Museum News
20th Anniversary of the Gardner Museum Theft
March 18, 2010 marks the 20th year that frames hang empty at the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum as a reminder of the theft of thirteen works of art taken from its galleries. The frames hang empty today as an homage to the missing artworks and as a placeholder for their return. On this, the 20th year since the theft, the Gardner Museum, in cooperation with the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the US Attorney's Office, remains as committed as ever to the return of these stolen artworks - to the museum and to an awaiting public where they belong.

Anyone with information about the theft, the location of the stolen artworks, or the investigation may contact Director of Security Anthony Amore directly at 617-278-5114 or theft@gardnermuseum.org. The museum can ensure complete confidentiality.

• 20th Anniversary Press Statement • Fact Sheet: Theft Overview & By-the-Numbers • Fact Sheet: The Stolen Works • Image Sheet: The Stolen Works

• View an all-new video of Gardner Museum Director of Security Anthony Amore speaking about the theft. Recorded March 4, 2010. Presented in collaboration with National Public Radio (NPR) On Point host Tom Ashbrook.

• Visit the Gardner Museum Theft page for additional information and access to these Fact Sheets and Image Sheets on the Gardner Museum theft.

• Editors Note: B-Roll footage of Anthony Amore speaking about the theft, as well as general museum and gallery footage, is available in Mini-DV or DVD format to borrow. Please contact the press office for copies.

Landscape and Culinary Arts
Floral Traditions Old And New Flourish in the Gardner Museum's Annual Celebration of Spring
Hanging Nasturtiums courtyard display | April 3 to mid-April 2010
Edible Nasturtiums thematic menu | April 2010

One-of-a-kind floral installation in the museum's courtyard and flower-infused menu in The Gardner Cafe continue and update a 100 year-old Gardner Museum tradition.

Press Release • Image Sheet • Nasturtium Growing Tips • Nasturtium Recipes •
Edible Nasturtiums Menu

Historic Exhibition
Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum Presents
Modeling Devotion: Terracotta Sculpture of the Italian Renaissance

On view February 25 to May 23, 2010
Exhibition rooted in scholarship and conservation highlights new discoveries about Isabella Gardner's terracotta sculptures - including their attribution, condition, technique, fakes, and forgeries.

• Full PRESS KIT • Press Release • Exhibition Checklist • Image Sheet/Captions
• Exhibition Wall Text • Accompanying Programming • Curator Bio: Alan Chong

Modeling Devotion is the final historic exhibition to be presented in the historic special exhibition gallery - in anticipation of a new gallery that will be in the new Renzo Piano-designed wing, expected to open in early 2012.

• Link to Exhibition Page at www.gardnermuseum.org

Gardner Museum launches a new press area dedicated to the new Renzo Piano-designed wing: New Building Project

A Venetian Valentine
Gardner Museum Hosts an Enchanted Valentine's Evening -- and a Valentine's Story Contest!
Sunday, February 14, 2010 | 6:30-9:00 PM
Annual Valentine’s Day fête invites guests to savor enticing cuisine and cocktails amidst romantic music, art, and poetry in Boston’s only Venetian-inspired palazzo. Plus -- for the first time -- win tickets through an online story contest!

Concerts
Music at the Gardner: Winter/Spring 2010 Concerts
January through June 2010
Spring concerts celebrate the new--with fresh voices, innovative new formats, and three world premieres.

Full Press Release • Season Highlights • Complete Concert Listings

Music & Education
Gardner Museum Appoints A Far Cry As Newest Chamber Orchestra in Residence
Innovative Jamaica Plain-based ensemble partners with museum for concerts and new music education intiative.

Museum News
Michelle Grohe Named 2010 Massachusetts Museum Art Educator of the Year
Gardner Museum's Director of School and Teacher Programs honored by Massachusetts Art Education Association for exceptional achievement and leadership in museum education.

Contemporary Exhibition
"TARO SHINODA: LUNAR REFLECTIONS"
November 5, 2009 to January 31, 2010

The art of Taro Shinoda engages themes of science, philosophy, and desire, and investigates our place in the universe. During his month-long residency in Boston in the spring of 2007, Shinoda was inspired by the moonlight in the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum courtyard to develop his Lunar Reflection Transmission Technique.

The latest contemporary exhibition at the Gardner Museum by a visiting Artist-in-Residence, Lunar Reflections includes lunar reflections from Tokyo, Istanbul, Limerick, and Boston.

• Full PRESS KIT • Press Release: "Taro Shinoda: Lunar Reflections" • Exhibition Image Sheet • Exhibition Wall Text • Artist Bio: Taro Shinoda • Accompanying Programming

Evening Programs
Gardner Museum Launches New Room Views Series
All-new conversation series brings together Artists-in-Residence, curators, and other creative minds to share responses to and reflections on Isabella Gardner's eclectic installations.

Museum News
Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum Reaches Fundraising Milestone
October 28, 2009 | Museum's Planned Expansion Project on Schedule and on Budget as Site Preparation and Geothermal Well Excavation Are Underway

Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum Announces Drilling and Installation of Energy-Efficient Geothermal Wells to Heat and Cool the Museum and the New Building
October 30, 2009 | Installation of Energy-Efficient Geothermal Wells New hybrid heating and cooling systems, designed by Buro Happold, and new geothermal wells, designed by Allied Consulting, represent an important 'green' component of the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum's new construction project

Landscape Visions
2009-10 Landscape Visions Lectures Explore "The Landscape of Eternity"
Saturdays at 1:30pm | Oct 24 | Nov 21 | Jan 23 | Feb 13 | March 20
In five programs this season, celebrated guest speakers discuss the rich landscape tradition that has evolved as a response to our ephemeral existence.

