900 East Princeton Street
Orlando, FL 32803
Phone 407.246.4278
Orlando, FL 32803
Phone 407.246.4278
10:00 am - 4:30 pm
Closed Mondays
Closed Mondays
AT A
GLANCE: Mennello Museum
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Date of Visit:
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Sunday, February 12,
2017
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Parking
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Free, onsite parking,
in a small parking lot
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Amount of time needed
to peruse exhibits:
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45 – 90 minutes
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Amount of time needed
for gift shop
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5 – 10 minutes
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Online shopping
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A few items are
available online. Use this link: http://www.mennellomuseum.com/giftshop.html
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Kid friendly shopping
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None.
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Kid friendly
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Not really, as they
may get bored. Promise them that they
can run outside through the accompanying sculpture garden afterward.
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Dress code
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Dress
up a bit for a visit to the Mennello Museum.
Shorts and capris are fine. A
sassy hat helps.
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Be sure to…..
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Take a few minutes and enjoy the outdoor
sculpture garden surround the Mennello Museum.
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Nearby/other
establishments to visit
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·
Orlando Museum of Art, www.omart.org
Gift shop review: http://www.meetmeinthegiftshop.com/p/blog-page_18.html
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Orlando Science Center, www.osc.org
Gift shop review: http://www.meetmeinthegiftshop.com/p/blog-page_18.html
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Morse Museum
www.morsemuseum.org
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Leu Gardens, www.leugardens.org
Gift Shop review: http://www.meetmeinthegiftshop.com/p/harry-p-leu-gardens.html
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Cornell Fine Arts Museum
www.rollins.edu |
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Walkability, general
downtown area / amount of traffic
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Orlando is generally
not walkable in terms of safety and distance.
This museum district is an area that is walkable.
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Safety, in terms of
type and number of crimes committed in general area
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Generally safe, but
stow your valuables out of sight and lock your car to keep the honest people
honest. This cultural area attracts
many people, both local and tourists/travelers.
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The name Mennello is pronounced either “men low” or “men ah low” with the emphasis on the first syllable.The Mennello Museum of American Art has completed the necessary renovations concerning itscurrent exhibit: Bo Bartlett, meaning that the $5.00 admission fee is reinstated. The front of the Museum had to be deconstructed in order to bring Bartlett’s large paintings in.
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| Bartlett's paintings are quite large as you can see from the painting of the wood house. That painting is placed equidistant between the floor and the ceiling. |
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| "Earl Cunningham's America" |
Mission
statement
“The
Mennello Museum of American Art endeavors to preserve, exhibit, and interpret
the Museum’s outstanding permanent collection of paintings by Earl Cunningham.
The Museum also seeks to enrich the public through special exhibitions,
publications, and programs that celebrate other outstanding traditional and
contemporary American artists.”
Vision
Statement
“The vision of the Mennello Museum of American Art is to be
a distinguished and thriving institution that will build on its city base of
support through strong board and community relationships resulting in an
improved operating environment and a reputation for being a local and national
treasure.”
First, a word on fashion: no one likes to be conspicuous, yet if you have a
sassy hat, the Mennello Museum of American Art in Orlando, Florida is the place
to wear it. This is art vibe at its
best. The Mennello Museum is a private museum (see definition, below),
and we know who Earl Cunningham is, because Marilyn Mennello fell in love with
the first Cunningham painting she saw.
A private museum is often the
personal art collection of an individual who
determines how the collection is exhibited and how the museum is run.
determines how the collection is exhibited and how the museum is run.
A public museum must follow legal
and ethical standards,
plus it must adhere to its mission statement.
plus it must adhere to its mission statement.
