We did get to a museum yesterday. The Phillips Gallery.  I assume, without really knowing, that the Phillips does not depend on federal funding, so that all Trump could do is to try to take away its tax exempt status. As Harvard’s tax exemption has been threatened, this now seems to be a Trump weapon that, if successful, could be widely used.

Now, why would Trump attack the Phillips? Perhaps he won’t,  but I can’t help thinking about the recent Phillips exhibit of George Grosz anti-Fascist drawings.

So you never know.

But there is less chance that anyone will object to the exhibit of the work of Alphonse Mucha (1860-1939), Czech artist whose work has been so influential.

I learned a couple of things about Mucha that I didn’t know.  I learned, for example, that for a time he shared a studio with Paul Gaugin. I had never thought of them in the same world before.

As my wife pointed out, Mucha was basically a commercial artist. Maybe he was the first successful commercial artist, and I heard a docent answer a question and say that he earned a very good income. His art work was not for collectors or museums. He designed advertising posters for cigarettes, and travel locations, and liquor. He made posters for theatrical productions. He drew many, many book and magazine covers. These are all on display at the Phillips. 

Another thing I did not know is that he had a contract with Sarah Bernhardt for six years, not only designing the still famous posters for her agow, but also designing sets, printed programs, jewelry and costumes.

Unfortunately, because his art work is all on paper, it is all shown behind glass, so that photography is difficult because of glare. But here is one example of his work:

Standing at one of his smaller pieces was a young woman with a sketch pad in one hand and a bold ink pen in the other. She was copying the drawing, and I must say her work was near perfect. She told me it was only a hobby for her and that it was the second of the Mucha drawings she had copied. The first had taken her 5 hours. Her work amazed me, but also that she could do it so precisely and casually, just standing there, her pad resting only on her arm.

One other thing about Mucha. He was very influential in the development of what might be called psychedelic art – the posters for the Grateful Dead et al. There were a lot of pschedelic art from the 1970s in the show as well.