Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art

The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art is an art museum with a comprehensive collection of art from nearly every continent and culture. The museum’s new Bloch Building has been listed in “The 10 Best Architectural Marvels” by Time magazine in 2007.

The museum’s collection includes:

• European painting
• Asian Art
• American painting
• Photography
• Native American
• Sculpture Park
• Culture Collections.

The museum’s Culture Collection includes European and American sculpture, Decorative arts, English pottery and works on paper, Egyptian art, Greek and Roman art, modern and contemporary paintings and sculpture, and Africa and Oceania’s art.

Highlights of the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art

• “Jupiter in the Guise of Diana, and the Nymph Callisto” by François Boucher
• “Saint John the Baptist in the Wilderness” by Caravaggio
• “Gloucester Harbor” by Winslow Homer
• The Thinker by Auguste Rodin
• John the Baptist by Caravaggio
• John Singer Sargent, Mrs. Cecil Wade
• Childe Hassam, The Concord Meadow
• Henry Ossawa Tanner, The Young Sabot Maker
• George Bellows, Frankie, the Organ Boy
• Albert Bloch, The Green Domino

A Virtual Tour of the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art

“Jupiter in the Guise of Diana, and the Nymph Callisto” by François Boucher

“Jupiter in the Guise of Diana, and the Nymph Callisto” by François Boucher depicts Callisto in the arms of Jupiter in the guise of Diana, identified by her quiver and filet. Above them in the drapery are two cupids throwing love arrows filled with uncontrollable desire.

The drapery is in the claws of Jupiter’s eagle. Jupiter seduced Callisto in female disguise was a popular subject, usually called “Jupiter and Callisto.” It was the most unambiguous common subject with lesbian lovers from classical mythology.

The two lovers are often shown happily embracing in an alcove. The violent rape described by Ovid as following Callisto’s realization of what is going on is rarely indicated.

“Saint John the Baptist in the Wilderness” by Caravaggio

“Saint John the Baptist in the Wilderness” by Caravaggio depicts the cousin of Jesus who baptized Jesus in Jordan. John lived in the wilderness of Judea between Jerusalem and the Dead Sea. For the young Caravaggio, John was invariably a boy or youth alone in the wilderness.

This image was based on the statement in the Gospel of Luke that “the child grew and was strengthened in spirit, .. until the day of his manifestation to Israel.” The subject of “Saint John the Baptist in the Wilderness” allowed a religious treatment of the partly clothed youths he liked to paint at this period.

The painting displays Caravaggist’s extreme use of light and shadow and is typical in taking a young John the Baptist as its subject, this time set in a dark landscape. The psychology of John’s struggles for the truth is conveyed through the artful manipulation of limbs and countenance.

“Gloucester Harbor” by Winslow Homer

“Gloucester Harbor” by Winslow Homer depicts three figures in a rowboat, one rowing and two seated in the boat’s stern. The smaller figure has not been finished and is shown in the sketch form and outline. 

Several sailboats are in the background, and beyond them, a strip of land is on the horizon. The sky is filled with pink clouds in a blue sky. Homer produced significant studio oil works, but he also worked extensively in watercolor, creating a rich legacy, primarily chronicling his working vacations.