The UI Stanley Museum of Art invites you to help us turn our new home into a “signed original” by writing your name on our virtual wall between now and Wednesday, September 30, 2020!

We will transfer your message onto a real wall, hidden within the building, before the construction team finishes its work.

Grant Wood’s American Gothic is probably the world’s most parodied American painting, second only to Leonardo’s Mona Lisa.  The fact that thousands of parodies of American Gothic exist, dating back several decades, speaks to the enduring inspiration of one of America’s greatest works of art.  This exhibition—a first for the Cedar Rapids Museum of Art—will look at many of these parodies—some in the flesh on the gallery’s walls and many others digitally projected in an attempt to share the incredible reach of this iconic painting.  From Bill and Hillary Clinton to Leonardo and Mona Lisa to RuPaul as male and female, these parodies speak to how this one painting serves as the basis for looking at various contemporary people and issues.  Wood’s impactful 1930 painting continues to inspire “artists” of all ages and skills in a playful and humorous way that Wood would no doubt have applauded.

Retired computer entrepreneur Peter Norton (Norton Antivirus Software) is a contemporary art collector as well as an active participant in various civic and philanthropic activities. In 1988, the Norton Family Christmas Project began commissioning artists to create original, multiple-edition works that were mailed as holiday greetings to friends, colleagues, and selected institutions.  In 2017, the CRMA received the bulk of these wonderful holiday greetings from Director Emeritus Terry Pitts and his wife Kathy Hall.

The objects and artists’ books that comprise the Project collection are incredibly varied. A sense of whimsy runs through many of the pieces: salt and pepper shakers become snow globes, a music box exhorts us to be silent.  Many works also have a sociopolitical focus, addressing issues as varied as slavery, AIDS, and gender identity.  Taken together, the Norton Family Christmas Project objects and artists’ books provide a wonderful snapshot of the last thirty years of activity in the art world at large, presenting the work of both emerging and more established artists.  The 2018 edition of the Norton Family Christmas Project was the last and ended the series.

Grant Wood’s American Gothic is probably the world’s most parodied American painting, second only to Leonardo’s Mona Lisa.  The fact that thousands of parodies of American Gothic exist, dating back several decades, speaks to the enduring inspiration of one of America’s greatest works of art.  This exhibition—a first for the Cedar Rapids Museum of Art—will look at many of these parodies—some in the flesh on the gallery’s walls and many others digitally projected in an attempt to share the incredible reach of this iconic painting.  From Bill and Hillary Clinton to Leonardo and Mona Lisa to RuPaul as male and female, these parodies speak to how this one painting serves as the basis for looking at various contemporary people and issues.  Wood’s impactful 1930 painting continues to inspire “artists” of all ages and skills in a playful and humorous way that Wood would no doubt have applauded.

Retired computer entrepreneur Peter Norton (Norton Antivirus Software) is a contemporary art collector as well as an active participant in various civic and philanthropic activities. In 1988, the Norton Family Christmas Project began commissioning artists to create original, multiple-edition works that were mailed as holiday greetings to friends, colleagues, and selected institutions.  In 2017, the CRMA received the bulk of these wonderful holiday greetings from Director Emeritus Terry Pitts and his wife Kathy Hall.

The objects and artists’ books that comprise the Project collection are incredibly varied. A sense of whimsy runs through many of the pieces: salt and pepper shakers become snow globes, a music box exhorts us to be silent.  Many works also have a sociopolitical focus, addressing issues as varied as slavery, AIDS, and gender identity.  Taken together, the Norton Family Christmas Project objects and artists’ books provide a wonderful snapshot of the last thirty years of activity in the art world at large, presenting the work of both emerging and more established artists.  The 2018 edition of the Norton Family Christmas Project was the last and ended the series.