Holiday Happenings
HOLIDAY CELEBRATIONS AT THE GARDNER
throughout December 2009
Holiday flora, fare, fêtes - and more! - offer artful opportunities for all to celebrate the season in inimitable Gardner style.

Concerts
Gardner Museum Launches Avant Gardner Concert Series
Thursday Evenings | September 17 | January 21 | March 18
Avant Gardner offers cutting-edge classical music--including three world premieres--in three adventurous concerts this season featuring Boston's Callithumpian Consort.

Concerts
Music at the Gardner: Fall 2009 Concert Schedule
September through December 2009
The Gardner's dynamic fall concert season offers an inspired array of classical, jazz, and new music performances--celebrating tradition and innovation with familiar faces, emerging artists, musical conversations, and a new contemporary classical series.

Full Press Kit • Season Highlights • Complete Concert Listings

Concerts
Belgian Singer-Songwriter Niko Hafkenscheid to Perform at Gardner After Hours on August 20th

Acclaimed performance artist Hafkenscheid brings a special courtyard concert to the Gardner in connection with the contemporary exhibition Su-Mei Tse: Floating Memories.

• Listen to an AUDIO CLIP of "ONLY ERASING" by Niko Hafkenscheid

Contemporary Exhibition
"SU-MEI TSE: FLOATING MEMORIES"
July 16 to October 18, 2009
Golden Lion award-winning visual artist Su-Mei Tse presents a new sound installation at the Gardner, drawing inspiration from the museum's rich collection and history -- including the Dutch Room -- to evoke the ideas of loss, distant memory, absence, and longing.

"Delicate, thoughtful, intuitive, and... constantly surprising" •"Beautiful, soulful, ... [and] utterly hypnotic"

• Press Release: "Su-Mei Tse: Floating Memories" • Exhibition Wall Text
• Exhibition Image Sheet • Su-Mei Tse: Artist CV • Accompanying Programming
• Full PRESS KIT
• Listen to an AUDIO CLIP of "ONLY ERASING" by Niko Hafkenscheid
(in anticipation of his August 20th performance)

FREE Community Events
FREE NEIGHBORHOOD NIGHTS EVENTS CELEBRAT ART & COMMUNITY
Thursday Evenings | July 9, July 23 & August 6 | 5-8pm

Neighborhood Nights are back this summer! Enjoy free admission to the museum and special exhibition gallery, art-making activities, family-friendly performances, and more!

Concerts
Free "New Music Afternoons" at the Gardner: June 16-19

Enjoy a week of free, informal classical concerts by participants in New England Conservatory's Summer Institute for Contemporary Performance Practice

Student Exhibition
12th Annual "Community Creations" Exhibition Features Work by Local Student Artists

Art created through the Gardner's Community Partnership and Teens Behind the Scenes Programs in collaboration with area artists celebrated with special exhibition and FREE opening reception.

Music & Technology
Gardner Museum Celebrates Millionth Download of
Free Podcast & Online Music Library

The Gardner's successful free classical music podcast, The Concert, and online music library have been embraced by listeners across the globe for quality programming and use of flexible copyright.

Promotion
"WICKED" Online Auction Offered by Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum and CMarket.com

Gardner Museum's first online auction features a unique prize package filled with all things "WICKED" includes private, gourmet lunch for four with author GREGORY MAGUIRE at the Gardner, orchestra seats to see the musical Wicked, & autographed copies of The Wicked Years series

Available for Bidding May 10 through May 21, 2009 online at:
http://gardnermuseum.cmarket.com

• Press Release
• An Essay from Gregory Maguire, May 2009

Museum News
Gardner Museum Announces Cost-Saving Measures

• Press Release
• Letter from the Director to Gardner Museum Members and Friends

Contemporary Art
Gardner Museum Presents a Conversation with Video Artist Zhang Peili
April 23, 2009 | 6:30pm
Former Gardner Artist-in-Residence Zhang Peili, considered the father of video art in China, returns to discuss and preview his recent work.

Contemporary Art
Contemporary Art On View at the Gardner Museum Summer and Fall 2009: Su-Mei Tse: "Floating Memories" and Taro Shinoda: Artist-In-Residence Exhibition (exact title tbd)
Artists-In-Residence Su-Mei Tse and Taro Shinoda present a pair of new works -- combining the influences of music, lunar reflections, and Asia - at the Gardner Museum, Boston

• "SU-MEI TSE: FLOATING MEMORIES" | On view July 16 to October 18, 2009
Advance Press Preview Event: Wednesday, July 15, 9am
RSVP to karmstrong@isgm.org or 617 278 5107

• "TARO SHINODA: AN ARTIST-IN-RESIDENCE EXHIBITION"
On view November 5, 2009 to January 18, 2010
Advance Press Preview Event: Wednesday, November 4, 9am
RSVP to karmstrong@isgm.org or 617 278 5107

_____________________
Advance release; please check back for additional details.

Concerts
Gardner Museum Presents Musical Journey East in Connection With Current Exhibition
April 12, 2009 | 1:30pm
Eclectic program of Chinese and Western classical works showcases pipa and double bass.

