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Armory Show facts for kids

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For the ongoing annual exhibit, see The Armory Show (art fair).
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1913 Armory Show
Armory Show button, 1913
Armory show button, 1913
Date February 17, 1913 (1913-02-17) to March 15, 1913 (1913-03-15)
Location 69th Regiment Armory, New York, NY
Also known as The International Exhibition of Modern Art
Participants Artists in the Armory Show
ArmoryShow poster
Armory Show poster

The 1913 Armory Show, also known as the International Exhibition of Modern Art, was a very important art show. It was put together by a group called the Association of American Painters and Sculptors in 1913. This event was the first big exhibition of modern art in America. It was held in large spaces like the 69th Regiment Armory in New York City.

The show traveled to three cities. It started in New York City at the 69th Regiment Armory. This was on Lexington Avenue, from February 17 to March 15, 1913. After New York, the exhibition moved to the Art Institute of Chicago. Then it went to The Copley Society of Art in Boston. In Boston, there wasn't enough space, so all the art by American artists had to be removed.

The Armory Show changed American art forever. Americans were used to seeing realistic art. This show introduced them to new and experimental art styles from Europe. These included Fauvism and Cubism. The show helped American artists become more independent. They started to create their own unique "artistic language."

How the Armory Show Began

Sloan cubism
A drawing by John French Sloan from April 1913. It's called "A slight attack of third dimentia brought on by excessive study of the much-talked of cubist pictures in the International Exhibition at New York."
69th-regiment-armory
The 69th Regiment Armory in 2008. This building hosted the first Armory Show.
Walter Pach, circa 1909
Walter Pach, one of the organizers of the show.
Arthur B. Davies, circa 1908
Arthur B. Davies, another key organizer.

The idea for the Armory Show started on December 14, 1911. A group of artists met at the Madison Gallery in New York. They talked about the art scene in the United States. They wanted to create exhibitions for new and exciting art. This art was often ignored or rejected by other shows. The artists at this first meeting were Henry Fitch Taylor, Jerome Myers, Elmer Livingston MacRae, and Walt Kuhn.

In January 1912, Walt Kuhn, Walter Pach, and Arthur B. Davies joined with about 24 other artists. They formed the Association of American Painters and Sculptors (AAPS). Their goal was to "lead the public taste in art, rather than follow it." Other founding members included William J. Glackens, George Luks, and J. Alden Weir. The AAPS wanted to create new chances for young artists to show their work. They also wanted to teach the American public about art. Davies was the president of AAPS, and Kuhn was the secretary.

The AAPS members spent over a year planning their first big project. It was called the International Exhibition of Modern Art. It was a huge show, unlike anything New York had seen before. In the spring of 1912, they decided to use the 69th Regiment Armory as the main location. They rented it for $5,000, plus $500 for extra staff. It was also confirmed that the show would travel to Chicago and Boston later.

Choosing the Art for the Show

Once the location was set, the hardest part was choosing the art. The organizers decided to include a lot of new European art. Most of this art had never been seen by Americans. In September 1912, Kuhn traveled through Europe. He visited galleries, collections, and artists' studios. He arranged to borrow artworks from England, Germany, the Netherlands, and France.

In Paris, Kuhn met up with Pach, who knew the art scene there very well. Pach was friends with artists like Marcel Duchamp and Henri Matisse. Davies joined them in November 1912. Together, they got three paintings that became very famous and caused a lot of discussion at the show. These were Matisse's Blue Nude (Souvenir de Biskra) and Madras Rouge (Red Madras Headdress), and Duchamp's Nude Descending a Staircase, No. 2. American artists were invited to participate only after Davies and Kuhn returned to New York in December.

Pach was the only American artist closely connected to the Section d'Or group of artists. This group included Albert Gleizes, Jean Metzinger, and the Duchamp brothers (Marcel Duchamp, Raymond Duchamp-Villon, Jacques Villon). Pach helped get their works for the Armory Show. Many artists in Paris trusted Pach to bring their art to the exhibition.

