
Eduardo Chillida (Spanish, 1924–2002), Gure aitaren etxea (1ª versión Nº 2) / Our Father’s House (1st Version No. 2), 1985. Iron. © Zabalaga-Leku. ARS, New York / VEGAP, Madrid, 2017. Courtesy The Estate of Eduardo Chillida and Hauser & Wirth
Exhibition
Memory, Mind, Matter: The Sculpture of Eduardo Chillida
February 4 – June 3, 2018
This spring, the Meadows Museum will present Dallas’s first exhibition dedicated exclusively to the work of Eduardo Chillida (1924–2002). Chillida, one of Spain’s most celebrated modern sculptors, is famous for his monumental iron and stone sculptures that shape both urban and rural landscapes. This exhibition includes 66 of the artist’s works, from his sculptures, to his drawings, collages, gravitations, graphic works, and a selection of his books. Co-curated by William Jeffett, chief curator of exhibitions for The Dalí Museum, and Ignacio Chillida, the artist’s son, the works in Memory, Mind, Matter: The Sculpture of Eduardo Chillida come exclusively from the Museo Chillida-Leku in Hernani (San Sebastián, Spain); the exhibition travels to Dallas from the Salvador Dalí Museum in St. Petersburg, Florida. A complimentary exhibition, Chillida in Dallas: De Musica at the Meyerson, is curated by Meadows/Mellon/Prado Curatorial Fellow Amanda W. Dotseth and will focus on the landmark commission by Chillida at Dallas’s Morton H. Meyerson Symphony Center. The two exhibitions will open on February 4, 2018, and run through June 3.

Eduardo Chillida, Year 1963. Photo: Budd, N.Y. © Zabalaga-Leku. ARS, New York / VEGAP, Madrid, 2017. Courtesy The Estate of Eduardo Chillida and Hauser & Wirth
Dalí: Poetics of the Small
The Meadows Museum, SMU, will present the first in-depth exploration of the small-scale paintings of Salvador Dalí (1904–1989). While many of Dalí’s canvases are known around the world and are among the defining works of the Surrealist movement, the small size of many of these works is frequently overlooked. Nearly half of the artist’s paintings during the early part of his Surrealist period (1929–1936) were actually small format works: some measuring just over a foot, and others as small as 3 x 2 in. Organized by the Meadows as part of its mission to present Spanish art in America, Dalí: Poetics of the Small will be on view at the Meadows Museum—the only venue for this exhibition—from September 9–December 9, 2018.

Salvador Dalí (Spanish, 1904–1989), The Fish Man (L’homme poisson), 1930. Oil on canvas, 10 1⁄2 x 7 1⁄2 in. (26.7 x 19.1 cm). Meadows Museum, SMU, Dallas. Museum Purchase with funds from The Meadows Foundation; Hollyand Doug Deason; Mrs. Eugene McDermott; Linda P. and William A. Custard; and Gwen and Richard Irwin, MM.2014.11. Photo by Brad Flowers. © 2018 Salvador Dalí, Fundació Gala-Salvador Dalí, Artists Rights Society
Lectures, Symposia, and Events
Thursday, March 1, 5:30 PM
MUSIC AT THE MEADOWS
Oldovini Organ Recital
Larry Palmer, professor emeritus of harpsichord and organ, SMU
Enjoy these special opportunities to experience centuries-old music on an eighteenth-century organ surrounded by masterworks in the Meadows Museum’s permanent collection.
Free
Virginia Meadows Galleries
Friday, March 2, 12:15 PM
GALLERY TALK
Women of the Art World and Works of Baroque Seville
Alicia Zuese, associate professor of Spanish, Dedman College of Humanities & Sciences
Free with regular Museum admission
Jake and Nancy Hamon Galleries
Thursday, March 8, 6:00 p.m.
SYMPOSIUM KEYNOTE LECTURE
The Medieval World in a Spanish Context
Julian Raby, Dame Jillian Sackler Director of the Arthur M. Sackler Gallery and Freer Gallery of Art
Description to come
Free; reservations required at 214.768.8587
Bob and Jean Smith Auditorium
Friday, March 9, 10:00 a.m.-5:00 p.m.
SYMPOSIUM
The Medieval World in a Spanish Context
Ana Cabrera, The Victoria & Albert Museum/Museo Nacional de Arte Decorativo, Madrid
Jordi Camps, chief curator of Romanesque art, Museu Nacional d’Art de Catalunya
Heather Ecker, principal, Viridian Projects
Charles T. Little, curator, The Metropolitan Museum of Art
Therese Martín, tenured scholar, Spanish National Research Council, Madrid
Christine Sciacca, associate curator of European art, 300–1400 CE, The Walters Art Museum
Shannon Wearing, affiliate, UCLA Center for Medieval and Renaissance Studies
Organized by Amanda W. Dotseth, the Meadows/Mellon/Prado curatorial fellow, this symposium brings together international scholars on the art of the Middle Ages to explore the breadth of objects found within the context of Spanish collections, both medieval and modern. From Islamic textiles and metalwork to North African ivory, manuscripts of varied manufacture, and Scandinavian red deer antler, the materials and production methods found in Spanish contexts reflect the diversity of the medieval world.