• Stolen Artworks: Image Sheet

Landscape Programs
Author Anna Pavord Leads 'Adventure in Botanical History' at the Gardner Museum
Saturday, March 21, 2009 | 1:30pm

Bestselling author Pavord presents Searching for Connections: An Adventure in Botanical History as part of the Gardner's Landscape Visions lecture series.

Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts Approves Museum's Proposed Restoration and Expansion Project
Ruling Confirms that the Project Meets the Primary Purpose of Isabella Gardner's Will

• Supreme Judicial Court MEMORANDUM AND JUDGEMENT (PDF)

"Journeys East: Isabella Stewart Gardner and Asia"
February 21 - May 31, 2009
New scholarly exhibition and catalogue chronicle Isabella Gardner's love of Asia - from travel and art collecting to a fascination with daily life and the religions of the East.

• Press Release • Image/Caption Sheets
• Catalogue Excerpts: Director's Forward & Curators' Introduction

• Full Exhibition PRESS KIT • Full Catalogue (PDF; 27 MegaBytes)

• Advance Press Release (Fall08)

Landscape and Culinary Arts
Nasturtiums Herald the Spring with Visual and Culinary Delights
Hanging Nasturtiums courtyard display | March 31 to mid-April, 2009
Edible Nasturtiums thematic menu | April 1-19, 2009

One-of-a-kind floral installation in the museum's courtyard and flower-infused menu in The Gardner Cafe continue and update a 100 year-old Gardner Museum tradition.

Press Release • Image Sheet • Nasturtium Growing Tips • Nasturtium Recipes •Edible Nasturtiums Menu

Family Programs
Gardner Museum Hosts FREE "Fun For Families" Events
FREE! Fun for Families Days | February 18 and April 22, 2009
School Vacation Week Activities | February 16-20 and April 21-24, 2009

Free Wednesday events punctuate a full week of drawing activities and family guides -- free for all with admission throughout February and April public school vacation weeks.

Culinary Arts
The Gardner Cafe Unveils "$16 Below" Prix Fixe Special
Available February 17 through March 14, 2009

Chef Peter Crowley and The Gardner Cafe reward anyone who braves the winter weather to lunch at the Cafe with a special two-course priz fixe menu for just $16

Landscape
Landscape Visions Lecture Series: Spring 2009
Saturdays, January 24, February 21, and March 21, 2009
1:30 PM

Saturday afternoon series features guest speakers on a wide range of horticultural themes -- from a Mughal garden to the elaborate water systems of the Rajput Palace Gardens.

Seasonal Preview
This Season at the Gardner: WINTER|SPRING 2008
Exhibition & Programming Highlights | Jan-April 2008
Take a close look at the upcoming season at the Gardner - including special exhibitions, lectures, concerts, events, culinary offerings, and more that will transport visitors around the world - and particularly Asia.

Valentine's Evening Event
Gardner Museum Hosts Romantic Venetian Valentine Evening Soiree
Saturday, February 14, 2009 | 6:30-8:30 PM

Event showcases the magic and romance of the Gardner at night; invites guests to indulge in decadent cuisine & cocktails, explore romance-filled art & poetry, and savor the sounds of live jazz -- all in Boston's most romantic setting!

Free Admission
Gardner Museum Launches New Policy Offering FREE Admission to Everyone on His or Her Birthday
Ongoing | Launched January 1, 2009

A special birthday gift from the Gardner, new policy aims at providing respite, particularly during these tough economic times, launches January 1st, 2009 - in celebration of the museum's own birthday!

Concerts
Music at the Gardner: Winter/Spring 2009 Concert Schedule
January through May 2009
Nation's longest-running museum music program unveils diverse concert offerings showcasing young performers, celebrating contemporary composers & exploring globally-inspired jazz.

Full Press Release • Season Highlights • Complete Concert Listings

Concert
Composer Leon Kirchner Returns to Gardner Museum to Celebrate 90th Birthday
Thursday, January 15, 2009 | 7:00 pm
Gardner Museum's Composer Portraits series honors Pulitzer Prize-winning composer with an all-Kirchner program featuring internationally celebrated artists.

Holidays at the Gardner
*NEW* "Artful Holidays at the Gardner Museum" Event
December 13, 2008 | 7:00 pm
Museum 'decks the halls' - and courtyard - for special evening celebration; opens a Boston holiday tradition to the general public for this year for the first time.

Holiday Happenings at the Gardner:
An Artful Holiday, A Holiday Garden, Holiday Fare & More...
December 2008-January 2009
Celebrate the holidays at the Venetian-inspired museum this season with evening holiday fetes and caroling around the courtyard, a dramatic holiday courtyard garden display, a holiday menu in The Gardner Café, a free day for families, and more.

Evening Program
"Conversations: EXPERIENCING CONTEMPORARY ART"
with curator Dabney Hailey
Thursday, December 4, 2008, at 6:30 pm
Join curator Dabney Hailey for an interactive Conversation about contemporary photographs dealing with issues of love, romance, and marriage - using the revolutionary Visual Thinking Strategies (VTS) for learning to look at and talk about art -- and tied to the themes of the current exhibition, "The Triumph of Marriage."

