By BECKY EVANS
“Portraits and Painters: 19th Century American Portraiture,” will be the theme of tonight’s Museum of Art lecture.
Herman du Toit, head of audience development at the Museum of Art, will be speaking about the current exhibition “150 Years of American Painting,” at 7 p.m.
The lecture will focus on several of the different artists featured in the exhibit. Washington Allston, Samuel Waldo, Sarah Mariam and William Morris Hunt will be among the artists discussed at the lecture.
The Museum of Art is fortunate to have such good examples of portraiture painting in its permanent collection, du Toit said.
“One of the museum’s roles on campus is to provide education,” said Sydney Fox, of the MOA’s department of education. “The lecture series is a good way to meet the mission of the museum to meet the educational needs of students and faculty.”
“The museum tries to provide lectures with every exhibition,” Fox said.
Portraiture painting provides a revealing insight to an artist’s style and taste, du Toit said.
“Portraiture painting was a social norm in Europe during the 1900s,” du Toit said. “This style of painting accurately reflects the culture of the period.”
The exhibit has been open since the opening of the MOA and will likely be on display for another three or four years, du Toit said.
“`150 Years of American Painting’ represents the finest examples of the works in the museums permanent collection,” du Toit said.
“The lecture will provide a means to interpret the exhibition for the campus community,” he said. “There are dimensions of the exhibition that have not yet been interpreted for our audience.”
The research that will be discussed at the lecture is among the first done with regards to the exhibition, du Toit said.
The MOA provides lectures for patrons to provide them with more information about a specific exhibit, Fox said. Visitors get more out of the exhibit when they know about its history and background, she said.
According to museum information, du Toit is currently completing his doctoral degree in museum interpretive practices, for which he was awarded a J. Paul Getty fellowship. He holds postgraduate degrees in art history and sociology of education.
The lecture will be on the second floor of MOA. Tickets are $3 for the general public, $2 for BYU employees and $1 for MOA members and students. Tickets can be purchased at MOA or the Harris Fine Arts Center ticket office.
