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Orlando Museum of Art Receives Gift of Carolyn Brady Painting
Mary Green Darden (Mrs. Bill Darden, founder of Red Lobster Restaurants) and The Darden Restaurants Foundation recently purchased Late Summer Bouquet, a watercolor painting by Carolyn Brady, for the Orlando Museum of Art (OMA) in memory of Mrs. Darden's late husband. Brady is considered one of the most important contemporary watercolorists and still-life painters in the country. She came to national prominence in the 1970s when realist painting reclaimed a position in mainstream American art.
Carolyn Brady was born in Chickasha, Oklahoma, and received her BFA (1959) and MFA (1961) from the University of Oklahoma at Norman. Brady has been featured in numerous solo and group exhibitions and her work is in more than two dozen museum collections around the country including the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Smithsonian American Art Museum and the Art Institute of Chicago. (left: Rick Walsh, senior vice president corporate affairs for Darden Restaurants (left in photo) and Mrs. Bill Darden, founder of Red Lobster Restaurants (right in photo) present Late Summer Bouquet, by Carolyn Brady, to the Orlando Museum of Art, photo ©2001 Harvey Smith Photo)
Late Summer Bouquet is an example of Brady's best work. She is known for her tabletop still-life compositions that often feature objects taken from daily life. These everyday objects are arranged in a casual manner as they might be found at any given moment in time. Brady works from photographs that she takes of her subjects. At first glance, the finished paintings can appear so clear and vivid that some can be mistaken for a photograph. But quickly the viewer notices the very free brushwork that seems both loose and, at the same time, exactly right.
This generous donation from Mrs. Darden and The Darden Restaurants Foundation is an important addition to the OMA's collection, and a beautiful and permanent tribute to Bill Darden who had a profound impact on Central Florida. The OMA invites you to visit the Museum to view this newly acquired work of art.
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