Provenance traces the history of an artwork’s travels from artist’s studio through the hands of subsequent owners. Museum curators, collectors, dealers, art and cultural historians, attorneys–and even some novelists—track the fascinating story of ‘how things got where.’

Museum professional Dr. Lynn Federle Orr shares insights about the role of Provenance in the Art World. At times straightforward, at others tinged with the drama of war or the hype of celebrity, the study of art ownership more importantly opens a window onto larger social issues: shifting fashions in style, political power struggles, cultural identity, and the meaning and purpose of museums themselves. From conventional inheritance, to the excitement of the saleroom, to WWII Repatriations, to the vexing questions of antiquities, Dr. Orr explores the facts, controversies, and ethics in the world of Provenance.

As Curator-in-Charge of European Art, Lynn Orr oversaw the Legion of Honor’s permanent collection and galleries. Dr. Orr also served on the NEA’s Domestic Indemnification Program advisory panel. With a University of California Ph.D., she has lectured and published widely on the 17th and 19th centuries. Recent exhibitions include ‘Girl with a Pearl Earring’ Dutch Paintings from the Mauritshuis (2013); The Cult of Beauty: The Victorian Avant-Garde (2012); and back-to-back exhibitions from the Musée d’Orsay (2010-11).  In 2013-14, she taught at Stanford University (Continuing Studies Program), the University of San Francisco (Department of Art and Architecture), and University of California, Santa Cruz (Department of History of Art and Visual Culture).

Admission: $15 for non-members, $10 for members, and Free for members at the $500 level and above. Talk begins at 7:00pm. 

Art:inFOCUS Speaker Series - Immerse yourself in the world of art through this engaging series of presentations and open discussions with artists and art professionals.

Join us on Thursday, June 25, 2015, 6:00pm - 8:00pm at New Museum Los Gatos for "Public Collecting/Private Collecting: Four Decades of Collecting for the Communities I Served and Acquiring Works Personally That Were Meaningful to Me in My Life”, Presented by Robert Flynn Johnson

Robert Flynn Johnson is Curator Emeritus of the Achenbach Foundation for Graphic Arts, Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco.  For more than forty years he has collected works for both museums and for his own personal collection.  His publications include Plant Kingdoms: The Photographs of Charles Jones, Artists’ Books in the Modern Era 1870 - 2000, Lucian Freud: Works on Paper,Anonymous: Enigmatic Images from Unknown Photographers and The Face in the Lens: Anonymous Photographs.  Currently, his exhibition Edgar Degas The Private Impressionist is on view at the Petaluma Arts Center from June 20th until July 26th.

Artspiration: Transforming STEM to STEAM 

Esther Tokihiro, Visual and Performing Arts Coordinator at the Santa Clara County Office of Education, will share the state of arts education, learning standards for students and what the future holds in the 21st century classroom. Her presentation is held in conjunction with the High School Art Exhibition, Bridges: Facing Challenges.

Members (Single Event) $10.00 USD Non Members (Single Event) $15.00 USD 

About Esther Tokihiro

Esther Tokihiro, Visual and Performing Arts Coordinator and member of the Santa Clara County Office of Education STEAM Team has a deep passion for educating the whole child, which is reflected in her 30 year career.  She brings educational experiences from the classroom where she taught History/Social Studies, coordinated an award-winning Peer Counseling Program, served as District Resource Teacher and site administrator, and holds a special place for middle-schoolers in her heart.  She has actively supported the arts personally, professionally and especially as a parent.  Esther received her Bachelors of Education, Professional Diploma, and two Masters of Education degrees from the University of Hawaii at Manoa and her California Administrative Credential from Santa Clara University

About the Lecture

“I believe that children are our future, teach them well and let them lead the way” … through the arts!

Has the magic of our students’ art competition exhibit transported you to want to find out more about arts education in our public schools?  What does arts education look like in Santa Clara County?  What is the future of arts in a STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) world?  How can you learn more and help build a creative community for children?

This lecture will cover the state of arts education in the 21st century classroom, learning standards for students and what the future holds.  There are wonderful programs in our county as evidenced by the student art works and you are invited to be curious during this informal conversation. 

PRIVATE CURATOR'S CIRCLE RECEPTION with the artist: 2-3p

PUBLIC TALK: 3-4:30p

MEET AND MINGLE: 4:30-5p

Lecture/Talk by New York Painter Gary Stephan with and introduction by San Francisco Gallerist George Lawson.

Stephan has been showing his work since the late sixties in the United States and Europe. He has had solo shows in this country at Bykert Gallery, Mary Boone, Hirschl and Adler, Margo Leavin, Marlborough, Daniel Weinberg and Susan Inglett, among others. His work is in the collections of the Whitney, MOMA, the Guggenheim Museum, the Metropolitan Museum, the Smithsonian, MOCA Los Angeles, SF MOMA, the Dallas Museum of Art, the Museum of Contemporary Art in Miami, the Museum of Contemporary Art in Cincinnati and the Albright-Knox Gallery, among others. Stephan is the recipient of awards from the American Academy of Arts and Letters, the John Simon Guggenheim Foundation, the National Endowment for the Arts, the New York Arts Foundation and most recently a Joan Mitchell foundation Award. 

This event is co-sponsored by NUMU's Art:In Focus Lecture Series and the George Lawson Gallery

Join us for a fun, informative talk about art from the artist's perspective and be the first to check out the New Museum!

Reserve tickets here!