Must See in the Museum 

August 3, 2011

In 1540, 24 years before Galileo's birth and 68 years before the telescope was invented, the famed mathematician and astronomer Petrus Apianus published Astronomicum Caesareum. The book is filled with elaborate, hand-colored, rotating paper models, called volvelles, which accurately recorded movements of the planets, the moon, and the sun. Every two weeks, the curators of the exhibition Cartographies of Time will turn the pages of this magnificent volume to reveal a new volvelle--including, here, a chart that compares the relative motion of the sun and the moon. Visit our Facebook album to see every page on view during the exhibition.  

Late Thursdays

Thursday, August 4, 7-9 p.m.

Art Museum lawn

Celebrate the waning weeks of a fun-filled summer with a picnic on the Museum's lawn! Bring your loved ones and enjoy the warm evening breeze, a live jazz pianist, and great barbecue fare. Vegetarian offerings will be available. Inside the Museum, we'll have a scavenger hunt with prizes, and cocktails will be served from 7 to 7:45 p.m.

Director: Christopher Nolan

Thursday, August 4, 8:30 p.m.

Brown/Dod Quad

Screened as part of MEMORY AND THE WORK OF ART, this film explores themes of memory and loss as it follows a highly skilled thief (Leonardo DiCaprio) executing his toughest job yet, in a world where technology exists to enter the human mind through dream invasion. Popcorn and soda will be served. Please bring your own seating. In case of rain, the film will be screened in McCormick 101.

Be Late. Be Cool. Summer at the Art Museum.

Behind the Scenes

The development of the next generation of museum professionals is an important aspect of the Museum's mission, and internships are a key means to achieve that objective. Thanks to generous support from the Frelinghuysen Foundation and the Hilla von Rebay Foundation, the Museum sponsored five graduate and two undergraduate students in its successful internship program this summer. In addition to specific work in their respective departments, ranging from modern and contemporary art to prints and drawings to education, interns learn about museum careers from key members of the staff and participate in research trips to regional arts organizations.

Save the Date

Thursday, September 22, 6 p.m.

The Lewis Center for the Arts

Hear the personal insights of renowned artist Christian Boltanski, who, in conversation with biographer and art critic Mark Stevens, will explore how his artwork addresses history, loss, and the vagaries of memory. Born in Paris in 1944, Boltanski began his artistic career when he left formal education at the age of 12 and started painting and drawing. Since the 1960s, his mixed-media installations--including one on view this fall in the Museum's Marquand Mather Court--have explored the ephemera (and tenacity) of the human experience.

Boltanski's lecture is held as part of the collaborative investigation MEMORY AND THE WORK OF ART.

MEMORY AND THE WORK OF ART is a collaborative investigation into the relationship between the arts and cultural memory.

Distinguished Lecture Series 

Exhibitions 

Performances and Concerts 

Readings and Lectures 

Credits (top to bottom):

Princeton University Art Museum. Photo: Bruce M. White.

Petrus Apianus, German, 1495-1552: Astronomicum Caesareum, 1540. Bound printed book with hand-colored woodcut illustrations, 45.4 x 32.3 x 3.3 cm. William H. Scheide Library, Rare Books and Special Collections, Princeton University Library (WHS 25.6.4). 

2011 Family Barbeque on the Art Museum lawn 

Inception (2010) / image courtesy IMDB.com 

2011 summer interns on the High Line in Chelsea during their field trip to New York  

Christian Boltanski / Venice Biennale 2011 / French Pavillion / Photo: Didier Plowy  

Reproduction of all images is prohibited by copyright laws and international conventions without written permission from the copyright holder. © 2011 Princeton University Art Museum