Public Reaction to the Show

The Armory Show was the first and only exhibition put on by the AAPS. It featured about 1,300 paintings, sculptures, and decorative pieces. Over 300 avant-garde (new and experimental) European and American artists were included. Art styles like Impressionism, Fauvism, and Cubism were all shown.

The organizers wanted a lot of attention for the show, and they got it! They even published postcards of 57 artworks. News reports and reviews were full of strong opinions. People called the art "fake," "crazy," "immoral," and "chaotic." There were also jokes, cartoons, and mock exhibitions. The artist John French Sloan drew a cartoon called "A slight attack of third dimentia." It made fun of the Cubist paintings. Even former President Theodore Roosevelt said about the modern works, "That's not art!" However, the city authorities did not close the show.

The Metropolitan Museum of Art bought Paul Cézanne's Hill of the Poor (View of the Domaine Saint-Joseph). This showed that modern art was starting to be accepted in major New York museums. But for younger artists, Cézanne was already a well-known master.

Marcel Duchamp's brother, who used the name Jacques Villon, also showed his art. He sold all his Cubist drypoint etchings. New York art collectors liked his work and supported him for many years after the show.

The exhibition then traveled to the Art Institute of Chicago and The Copley Society of Art in Boston. In Boston, American artists' works were removed because there wasn't enough space. In Chicago, the show caused a scandal that even reached the governor's office. One newspaper headline read: "Cubist Art Will be Investigated; Illinois Legislative Investigators to Probe the Moral Tone of the Much Touted Art."

Layout of the Galleries

Marcel Duchamp, Jacques Villon, Raymond Duchamp-Villon in the garden of Villon's studio, Puteaux, France, c.1913
Marcel Duchamp, Jacques Villon, Raymond Duchamp-Villon, and Villon's dog Pipe in the garden of Villon's studio, Puteaux, France, around 1913. All three brothers had art in the exhibition.

The Armory Show was divided into many galleries. Here's what each gallery featured:

  • Gallery A: American Sculpture and Decorative Art
  • Gallery B: American Paintings and Sculpture
  • Gallery C, D, E, F: American Paintings
  • Gallery G: English, Irish and German Paintings and Drawings
  • Gallery H, I: French Painting and Sculpture
  • Gallery J: French Paintings, Water Colors and Drawings
  • Gallery K: French and American Water Colors, Drawings, etc.
  • Gallery L: American Water Colors, Drawings, etc.
  • Gallery M: American Paintings
  • Gallery N: American Paintings and Sculpture
  • Gallery O: French Paintings
  • Gallery P: French, English, Dutch and American Paintings
  • Gallery Q: French Paintings
  • Gallery R: French, English and Swiss Paintings

The Armory Show's Impact and Legacy

Marcel Duchamp, Nude Descending a Staircase, No. 2, 1912.

The original Armory Show was a huge success. Many exhibitions have celebrated its importance throughout the 20th century.

For example, in 1944, the Cincinnati Art Museum held a smaller version of the show. In 1958, Amherst College showed 62 works, with 41 of them from the original exhibition. In 1963, the Munson-Williams-Proctor Arts Institute in Utica, New York organized a "1913 Armory Show 50th Anniversary Exhibition." This show included over 300 works.

Later, in 1966, a group called Experiments in Art and Technology (E.A.T.) was started. Engineers Billy Klüver and Fred Waldhauer teamed up with artists Robert Rauschenberg and Robert Whitman. They organized "9 Evenings: Theatre and Engineering." This was a series of performance art shows. Artists and engineers worked together to create performances using new technology. These shows were held at the 69th Regiment Armory. This was a way to honor the original 1913 Armory Show.

In February 2009, the Art Dealers Association of America (ADAA) held its 21st annual Art Show. It was held at the Seventh Regiment Armory in New York City. This exhibition also started as a tribute to the original 1913 Armory Show.

Since 1994, a new art fair called The Armory Show has grown. It's now held at the Javits Center and is a big annual contemporary arts festival.

Celebrating 100 Years of the Armory Show

Many exhibitions and events took place in 2013 to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the 1913 Armory Show.