Free; reservations required at 214.768.8587
Bob and Jean Smith Auditorium
Thursday, March 22, 6:00 p.m.
LECTURE
From Rodin to Plensa: Modern Sculpture at the Meadows Museum
Steven A. Nash, former director, Palm Springs Art Museum; founding director, Nasher Sculpture Center, Dallas
Laura Wilson, photographer, Dallas
Join us for a special double lecture as we launch the publication of From Rodin to Plensa: Modern Sculpture at the Meadows Museum. This beautifully designed permanent collection catalogue features new research by Nash about the objects in the Elizabeth Meadows Sculpture collection, along with artistic photographs of the sculptures by Wilson. The stunning images Wilson captured for this exceptional book set it apart from a typical catalogue, making it a work of art in its own right. Each will share their experiences working on the project. This program will be followed by a reception and book signing with the author and photographer; books can be pre-purchased when making reservations.
Free (does not include book); reservations required at 214.768.8587
Bob and Jean Smith Auditorium
Friday, March 23, 10:00 a.m.–4:00 p.m.
WORKSHOP
Art+Feminism Wikipedia Edit-a-thon
In honor of Women’s History Month, the Meadows Museum again collaborates with The Cedars Union on a community event to teach people how to edit, update, and add articles on Wikipedia, in order to bring meaningful change to the knowledge available about female artists and art world figures, and encourage greater female editorship on Wikipedia. All are welcome, regardless of experience, gender or background. Event is come and go.
FREE; learn more and register
Constantin Foundation Seminar Room
Friday, April 19, 6:00 p.m.
LECTURE
Lightness and Rightness: Eduardo Chillida and James Johnson Sweeney in the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston
Beatriz Cordero, professor, Saint Louis University, Madrid
This lecture will focus on Eduardo Chillida’s exhibition at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston in 1966, the first show of the Spanish artist outside Europe. In this exhibition James Johnson Sweeney, then director of the MFAH, offered an insightful view of Chillida’s sculpture. He underlined the “lightness and rightness” of Chillida’s works, as well as the artist’s roots in Spanish artistic traditions. Sweeney’s consideration of Chillida as a “tastebreaker” and as “the foremost sculptor of his generation” anticipated the later understanding of the qualities of his works.
Free; reservations required at 214.768.8587
Bob and Jean Smith Auditorium
Friday, April 20, 12:15 p.m.
GALLERY TALK
Chillida in Dallas Part I: Chillida Downtown
Jed Morse, chief curator, Nasher Sculpture Center
Free; reservations required at 214.768.8587
Nasher Sculpture Center and Morton H. Meyerson Symphony Center*
* Note: Participants will be walking between the two institutions.
Saturday, April 21, 10:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.
Meadows Family Day: Founders’ Day Celebration
Visitors of all ages can explore the sculptures and works on paper of Eduardo Chillida. Activities will include hands-on 2-D and 3-D art projects, and sensory approaches engaging visitors through sight, sound, touch, taste, and smell. Enjoy special entertainment, activities, refreshments, and more!
FREE
Thursday, April 26, 5:30 p.m.
MUSIC AT THE MEADOWS
Oldovini Organ Recital
Larry Palmer, professor emeritus of harpsichord and organ, SMU
Enjoy these special opportunities to experience centuries-old music on an eighteenth-century organ surrounded by masterworks in the Meadows Museum’s permanent collection.
Free
Virginia Meadows Galleries
Friday, April 27, 12:15 p.m.
GALLERY TALK
Chillida in Dallas Part II: Chillida in Dallas
Scott Winterrowd, director of education
Free with regular Museum admission
Downstairs Galleries
Thursday, May 31, 6:00-7:30 p.m.
(All dates: May 31, June 7 & 14)
LECTURE SERIES
Light, Camera, Landscape: The Rise of International Impressionism
Nancy Cohen Israel, art historian and owner of Art à la Carte
Technological advances in the nineteenth century made it possible for artists to work en plein air. The advent of train travel and tubed pigments beckoned urban artists to villages such as Barbizon and Fontainbleau. Taking full advantage of natural light, these painters started an artistic revolution. Not only did the Paris School become a magnet attracting artists from across Europe and the United States, but it ultimately sent them back to their home countries, bringing this radical new style with them. This series will trace the rise of Impressionism in France, the offshoots of painters in Spain and Italy, and the aftershocks that it sent throughout the West.
$40 for the 3-part series; free for Museum members, and SMU faculty, staff, and students; registration required at 214.768.8587
Bob and Jean Smith Auditorium