New York
The ancient Maya are back in vogue.
Mel Gibson's latest movie,
Apocalypto, focuses on this mysterious civilization, and,
starting June 13, the
Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York will
present Treasures of Sacred Maya Kings. Objects on display will
include large-scale relief sculpture in stone, mosaic funerary
masks, ceramic vessels, and objects of carved jade, shell, bone,
and pearl. Through September 10;
www.met.org
Chicago
The Museum of Science and Industry's exhibit Leonardo da Vinci:
Man, Inventor, Genius showcases 60 custom-built wooden models of
his designs and inventions, including flying wings, helicopter
devices, and bridge structures. It also explores questions about da
Vinci (Why did he write from right to left? Did he invent the
bicycle?) and delves into some of the theories detailed in the best
seller
The Da Vinci Code. Through September 4;
www.msichicago.org-
Jill Fergus
London
Visiting the British capital this summer? Then be sure to catch
Kandinsky: The Path to Abstraction 1908-1922 at the Tate Modern.
The exhibition, with more than 50 paintings on display and 30 on
paper, follows the Russian artist's journey from figurative
landscape painter to modernist master. Some of the works showcased
include
Landscape with Factory Chimney, Cossacks, Two Girls,
and
Blue Segment. June 22 to October 1;
www.tate.org.uk/modern
Boston
Americans in
Paris, 1860–1900 is debuting this month at the
Museum of Fine Arts,
Boston. The exhibit consists of paintings by American artists that were made and displayed in Paris — including works by James McNeill Whistler, John Singer Sargent, and Mary Cassatt — portraits of Americans in Paris painted by American artists, and images of the city by Childe Hassam and Henry Ossawa Tanner. Highlights include Sargent’s
Madame X and the famed
Whistler’s Mother. June 25 to September 24;
www.mfa.org
Washington, D.C.Look for the reopening of the
National Portrait Gallery and the
Smithsonian American Art Museum on July 1, since both Smithsonian institutions are housed in the same historic building. The former will have all of the presidential portraits back on permanent display, including the Lansdowne portrait of
George Washington by Gilbert Stuart, while the latter will have exhibits featuring photographer William Wegman (July 7 to September 24) and artist William H. Johnson (July 1 to January 7, 2007).
www.reynoldscenter.org