the National Gallery of Art’s collection, and has spoken and written widely on the subject. In 2001 she co-authored the AAM Guide to Provenance Research, published by American Alliance of Museums Press. Her book, Beyond the Dreams of Avarice: The Hermann Goering Collection is a massive work that is the first to document the entire Goering collection and contains 1,500 images of the art pieces. Nancy has been head of the Department of Curatorial Records at the National Gallery of Art since 1990. We saw her last week as an expert commentator in the One Book showing of the film The Rape of Europa.

Tuesday, September 30
Alamo Drafthouse Cinema
6 p.m.

Monuments Men, the Film

This is the culminating event of One Book 2014. You can purchase tickets online from the Alamo Drafthouse:
https://drafthouse.com/ticketing/0301/55397

There is a $7 student ticket that provides admission only to the movie. The other ticket option is the best deal. For $20 a person, you can join in the reception with heavy appetizers, soft drinks, beer or wine. In addition, we have wonderful door prizes including Edsel’s first book, Rescuing Da Vinci, a lovely coffee-table work that has many illustrations and a text that summarizes the work of the Monuments Men; it retails for $40. In addition to Edsel’s third book, Saving Italy, which documents the efforts of the Monuments Men in Italy, we have several beautiful art pieces for door prizes. [info in pix captions] 

      Geraldine Wojno Keifer, member of the One Book Committee and Associate Professor of Art History and Art

at Shenandoah University, has donated four art works as door prizes.  These two are part of her Nimrod Hall 
series. Her numerous juried, invitational and solo exhibitions encompass venues in Virginia, Ohio, Hawaii, 

     Illinois, Michigan, and Georgia, and other states may shortly join the list! 

Not only have the Alamo and Nerangis Enterprises provided support of the reception and film, but they have also generously donated several door prizes: 

• Dinner and a Movie Package: Overnight stay at the Country Inn and Suites, $30 Alamo Gift Card and a popcorn coupon. Value: $175
• Family Movie Night: Four movie tickets and one popcorn coupon. Value: $45
• Spa Escape: One Massage or Facial at Hand and Stone Massage and Facial Spa:   Value $90

This is our 12th book for One Book, One Community. Our thanks go to all our sponsors, community partners, and the many participants we have had over the years. Handley Regional Library continues to be a bulwark of support. I especially owe gratitude to our hard-working steering committee and to co-chair Frances Lowe!