Elvehjem debuts Kaufman print collection

The Elvehjem Museum of Art is staging the first public showing of 30 British and Continental prints from a donation of 115 prints by the Louis and Annette Kaufman Trust.

The exhibition, “Selections from the Louis and Annette Kaufman Collection,” will be on display through Nov. 3 in the Mayer Gallery.

The showing includes samples from the three major divisions of the gift:

• Sixteenth- and 17th-century Dutch and French old-master engravings such as the brilliantly painted pieces designed by Maarten van Heemskerk (Dutch, 1498-1574).
• Eighteenth- and 19th-century satirical prints such as hand-colored impressions by satirists James Gillray (British, 1757-1815), Thomas Rowlandson (British, 1756-1827), and Honor? Daumier (French, 1808-1879)
• Early 20th-century etchings of William Strang (British, 1859-1921).

British artists such as Gillray and Rowlandson lampooned the politics and personalities of their time. Their thinly veiled references to political figures brought the proceedings of the houses of Parliament into a new perspective. They also made merciless sport of the fads and fashions of their fellows.

The gift of 37 prints more than doubles the Elvehjem’s collection of British satires. The museum’s very strong collection of Daumier is significantly enriched by the rare, hand-colored examples in the Kaufman gift.

“This is one of those very rare gifts that enriches the museum’s collection with prints spanning five centuries,” says Andrew Stevens, Elvehjem curator of prints, drawings and photographs. “Moreover, the impressions are uniformly strong and unfaded. We are particularly fortunate to have been the recipient of such generosity.”

The Elvehjem will hold a free public reception for the exhibition Friday, Sept. 27, from 6-7:30 p.m. Stevens also will give a gallery talk at 5:30 p.m.