We were fortunate enough to have seen an exhibit he had curated at the Boston MFA in the early 1990s. Because Hill-Stead's paintings cannot go out on loan according to the terms of Theodate's will, Prof. Tucker came to Hill-Stead to examine its two grainstack paintings. Yesterday he told the audience that he would have loved to include them in that exhibit!
Yesterday's lecture focused on Monet's waterlily paintings. He spoke quite a bit about the huge paintings in the Musee de L'Orangerie--I'm so happy we went there!
Prof. Tucker is an interesting and dynamic speaker with a good sense of humor. We also had seen his Monet in the 20th Century exhibit at the MFA in the late 1990s. I had that catalogue with me when I guided at Hill-Stead on Thursday, and several of the staff/guides said they were planning to bring their copies to the lecture for Prof. Tucker to sign.
After the lecture, we had a few minutes to speak with him and he gladly signed my book. I was so excited! The inscription reads:
To Mary,
a fellow Monet admirer
with warmest regards
Paul Hayes Tucker
Farmington
September 2012
Prof. Tucker was asked to curate the Monet's Garden exhibit currently showing at The New York Botanical Society--I hope we'll have a chance to see it. My dream is to visit the real Monet's garden in Giverny someday!
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