Mennello Museum of American Art

Mennello Museum of American Art

900 East Princeton Street
Orlando, FL 32803
Phone 407.246.4278

10:00 am - 4:30 pm
Closed Mondays

www.mennellomuseum.com

AT A GLANCE:  Mennello Museum
Date of Visit:	Sunday, February 12, 2017
Parking	Free, onsite parking, in a small parking lot
Amount of time needed to peruse exhibits:	45 – 90 minutes
Amount of time needed for gift shop	5 – 10  minutes
Online shopping	A few items are available online.  Use this link:  http://www.mennellomuseum.com/giftshop.html
Kid friendly shopping	None.
Kid friendly	Not really, as they may get bored.  Promise them that they can run outside through the accompanying sculpture garden afterward.
Dress code	Dress up a bit for a visit to the Mennello Museum.  Shorts and capris are fine.  A sassy hat helps.
Be sure to…..	Take a few minutes and enjoy the outdoor sculpture garden surround the Mennello Museum.
Nearby/other establishments to visit	·         Orlando Museum of Art, www.omart.org Gift shop review:  http://www.meetmeinthegiftshop.com/p/blog-page_18.html ·         Orlando Science Center, www.osc.org Gift shop review:  http://www.meetmeinthegiftshop.com/p/blog-page_18.html ·         Morse Museum www.morsemuseum.org ·         Leu Gardens, www.leugardens.org Gift Shop review: http://www.meetmeinthegiftshop.com/p/harry-p-leu-gardens.html ·         Cornell Fine Arts Museum www.rollins.edu
Walkability, general downtown area / amount of traffic	Orlando is generally not walkable in terms of safety and distance.  This museum district is an area that is walkable.
Safety, in terms of type and number of crimes committed in general area	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.

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.  

 

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.

"Earl Cunningham's America"

As of this writing, the Mennello Museum main page has a notice that they are re-vamping their website, and doesn’t give options for navigating other tabs.  I found that this can be accomplished by clicking on “site map” to get access to their full site.  Here’s that  link:  http://www.mennellomuseum.com/sitemap.html.  Be aware that the gift shop link depicts their gift shop before they remodeled.  It no longer looks like the photo.  Totes, coffee mugs, postcards and books are still available online.  http://www.mennellomuseum.com/giftshop.html.  I recommend the book, “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.”

http://www.mennellomuseum.com/mission.html

 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.

A public museum must follow legal and ethical standards,
plus it must adhere to its mission statement.

https://www.thebalance.com/what-is-the-difference-
between-private-and-public-museums-1295696

Painting by Earl Cunningham

Museums, gardens and art galleries have the simple elegance of static time.  The displays and exhibits you see were created by someone for a specific reason be it for beauty, entertainment or social commentary.  It’s our individual responses in our interpretation that encourages a healthy dialogue between us.  Cunningham’s paintings offer a good starting point for these discussions.  With Cunningham, the larger the portrayal of objects, the more important they were to him, and there is little use of realistic perspective in his works.  Cunningham portrays the turning point in United States history when humankind began its ongoing compromise of nature.  Boats are often painted relatively small compared to the all-encompassing natural areas of water and land.    Perhaps we can construe this as Cunningham not being a fan of the transitioning industrial age.  Nevertheless, this

Painting by Earl Cunningham

museum celebrates its collection of Earl Cunningham paintings, having purchased 300 of his 450 works.  Come back to the Mennello Museum, though, and be treated to a new exhibit of this folk art’s paintings.  So who is Earl Cunningham, and why should we care? 

 

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

Paintings by Earl Cunningham

the shop owner into selling the painting in the window to her, to add to her private art collection.  The shop owner was also the artist of the painting, and he gave her his succinct answer:  “No.”  

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

Painting by Earl Cunningham

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. 

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

Sculpture by Earl Cunningham

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.

Marilyn Mennello

I was introduced to the Marilyn Mennello / Earl Cunningham story through an informative video located in the midst of the Cunningham display at the Mennello Museum.  I’ve tried to corroborate what I learned there with facts gleaned from online research to no avail.  Running an Internet search tells a somewhat similar story, but lacks details of the back-and-forth nature of the Mennello / Cunningham relationship.  I prefer to believe the facts from the Mennello Museum, because they were collected and written from one who was there.  Anyway, there you have it:  the story of a gentle, yet persuasive, women and a cantankerous folk artist.

Bartlett's prints sold for $4,000 each.

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

The gift shop

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.

 

Bottles along the back wall are colorful.
That pineapple stuff in the jar on
the counter looks good, too.

How about some lunch?  We ate at Firebirds Wood Fire Grill on N. Mills St. in Orlando.  Here's their link:  https://orlando.firebirdsrestaurants.com/ .  Turn right as you leave the Mennello Museum parking lot, and make another right at the traffic light, which is N. Mills St.  It’s less than a 5-minute drive from the Mennello Museum.  Our first choice was one of the funky restaurants across Nebraska St., but most had at least a 15-minute wait.  Not one to enjoy waiting, we headed toward Firebirds Wood Fire Grill which had no line and not waiting.  The food wasn’t bad, but I felt that they are a bit pricey for what you get.  Hamburgers worth $12.95?  For aficionados, perhaps.  For me, no.  There is a separate bar area, which looks like an interior decorator designed it.  We loved the color-coordinated lights behind the bar.  The pineapple alcohol is something I wish I had tried, because it looks yummy.

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

are desired, meander through the sculpture garden and enjoy Florida’s blue skies and sunshine.  Rejuvenation is just about guaranteed.

Coming up next week:  Kennedy Space Center, Merritt Island, Florida