Free Admission Every Day
|
Open Tue - Sat 10 AM - 5 PM

Old Master Drawings

From the Shaffer Collection
Hodges Gallery
August 29, 2024
- January 4, 2025

This is the third and final iteration of the year-long Old Master Drawings exhibition, highlighting works donated by Randolph Shaffer, Jr., in 1988. These works originate from Western Europe during the 15th to 18th centuries, and are some of the oldest works in the AMA’s permanent collection.

The drawings in this collection include many sophisticated preliminary studies required to perform a masterwork of a painting. These drawings are a body of casual field notes, a glimpse into the artist’s thoughts, observations, and impressions. Drawings, on purpose, are smaller samples of a larger instance of work, meant to be viewed in close range.

Furthermore, these drawings are, by their nature, a more intimate experience in which viewers can see the little imperfections of the figures and last-minute decisions scrawled in with pencil or ink pen.

This exhibition gave museum donors a special opportunity to leave a lasting impression on this collection and conserve these works, allowing them to be displayed, possibly for the first time. The AMA would like to thank the anonymous donors for their generous contribution, which allowed one artwork to be framed and preserved for many years. This exhibition marks the first time this unique interpretation of Adam and Eve, a remarkably well-preserved ink and wash drawing by Salvator Rosa, has been publicly displayed at the AMA.

Shaffer was born in Albany in 1914. He became an avid collector of prints during his service in World War II when he was stationed in Paris and London. The drawings in this collection are sourced from various European artists, many of whom are lesser-known or unknown, and were collected during Shaffer’s time abroad. The drawings included in this exhibition represent a selection of the approximately 150 drawings that Shaffer donated.

The selections include some of his personal notes on the works, which he painstakingly examined for higher artistic quality. Shaffer believed the quality of the drawings was more important than acquiring the name of a well-known artist.

This exhibition also will provide potential donors with a unique opportunity to be more directly involved with the long-term care of the AMA’s Permanent Collection. Out of the approximately 150 drawings in the Shaffer Collection, there are about 90 works that have not been framed.

Salvator Rosa, "The Death of Adam and Eve," 17th century, Italy, brown ink and wash on paper, gift of Mr. Randolph Shaffer, Jr. and sponsored by an anonymous donor. 88.001.194

Current Exhibitions

Beauty in the Humble Places

August 29, 2024 -

January 4, 2025

"Beauty in the Humble Places" is a retrospective covering more than three decades of the career of artist David Lanier.

Rootwork

August 29, 2024 -

January 4, 2025

Jillian Marie Browning explores Southern culture in this exhibition of recent works by the artist.
Painting of women talking on a windy, cool day at the beach

Sixty Years of Masterpieces and Memories

August 29, 2024 -

January 4, 2025

This exhibition celebrates artworks in the AMA collection and the donors who have supported the museum of six decades.