General Audience Press Release
Educator Press Release - w/ additional information about VTS technology

Presented as part of an all new series of evening CONVERSATIONS at the Gardner designed to provide a dialogue with visiting artists, curators, art educators, and scholars on a range of topics. Ticketed event

Evening Event
"Halloween at the Gardner" Evening Event
Explores the Mysterious Side of the Gardner
Thursday, October 30, 2008 | 6:30-8:30 pm

The museum's inaugural Halloween celebration celebrates Friends of Fenway Court members - and their friends - with a ghoulish evening filled with cocktails and hors d'oeuvres, live music, and Halloween-themed gallery talks and tours. A Friends of Fenway Court members event.

Culinary Arts
Cafe Unveils New Collection-Inspired Cocktail - "The Madame Gautreau
Served up "AFTER HOURS" (every third Thursday evening, 5:30-9:30 pm) & at The Gardner Cafe (daily, 11:30am-4:30pm)

Inspired by the collection, The Gardner Cafe is serving up a new signature cocktail, The Madame Gautreau, a vibrant blend of grapefruit and pineapple juices, a splash of grenadine and champagne. Served up as part of a new "Artful Flavors" and "Courtside Cocktails" menu available during the museum's "AFTER HOURS" events every third Thursday evening, the new signature cocktail is also available daily at The Gardner Cafe, 11:30 am to 4:30 pm. Salute!

Museum News
Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum Director Anne Hawley to Marry Urs Gauchat October 11, 2008

Museum Directors' Nuptials Celebrated at a Special Evening Event & Photo Op Next Wednesday, October 15, 2008 5:30-8:30 pm - Corresponding with the Opening of a New Scholarly Exhibition on Italian Renaissance Wedding Chests

(The Triumph of Marriage: Painted Cassoni of the Renaissance: On view October 16, 2008 - January 18, 2009)

Scholarly Exhibition
"The Triumph of Marriage: Painted Cassoni of the Renaissance"
On view at the Gardner Museum: Oct 16, 2008 - Jan 18, 2009
Then traveling to the John and Mable Ringling Museum of Art, Sarasota, Florida: February 14 - May 17, 2009

This focused scholarly exhibition presented by the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum offers a new perspective on marriage, social and gender roles, and patronage of domestic paintings in Renaissance Italy. The exhibition focuses on Italian Renaissance cassoni (large 'marriage chests') created and used publicly to celebrate the triumph of marriage and for display in the Renaissance home, and showcases the art of important, though lesser-known Italian artists Francesco Pesellino, Giovanni di Ser Giovanni.

"The Triumph of Marriage" runs concurrently with additional exhibitions exploring the art of Marriage - including New York City's Metropolitan Museum of Art's "Art and Love in Renaissance Italy" exhibition (on view Nov 18, 2008 through Feb 16, 2009).

• Full Press Kit • Image/Caption Sheet • Accompanying Programming: Symposium, Exhibition Concert & More • Exhibition Handout/Wall Text

Press Preview Event: Wednesday, October 15th, 5:30-6:30 pm RSVP to karmstrong@isgm.org or 617 278 5107

Evening Lecture
"Creativity During Wartime" Lecture:
Video Artist LIDA ABDUL & Writer/Journalist ANNE NIVAT
October 2, 2008 | 6:30 pm

Is it possible to describe the true state of material and moral ruin in which a country finds itself at the end of a war? Can readers and viewers be expected to take in the tales of irremediable gloom? Artists and writers help images of war cross the threshold of national and international consciousness.

In this special evening lecture, returning Gardner Artists-in-Residence Anne Nivat and Lida Abdul talk about their experience working in Iraq and Afghanistan and show a film by Lida Abdul.

Tickets: $7 public; $5 museum members and seniors; Free students

Evening Events
"GARDNER AFTER HOURS" Evening Events Returns for Year Two with Ten All-New Nights of Art, Music, Performances, Cocktails, Gallery Explorations, and More in a Unique Setting
Third Thursdays * September through June *5:30-9:30 PM
Premiere Event: September 18th: "WANDERLUST"

"After Hours" year two kicks off with a celebration of Isabella Gardner's love of travel, featuring new Gallery Travels, contemporary artist Luisa Rabbia's video exhibition Travels with Isabella, a live acoustic performance by jazz sextet Dr. Magpie, an all-new time, signature cocktail, and graphic look by artist Danijel Zezelj, and more!

• After Hours Year Two Press Release • 2008/2009 Schedule & Themes

Concerts
MUSIC AT THE GARDNER: FALL 2008 Concerts
The Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum launches its 82nd concert season this Fall with a new season and an eclectic mix of classical, jazz, and contemporary performances spotlighting influential composers of today (including Philippe Hurel) plus exceptional performers of tomorrow playing Beethovel, Debussy, Mozart, Brahms and more!
• Press Release & Complete Schedule)

Seasonal Preview
This Season at the Gardner: FALL 2008
Sept-Dec 2008: Exhibition & Programming Highlights
Take a close look at the upcoming Fall season at the Gardner - exploring the art of travel, the art of marriage, the art of entertaining and more with an array of exhibitions, lectures, concerts, events, and culinary offerings that will transport the visitor around the world- in addition to a world-class permanent collection. Updated regularly.

