Museum Days in Southeast Wisconsin is still going on, and Debbie Lazaga continues with her series taking a look at a few of the locations participating in this year’s event. On the Milwaukee School of Engineering’s campus resides a special museum with a special theme. It documents the evolution of organized work from manpower and horsepower to water, steam, and electrical power.
I sat down with director of the Grohmann Museum, James Kieselberg, to find out more, “Well, the Grohmann Museum is among the most unique museums in Milwaukee. We were established actually based on a collection that was given to the Milwaukee School of Engineering by Eckhart Grohmann. Eckhart ran an aluminum foundry for some 40 years, and over that time he amassed a collection of industrial art. And with a growing collection of over 400 pieces, ultimately decided that he would give the collection as a gift to the Milwaukee School of Engineering. So in 2001, he made that gift with the idea that he would open a museum. Making this one of the newer museums in the area.,” explains Kieselberg.
He continues, “One of the things that always has captivated artists over the centuries is work. How can they capture human endeavor, both in figure study and as an interest in the actual industry or the labor that the people are accomplishing, or just as a curiosity?”
Now, a lot of other museums have some exhibits themed on industry and the worker, but this is a whole museum dedicated to that.
Kiesleberg says, “We’ve done 50 feature exhibitions, all on the themes of labor industry as it’s translated through art.”
As a matter of fact, their newest exhibit just opened up in time for Museum Days.
“We’re opening a special new exhibition, and it’s ‘Patterns of Meaning.’ It’s an industrial art exhibition by Corey Bonnet, a Pittsburgh painter. Corey discovered a cache of wooden foundry patterns some years ago, and he set about creating new art based on these industrial artifacts from the late 1800s, early 1900s. And so what we have is a selection, an assortment of paintings, sculptures, new works in glass and ceramic, a lot of woodworking, all based on these historic foundry patterns. It’s a magnificent display,” explains Kieselberg.
And it’ll be running through April 27th. Plenty of time to check it out.
Kieselberg goes on to say, “The feature exhibition program, I think for any museum, is very important to just renew interest, to catch different niches in our community. It’s just a way for us to keep the exhibition program going.
Wondering how and when to check this place out?
They’re open seven days a week, nine to five during the week, noon to six on Saturday and 1 to 4 pm, on Sunday.
General admission is $5. It’s $3 for students and seniors and kids 12 and under are always free.
Click here for more information on The Grohmann Museum on the campus of MSOE. It’s a whole new angle on work.
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