ROUNDING THE CIRCLE
THE MARY AND AL SHANDS COLLECTION OPENS MARCH 24 AT THE SPEED ART MUSEUM
IIn a transformative addition to its collection, the Speed Art Museum
has received a monumental bequest of contemporary art from the private collection of the late Alfred R Shands III (1928-2021) and Mary Norton Shands (1930-2009). On March 24, more than 100 of those works, in addition to
other artworks gifted to arts institutions across Kentucky, will be presented in a major exhibition, Rounding the Circle: The Mary and Al Shands Collection.
The exhibition, which runs through Aug. 26, is curated by Julien Robson, former curator of contemporary art at the Speed and a close friend of Al Shands. Robson served as curator of the Shands collection for more than 10 years and is now director of the Great Meadows Foundation.
Ranging from paintings, prints and works on paper to ceramics and large-scale sculptures, the Mary and Al Shands Art Collection features notable works by leading contemporary artists
Richard Deacon British, b. 1949 Before My Very Eyes #3, 1989, Galvanized steel The Mary Norton Shands and Alfred R. Shands III Art Collection Bequest Image credit: Bill Rough
including Elizabeth Murray, Petah Coyne, Tony Cragg, Olafur Eliasson, Anish Kapoor, Maya Lin, Kiki Smith, Ursula von Rydingsvard and Betty Woodman. Spanning from the 1960s to the present, the collection includes many works by female artists, as well as works by artists of color and leading Kentuckyarea artists.
Mary and Al Shands were longtime civic leaders and supporters of the arts in Kentucky, as well as avid collectors with a keen aesthetic sensibility, who always intended for their collection to be dispersed to museums across Kentucky. While the bulk of the collection (177 objects) was given to the Speed, a large number also was gifted to six other museums, including KMAC Museum and Western Kentucky University’s Art Museum. Many notable works bequeathed to other museums are prominently featured in the Speed’s exhibition.
Rounding the Circle will be installed primarily in the Speed’s special exhibition galleries, with additional works in the museum’s Loft Gallery above its cinema.
Anish Kapoor / British, b. 1954
Untitled, 1999 , Stainless steel and yellow paint
The Mary Norton Shands and Alfred R. Shands III Art Collection Image credit: Bill Roughen
Vian Sora , American, born Iraq, 1976 Woodlands, 2020 , Oil on Canvas
The Mary Norton Shands and Alfred R. Shands III Art Collection
Image courtesy of the artist.
“Al’s wish was to display the collection together before it is dissipated and becomes absorbed into various museum collections,” said Robson. “This gives the public the opportunity to experience the works together. The exhibition occupies a ‘transitional space’ between the collection’s former life in the couple’s Louisville house at Great Meadows and its future life as part of the larger collections of art museums. This was thoughtfully planned,” he said.
“The magnitude of this gift represents a major step forward in our vision for expanding the Speed’s contemporary collection,” said Curator of Contemporary Art Tyler Blackwell. “Bringing these works into the civic sphere presents a rich array of opportunities to place them in new contexts and explore contemporary issues. This exhibition, which both marks and celebrates the Shands’s remarkable generosity, will be on view virtually all summer, will offer the chance to reflect upon the couple’s vision and to create your own experience with these contemporary art objects.”
Ken Price, American, 1935 – 2012
C Green, 1961 , Clay on wood base
The Mary Norton Shands and Alfred R. Shands III Art Collection
Image credit: Bill Roughen
Al Shands served on the Speed’s Board of Trustees for decades, and in 2016 he established Great Meadows Foundation, strengthening the visual arts community in Kentucky by providing grants and support for the region’s artists to research, connect and participate more actively in the broader contemporary art world. Mary Shands helped found the Kentucky Art and Craft Foundation, which grew to become the KMAC Museum. In the 1980s, the couple began acquiring ceramics by local artists before progressing to large-scale sculptures by artists of international acclaim, resulting in a renowned collection built through both acquisitions and commissions over four decades—with a focus in the later years on supporting emerging artists from both the Kentucky and New York contemporary art scenes.
“Al Shands would often remark that he wanted the collection to feel like a giant and welcoming dinner party, with works that present different ideas and can speak to each other in surprising and distinctive ways,” said Robson. “As many of these artworks makes their way to a new home at the Speed, all are invited to reflect, connect and bring their own perspectives to the table.”
Ann Hamilton , American, b. 1956 book weight dd (human carriage), 2009-2010 , Archival inkjet print The Mary Norton Shands and Alfred R. Shands III Art Collection Bequest Image credit: Bill Roughen