Google celebrates Magritte!

I love Google, who doesn't? But I especially love when they subtly change the famous Google icon to celebrate something. Today, Google celebrates Rene Magritte, the painter from Belgium who gave us some of the most interesting and mysterious paintings of the 20th century. Today, Rene Magritte would have been 110.
The 20th century gave us many memorable works of art, Picasso and Dali, Warhol and Pollock. But the work of Magritte stands alone in it's originality and dream-like quality.
Traveling Exhibits does not have a Magritte Exhibit (yet!) but we have a wonderful Prestel book called Now You See It-Now You Don't about Magritte. Hardcover, 28 pages, beautiful book. I like to think of this series from Prestel as simple, not simplistic. A wonderful overview and interesting story.
We also created a fun computer games to reinforce art history called 20th Century Art Challenge Game. Just $29.99, it will be available Dec. 12, pre-orders are welcome.
Has anyone noticed that the advertisement for the ABC television series called Eli Stone looked similar to...




credits:
Son Of Man, 1964, Collection of Harry Torcyzner, Mohegan Lake, New York
Google
ABC Television

Escher in Ohio!

Thank you to Linda in Ohio for sharing these wonderful photos! She rented the Escher Exhibit and her students, in fact the entire school, loved it!
A Traveling Exhibit is a fabulous centerpiece for any lesson. The Escher Exhibit is unique because of the wonderful opportunity to cross curriculum with math and art. Students and staff alike are fascinated when they can see the minute detail of these amazing drawings and prints. When students and staff can stand together and discover the intricacies, discuss and share about it--magic happens.
Bring the magic to your school-just give us a call!
(248)276-4913

Our Own Catrina

La Calavera de la Catrina was a 1913 zinc etching by Mexican printmaker Jose Guadalupe Posada. As you may know, it was the etchings of Posada that inspired Diego Rivera. In the Rivera Exhibit that features A Sunday Afternoon in the Alameda Park, you can see Catrina front and center.
Our own Traveling Exhibits coordinator, Lisa, paid homage by creating this fabulous costume for our annual Halloween party.
She won first place in the costume contest (of course)!
As you celebrate Día de los Muertos, you may want to share this picture of Lisa-Catrina with your students!

We Have A Winner!

Traveling Exhibits sent three versions of our catalog out this fall, one to middle and high school art teachers, one to elementary schools, and one to libraries. Each catalog had its own quiz contest, each with a different drawing date. The first winner was drawn from our correct entries from middle and high school, and our winner is...

Arthur S. from Texas!

Arthur will be hosting a Salvador Dali Exhibit for free this month!

Thank you to everyone who entered. Based on the number of responses, we will definitely be sponsoring more contests!
Bookmark this page, as we will be announcing the other winners and giving you updates on the success of the Great American Button Exchange programs!

Bringing Inspiration to New Jersey!

Traveling will exhibits will make its debut conference appearance in New Jersey! Lisa, our coordinator, is in New Jersey this week for the AENJ Fall Conference. She is displaying two new exhibits, Escher and Degas, in the registration area (can't miss them, they are spectacular!) If you are going, stop by and see Lisa.
This picture is of Lisa and our newest team member, Roze. They are wearing our limited edition, signature, inspire. t-shirts! Inspiring students and adults alike is the foundation of what we do in Traveling Exhibits and is the goal of every product we make. Think about who inspires you, and how you inspire others. It is very powerful and not to be taken lightly. You can inspire big decisions, like careers, and big ideas, like acceptance and understanding. Keep an eye on this space, new products from project: inspire. are coming soon!

Fall Greetings!

If you have not received your 2008/2009 Traveling Exhibit catalog, it's on the way! We mailed catalogs to elementary, middle and high school art teachers and public libraries. If you aren't in one of these groups, click here to request yours! You will see 7 new exhibits this year! We polled our customers last year and were able to deliver some of the most requested topics. We bring you Degas, in all its splendor. When we received the exhibits from our printer, we were speechless. We had many request for a woman artist. We bring you Mary Cassatt, a cool independent lady who lived by her own rules. (Sorry to the many of you who requested Georgia O'Keeffe. We spent a great deal of time trying to persuade her foundation to let us honor her with an exhibits but they have a strict "no reproduction on fabric" rule.) We worked hard with the M.C. Escher Foundation to bring you the incomparable drawings that your whole class can admire together. We had many requests for a contemporary artist and we bring you Jackson Pollock, whose art/emotion connection is so powerful, it's hard to tear yourself away. (Again, sorry to all of you who voted Warhol, his foundation refused as well, although they were very nice about it!) As our world gets smaller, we bring you Hokusai and the magic of the intricate prints and paintings. Renaissance art is always a favorite and we are proud to bring you Michelangelo, simply breathtaking. And finally, there are other forms of art besides painting and sculpture so be bring you Antoni Gaudi, one of the most creative and innovative architects ever.
You'll also find several new products we've developed and are really proud of! A cool, fun set of careers in art posters that inspire. We put your windows to work with the exclusive artist quote cling sets. You can visit a "virtual museum" featuring Picasso, and hear from him as well! And we developed computer games to reinforce art history.
Bookmark this blog, we've got loads of ideas to share!
Inspire passion!

Art in Washington

While in Washington DC for the AEP Awards, I took the opportunity to visit the National Galleries of Art. I hadn't been there in years, certainly not since I started with Teacher's Discovery Traveling Exhibits.
As I said, it was 100 degrees in Washington that weekend and I was quite warm by the time I walked the several blocks to the West Gallery. The cool air in the magnificent building provided immediate relief. The feeling of entering this gallery provided a different feeling, more awestruck that I have ever felt entering a museum. I wasn't sure why, I have been to many wonderful museums. But then it dawned on me, this is what we do with Teacher's Discovery Traveling Exhibits, we bring this art to the classrooms, libraries and hearts of the students of the U.S.
Class field trips used to be quite common. Budget cuts and security concerns have made the trips far less common. For many schools and libraries, museums simply are not close enough. We are helping to bring art to you. Maybe not original art, like in the National Gallery, but such a good reproduction, you can see brushstrokes. The enormous size we provide contributes to the experience, so much different than a slide or a poster.
My feeling of awe is probably much like the experience you give your students and guests when you display an exhibit. Suddenly, the art is real, the talent is beyond comprehension and history is before your eyes.
I thought I knew why I have this job. Now I really know.