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| Painting by Earl Cunningham |
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| Painting by Earl Cunningham |
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| Paintings by Earl Cunningham. Notice the "Nothing for sale" sign |
Many places in life that we encounter have a story to tell, as does our museum this week: the Mennello Museum of American Art. Our story begins with a gentlewoman, an art collector and her interaction with a grouchy shop owner, according to the 20-minute film playing amongst some curious paintings. The story goes that the woman happened upon a vivid, folksy painting in the window of a dust antique shop / art studio called Over-Fork Gallery. Undeterred by an additional sign proclaiming that nothing was for sale, our woman entered the dusty and tumbledown building hoping she could talk
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| Paintings by Earl Cunningham |
As the story continues, Marilyn Mennello, our
gentlewoman from the previous paragraph, knew that she had stumbled upon a
unique collection of folk art, which would ultimately fade from view upon the
artist’s earthly departure. It would be
as if it never existed, and Mennello thought it important to do everything in
her power to keep that from happening. Earl
Cunningham, the grouchy shop owner from the previous paragraph,refused to sell
because he was stubborn about parting with any of his paintings. He thought of his works of art as his
children. Cunningham additionally
believed that his art belonged in
a museum as a collection and not as a
piecemeal for collectors who only wanted one or two paintings. Mennello talked Cunningham into showing her his other works and by the
time the day was over, into selling one
to her. That was only on the condition
that she pays with cash when she came to pick it up later, which Cunningham
said in hopes of convincing her. He
quoted a ridiculous amount of money for those days, but she agreed. Mennello returned a week later to claim her
painting, cash in hand. Although she
tried to buy more paintings from him, Cunningham dug his obstinate heels in, and
held firm.
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| Painting by Earl Cunningham |
Several years had passed when Mennello learned that
Cunningham had passed away. Thinking she
would finally be able to add another Cunningham work of art to her collection,
Mennello contacted
Cunningham’s son who had become the executor of his father’s
estate. She approached the younger
Cunningham and again expressed her interest in his father’s art. Could she purchase one or two more
paintings? It was if the artist spoke
from his grave through his son. The
answer was still “no.” Young Cunningham
went on to say that his father had wanted to keep his entire collection
together, which was consistent with the artist’s demands from
several years
past. The son proved just as gruff and
stubborn as his father, and was reluctant to part with any of the pieces housed
at the Over-Fork Gallery. However, if Mennello wanted to purchase the entire collection, they’d have something
to discuss, else she walked away with nothing.
Without missing a beat, Mennello agreed to purchase the collection of
300 paintings. A decade or so later, the
Mennellos built a museum designed specifically to exhibit the Earl Cunningham
paintings. Today, half of the Mennello
Museum is dedicated to displaying a revolving selection of Cunningham’s folk
art paintings while the other half of the museum showcases other American folk
artists. By the way, the Mennello Museum
of American Art is the only folk art museum in central Florida.
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| Sculpture by Earl Cunningham |
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| Marilyn Mennello |
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| Bartlett's prints sold for $4,000 each. |
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| A $5 pin makes a good gift |
The gift shop at the Mennello Museum is an example
of quality over quantity. There’s not
many items to look at, but what they have is of distinction. The glass counter by the ticket area houses a
book on both Bo Bartlett and Earl Cunningham.
I liked the Cunningham “angel” pins, which sell for $5.00. I have a photo of a Mennello Museum
volunteer holding one to give perspective of its size. There are tote bags, coffee mugs, a book
about sculpture Barbara Sorenson (one of the Museum’s smaller exhibits), and
ornaments located on a table at the entrance to the Cunningham exhibit. These things, in addition to three or four
books regarding Bo Bartlett, and his works that the Mennello
Museum currently
displays, are the whole of the gift shop.
Quality shopping is available at the Orlando Museum of Art, found across
the street. Access to their gift shop is
positioned before arriving at the ticket counter, and no ticket is required for
shopping, which is true for many attractions in Florida. In its own way, Florida is gently urging you
to shop on.
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| The gift shop |
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| Bottles along the back wall are colorful. That pineapple stuff in the jar on the counter looks good, too. |
Return to the museum area after lunch, because there’s plenty of time for the Orlando Science Center, the Orlando Museum of Art, or any of the other museums in the area. If stillness, peace and solitude
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