Merce Cunningham's "RainForest" (1968) with Silver Clouds by Andy Warhol (Photo: Michael O'Neill, via warholstars.org)
The Star-Tribune has the story of how Walker Art Center in Minneapolis, Minnesota purchased a treasure trove of American art accumulated by dance legend Merce Cunningham. The stash “includes at least 150 major objects and perhaps thousands of smaller items,” according to the newspaper:
Some of the 20th century’s greatest artists are represented in the collection, which includes costumes that Robert Rauschenberg made out of parachutes, leotards painted by Jasper Johns, silver Mylar pillows designed by Andy Warhol, a gigantic backdrop of comic-book dots concocted by Roy Lichtenstein and a collapsible chair that Cunningham himself wore strapped to his back as he danced in one piece.
It’s worth noting that many notable art works in Cunningham’s private collection were sold at Christie’s in 2009, including important pieces by Johns and Rauschenberg.