Grant Wood’s American Gothic is probably the world’s most parodied American painting, second only to Leonardo’s Mona Lisa.  The fact that thousands of parodies of American Gothic exist, dating back several decades, speaks to the enduring inspiration of one of America’s greatest works of art.  This exhibition—a first for the Cedar Rapids Museum of Art—will look at many of these parodies—some in the flesh on the gallery’s walls and many others digitally projected in an attempt to share the incredible reach of this iconic painting.  From Bill and Hillary Clinton to Leonardo and Mona Lisa to RuPaul as male and female, these parodies speak to how this one painting serves as the basis for looking at various contemporary people and issues.  Wood’s impactful 1930 painting continues to inspire “artists” of all ages and skills in a playful and humorous way that Wood would no doubt have applauded.

Retired computer entrepreneur Peter Norton (Norton Antivirus Software) is a contemporary art collector as well as an active participant in various civic and philanthropic activities. In 1988, the Norton Family Christmas Project began commissioning artists to create original, multiple-edition works that were mailed as holiday greetings to friends, colleagues, and selected institutions.  In 2017, the CRMA received the bulk of these wonderful holiday greetings from Director Emeritus Terry Pitts and his wife Kathy Hall.

The objects and artists’ books that comprise the Project collection are incredibly varied. A sense of whimsy runs through many of the pieces: salt and pepper shakers become snow globes, a music box exhorts us to be silent.  Many works also have a sociopolitical focus, addressing issues as varied as slavery, AIDS, and gender identity.  Taken together, the Norton Family Christmas Project objects and artists’ books provide a wonderful snapshot of the last thirty years of activity in the art world at large, presenting the work of both emerging and more established artists.  The 2018 edition of the Norton Family Christmas Project was the last and ended the series.

Grant Wood’s American Gothic is probably the world’s most parodied American painting, second only to Leonardo’s Mona Lisa.  The fact that thousands of parodies of American Gothic exist, dating back several decades, speaks to the enduring inspiration of one of America’s greatest works of art.  This exhibition—a first for the Cedar Rapids Museum of Art—will look at many of these parodies—some in the flesh on the gallery’s walls and many others digitally projected in an attempt to share the incredible reach of this iconic painting.  From Bill and Hillary Clinton to Leonardo and Mona Lisa to RuPaul as male and female, these parodies speak to how this one painting serves as the basis for looking at various contemporary people and issues.  Wood’s impactful 1930 painting continues to inspire “artists” of all ages and skills in a playful and humorous way that Wood would no doubt have applauded.

Retired computer entrepreneur Peter Norton (Norton Antivirus Software) is a contemporary art collector as well as an active participant in various civic and philanthropic activities. In 1988, the Norton Family Christmas Project began commissioning artists to create original, multiple-edition works that were mailed as holiday greetings to friends, colleagues, and selected institutions.  In 2017, the CRMA received the bulk of these wonderful holiday greetings from Director Emeritus Terry Pitts and his wife Kathy Hall.

The objects and artists’ books that comprise the Project collection are incredibly varied. A sense of whimsy runs through many of the pieces: salt and pepper shakers become snow globes, a music box exhorts us to be silent.  Many works also have a sociopolitical focus, addressing issues as varied as slavery, AIDS, and gender identity.  Taken together, the Norton Family Christmas Project objects and artists’ books provide a wonderful snapshot of the last thirty years of activity in the art world at large, presenting the work of both emerging and more established artists.  The 2018 edition of the Norton Family Christmas Project was the last and ended the series.

Rounding out our anniversary year will be an unusual look at arguably Iowa’s most important artist, Grant Wood. While known for his iconic American Gothic (Art Institute of Chicago) and other Regionalist works from his mature style, Grant Wood was constantly exploring styles, techniques, and media.  This exhibition will bring together works from both the CRMA collection as well as from private collections to celebrate Wood’s inquisitive mind.  Rarely seen paintings will be joined with diverse metalwork pieces, drawings, and studies to construct a fuller view of Wood’s genius.