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Art Planner: Summer shows at the Polk Museum, Clayton Galleries and the Chihuly Collection

 
Louis Aston Knight, Path Along a River, ca. 1920, oil on canvas.
Louis Aston Knight, Path Along a River, ca. 1920, oil on canvas.
Published June 30, 2015

For centuries, collecting art was a pastime only for the wealthy (including the wealthy church), but with the rise of the middle class in the mid 19th century, it became an aspiration many more could afford. Travel, too, became available on a broader scale because of the convenience of expanded railroad destinations. As travelers saw more of the world, or at least became arm-chair travelers, they wanted reminders of it, so among the favorite subjects in paintings were bucolic landscapes and exotic locales.

The Polk Museum of Art gives us a look at this particular time and taste with "Destinations in Paintings: The Kasten Collection," which opens Monday and continues through Dec. 6. Alex and Barbara Kasten have assembled paintings from the 1860s to the 1920s that are representative of what's known as academic art, which thrived in the 19th century and is realistic in style and usually romantic in interpretation.

"The Moon Museum (1969): Apollo XII's Secret Art Mission" tells the story of a super-secret mission to install art on the moon. Sculptor Forrest "Frosty" Myers asked fellow artists Andy Warhol, Robert Rauschenberg, Claes Oldenburg, John Chamberlain and David Novros to create drawings that he then transferred to a tiny ceramic wafer with the help of Bell Laboratories. He contacted NASA officials and requested it be included in the flight to the moon but they weren't interested. So he claims an unnamed engineer attached it to the landing gear of the moon module that would be left behind after it returned to the ship. No one can verify the claim but I hope it's true.

You can see a duplicate in "Moon Museum," along with vintage photographs, film shot by the astronauts and related artifacts. It opens Tuesday and continues through Oct. 3.

The Polk Museum is at 800 E Palmetto St., Lakeland. Hours are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday and 1 to 5 p.m. Sunday. Admission is free. polkmuseumofart.org or (863) 688-7743.

Gallery owner Cathy Clayton keeps a lot of terrific art stored in the back rooms and you get to see a lot of it at this time of year when she exhibits a rotating group of it. I'm not sure who among the 30 artists she represents will be on view but any and all are worth seeing (and buying!).

The gallery, 4105 S MacDill Ave., Tampa, is open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Friday and 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday. (813) 831-3753.

Continuing its commitment to showcase a variety of glass artists and their work, the Chihuly Collection features "Lisa Zerkowitz and Boyd Sugiki: A Duet." The Seattle-based duo work in tandem and independently to create collections of functional items that are seriously fabulous. (Check out their website: twotonestudios.com.) Then see their work at the Collection — yes, glass "beach balls"!

There are still plenty of glass sculptures and installations by Dale Chihuly, probably the most famous glass artist in the world. The space for changing exhibitions was repurposed from the old gift shop, which now is next door and much larger and more varied. The Chihuly Collection, 400 Beach Drive NE, St. Petersburg, is open Monday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Sunday from noon to 5 p.m. Admission is $14.95 adults, $13.95 seniors, $10.95 students and children and kids 5 and younger, free. moreanartscenter.org or (727) 822-7872.