Breman Goes Inside Private Collections
The William Breman Jewish Heritage Museum opens “Atlanta Collects,” an exhibit of privately owned works, on Monday, Dec. 5.
Collected by Jewish art enthusiasts around metro Atlanta, “Atlanta Collects” features Edgar Degas, Wassily Kandinsky, Pablo Picasso, Edouard Manet, Marsden Hartley, Mary Cassatt, Andrew Wyeth and Max Schödl.
The idea for the exhibit came from Aaron Berger, the Breman’s executive director, and was so popular among collectors contributing works that it is being presented in two shows. The exhibition will feature paintings, sculptures, glass and nontraditional art from different periods to show the wide array of holdings in private collections. The first installment, on display until Feb. 26, features art from the 1800s to the end of the 20th century. The second installment runs March 12 to June 11 with art created after 2000.
“It has been fascinating to see the level of knowledge from some of these collectors. They are beyond any Ph.D. or art historian that I’ve met. Their aspect of collecting is humbling,” Berger said.
Berger, along with an appointed committee, visited homes across the city. The art lovers, collectors and museum supporters on that committee are Lois Blonder, Lisa Brill, Laura Dinerman, Judith Taylor, Ellen Holland and Pearlann Horowitz.
Blonder has years of involvement with the Breman and has served on the board since its inception. “I have a strong commitment to the purpose and the mission of the museum. From the educational aspect and thousands of students educated in the Holocaust gallery, I see the museum as a one-of-a-kind in the area.”
One piece from Blonder’s ceramics collection is part of “Atlanta Collects.”
Collector Brill, whose college majors included art history but who claims that the talent stops at her wrists, was recruited by Dinerman. “Laura said there’s a new project, and it’s up your alley. I met with Aaron and heard about project, and it is up my alley.”
Brill called “Atlanta Collects” courageous.
“Atlanta Collects” curator William Eiland is the director of the Georgia Museum of Art at the University of Georgia.
“It is about the collecting patterns of the individuals and the works that best represent their interests, their passions, their knowledge,” he said. “I’m interested in all kinds of art, and I was gratified by the quality and quantity of works available from Jewish collectors.”
The sold-out 20th anniversary gala at the Breman on Saturday night, Dec. 3, includes a sneak peek at the exhibit.
Honoree Jarvin Levison, a founder of the Midtown museum, plans to speak about the beginnings of the institution at the Jewish Federation of Greater Atlanta.
Public access to “Atlanta Collects” comes with museum admission.
Corrections: This story has been changed since its posting to replace Georg Schobel with Max Schödl and to correct the number of pieces from Lois Blonder’s ceramics collection in the exhibit.
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