Theodore Roosevelt Exhibition to Make
Only Long Island Stop at
C.W. Post's Hillwood Art Museum
August 13 through November 14, 1999
Hillwood Art Museum at the C.W. Post Campus of Long Island University
in Brookville, NY is one of only five national sites to display the long
anticipated Theodore Roosevelt exhibition. The traveling collection of
the 26th president's valuable personal and presidential effects includes
his Rough Riders hat and more than 120 objects depicting his prestigious
and often controversial political and personal career.
The exhibit, "Theodore Roosevelt: Icon of the American Century,"
commemorates the 140th anniversary of the birth of Theodore Roosevelt and
is organized by the National Portrait Gallery of the Smithsonian Institution,
in association with Manhattan Sites and Sagamore Hill National Historic
Site, National Park Service, United States Department of the Interior.
The exhibition will be on display from August 13 through November 14,
1999 at the nationally accredited Hillwood Art Museum, C.W. Post Campus,
Northern Boulevard (Route 25A), Brookville. A gala opening reception for
$100 per person will be held from 3 to 6 p.m. on Sunday, September 26 at
the Museum. Proceeds benefit Hillwood Art Museum and Friends of Sagamore
Hill.
The exhibition includes pieces culled from the National Portrait Gallery
and Sagamore Hill, among others. Pieces include a wood engraving by American
artist Thomas Nast; photographs of TR at the controls of a giant steam
shovel in the Canal Zone of Panama, and political cartoons showing TR throwing
the first spadeful of dirt on the government of Columbia, which had accused
Roosevelt of diplomatic piracy. Also included is a 1912 telegram describing
the shooting of TR; a 1905 bronze bust of TR by Frederick MacMonnies; an
oil painting of TR by Irving R. Wiles; TR's Rough Rider uniform; a jewel
encrusted gift from the Czar of Russia, TR's Tiffany hunting knife; and
a pencil drawing of TR by James Montgomery Flagg, the artist who created
the "Uncle Sam Wants You!" poster.
Historians consider Theodore Roosevelt to have "laid the foundation
for the way we have been doing things ever since." Still, his presidency
only accounted for seven and a half years of a busy life. TR - who served
as governor of New York and police chief of New York City - was so much
more: Rough Rider, adventurer, cowboy, sportsman, naturalist, historian,
man of letters and defender of the American family.
"Long Islanders have a special place in their hearts for their
hometown hero, Teddy Roosevelt and they will be fascinated by the many
pieces of interpretive works from nationally respected artists which are
part of this exhibit," said Barry Stern, Director of Operations for
the Hillwood Art Museum. "And they will surely be impressed by the
many personal items which depict TR's numerous accomplishments as one of
our country's greatest leaders."
Three lectures will be held in conjunction with the exhibition. Amy
Verone, Head Curator at Sagamore Hill National Historic Site, will lecture
on "Roosevelt's Sagamore Hill: Preservation of an Historic Landmark"
on Tuesday, October 12, from 7 to 8 p.m. C.W. Post alumnus Derek Mainhart,
political cartoonist and member of the Art Director's Club, will discuss
"The Ungentlemanly Art: A History of American Political Cartoons"
on Tuesday, October 19, from 7 to 8 p.m.; and Thomas Kuehhas of the Oyster
Bay Historical Society will present the lecture "Theodore Roosevelt:
Life in Oyster Bay" on Tuesday, October 26 from 7 to 8 p.m. Admission
is free for all lectures which take place in the museum. The lectures are
supported in part by the New York Council for the Humanities and the National
Endowment for the Humanities.
Following the Hillwood Art Museum venue, the Teddy Roosevelt exhibition
will travel to the Buffalo and Erie County Historical Society in Buffalo
(Dec. 15, 1999 - March 19, 2000) and the New York State Museum in Albany
(April 28, 2000 - July 8, 2000). Partial funding for this exhibition has
been provided by the Smithsonian Institution Special Exhibition Fund and
the Theodore Roosevelt Association. Admission to the exhibition at Hillwood
Art Museum is free. For more information, contact the museum at (516) 299-4073
or museum@hornet.liu.edu.
For more information call the C.W. Post Public
Relations Office at (516) 299-2333 or e-mail pr@cwpost.liu.edu
or send mail to: Long Island University, C.W. Post Campus, 720 Northern
Blvd., Brookville, New York 11548-1300.
