Chrysler Museum of Art exhibits exceptional collection of prints

Sheila Gibson Stoodley

Robert Motherwell, (American, 1915-1991), ‘Red Sea I,’ 1976. Aquatint and etching. Lent by Susan and David Goode. © 2022 Dedalus Foundation, Inc. / Artists Rights Society (ARS), NY

NORFOLK, Va. – The Chrysler Museum of Art has welcomed an extraordinary collection of modern prints on loan. Lasting Impressions: Prints from the Collection of David R. and Susan S. Goode will be on view until November 6. This exhibition was announced earlier this year following the Goodes’ $2.5 million donation to the museum to establish the Goode Works on Paper Center and a group of 100 photographs by O. Winston Link, which will be added to the Chrysler collection during the next three years.

The Goodes have collected prints for decades. “Susan and I first turned to prints because of affordability, but we became interested not just in their beauty but in the fascinating process. We were lucky to make friends with an iconic New York dealer who happily guided our somewhat different interests — Susan in the contemporary New York scene and mine in black and white industrial works (and yes, including railroads),” wrote David Goode, retired chairman, president and CEO of Norfolk Southern.

Lou Stovall (b. 1937-), ‘From Sea to Shining Sea,’ 2008. Screenprint. Lent by Susan and David Goode

The artists on view include Romare Bearden, Elizabeth Peyton, Robert Gwathmey, Richard Diebenkorn, Faith Ringgold and Kara Walker. “I’m thrilled to be exhibiting the Goodes’ wonderful collection of modern prints, including important works by artists that are not represented in Chrysler’s collection,” said Lloyd DeWitt, Ph.D., chief curator and Irene Leache curator of European art and organizer of the exhibition.

Elizabeth Catlett (American and Mexican, 1915-2012), ‘Untitled (Girl Jumping Rope),’ 1958. Lithograph. Lent by Susan and David Goode. © 2022 Mora-Catlett Family / Licensed by VAGA at Artists Rights Society (ARS), NY

Many of these artists have been inspired by the democratic character of printmaking, which disseminates original works by the artist’s own hand to a far broader and larger base of collectors than any other medium. The technical innovations of contemporary artists also fascinated the Goodes. “Our interest has continued right up to the present, as we became more involved with the interesting world of prints and how they are made,” said Mr. Goode.

Roy Lichtenstein (American, 1923-1997), ‘Industry and the Arts,’ 1969. Screenprint. Lent by Susan and David Goode. © Estate of Roy Lichtenstein

Artists such as Richard Diebenkorn and Robert Motherwell translated the effects of their monumental gestural abstract paintings into the new medium with uncanny precision while exploiting the luminous quality of ink on paper. David Hockney expanded printmaking into the realm of the modern color photocopier. Frank Stella sought to move printmaking into the third dimension with relief prints. Robert Gwathmey exploited the bold, graphic and commercial character of screenprinting to heighten the urgency of his social commentary on sharecroppers. Kara Walker, who unflinchingly presents the violence of slavery in 19th-century-style silhouettes, exploited lithographic tusche (aka ink) to transform those shapes into swirling, seething forms.

Georges Braque, (French, 1882 – 1963), ‘Le Grand Oiseau Gris,’ 1955 – 1956. Lithograph. Lent by Susan and David Goode. © 2022 Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York / ADAGP, Paris

“The prints are integral to our total collecting interest. That is why we are so pleased to see the Chrysler moving to make prints, photographs and works on paper more accessible for everyone and encourage their study as a crucial part of the art canon,” David continued.

Visit the website for the Chrysler Museum of Art and see its dedicated page for Lasting Impressions: Prints from the Collection of David R. and Susan S. Goode.