The Iris

About: Emily Beeny

I'm a curatorial assistant in the Department of Paintings at the Getty Museum, where, since 2009, I've worked on new acquisitions, special exhibitions, and a forthcoming online catalogue of the permanent collection. When not busy writing gallery labels, I continue to chip away at a Ph.D. in art history at Columbia University.

Posts by Emily

Posted in Art, Behind the Scenes, J. Paul Getty Museum, Paintings

Labeling Turner

By Emily Beeny | Published: March 7, 2011
Modern Rome–Campo Vaccino, Joseph Mallord William Turner (English, 1775–1851), 1839. Oil on canvas, 36 1/8 x 48 1/4 in. (unframed), 48 1/4 x 60 3/8 x 4 3/8 in. (framed). The J. Paul Getty Museum, 2011.6

Writing the gallery label for a painting can sometimes feel like an art form in itself, a kind of circumscribed descriptive poetry not unrelated to haiku. How, in fewer than 100 words, do you capture the essence of an object,… More»

Tagged , , , , , , , , 13 Responses

  • Facebook

  • Twitter

  • Tumblr

  • Flickr