A new video work by Luisa Rabbia inspired by Isabella Gardner's 1883 travels throughout China, Travels with Isabella adds a contemporary perspective to 19th-century China and engages viewers in an imaginary landscape steeped in nostalgia. Artist Luisa Rabbia layers original drawings, images and objects from the collection, and music by collaborator Fa Ventilato, upon images of photographs from 1883 China purchased and compiled by Isabella Gardner into an elaborate travel scrapbook to create a fantastical narrative steeped in nostalgia and a narrative on the human condition.The 26-plus minute video isaccompanied in the exhibition by an artist drawing (Untitled, 2008) and Gardner's 1883 China scrapbook, open to images of Shanghai and Hong Kong, and on view to the public for the first time.

Travels with Isabella is Luisa Rabbia's first solo U.S. museum exhibition - and sixth collaborative project with experimental musician Fa Ventilato.

Advance Press Preview Event: Wednesday, June 25th, 5:30-6:30 pm Please RSVP to karmstrong@isgm.org or 617 278 5107

• Press Release: "Travels with Isabella"
• Full PRESS KIT: "Travels with Isabella"

• Exhibition Images: Luisa Rabbia • Archival Images (1883 scrapbook)
• Exhibition Wall Text • Artist Interview: Luisa Rabbia
• Accompanying Programming
• Artist & Collaborator Bios: Luisa Rabbia, Fa Ventilato, Dragen Pantic

• Contemporary Art at the Gardner: An Overview • Gardner Fact Sheet

Upcoming Scholarly Exhibition
"Journeys East: Isabella Steawrt Gardner and Asia"
February 21 - May 31, 2009 *NEW DATES & TITLE*

Between 1883 and 1884, Isabella Gardner traveled throughout the Orient, compiling five travel scrapbooks along the way. This exhibition represents the first time these Asia scrapbooks will be on view together in an historic scholarly exhibition devoted to her travels and influences throughout the Orient.

A full press release will be published in early 2009

FREE Community Events
"NEIGHBORHOOD NIGHTS" Events Celebrate Art and Community at the GArdner
July 10, July 24 & August 7, 2008, 5:00-8:00 pm
Select Thursday evenings, FREE for all!
Free Neighborhood Nights bring the community and families together for live performances, art-making activities, and more. This year's festivities include storytelling, dance, music, and visual arts inspired by Isabella Gardner's travels and emphasizing art and culture from around the world - and feature young local artists and performers from Cambridge, Jamaica Plain, and Boston.

Seasonal Calendar Release
Season at the Gardner: SUMMER 2008
Detailed Exhibition & Programming Highlights: June-Aug 2008
A detailed look at this summer's contemporary Artist-in-Residence exhibition, courtyard garden installations, performances, events and promotions, lectures, gallery tours, thematic café menus, and other programming - in addition to world-class art in the permanent collection.

Advance Calendar Release
The Year+ Ahead: Summer 2008 through 2009
An advance look at historic and contemporary Artist-in-Residence exhibitions, annual garden installations, and programming highlights at the Gardner Museum in the coming year-plus. Updated regularly.

Community Exhibition
"Community Creations" exhibition showcases work of young artists from Boston, Roxbury, Dorchester, West Roxbury, Hyde Park, Mission Hill and Jamaica Plain at the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum

Special Exhibition Gallery: May 16-26, 2008
Opening Reception: Friday, May 16th, 6:00-8:00 pm

Special Offer
Celebrate Mother's Day at the Gardner Museum:
Mom Gets in FREE & More!
Mother's Day, Sunday, May 11th 2008, 11 am - 5 pm

Special offers for Moms on Mother's Day: Mom gets in free! Plus...
Revel in the enchanting interior courtyard garden, always abloom; Indulge in a decadent Mother's Day dessert in the Gardner Cafe (reservations recommended); And give Mom the gift of the Gardner with $10 off new memberships, so Mom can enjoy all the Gardner has to offer year-round.

The Gardner Cafe: 617-566-1088
Membership: 617-566-5643

Advance Contemporary Exhibition Release
"Luisa Rabbia: Travels with Isabella, Travel Scrapbooks 1883/2008
June 26-September, 2008
A contemporary Artist-in-Residence exhibition inspired by artist Luisa Rabbia's residency at the Gardner Museum - and photographs collected by Isabella Gardner while traveling in China in 1883.

This advance release was revised May 6, 2008
A complete press kit will be available in late May 2008.

Public Service Announcement
Gardner Museum Recruiting Museum Teachers:
Teach and Learn... Become a Museum Teacher at the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum
Informational Meeting: Thursday, May 22, 2008, 9:30am-12 pm
RSVP to Bridget Griffith at 617/278-5147, bgriffith@isgm.org

• Museum Teacher Recruitment flier

Closing Release
Last Chance: "LUXURY FOR EXPORT" scholarly exhibition to close May 4th
Virtual Exhibition to remain online for perpetuity via www.gardnermuseum.org/exhibitions/exhibition.asp

• Full Exhibition Press Kit

Public Service Announcement
Gardner Museum & South African Storyteller GCINA MHLOPHE Hold Book Drive to Deliver Children's Storybooks to School Libraries in South Africa

Museum issues call for donations of children's storybooks in conjunction with Gcina Mhlophe's museum residency - and great passion to get books in the hands of South African school children

Drop box available at the museum admissions desk, 280 The Fenway, Boston, or by contacting Johnetta Tinker at 617/278-5126, jtinker@isgm.org

LANDSCAPE VISIONS LECTURE

Explore the Restorative Benefits of 'Healing' Gardens at the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum and Beyond
Saturday, April 12, 2008, 1:30 pm

Join eteemed medical history andlandscape scholars Robert Martenson and Nancy Gerlach-Spriggs trace the 400-year history of collaboration among physicians, landscape designers and artists on the role of natural environments in medical training and theory with a special Landscape Visions lecture:"Erasmus in the Age of Jarvik: Physicians, Designers and the Construction of Healthy Environments."