The first exhibition, "The New Spirit: American Art in the Armory Show, 1913," opened at the Montclair Art Museum. It opened on February 17, 2013, exactly 100 years after the original show. The New-York Historical Society organized another exhibition called "The Armory Show at 100." It ran from October 18, 2013, to February 23, 2014. The Smithsonian's Archives of American Art created an online timeline. It showed documents from the original show's organizers.

A third exhibition, The Fountain Art Fair, was held at the 69th Regiment Armory itself. This was during March 8–10, 2013. The fair was inspired by Duchamp's famous "Fountain" artwork. The Art Institute of Chicago, which was the only museum to host the original show, displayed works from its modern collection that were in the 1913 exhibition. The DePaul Art Museum in Chicago also presented "For and Against Modern Art: The Armory Show +100." The International Print Center in New York held an exhibition of prints from the show.

The Greenwich Historical Society presented "The New Spirit and the Cos Cob Art Colony: Before and After the Armory Show." This show looked at how the Armory Show affected the Cos Cob Art Colony. It also highlighted artists like Elmer Livingston MacRae and Henry Fitch Taylor who helped create the show.

American filmmaker Michael Maglaras made a documentary film about the Armory Show. It was called The Great Confusion: The 1913 Armory Show. The film first showed on September 26, 2013, at the New Britain Museum of American Art.

Artists in the Armory Show

Main article: List of artists in the Armory Show

Here is a partial list of some of the artists whose work was shown at the Armory Show:

Women Artists in the Show

Main article: List of women artists in the Armory Show

About one-fifth of the artists in the Armory Show were women. They came from both the United States and Europe. Many of these talented women artists have not received enough recognition since then.

Images for kids

A list written by Pablo Picasso of European artists to be included in the 1913 Armory Show, 1912. Walt Kuhn family papers, and Armory Show records, Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution
A list written in 1912 by Pablo Picasso of European artists he thought should be in the 1913 Armory Show.
  • Armory Show 1

    Entrance of the Exhibition, 1913, New York City

  • Armory Show 2

    Interior view of the exhibition, 1913, New York City

  • Armory Show 3

    Interior view of the exhibition, 1913, New York City

  • Armory Show artists and members of the press at the beefsteak dinner given by the Association of American Painters and Sculptors, 8 March 1913

    Armory Show artists and members of the press at a dinner on March 8, 1913.

  • Installation shot of the Matisse room, 1913 Armory Show, published in the New York Tribune, February 17, 1913, p. 7

    Installation shot of the Matisse room, 1913 Armory Show. From the left: Le Luxe II, 1907–08; "Blue Nude (Souvenir de Biskra)", 1907; L'Atelier Rouge, 1911.

Selected Paintings and Sculptures

Special Art Installation

The Cubist House (La Maison Cubiste)

Main article: La Maison Cubiste
Raymond Duchamp-Villon, 1912, Projet d'hôtel, Maquette de la façade de la Maison Cubiste, published in Les Peintres Cubistes, 1913
Raymond Duchamp-Villon, 1912, Study for La Maison Cubiste, Projet d'Hotel (Cubist House).

At an art show in Paris in 1912, a special architectural display was shown. It quickly became known as Maison Cubiste (Cubist House). It was designed by Raymond Duchamp-Villon and André Mare with other artists.

This "Cubist House" was a fully furnished home. It had a staircase, metal railings, a living room, and a bedroom. Paintings by artists like Marcel Duchamp, Metzinger, Gleizes, Laurencin, and Léger were hung in the living room. It was an example of L'art décoratif (decorative art). It showed how Cubist art could be displayed in a modern, comfortable home.

Visitors to the Paris show walked through a large plaster model of the house's front. This model was 10 meters wide and 3 meters high. This architectural display was later shown at the 1913 Armory Show in New York, Chicago, and Boston. In the New York catalog, it was listed as "Facade architectural, plaster" by Raymond Duchamp-Villon.

See also

Kids robot.svg In Spanish: Armory Show para niños

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