Though special exhibitions that attract large crowds and significant publicity often overshadow permanent collections, the acquisition of a permanent collection is one of the most important parts of any museum's work. This process, in which works are purchased by or donated to art institutions, allows museums the chance to expand the breadth and depth of their holdings, and is often ongoing. It is different from many special shows — because those often feature works borrowed from other museums' collections — but it is no less important, and it is worthy of individual celebration.
"Recent Gifts to the Tufts Permanent Collection," which is on view until May 23 in the Remis Sculpture Court at the Tufts University Art Gallery, displays, as its title would suggest, a sampling of the works that Tufts has recently acquired. It features 13 works ranging from collages to photographs and is unique not only because it highlights this important process of acquisition, but also because it provides visitors the opportunity to see a sampling of the university's permanent collection en masse.
The exhibition's display in the Remis Sculpture Court may, at first, seem disjointed because of the space's high ceiling, brightly striped windows and uneven walls. But this same structural blend complements the works on display because they are similarly diverse.
At the entry to the exhibition, visitors are greeted by Robert Hernandez's "Untitled" (2007−2008), a large birch plywood surface covered in drawings in pencil, white Sharpie paint marker and archival ink marker. The drawings, some of which are figural, cover the surface in an irregular but dense organization, and in its complexity, the work is at once overwhelming and perplexing.
Across the gallery from Hernandez's work are 10 photographs by renowned photographer Frank Paulin. Because they occupy nearly half of the gallery space and are displayed on two large walls, these photographs seem to form the focus of the exhibition. The majority of the photographs showcase examples of his work from urban locations like New York City and New Orleans.
Paulin's black and white photographs, however, are not the typical big−city images to which visitors may be accustomed. While many artists celebrate the community and exuberance of large cities, Paulin examines these metropolises in a different way: He depicts, instead, the more menial aspects and often harsh realities of city life.
In "Three Women on 57th Street, New York City" (1958), Paulin captures a scene in which three well−dressed women enter a building on the crowded, titular street. The women, who are arranged almost evenly across the horizontal photograph, seem to have been caught off guard by the photographer. They show expressions of, from left to right, surprise, displeasure and resignation — in short, not what one would expect from such elegantly attired individuals on one of the city's most exclusive streets. But here, as in his other photographs, Paulin references the fact that even for its more privileged residents, city living is not without its surprises and occasional sacrifices.
Paulin's other photographs in the exhibition explore these themes and often delve deeper into the more pessimistic aspects of urban life, such as conflict and loneliness. But regardless of what Paulin examines, his photographs possess an elegant simplicity that make them extremely compelling.
"Recent Gifts to the Tufts Permanent Art Collection" is not like most traditional museum exhibitions, because the works are very diverse and at face value don't have much in common. But that by no means indicates that this is not an important show. Indeed, the one bond that unites all the works is their recent acquisition by the Tufts gallery, which represents 13 new works that can now be appreciated by the Tufts community for generations to come.
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Recent Gifts to the Tufts Permanent Art Collection
At the Remis Sculpture Court, through May 23
Tufts University Art Gallery
Aidekman Arts Center
617-627-3518
