We Jazz June

In honor of the DC Jazz Festival and our own Jazz ‘n Families Fun Days this weekend, here are some works in the collection to get your toes tapping, all of which relate to jazz. Can you see it?

collection music

Clockwise from top left: Gene Davis, Jasmine Jumper, 1966, Acrylic on canvas 119 1/2 x 161 1/2 in.; 303.53 x 410.21 cm.. Gift of Florence Coulson Davis In Memory of Gene Davis, 1992. Stuart Davis, Egg Beater No. 4, 1928, Oil on canvas 27 1/8 x 38 1/4 in.; 68.8975 x 97.155 cm.. Acquired 1939. Elizabeth Murray, Jazz, 2001, 3-dimensional lithograph, Edition 7 of 46 overall: 30 in x 34 in x 4 in; 76.2 cm x 86.36 cm x 10.2 cm. Purchased with funds from the estate of Nathan and Jeanette Miller, 2007. Arthur G., Dove, Me and the Moon, 1937, Wax emulsion on canvas 18 x 26 in.; 45.72 x 66.04 cm.. Acquired 1939. The Phillips Collection, Washington DC.

Gene Davis said, in a 1975 interview, “My work is mainly about intervals, that is, like in music. Music is essentially time interval, and I’m interested in space interval.”  He was also known to say that he painted “by eye” the way a jazz musician plays “by ear”. Stuart Davis collected jazz records that he played while he worked, replaying them much as he repeated visual elements in his paintings. His daily calendars chronicle purchases of new albums and when he played them. Elizabeth Murray captures the vibrant sound and broken branches of jazz improvisation in her colorful print, Jazz (2001). And Arthur Dove’s Me and the Moon (1937) is named after the 1936 song which he heard on the radio while he worked.

What visual art makes you think of jazz?

Mailing #MyAmericanArt Postcards

One of the art workshops at the festival will be #MyAmericanArt postcards. •#MyAmericanArt Postcards. Families can create and share their own American masterpieces and send them to someone special.

One of the art workshops at the festival will be #MyAmericanArt postcards. Families can create and share their own American masterpieces and send them to someone special. Photo: Racquel Keller

I have been spending the last few months as an intern in the Education Department. It is an exciting time to be a part of the team since they are in the midst of gearing up for this year’s Jazz ‘n Families Fun Days.  At the event, participants can create American art-inspired postcards, and we really wanted something cool to get them excited about mailing them. As a result, I was asked to design a custom mailbox! This was right up my alley because as an artist I build assemblages out of found pieces.

The things I wanted to take into consideration were that it should be kid-friendly, fun, largely made of recycled materials, and be something that The Phillips Collection would be proud to have on-site…for however brief a period!

Be on the lookout for the mailbox at Jazz n’ Families Fun Days on June 7 & 8. Come on down to the art workshop, make a postcard of your own, and drop it in the box.

Below is a look at my process and the finished mailbox.

Racquel Keller, Education Intern and Museum Shop Supervisor

It all started with a sketch! Photo: Racquel Keller

It all started with a sketch! Photo: Racquel Keller

Found a great big box in Education and went on a little trip to Community Forklift hunting for bits and bobs!  I found a few odds and ends there, including this great piece of recycled Plexiglass.  Plexiglass was key because I really want the kids to see where their mail was going! Photo: Racquel Keller

Found a great big box in the Education offices and went on a little trip to Community Forklift hunting for bits and bobs. I found a few odds and ends there, including this great piece of recycled Plexiglass. Plexiglass was key because I really want the kids to see where their mail was going! Photo: Racquel Keller

Then I wanted to make it relatable to our mailboxes.  That took a bit more cardboard (an old box kindly donated by the Museum Shop!) and a bit of creativity! Photo: Racquel Keller

Then I wanted to make it relatable to our mailboxes. That took a bit more cardboard (an old box kindly donated by the Museum Shop) and a bit of creativity. Photo: Racquel Keller

And finally, the beautification – the box is covered with pictures from our collection!  Photo: Racquel Keller

And finally, the beautification – the box is covered with pictures from our collection. Photo: Racquel Keller

Mindful Mountains, Cheerful Trees: Looking Closely at the Phillips

Fifteen brave participants joined me during Jazz ‘n Families Fun Days for an all-ages gallery exploration, “Mindful Mountains, Cheerful Trees: Looking Closely at the Phillips.” By observing our thoughts and works of art in the galleries, we practiced mindfulness.

Prior to the tour, I had created a set of mind jars, spurred by the excellent children’s book Moody Cow Meditates.

Mind jars awaiting new friends in the Phillips' Courtyard.

Photo: Meagan Estep

When you shake a mind jar, the swirling glitter represents crazy, overwhelming, troublesome (or excited, or thrilled) thoughts—basically our frazzled minds on a normal day. As you watch the glitter settle, your mind begins to do the same.

We started in the Courtyard, where each person picked a color of glitter and poured it into a jar. Then we swirled and swirled, thinking of all the thoughts, feelings, and emotions occurring for each of us that day. Watching his mind jar, a ten-year-old observed: “I feel my mind settle. I am calmer now.”

Participants enjoying meditation and the mind jars in the Courtyard.

Photo: James Brantley

Then we gathered inside before Morris Louis’s Number 182 and Blue Column. Participants mentioned the words “serene” and “peaceful” while looking at Louis’s paintings. For me, the colors had never danced before my eyes so vividly.

The Phillips Collections opens its doors for the annual Jazz and Families Weekend, celebrating art, music and creativity for young and old at The Phillips Collection in Washington, DC on Saturday, June 1, 2013.   DC Councilman and Mayoral candidate Jack Evans, a longtime arts supporter, helped open the event.(James R. Brantley)

Photo: James Brantley

Being mind-full is much more difficult than being mind-less, but the benefits are endless. I’ve decided to keep a mind jar on my desk here at the Phillips, so I can remember to let my thoughts settle throughout the day.

Recreate the experience at home using this mind jar recipe:

You will need:

  • Quart-sized glass Mason jar
  • Hot water
  • Glycerin (look in the pharmacy section of your grocery store) or light corn syrup
  • Dish soap
  • Fine glitter in any color

Process:

Fill Mason jar 3/4 to the top with hot water (not boiling!). Add 1/4–1/2 cup of glycerin. Glycerin will act as a slowing agent for the glitter, so the more you add, the longer it will take for your glitter to settle. Stir the glycerin in with a fork or whisk for one minute.

Add a few handfuls of glitter—how much is up to you. How many thoughts do you have in your mind right now? What colors are your emotions today? Choose your glitter based on how you feel.

Shake the jar.

You’ll notice that some glitter remains at the top of the water (this is surface tension—an underlying science lesson, too!). Add 4–5 drops of dish soap and shake gently. The glitter should begin to fall without creating too many bubbles.

Your mind jar is ready to go! Add more hot water if you want the glitter to fall faster; more glycerin or corn syrup to decrease the speed. And more glitter as you see fit.

Meagan Estep, Teacher Programs Coordinator