Exhibition Plan

Primary Information

Exhibition Title: David Macaulay – no title yet

Exhibition Dates: January 17, 2009-June 14, 2009

Coordinating Curator: Margaret Bullock and Paula McArdle

Originating Institution: Tacoma Art Museum

Required credit line (organizer and Devo):

See H:\TEAM TAM\EXHIBITION PROGRAMMING\Sponsorship Info Worksheet.xls

Additional Information

Gallery location at Tacoma Art Museum: Boeing / Weyerhaeuser

Approximately how many objects and what medium?

Approximately 50 to 100 original sketches and finished drawings from a selection of
his many published books such as Cathedral (1973) Underground (1976) Castle
(1977) Great Moments in Architecture (1978) Motel of the Mysteries (1979) Rome
Antics 1997) Building Big 2000, Mosque (2003) and How We Work (2008) The artist
is also being invited to create an installation in the gallery or other “building
intervention”

Rough range of dates for the artwork? 1973 - 2008

Brief Description:
For more than 30 years, since the publication of his first book Cathedral in 1973,
David Macaulay’s drawings have unearthed “the way things work.” Trained as an
architect, Macaulay has long been fascinated by large-scale constructions, and his
accessible illustrations teach viewers to see and understand the architectural and
engineering processes behind buildings, common gadgets, and even the human
body. Macaulay’s unique brand of drawing, which can be described as visual
archeology, not only peels back exterior facades and interior walls to reveal what is
beneath them, but also shows us how a building was designed and constructed from
the ground up.

Exhibition publication citation:

Tour Schedule:

5/29/2009
Questions

What are the key ingredients of this exhibition that make it right for
Tacoma Art Museum?
- Following the museum’s presentation of “The Art of Eric Carle” and
“Illuminating the Word: The St. John’s Bible” this exhibition offers another,
yet very different opportunity for the museum to engage visitors in art
work that is part of a story and becomes a finished book.
- As an author and book illustrator, David Macaulay is an important artist
who has broad intergenerational appeal and has earned such honors as
The Caldecott Award as well as the MacArthur “genius” award in 2006.
Other MacArthur “genius” award winners featured in TAM exhibitions have
included Trimpin and Aminah Robinson.
- The exhibition will feature a living artist and examine his process and
working method, and consider the parallels between research and artistic
process.
- The exhibition will consider a number of themes: the human body,
common gadgets, underlying structures and architecture all of which are
familiar and relevant to broad audiences. The artist’s fascination with
human endeavor and ingenuity will unite all of these themes.
- This exhibition have strong appeal for educators, thus furthering the
museum’s commitment to furthering verbal and visual literacy
competencies among its k-12 audience.
- The focus on architecture presents an opportunity to honor long-time
museum supporters, such as Mary Lund Davis and Allen Liddle.

What is the value of this exhibition to the Tacoma Art Museum visitor and
community?
- While not the only theme of the exhibition, the focus on deconstructing and
de-mystifying the engineering of iconic buildings and architecture offers a
unique learning opportunity for a community that has such has distinctive
architecture.
- As Tacoma is an industrial city, “a place where things are made,” the artist’s
interest in construction will resonate with local audiences.
- With a focus on buildings and architecture, the exhibition will present
opportunities to support the museum’s strategic plan objective of resolving
its exterior plaza and surrounding perimeter.
- The artist has agreed to “interact” with the building in someway therefore
allowing the community to see the building in a new and inspired way.
- The exhibition will promote a kind of “engineering literacy” that aligns with
the institutional goal of visual literacy.

What essential understandings do we want a person to take from this

exhibition?
- “Macaulay’s work celebrates human endeavor and ingenuity. His books
encourage readers to consider the construction of everything from buildings
to stories, and to constantly look at the world around us.”
- The “research process” is an integral part of the artistic process –finished
works of art and books do not just appear that they are the result of an
involved process of thinking, exploring, experimenting.
- The artist is interested in his viewers/readers to understand the inner working
of things.

5/29/2009
How will museum visitors reach the desired “essential understandings” of
the exhibition?
- The gallery installation will be dynamic – will include many working sketches
and sketch books.
- The installation may include a hands on activity table for playful
- A library alcove such as was part of The Art of Eric Carle will include
published books and a brief video (possibly the PBS series on Macaulay).

Brainstorming marketing themes of “real, surreal, hyper-real”

5/29/2009