Modern art collection opens at Guggenheim

(1 Jul 2003) 1. Wide exterior of Guggenheim 2. Wide tilt down inside Guggenheim 3. Wide of museum director unveiling mural "Alicia", by Spanish artist Joan Miro 4. Close up pan across mural "Alicia" 5. SOUNDBITE (English) Lisa Dennison, Guggenheim Curator: "It tells a particular history, it deals with the aesthetic vanguard of the 20th century, how it came into being, and you can follow chronologically a sort of path of 20th century art beginning in Europe and ending in America. It happened because after the Second World War so many European artists came to these shores and when they did they brought the traditions of Europe here." 6. Close up sign "From Picasso to Pollock" 7. Wide shot three Picasso works 8. Close up Picasso painting "Carafe, Jug and Fruit Bowl" 9. Wide shot Picasso's "Woman with Yellow Hair" on left and "Pitcher and Bowl of Fruit" on right 10. Close up Picasso's "Pitcher and Bowl of Fruit" 11. Wide shot Pollock's "Ocean Grayness", zooms in to close up 12. Mid shot Pollock's "Number 18" 13. Close up Pollock signature 14. Wide tilt down interior of museum STORYLINE: A mural by Spanish artist Joan Miro, "Alicia", was unveiled in New York on Tuesday for the first time since 1990 as part of a new show at the Guggenheim Museum highlighting classics of modern art. The 20-foot-long (6.5 metre) mural is comprised of 190 ceramic tiles, with the name "Alice" in huge exuberant letters surrounded by Miro's characteristic celestial shapes. The art work was permanently installed in 1967, but it is usually hidden behind a false wall to accommodate the museum's revolving array of special exhibitions. It fits in perfectly, however, with the Guggenheim's new exhibit: "From Picasso to Pollock: Classics of Modern Art," which officially opens on Friday and continues through till September 28. Along with Pablo Picasso and Jackson Pollock, the show features 130 paintings and sculptures by 48 artists, including Vasily Kadinsky, Willem de Kooning, Marc Chagall and Piet Mondrian. The mural is on the first wall visitors see as they begin to ascend the Guggenheim's spiral ramp. It was commissioned in 1963 by Harry F. Guggenheim - then-president of the Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation - as a memorial to his wife, Alicia Patterson Guggenheim, the founder and publisher of Newsday who died unexpectedly that year at the age of 56. After the mural, visitors to the exhibit are treated to four early works by Picasso as they begin a chronological tour of highlights of the aesthetic vanguard from cubism to abstract expressionism. The exhibition allows the museum to showcase some works that haven't been seen in New York for at least five years because they have been on loan or in storage. Find out more about AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/HowWeWork Twitter:   / ap_archive   Facebook:   / aparchives   ​​ Instagram:   / apnews   You can license this story through AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/metadata/you...