‘Origins’ explores early days of the Nelson-Atkins museum

Lucas Cranach the Younger, German (1515–1586), ‘Portrait of a Man,’ 1538 oil on wood panel (beech), 19 3/4 x 14 1/16 inches (50.2 x 35.7 cm). Purchase: William Rockhill Nelson Trust.
Lucas Cranach the Younger, German (1515–1586), ‘Portrait of a Man,’ 1538 oil on wood panel (beech), 19 3/4 x 14 1/16 inches (50.2 x 35.7 cm). Purchase: William Rockhill Nelson Trust.
Lucas Cranach the Younger, German (1515–1586), ‘Portrait of a Man,’ 1538 oil on wood panel (beech), 19 3/4 x 14 1/16 inches (50.2 x 35.7 cm). Purchase: William Rockhill Nelson Trust.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art in Kansas City opened its doors in 1933, but the collection was beginning to be built at a frantic pace three years prior. The new exhibition Origins: Collecting to Create the Nelson-Atkins explores the very beginnings of the collection as well as the people who made choices about what types of art to collect, the challenges and opportunities of acquiring art during the Great Depression, and the vast diversity of the museum’s first objects. The exhibit debuts August 14 and continues through March 6, 2022.

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