The Menil Collection: Houston, Texas

Abstract

1 Exterior view of The Menil Collection, Houston, Texas. Designed by Renzo Piano, the museum opened in 1987. The building's scale is based on the bungalows in the surrounding neighborhood. Its modest size is intended to leave visitors feeling energized rather than fatigued by their encounter with the works on view. Galleries are filled with natural light, which is diffused through a system of elegant concrete baffles. PHOTO BY HESTER + HARDAWAY W ^ _ hen asked in 1982 about the collection she and her late husband, John, had formed, Dominique de Menil stated, What characterizes my collection? Maybe a passionate curiosity for the past and also a vulnerability to poetry ... poetry of images revealing the beauty and mystery of the world ... [I] am very moved by ... art that ... expresses the tragedy of man's ephemeral condition (de Menil 1983:50). At the time, Dominique de Menil was working with Renzo Piano on plans for The Menil Collection, the museum that would house the couple's collection and manifest its poetry (Fig. 1). Thoughtful and meticulous, Dom inique de Menil labored over every detail of the design and, when construction was complete in 1987, the installation of the collec tion as well (Fig. 2). Her goals were clear: I would like my collec tion to be displayed in such a way that it opens new vistas, that it reveals 'Terra Incognita'-islands (ibid.). The Menil Collection, with its 16,ooo objects, is but one out come of this French couple's vision and philosophy. Intertwining art, social activism, and a profound spirituality, the de Menils left an indelible mark on their adopted city of Houston, both in the campus that houses their museum and related galleries and cha pels, and in the effect their philanthropic projects had on various institutions in the city. Through their political action and sup port of museums and scholarly projects, they also affected a world beyond Houston and it is within this dynamic framework that the significance of their African art collection can be understood. The African holdings at The Menil Collection number close to 1,000 objects, ranging from a miniature Kongo ivory finial (Fig. 3) to a near life-size Mboi figure from northeastern Nigeria (Fig. 4). There are concentrations of objects from Mali, including Dogon sculpture (Fig. 5), Bamana masks and headdresses (Fig. 6), Inland