15 Most Viewed Phillips Artworks in 2016

Posted on January 9, 2017 by Experiment Station

We took a look at which of our permanent collection artwork web pages were visited most often during 2016; here’s the top 15 pieces!

15. Pablo Picasso’s The Blue Room (1901)

14. Honoré Daumier’s The Uprising (1848 or later)

Honoré Daumier, The Uprising, between 1848 and 1879. Oil on canvas, 34 1/2 x 44 1/2 in. The Phillips Collection, Washington, D.C. Acquired 1925

13. Milton Avery’s Girl Writing (1941)

12. Jacob Lawrence’s Panel No. 1: During world war I there was a great migration north by southern African Americans. (1940-41), from The Migration Series

Jacob Lawrence, Panel no. 1: During World War I there was a great migration north by southern African Americans., 1940–41, Casein tempera on hardboard, 12 x 18 in. The Phillips Collection, Washington, DC, Acquired 1942

11. Mark Rothko’s Green and Maroon (1953)

Mark Rothko, Green and Maroon, 1953. Oil on canvas, 91 1/8 x 54 7/8 in. The Phillips Collection, Washington, DC, Acquired 1957 © 1998 Kate Rothko Prizel & Christopher Rothko/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York

10. Henri Matisse’s Interior with Egyptian Curtain (1948)

Henri Matisse, Interior with Egyptian Curtain, 1948. Oil on canvas, 45 3/4 x 35 1/8 in. The Phillips Collection, Washington, DC, Acquired 1950 © 2017 Succession H. Matisse/ Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York

9. Vincent van Gogh’s Entrance to the Public Gardens in Arles (1888)

Vincent van Gogh, Entrance to the Public Gardens in Arles, 1888. Oil on canvas, 28 1/2 x 35 3/4 in. The Phillips Collection, Washington, DC, Acquired 1930

8. Vincent van Gogh’s The Road Menders (1889)

Vincent van Gogh, The Road Menders, 1889. Oil on canvas, 29 x 36 1/2 in. The Phillips Collection, Washington, D.C. Acquired 1949

7. Hilaire-Germain-Edgar Degas’s Dancers at the Barre (c. 1900)

Hilaire-Germain-Edgar Degas, Dancers at the Barre, ca. 1900. Oil on canvas, 51 1/4 x 38 1/2 in. The Phillips Collection, Washington, DC, Acquired 1944

6. Pierre Bonnard’s The Open Window (1921)

5. Paul Cézanne’s The Garden at Les Lauves (c. 1906)

Paul Cézanne, The Garden at Les Lauves (Le Jardin des Lauves), ca. 1906. Oil on canvas, 25 3/4 x 31 7/8 in. The Phillips Collection, Washington, DC, Acquired 1955.

4. The Laib Wax Room (2013)

The Laib Wax Room. Photo: Lee Stalsworth

3. The Rothko Room

The Rothko Room at The Phillips Collection, Washington, DC. Photo © Robert Lautman

2. Jacob Lawrence’s The Migration Series (1941)

Visitors looking at Jacob Lawrence's The Migration Series (1941) at The Phillips Collection. Photo: Max Hirshfeld

Visitors with Jacob Lawrence’s The Migration Series (1941) at The Phillips Collection. Photo: Max Hirshfeld

1. Pierre-Auguste Renoir’s Luncheon of the Boating Party (between 1880 and 1881)

August Renoir, Luncheon of the Boating Party, 1880-1881.

Pierre-Auguste Renoir, Luncheon of the Boating Party, between 1880 and 1881. Oil on canvas, 51 1/4 x 69 1/8 in. The Phillips Collection, Washington, DC, Acquired 1923

In the Conservation Studio with William Christenberry

Posted on December 2, 2016 by Conservation

Collections Care Manager Laura Tighe in the Phillips’s conservation studio

We were saddened to hear of the passing of beloved Phillips trustee emeritus and distinguished artist William Christenberry earlier this week. His work continues to resonate and impact in our galleries and beyond. Here, Collections Care Manager Laura Tighe is matting and preparing a microclimate frame for two color photographs by the artist. The works (“Bread of Life,” near Tuscaloosa, Alabama, 1989/printed 1995 above at left; “Church across Early Cotton (Vertical View),” Pickinsville, Alabama, 1964/printed 2000 below and to right) will be part of an upcoming solo exhibition in December 2016 at Maryland Institute College of Art.

5 Disgruntled Characters from the Collection

Posted on July 28, 2016 by Experiment Station

Not every sitter is excited to be painted. The Phillips owns a wide range of portraits, and within them, all manner of expressions. Here are five less-than-enthused subjects from the museum’s permanent collection.

1. Chaim Soutine’s Woman in Profile is #NotImpressed.

2. Paul Klee, The Witch with the Comb. The fierce brows say it all.

Paul Klee, The Witch with the Comb, 1922. Lithograph, 20 7/8 in x 16 3/4 in x 1 1/4 in. The Phillips Collection, Washington, DC. Gift of B. J. and Carol Cutler, 2006; © 2015 Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York, NY

3. Sensing some side-eye from Joseph Solman’s Portrait in Yellow and Blue.

Joseph Solman, Portrait in Yellow and Blue, not dated, Oil on canvas 20 x 16 in. The Phillips Collection, Washington, DC. Acquired 1954

4) Jean-Baptiste-Camille Corot’s Portrait of a Woman unsuccessfully feigning interest.

Unsuccessfully feigning interest. Jean-Baptiste-Camille Corot, Portrait of a Woman, 1870, Oil on canvas, 22 7/8 in x 19 in x 1 5/8 in. The Phillips Collection, Washington, DC. Acquired 1922

5. Thomas Eakins, Miss Amelia Van Buren. Read what visitors told us she’s thinking in these earlier blog posts.

Thomas Eakins, Miss Amelia Van Buren, ca. 1891. Oil on canvas, 45 x 32 in. The Phillips Collection, Washington, DC. Acquired 1927

To end on a happy note: channel this woman from Sam Taylor-Johnson’s Cry Laughing!

Sam Taylor-Johnson, Cry Laughing, 1997. 8 C-type prints on aluminum, each print: 16 x 12 in. The Phillips Collection. Gift of the Heather and Tony Podesta Collection, Washington, DC, 2011