Picasso in Plaid: “Nude Man and Woman,” 1971
All photos courtesy of Nasher Sculpture Center
Contacted by me yesterday (in light of this CultureGrrl post) for an update on his standoff with the highly reflective (and, to the Nasher, highly pernicious) Museum Tower, Jeremy Strick, director of the Nasher Sculpture Center, Dallas, gave me this detailed reply (and sent me photos showing how the glare from the tower defaces the art and harms the garden):
Regarding Museum Tower, no important new developments to report, I’m afraid. The leadership of the Dallas Police and Fire Pension System [which owns the neighboring condo project and oversees its construction, marketing, sales and operations] is digging in, refusing to acknowledge the damage their building is doing to our indoor and outdoor galleries.
Nasher’s (striped) signature work: Rare life-size plaster cast of Rodin’s “The Age of Bronze,” ca. 1876They are rejecting the only 100% solution so far put forward—a system of retractable louvers that’s been adopted for buildings by Steven Holl and Helmut Jahn)—while failing themselves to offer any solution that solves the problem in whole or in part.
Sadly, their stance defies civic responsibility, as their luxury condominium tower progressively ruins the very public institution from which it derives its name and hopes to derive its profit, and also defies the economic interest of the Pension Fund’s own rank and file, as well as the Dallas taxpayers.
The Nasher’s fried landscape
I also asked Strick whether he might follow the lead of the neighboring Dallas Museum of Art in offering free museum admission.
Jeremy told me this:
Over the years, we’ve taken several hard looks at the possibility of free admission to the Nasher, most recently as the Dallas Museum of Art prepared its plans to reintroduce free admission.
Each time we’ve concluded that in consideration of our financial structure (no city funding), the nature of our program (focused exhibitions, rather than blockbusters) and the layout of our physical space (no segregated exhibition hall suitable for separately ticketed shows), it makes most sense for us to maintain the single-ticket admission program with which we began: One ticket purchases admission to our entire facility, building and garden, all temporary exhibitions, as well as daytime events (lectures, concerts, etc.).
We charge $10 for adults, $7 for seniors, $7 for military, $5 for students, and children 12 and under enter free. Throughout the year, numerous days and evenings are free at the Nasher, and more than one-third of our visitors enter free of charge.
Maybe visitors should now be issued small tubes of sunscreen along with their entry tickets.