Modern and Contemporary Art at the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts

by John B. Ravenal

Containing 114 reproductions of works ranging from Jackson Pollock’s dynamic 1948 drip painting to Kehinde Wiley’s 2006 hip-hop-meets-Old-Master portrait, Modern and Contemporary Art at the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts is a handsome collection that offers art enthusiasts a chance to recall old favorites and discover hidden treasures and new acquisitions. Taken from the nationally recognized collection of the same name at the VMFA, the works presented here appear chronologically within the book’s three sections―paintings; sculpture and video art; and prints, drawings, photographs, and collage. The result is an intriguing compilation of postwar art not to be missed.

Genres: Art

252 pages, Hardcover

First published March 30, 2007

Reviews

[Samuel Goff · Rating 4 out of 5]

An excellent overview of the contemporary work at the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts. The VMFA in my opinion has been vastly underrated and holds some wonderful gems among it's collection. This book gives small 1-2 paragraph summaries of the artist and the work. It's enough to get you acquainted with the work and it doesn't feel scholarly. You get to discover artist's intentions and motives and learn about some of the pieces I may have just glanced or walked by if in the museum. My favorites are here and also some I did not know much about. A good start to the contemporary works at the museum but you really need to come by if you ever find yourself in Richmond, VA. You won't regret it.

[Stacy Deyerle · Rating 5 out of 5]

Technically, this is a "catalog." Still, even those who've never been to VMFA but have even a passing interest in modern art would like it. There are many pieces in here I'd never seen, and some I have seen that were not included.
Despite that, I loved everything about the format and found it a quick and enlightening read for someone without much base knowledge.

[Frederic · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a small-format book cataloguing the modern and contemporary collections at the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts. As such the reproductions are not large, but they are of good quality. The text accompanying each piece includes a quote from the artist, giving a nice little bit of contextualization. Although cataloguing a single, sweeping collection -- and thus not an in-depth study of any particular area, and somewhat idiosyncratic to the institution and the donors -- there's a nice balance and comprehensive quality here.