Boston's Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum Marks the 18th Anniversary of the March 1990 Theft of Thirteen Works of Art
Museum reissues its commitment to a $5 million reward, assures complete confidentiality for information leading to the return of the stolen artworks

• Stolen Artworks: Image Sheet

Artist-in-Residence Performances
Serra Yilmaz: "APPLES FROM THE SKY"
March 13, 6:30 pm & March 14, 18 & 19, 3:30 pm
Turkish actress and artist presents a series of staged readings exploring the heartbreaking and hilarious sides of the human experience. Evening performance on March 13th to honor the memory of Turkish-Armenian journalist Hrant Dink, a vocal supporter of free speech, including Dink's final work, "A Dove's Skittishness in My Soul."

Annual "Hanging Nasturtiums" Courtyard Garden Display
& Thematic "Edible Nasturtiums" Menu at The Gardner Cafe
On view & served up: April 1- 20, 2008
One-of-a-kind annual floral display and flower-themed menu at The Gardner Cafe feature beautiful -- and edible -- Nasturtium blossoms celebrate the coming of Spring -- and continue a gardening tradition started by Isabella Gardner in the early 1900s.
• "Edible Nasturtiums" Menu • Nasturtiums archival fact sheet
• TIPS: Growing Nasturtiums • TIPS: Cooking with Nasturtiums

Theft Press Statement
In the wake of recent art thefts, the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum in Boston reissues a public statement - calling for the proper care and immediate return of thirteen works of art stolen from its collection seventeen years ago and encouraging anyone with information about the case to come forward. Stolen artworks (image/caption sheet)

Scholarly Exhibition
"LUXURY FOR EXPORT: Artistic Exchange between India and Portugal around 1600"
February 8 through May 4, 2008

New scholarly exhibition celebrates the dynamic cultural exchange between India and Portugal around 1600. Exhibition showcases sumptuous Indo-Portuguese objects and reveals new discoveries about a rare silk embroidery in the Gardner Museum's collection.

Dynamic programming, an exhibition catalogue, and a dedicated Luxury for Export website are being produced in conjunction with the exhibition.

• Exhibition Images/Highlights: Gallery Views *NEW*
• Exhibition Images/Highlights: The Gardner Embroidery
• Exhibition Images/Highlights: Export Objects
• Photo credit requirements
• Accompanying Programming
• Curator Bios
• Map of Indian Subcontinent around 1600 • Luxury Website Preview
• Catalogue E xcerpts

• Full Exhibition Press Kit

Advance Press Preview Event: Wednesday, February 6th, 5:30-6:30 pm Please RSVP to: karmstrong@isgm.org

Evening Event
"A Venetian Valentine" Evening Soiree Celebrates the Art of Romance at the Gardner Museum
Thursday, February 14th, 6:00-8:30 pm
Experience the magic and romance of the Venetian-inspired Gardner Museum at night; indulge in decadent cocktails, hors d'oeuvres and desserts; listen to live jazz from the courtyard; and explore romance-filled art paired with poetry --- all in Boston's most enchanting setting.

Call 617/566-5643 or click here to purchase a ticket through the Membership office

Concerts
Music at the Gardner: WINTER/SPRING 2008 CONCERTS
Season premiere performance: January 6, 2008
Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum announces winter/spring 2008 performance schedule, with over 20 classical, jazz and new music concerts. Season highlights young performers, profiles contemporary jazz and classical composerts, and continues series of major chamber music works by Beethoven, Brahms, Schumann, and Shostakovich

Theft Press Statement
Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum calls for the return of the stolen artworks taken from the museum seventeen years ago; reiterates its offer of $5 million for information leading to their return

• Stolen artworks (image/caption sheet)

New Building Project Update: Article 80 Development Review with the Boston Redevelopment Authority (BRA)
The Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum on November 26th initiated the Article 80 Development Review process with the Boston Redevelopment Authority (BRA) for a proposed new building on its campus. Designed by internationally acclaimed architect Renzo Piano and The Renzo Piano Building Workshop, the new building is part of a larger campaign to preserve Isabella Gardner's historic Palace, world-class fine art collection, and legacy.

• Press Release • View the Project Notification Form (PNF)

Artist-In-Residence Exhibition
"CLIFF EVANS: EMPYREAN"
November 9, 2007 - January 20, 2008
"Empyrean" is a new five-channel video projection exhibition by artist Cliff Evans that takes a critical look at contemporary American culture. Evans is a contemporary Artist-in-Residence exhibition at the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum by young multi-media artist Cliff Evans. The work is a digital polyptych using photomontage animation in place of painting to recall the alterpieces of northern Europe and create loose narratives around the subjects of baptism, repetion and return.

Press Preview Event: Wednesday, November 7, 2007, 5:00-6:00 PM. RSVP to karmstrong@isgm.org or 617/278-5107.

