Marianna Kistler Beach Museum of Art

Exhibitions

Goodnight Moon: Selections from the Permanent Collection

June 5, 2012 – December 23, 2012

From starlit staircases and moon glow to glowing sparklers and carnival lights, this exhibition explores the many facets of night. The exhibition topic was chosen to compliment “Dream Big,” the theme for the Kansas Library Association summer reading program.

The selections include idyllic moonlit scenes by beloved Kansas artists Birger Sandzen and John Steuart Curry and more conceptual pieces like Jeff Mongrain’s “An Evening’s Breath,” a clay pillow which holds exactly the amount of moisture exhaled during a night’s sleep. Contemporary images of night include views of porches, airports and highways lit by lights.

Visitors can travel to the stars via a lithograph of Skylab by industrial designer Raymond Loewy who worked for NASA from 1967 to 1973 as a habitability consultant to help insure the comfort of the astronauts. Heavenly bodies are represented in “Autumn Planets” by Tony Fitzpatrick, “Prairie Moon” by Vernon Brejcha, “Nebula” by Lee Chesney, and a series of “Alien Planets” by Indian artist RM Palaniappan.

All the images invite the visitor to fly to the moon and back again! For those wishing to travel further, the museum’s Exploration Station will feature books and activities and ARTSmart classes and tours will focus on the exhibit