University students experience love for arts during trip to Fort Worth museums

University students hopped aboard a bus this month and headed for Fort Worth for whirlwind tours of both the Modern Art Museum and Kimbell Art Museum.

Jill Blondin, a professor in the University’s Art and Art History Department, organized the Oct. 23 field trip for students interested in fine art.
Because of time constraints, students could spend only a few hours at each museum, but it was enough time to notice the variety of styles and techniques.

Junior April Bruner said she enjoyed what the Modern Art Museum had to offer, especially Nicholas Nixon’s “The Brown Sisters.” “I absolutely loved the photographs of the four sisters in the Modern,” Bruner said afterward. “I stood there looking for 20 minutes. That one has stuck out in memory since I’ve left.”

Most of the pieces on display at The Modern Art Museum were created within the last century, including Gerhard Richter’s “Sea-Piece-Wave,” Anselm Kiefer’s “Aschenblume,” and Martin Puryear’s “Ladder for Booker T. Washington.”

One well-known piece highlighted in the museum was Richard Serra’s “The Vortex,” a large tower spiraling structure that produces echo effects of nearby noises. Andy Warhol’s celebrated “Twenty-Five Colored Marilyns,” featuring 25 small pictures of actress Marilyn Monroe, was also on display.

Displays at the Kimbell Art Museum came from other times and places, a combination of culture and creativity. Bruner said she enjoyed the mix. “I wish I had seen more in the Kimbell, I didn’t realize how impressive their collection was.” Bruner said. “I hardly saw anything but the paintings, [I was] too absorbed to move quickly.”

All of the works at the Kimbell seem to possess a degree of cultural significance. Some are more recognizable than others. Some well known pieces included Plato’s rendition of the Death of Pentheus, a Grecian bowl with detailed orange figures against a black background, and Michelangelo’s first painting, The Torment of Saint Anthony.

However brief, Bruner said she was grateful for the visits. “I’m thankful the professors put on the trip or it would have been a few years until I had gone back to those museums again.” Bruner said.