The Seven Deadly Sins: Pride at the Bruce Museum

Exhibit Dates: June 27, 2015 - October 18, 2015

June, 2015


Gabriel Schachinger (1850-1912), Sweet Reflections, 1886

Gabriel Schachinger (1850-1912)
Sweet Reflections, 1886
Oil on canvas, 51 x 31 in.
Woodmere Art Museum:
Bequest of Charles Knox Smith Photograph by Rick Echelmeyer

Greenwich, CT -- The galleries of the Bruce Museum will be bursting with pride this summer, and into fall: The Museum opens The Seven Deadly Sins: Pride on June 27, part of a groundbreaking series of area exhibitions exploring the Seven Deadly Sins. Presented by seven members of the Fairfield/Westchester Museum Alliance (FWMA), the Seven Deadly Sins exhibitions represent the group’s first ever collaborative effort. “The Seven Deadly Sins have played a significant role in theology, literature and art since the Middle Ages,” says Susan Ball, Deputy Director of the Bruce Museum and a curator of the Bruce’s exhibition. “Pride, or superbia, represents the mother of all sins and the one from which all others arise – the root of a many-branched tree. It’s a fascinating, intriguing subject, and we’re delighted to be presenting it at the Bruce.”

Pride Steps Forth. Contributed to the exhibition from the Two Red Roses Foundation

William Seltzer Rice (1873-1963)
Pride Steps Forth, c. 1930
Woodblock Print
12 ¼ x 14 ¼ in.
Two Red Roses Foundation

The Bruce Museum exhibition places the sin of Pride within a historical context, presenting nearly 50 works ranging from D&uulm;rer works on paper from as far back as 1498 to Fay Ku’s 2014 graphite and oil on mylar. Susan Ball and Co-Curator Amanda Skehan have selected paintings, engravings, etchings, lithographs, illustrated books, magazines, three-dimensional objects and more from private collections, galleries, and institutions that include Yale University Art Gallery, Minneapolis Institute of Art, National Gallery of Art, Princeton Art Museum, Philadelphia Museum of Art, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, The Brooklyn Museum, and The Clark Art Institute.

The exhibition’s curators point out that the show is intended not only to put the sin of pride within a historical context, but also to encourage discussion, raising questions about the history of morality and moralizing.

“The debate about the definition of sinfulness in general and each specific transgression in particular has raged for centuries,” Ball says. “One might ask, at what point is the line between healthy self-esteem, or pride, and the sin of arrogant self-aggrandizement, or pridefulness, crossed?”

The Pride exhibition at the Bruce will be complemented by some unique programming, including the Superbia Soirée at the Museum on Friday, July 17, and a Puppet Show Family Day on Sunday, July 19. The Superbia Soirée, a lively after-hours event open to the public, will take place on Friday, July 17 from 6 to 8 pm. The event will offer special evening access to the exhibition, as well as a variety of activities to celebrate the show including a grown-up scavenger hunt and a special curator’s tour that includes an opportunity to hear from some of the featured artists. Admission is $15 for Museum members and $20 for non-members. Reservations are recommended, visit brucemuseum.org and select July 17 on the website calendar.

The Seven Deadly Sins: Pride opens on June 27 and continues through October 18 at the Bruce. Other area exhibitions in the Seven Deadly Sins FWMA collaboration include:

7 Deadly Sins Exhibition logo

The Seven Deadly Sins: Pride is generously supported by The Charles M. and Deborah G. Royce Exhibition Fund. For more information about The Seven Deadly Sins: Pride, visit the Bruce Museum website. And when you go, don’t forget your cell phone: This exhibition, like many others at the Bruce, will be accompanied by Guide by Cell, a compelling cell phone audio tour guide program, generously underwritten by Lucy and Nat Day. Easy to follow Guide by Cell instructions will be available at the front admissions desk.

 

About the Bruce Museum

The Bruce Museum is a museum of art and science and is located at One Museum Drive in Greenwich, Connecticut. The Museum is open Tuesday through Sunday from 10 am to 5 pm; closed Mondays and major holidays. Admission is $7 for adults, $6 for students up to 22 years, $6 for seniors and free for members and children less than five years. Individual admission is free on Tuesday. Free on-site parking is available and the Museum is accessible to individuals with disabilities. For additional information, call the Bruce Museum at (203)869-0376 or visit the website at brucemuseum.org.