Art museums are closed, but their work is online and you can see it for free

Although the Wichita Art Museum and Ulrich Museum of Art are closed in response to the coronavirus, Wichitans and others can still see artwork in the museums’ collections 24/7.

Anyone with a computer or mobile device can look at the thousands of objects in each museum’s collections through online searchable databases. WAM has had a searchable feature of its collection on its website since 2001, giving access to the more than 10,000 pieces in WAM’s inventory. In February, the Ulrich unveiled a searchable portal to its collection of more than 6,000 pieces.

Both museums also have outdoor sculptures that can still be visited in person, giving you a chance to get some fresh air and some walking exercise if you’ve been laying low because of pandemic precautions. (Avoid going in a large group and don’t touch the sculptures to keep risks low.)

Thirteen sculptures comprise WAM’s Art Garden located adjacent to the museum at 1400 Museum Blvd. The Ulrich’s Martin H. Bush Outdoor Sculpture Collection includes about 80 works spread all over the 330-acre Wichita State campus.

If you need a little guidance to tour the Ulrich’s sculpture collection, download the museum’s app, click on the tours feature and choose a tour by different campus locations or take the so-called family tour that features sculptures that appeal to families. When the museum is closed, you can’t take the terrace garden tour in-person since the terrace is accessed through the museum. The app allows you to take a virtual tour since it displays photos and information on the sculptures in each tour.

To help both novice and seasoned museum visitors sample the online collections, we asked staff at both museums to give us a list of must-see pieces that you can virtually visit.

WAM picks

WAM’s permanent collection focuses on exceptional American art and includes some well-known pieces and artists. Its staff picks reflect that. wichitaartmuseum.org/collection

▪ Kansas-born John Steuart Curry was a major American painter from the 1930s and ‘40s — he’s the artist of “Tragic Prelude” mural painted in the State Capitol building — and one of seven his works in WAM’s collection made the list: “Kansas Cornfield,” painted in 1933.

▪ Edward Hopper is one of America’s greatest 20th-century painters and WAM has four of his works, one each from the decades spanning from the 1920s to ‘50s. Two made the must-see list: “Conference at Night” is a classic Hopper work with a cinematic look, while “Sunlight on Brownstones” showcases Hopper’s talent for working with natural color and light.

▪ Winslow Homer is known for his landscapes and marine subject paintings and is a top late 19th-century painter. Look for “In the Mowing,” one of WAM’s two Homer pieces.

▪ Mary Cassatt painted several mother-child images, and WAM’s “Mother and Child,” painted in 1890, is considered one of the best of her works depicting that relationship.

▪ WAM has several abstracts painted by Arthur Dove. Check out his “Forms Against the Sun.”

▪ Thomas Eakins wasn’t too popular in his lifetime, but WAM puts his portrait of pianist Mary Hallock Greenawalt on its must-see list. It’s the same image featured on the online collection’s landing page.

Ulrich picks

The Ulrich Museum showcases modern contemporary art. No need to actually search through its database to find its top picks because it has put them on the portal’s landing page, ulrich.wichita.edu. Here are five pieces of art on their list.

▪ Check out Joan Mitchell’s “Untitled” piece to see a piece done by someone who was part of the American abstract movement. Mitchell liked to capture her emotional states on canvas.

▪ The title of the photograph by artist Diane Arbus and printer Neil Selkirk gives you a good picture of the work: “Lady Bartender at Home with a Souvenir Dog, New Orleans, 1964.” Arbus liked bringing out a subject’s quirks and idiosyncrasies.

▪ “American Portrait #1” is a painting by Roger Shimomura, a retired University of Kansas professor known for depicting Asian Americans with iconic American culture symbols. The Ulrich recently displayed this work, along with a 3D, tactile version of it in an art accessibility exhibition. His work has been in the National Portrait Gallery.

▪ “Family Tree” by Zhang Huan is one of a group of nine self-portraits made by Chinese artist and immigrant Huan and depicts Chinese characters in calligraphy on the artist’s face in a commentary of cultural translation.

▪ The Ulrich Museum commissioned Radcliffe Bailey’s multimedia collage “Exodus. The photo in the middle of the piece is of members of the Wichita YMCA Orchestra and Glee Club; the work alludes to the 1879 exodus that brought African American’s fleeing the South to Kansas.

Other social connections

While closed, the two museums have amped up ways to connect with them through social media.

The Ulrich is running a social media campaign called “Meet Me in the Vault” to create a crowd-sourced list of top picks from its database. People can select their favorite work through the portal and email the artist name, work title, creation date and a short statement on why they like the piece to ulrich@wichita.edu.The museum will create social media posts based on those emails while its galleries are closed and events canceled.

WAM has been uploading videos recorded during past artist and curator talks, lectures and other presentations to its YouTube channel. Go to YouTube and search for Wichita Art Museum or visit bit.ly/youtubewam.

This story was originally published March 22, 2020 at 8:00 AM.