• Image/caption sheet

"Jazz at the Gardner"
Select Thursday Evenings at 7 PM
Nov 15 • Dec 20 • Feb 21 • Apr 17 • Jun 19
JAZZ IS BACK! Starting November 15th, Jazz at the Gardner presents a five-concert lineup of outstanding young musicians from Berklee College of Music performing jazz standards, original material, bluegrass, vocal jazz and more.

Commemorative Red Sox Banner & Visitor Photo Contest
"Oh, you Red Sox!"
Game One (October 24th ) through the end of the World Series 2007
Boston's Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum celebrates the Red Sox' championship bid in the style of its founder - a New Yorker turned Bostonian and avid Red Sox fan. Museum to display commemorative 25-foot banner immortalizing these words made famous by Isabella Gardner. And for the first time, invites fans to show their own support for the team with a new visitor photo contest.

• "Oh, you Red Sox!" World Series 2007 press release
• View or post an image to Flickr • Image/caption sheet

Advance Exhibition Release
CLIFF EVANS: "EMPYREAN"
November 9, 2007 - January 20, 2008
Empyrean is a contemporary Artist-in-Residence exhibition at the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum by young multi-media artist Cliff Evans. The work is a digital polyptych using photomontage animation in place of painting to recall the alterpieces of northern Europe and create loose narratives around the subjects of baptism, repetion and return.

A complete press kit will be available in the Fall 2007.

"Composer Portraits" Concerts
Select Thursday evening, 7 PM
October 18th • January 17th • March 28th
The Fall 2007/Spring 2008 concert season brings with it the return of the Gardner's renowned "Composer Portraits" concerts. Featuring profiles Julius Hemphill, Magnus Lindberg, and Gerald Barry, the series is presented on select Thursday evenings as part of the museum's all-new "After Hours" events.

All-New Evening Events
"GARDNER AFTER HOURS"

Third Thursdays 5-9PM
Premiere Event: September 20th

A new kind of night out... "Gardner After Hours" evening events series combines cutting-edge art, music, performances, cocktails and more in Boston's most inspiring setting.

• "After Hours" press release • Access "Gardner After Hours" web pages

Classical Music Podcast
"THE CONCERT": PODCAST UPDATE
September 15, 2007
"The Concert" classical music podcast marks its one-year anniversary - on September 15th - with the release of its first-ever contemporary music podcast - featuring music by contemporary American composer Leon Kirchner.

Click here to access "The Concert":
http://www.gardnermuseum.org/music/podcast/theconcert.asp

MUSIC AT THE GARDNER: FALL 2007 CONCERTS
Music at the Gardner Museum enters its 80th season this Fall with weekly classical concerts on Sunday, new jazz and contemporary performances After Hours on select Thursday nights, and continuing concert podcasts online.

A Contemplative Contemporary Exhibition
"STEFANO ARIENTI: THE ASIAN SHORE"
June 29-October 14, 2007
Leading Italian artist Stefano Arienti this summer presents "The Asian Shore," a contemplative contemporary exhibition that will visitors in an intimate and sensual encounter with art. Arienti presents new drawings and rugs by the artist, alongside an important historic set of 17th-century Japanese fusuma doors in a highly meditative space.

• Full Press Kit • Image/Caption Sheet • Wall Text • Exhibition List • Accompanying Programming • Advance Release (April 2007)

Click here for a press release announcing free in-gallery meditation workshops tied to this exhibition by exhale mind body spa experts.

Free NEIGHBORHOOD NIGHTS" Events at the Gardner
Thursdays, July 12, July 26 & August 9, 2007 | 5:00-8:00 pm | FREE for all!
"Neighborhood Nights" events at the Gardner Museum celebrate art, music and community this summer with live performances and art-making activities for the whole family. Inspired by the diversity of Boston communities, this year's annual summer evening celebrations will emphasize African-American, Latin American, Chinese and Japanese art and culture through storytelling, dance, jazz, poetry and the visual arts. Nights feature free performances by local artists from Dorchester, Cambridge, West Roxbury, and Boston.

Special Event: Wine Tasting with a Twist!
"A Spring Serata" Evening Wine Tasting Event
June 7, 2007, 6:00-8:00 pm
Gardner Museum's inaugural evening wine event offers site-specific tastings of 'floral,' 'grassy,' and 'mineral' wines in the museum's gardens and galleries, live music from the courtyard, poetry- and art-filled gallery tours, and more.
• Wine tasting menu • Event image/caption sheet

"COMMUNITY CREATIONS" EXHIBITION
Annual exhibition presents new works by young artists from Boston, Dorchester, Roxbury and Hyde Park, created as part of the museum's "Community Partnerships Program"
Special Exhibition Gallery: May 18-29, 2007
FREE public event and opening reception: Friday, May 18th, 6-8PM
• Image/caption sheet

Contemporary Artist-In-Residence Exhibition
"STEFANO ARIENTI: THE ASIAN SHORE"
June 29-October 14, 2007
An Asian-inspired contemporary Artist-In-Residence exhibition by Italian artist Stefano Arienti presents original drawings and rugs dyed by the artist alongside an important 17th-century Asian fusuma from Gardner's permanent collection. These objects reveal lost or hidden images and patterns in a highly meditative, zen-like space to engage the viewer in an intimate encounter with art.

ADVANCE RELEASE: A full press release and press kit including an exhibition list, image/caption sheet, and accompanying programming overview will be published in early June.

