To celebrate the opening of the new Nancy Lee and Perry R. Bass Performance Hall in Fort Worth, the Kimbell Art Museum will install 40 proposed designs for the decorative program of the Hall by Fort Worth artists Stuart and Scott Gentling and Hungarian-born sculptor Marton Varo.
Admission is free.
We had to look no further for the level of sophistication, expertise, creativity, and skill needed to provide integral artistic elements to an extraordinary architectural design. After many discussions with Ed Bass and design architect David Schwarz, we decided on a decorative program that would deal symbolically with the artistic process itself and thus pay homage to all the arts. The East Corner Dome, conceived by the Gentlings as an orderly vine of laurel leaves beneath a vivid sunrise of early morning light, pays homage to the god Apollo, who in ancient Greek mythology represents logic, harmony, and reason. Across the Grand Lobby, the West Corner Dome depicts grapes and grape leaves dramatically intertwined beneath a stormy and passionate evening sky in homage to Apollo's alter ego, Dionysus, who represents intuition, emotion, and passion. Other murals and sculptural elements are under study for future integration as schedules and budget permit.