Seasonal Preview
This Season at the Gardner: WINTER|SPRING 2008
Exhibition & Programming Highlights | Jan-April 2008
Take a close look at the upcoming season at the Gardner - including special exhibitions, lectures, concerts, events, culinary offerings, and more that will transport visitors around the world - and particularly Asia.

Valentine's Evening Event
Gardner Museum Hosts Romantic Venetian Valentine Evening Soiree
Saturday, February 14, 2009 | 6:30-8:30 PM

Event showcases the magic and romance of the Gardner at night; invites guests to indulge in decadent cuisine & cocktails, explore romance-filled art & poetry, and savor the sounds of live jazz -- all in Boston's most romantic setting!

Free Admission
Gardner Museum Launches New Policy Offering FREE Admission to Everyone on His or Her Birthday
Ongoing | Launched January 1, 2009

A special birthday gift from the Gardner, new policy aims at providing respite, particularly during these tough economic times, launches January 1st, 2009 - in celebration of the museum's own birthday!

Concerts
Music at the Gardner: Winter/Spring 2009 Concert Schedule
January through May 2009
Nation's longest-running museum music program unveils diverse concert offerings showcasing young performers, celebrating contemporary composers & exploring globally-inspired jazz.

Full Press Release • Season Highlights • Complete Concert Listings

Concert
Composer Leon Kirchner Returns to Gardner Museum to Celebrate 90th Birthday
Thursday, January 15, 2009 | 7:00 pm
Gardner Museum's Composer Portraits series honors Pulitzer Prize-winning composer with an all-Kirchner program featuring internationally celebrated artists.

Upcoming Scholarly Exhibition
"Journeys East: Isabella Steawrt Gardner and Asia"
February 21 - May 31, 2009 *NEW DATES & TITLE*

Between 1883 and 1884, Isabella Gardner traveled throughout the Orient, compiling five travel scrapbooks along the way. This exhibition represents the first time these Asia scrapbooks will be on view together in an historic scholarly exhibition devoted to her travels and influences throughout the Orient.

A full press release will be published in early 2009

Scholarly Exhibition
"The Triumph of Marriage: Painted Cassoni of the Renaissance"
On view at the Gardner Museum: Oct 16, 2008 - Jan 18, 2009
Then traveling to the John and Mable Ringling Museum of Art, Sarasota, Florida: February 14 - May 17, 2009

This focused scholarly exhibition presented by the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum offers a new perspective on marriage, social and gender roles, and patronage of domestic paintings in Renaissance Italy. The exhibition focuses on Italian Renaissance cassoni (large 'marriage chests') created and used publicly to celebrate the triumph of marriage and for display in the Renaissance home, and showcases the art of important, though lesser-known Italian artists Francesco Pesellino, Giovanni di Ser Giovanni.

"The Triumph of Marriage" runs concurrently with additional exhibitions exploring the art of Marriage - including New York City's Metropolitan Museum of Art's "Art and Love in Renaissance Italy" exhibition (on view Nov 18, 2008 through Feb 16, 2009).

• Full Press Kit • Image/Caption Sheet • Accompanying Programming: Symposium, Exhibition Concert & More • Exhibition Handout/Wall Text

Press Preview Event: Wednesday, October 15th, 5:30-6:30 pm RSVP to karmstrong@isgm.org or 617 278 5107

Evening Events
"GARDNER AFTER HOURS" Evening Events Return for Year Two
with Ten All-New Nights of Art, Music, Performances, Cocktails, Gallery Explorations, and More in a Unique Setting
Third Thursdays * 5:30-9:30 PM
Premiere Event: September 18th: "WANDERLUST"
"After Hours" year two kicks off with a celebration of Isabella Gardner's love of travel, featuring new Gallery Travels, contemporary artist Luisa Rabbia's video exhibition Travels with Isabella, a live acoustic performance by jazz sextet Dr. Magpie, an all-new time, signature cocktail, and graphic look by artist Danijel Zezelj, and more!
• After Hours Year Two Press Release • 2008/2009 Schedule & Themes

EXPANSION & RESTORATION PROJECT UPDATES

Apr 10, 2008: Boston Landmarks Commission (BLC) Approves Gardner Museum's Proposed New Building Project and Conceptual Design

Apr 1, 2008: Boston Redevelopment Authority (BRA) Board of Directors Approves Gardner Museum Restoration, Expansion Project and New Building Design by Renzo Piano

• Image Sheet: Gardner Museum Expansion and Restoration Project
• Image Sheet: Architect Drawings
• New Building Project FACT SHEET • Community Support / Quotes

Nov 29, 2004: Launching its Next Century, Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum Selects Renzo Piano for Planning and Design of an Addition on its Campus

Boston's Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum Marks the 18th Anniversary of the March 1990 Theft of Thirteen Works of Art
Museum reissues its commitment to a $5 million reward, assures complete confidentiality for information leading to the return of the stolen artworks

• Stolen Artworks: Image Sheet

Evening Events
"GARDNER AFTER HOURS" Evening Events Bring Art, Music, Performances, Cocktails, Gallery Explorations, and More to Boston's Enchanting Gardner Museum
Third Thursdays * September through June *5:30-9:30 PM
"After Hours" is a new kind of night out featuring art, music, cocktails and more in one of Boston's most inspiring settings. Year two brings with it ten all-new nights of live music, thematic gallery explorations, signature cocktails and "Courtside Bites" at The Courtside Bar, and even an all-new time (5:30 to 9:30 pm) and graphic look by artist Danijel Zezelj.

• After Hours Year Two Press Release • 2008/2009 Schedule & Themes

Free Classical Music Podcast: "The Concert"
The Gardner Museum launches a new FREE classical music podcast at www.gardnermuseum.org. "The Concert" features unreleased live recordings from the museum's weekly concert series, making the Gardner the first art museum to encourage file sharing and free distribution of its online programming by using a Creative Commons license.

Click here to access "The Concert":
http://www.gardnermuseum.org/music/podcast/theconcert.asp

Commemorative Red Sox Banner & Visitor Photo Contest
"Oh, you Red Sox!"

Isabella Stewart Gardner was a New Yorker turned Bostonian - and an avid, and creatively vocal fan of the Boston Red Sox. Each home opening run and post season, the museum (nicknamed Fenway Court in Isabella Gardner's time) celebrates the Boston boys of summer with a commemorative 25-foot banner immortalizing words made famous by Isabella Gardner. Learn more about this engaging, and surprising story -- and speical discounts and offers awaiting Red Sox fans at the Gardner!

• "Oh, you Red Sox!" Banner & Promo Overview
• View or post an image to Flickr • Image/caption sheet

"Thinking Through Art" Research Reveals that Children Learn to Think Critically by Learning to Look at Art
Important new arts education research reveals a strong correlation between the museum's "School Partnership Program" and improved critical thinking skills in children.
• Full Press Kit • Executive Summary • Study Overview • Findings Overview • Collaborator Bios • "Critical Thinking Skills" Rubric
• Visit "Thinking Through Art" online for access to the full research report, a documentary film of kids 'learning to look' at art, sample lesson plans, and more.