"'OH, YOU RED SOX!' - Isabella Stewart Gardner, 1912"
April 10-16, 2007 * Red Sox nation at its most sublime...
25-foot banner celebrates the Boston Red Sox's home opening run - and commemorates Isabella Gardner's own creatively vocal support of the team in the early 1900s.
• Press release

Annual "Hanging Nasturtiums" Courtyard Garden Display
& Thematic "Edible Nasturtiums" Menu at The Gardner Cafe
On view and served up: April 3-22, 2007
One-of-a-kind annual floral display and flower-themed menu at The Gardner Cafe feature beautiful -- and edible -- Nasturtium blossoms celebrate the coming of Spring -- and continue a gardening tradition started by Isabella Gardner in the early 1900s.
• "Edible Nasturtiums" Menu • Nasturtiums archival fact sheet
• TIPS: Growing Nasturtiums • TIPS: Cooking with Nasturtiums

"Fun for Families": Celebrate at the Gardner Museum during Public School Vacation Week
Wednesday, April 18th; plus special art-making activities available all week
Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum welcomes families for FREE art activities during April public school vacation week. Visit on Wednesday, April 18th, for Fun for Families!, a special day of theatrical performances, music, gallery activities, tours and art making. Art-making activities are also available daily all week, from Tuesday, April 17th through Friday, April 20th.

"Thinking Through Art" Research Reveals that Children Learn to Think Critically by Learning to Look at Art
Important new arts education research reveals a strong correlation between the museum's "School Partnership Program" and improved critical thinking skills in children.

• Full Press Kit • Executive Summary • Study Overview • Findings Overview • Collaborator Bios • "Critical Thinking Skills" Rubric

• Visit "Thinking Through Art" online for access to the full research report, a documentary film of kids 'learning to look' at art, sample lesson plans, and more.

Special Exhibition
"Sculpture & Memory: Works from the Gardner and by Luigi Ontani"
February 9 - May 6, 2007
An exhibition contrasting religious imagery in historic and contemporary art. "Sculpture & Memory: Works from the Gardner and by Luigi Ontani" presents important early 16th-century European sculptures from the Gardner alongside 20th-century works by Italian artist Luigi Ontani, and provides new insight into myth and meaning in religious art, and Isabella Gardner's art installations.
Image Sheet • Accompanying Programming • Full Press Kit

CONCERTS AT THE GARDNER: Winter/Early Spring 2007

"Tin Pan Alley at the Gardner" Concerts
Sundays, January 28 & February 4, 2007, 1:30 pm
The Great American Songbook
Written in the first half of the 20th Century, the songs of Tin Pan Alley are a cherished part of the American musical tradition. In a pair of concerts this season, hear beloved standards and lesser-known gems by George Gershwin, Irving Berlin, and many others.

Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum and the Renzo Piano Building Workshop Announce the Selection of CBT/Childs Bertman Tseckares Inc. as the Local Architect for the Museum's New Building Project

"Composer Portraits" Concerts at the Gardner
December 1, 2006 & February 16, 2007
Critically acclaimed concert series returns to the Gardner Museum with Boston premieres of percussion pieces by David Lang and new orchestral arrangements of player piano works by Conlon Nancarrow.

"A BRONZE MENAGERIE: MAT WEIGHTS OF EARLY CHINA"
First exhibition devoted to bronze animal mat weights from ancient China on view at the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum
October 5, 2006 - January 14, 2007

• Full Press Kit • Image/Caption Sheet • Exhibition List • Wall Text • Accompanying Programming

Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum Launches Free Classical Music Podcast - "The Concert"
The Gardner Museum launches a new FREE classical music podcast at www.gardnermuseum.org. "The Concert" features unreleased live recordings from the museum's weekly concert series, making the Gardner the first art museum to encourage file sharing and free distribution of its online programming by using a Creative Commons license.

Click here to access "The Concert":
http://www.gardnermuseum.org/music/podcast/theconcert.asp

CONCERTS AT THE GARDNER: FALL 2006

"HENRIK HAKANSSON: CYANOPSITTA SPIXII CASE STUDY #001"
Contemporary Artist-In-Residence Exhibition:
June 30-September 17, 2006
Full Press Kit • Image Sheet

2006 ANNUAL CALENDAR

Anthony Amore Appointed "Director of Security" at the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, Boston

"CALLING ALL ISABELLAS!" 2006 - Annual Event FREE for All "Isabella"s, Friends and Families: April 19, 2006, 9:00-11:00 am

"HANGING NASTURTIUMS" Garden Display and "EDIBLE NASTURTIUMS" Menu Combine the Landscape and Culinary Arts

"SEASON AT THE GARDNER": WINTER|SPRING 2006
Exhibitions & Programming Highlights

"GENTILE BELLINI AND THE EAST"
First Exhibition Devoted to the Venetian Painter Gentile Bellini Explores the Role of Art in Bridging East and West in the Renaissance: December 14, 2005-March 26, 2006

"VARIATIONS ON A THEME" BY SOL LEWITT & PAULA ROBISON"
A Collaborative Artist-In-Residence Exhibition: September 23-November 13, 2005

SEASON AT THE GARDNER: FALL|WINTER 2005
Exhibition & Programming Highlights

CONCERTS AT THE GARDNER: FALL|WINTER 2005

"STRAY DOGS": A Contemporary Exhibition in Celebration of the Gardner Museum's 50th Artist-In-Residence: June 24-August 21, 2005