The Art of Collecting

The Art of Collecting highlights the history behind selected objects from the Charles Allis Art Collection, some of which you may recognize, some you may not, as the Allis Collection is larger than the house designed to display it. 

The exhibition will feature paintings, works on paper and sculpture, as well as documentary materials relevant to each work's provenance - written correspondence, contracts, etc. Many works of art from the collection have interesting back-stories and through this exhibition we share them with you. Charles and Sarah Allis spent a good part of their lives collecting art from around the world. The museum is a testament to their love of all things beautiful and worldly, but rarely do we get a chance to show the process behind such an exquisite art collection.

Coinciding with the exhibition is the completion of a re-glazing project made possible by the support of the Mae E. Demmer Charitable Trust. All of the collection's two-dimensional works currently on display in the mansion along with many in storage are getting new museum glass. The new glass will protect the artwork from ultraviolet light coming through the manion's windows. Advances in glazing technology have also produced a superior non-glare glass that enchances the viewing experience. When attending The Art of Collecting, you may think we removed the glass from the collection because it has become almost imperceptable. Bressler Eitel has been a gracious supporter of the project. They performed all of the re-glazing on site at the Allis mansion.

Credit: Exhibition overview from museum website.