Current Special Exhibition
Prolific and Experimental: The Art of Steffen Thomas
March 11 - June 8, 2024
"Prolific and Experimental: The Art of Steffen Thomas," features over twenty works of sculpture, paintings, and etchings from the collections of The Steffen Thomas Museum of Art and the artist’s family. Visitors have the opportunity to explore the artistic legacy of Steffen Thomas and its connection to the visionary educator Martha Berry.
The exhibition showcases a diverse selection works by the artist and a never-before-displayed drawing of Martha Freeman, a servant in the Berry family household and lifelong friend of Martha Berry. Steffen Thomas' art touched on themes of identity, nature, and social responsibility. Thomas’ career spanned the 20th century and evolved from commissioned sculptures to more expressive artworks, blending classical and modernist influences.
Image: Land Forms in Orange & Red, ca. 1974, Steffen Thomas, The Steffen Thomas Museum of Art
Past Special Exhibitions
October 14, 2023 - February 21, 2024
The Fords’ gifts to Berry were numerous and varied throughout the first half of the twentieth century. From monumental structures to soybeans, the intention behind Henry and Clara Fords' generosity remained constant: improve the lives of the Berry Schools' students. Many of Berry's iconic structures, such as the Old Mill and the Ford Complex, trace back to the Fords and have evolved with the schools since their initial construction. Other more personal gifts, such as recipes and repaired clocks, are remembered in our history and speak to the sincere friendship and concern Henry and Clara Ford had for the Berry community. This exhibition coincides with the 100th anniversary of the Fords' first visit to Berry in 1923. Visitors will explore how the Fords left an indelible impact on the Berry community and campus while viewing historical photographs, blueprints, correspondence, and personal gifts related to Henry and Clara Ford and the Berry Schools.
Art Exhibit by Makoto Fujimura
February 1- April 15, 2023
Oak Hill & The Martha Berry Museum and Berry's Center for Integrity and Leadership (BCIL) are excited to host art by leading contemporary artist Makoto Fujimura. The exhibit features works from Fujimura's "Waterflames" and "Walking on Water" painting series done as elegies after traumatic disasters, among other paintings to capture a comprehensive nature of his art.
These works integrate the language of Japanese art of 16th to 17th Century with the Modernist works of Mark Rothko and Arshile Gorky, together into a contemporary expression. Nihonga (Japanese style painting using pulverized minerals and gold and silver) materials are transmuted into contemporary expression of Fujimura’s as “slow art”.
October 7- December 23, 2022
Celebrate 50 years of The Martha Berry Museum by exploring the art of Mary Morton, the woman behind the construction of the museum!
Among other gifts to the Berry Schools and museum, Morton gave nearly 200 personal paintings and drawings made during the mid-20th century. After completing her art degree at the University of Chicago in 1908, Morton traveled the globe and continued her pursuit of painting. These watercolors are the result. To show the breadth of the collection, 50 new watercolors will rotate into the special exhibition gallery every 4 weeks for the duration of the show.
March 2- September 3, 2022
In 1940, Princess Eugenia Ruspoli, Martha Berry’s eldest sibling, began gifting "Old World" art to the Berry Schools. Many of the paintings are in the style of the Renaissance and Baroque eras of Europe and center on themes of Greek and Roman mythology and Christianity. The complicated symbolism and museum records inspired our staff to tackle decoding the elaborate paintings. Team members selected a work to individually research, and the results are surprising. What will you discover about our oldest art collection?
February 8 – November 23, 2021
From 1882 to 1943, in thirty-one states and six countries, Rafael Guastavino Sr. and Jr. created more than six-hundred distinctive tile domes and vaultings illustrating a new standard of health, safety, and beauty in architecture. This traveling exhibition, organized by The Guastavino Alliance, initially showed in the Boston Public Library in 2012-2013, and features photography by Michael Freeman and original Guastavino Company drawings. Additional artifacts and documents relating to Rafael Guastavino Jr. and Berry College’s Ford buildings are also on display in a supplementary exhibit, “Guastavino at Berry,” to honor Berry’s unique relationship with the Guastavino Fireproof Construction Company.