temporary/PERMANENT Gallery - ISM Springfield
temporary/PERMANENT Gallery
Recent Acquisitions
March 2 — April 27, 2014
This exhibition features a small sampling of the many recent additions to the collection of fine and decorative arts. Included in this exhibition are works by both male and female makers working in a variety of sizes, materials, styles, and time periods. The objects on display have not been publicly exhibited since their acquisition into the Illinois State Museum collection.
Chicago artist Mike Ferris designed this, the very first Mickey Mouse telephone, while working for Marvin Glass and Associates in Chicago. It was manufactured by the American Telecommunications Corporation, El Monte, California, and copyrighted by Walt Disney Productions. This model features the rotary dial. The same phone was later manufactured with push buttons. This particular phone was owned by the designer and gifted to the Illinois State Museum by his wife, artist Eleanor Speiss-Ferris.
The Illinois State Museum’s collection of fine and decorative arts is a dynamic and continuously expanding enterprise. The Museum primarily grows its holdings through generous gifts by donors. These additions come from individuals, artists, private collectors, and foundations who acknowledge and respect the Illinois State Museum’s mission to collect, protect, preserve, interpret, and share the treasures of Illinois’ cultural history.
The temporary|PERMANENT gallery on the second floor is devoted to sharing the riches held in the Illinois State Museum Collection and the associated research generated by our curatorial staff. The space is designed to provide the public with outstanding examples of fine and decorative arts associated with Illinois. Here you will encounter a series of temporary exhibitions representing a broad variety of treasures from our PERMANENT collection that change approximately every three months.
Learn about other exhibitions currently at the ISM Museums and Galleries.
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