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Associate director Jennifer Russell loves mutts, but is a little tentative to embrace purebred dogs.
My name is Jennifer Russell. I'm the associate director for exhibitions, and my topic is "Mutts."
I don't have a dog now because I'm never home. I shared a dog with my sister. I was really only allowed to have the dog on weekends, because she thought I spoiled him too badly. And he was a great dog.
He was a mutt. He was abandoned as a puppy. My mother took one look at him and said, "Don't feed this dog, don't be nice to this dog, and this dog will go away." And about five
minutes later she and I ran into each other feeding the dog and giving the dog water. And this dog was quite
homely. He had long legs and not much hair and a long tail, and he was your basic, awkward adolescent. And he turned into an absolutely great dog.
He was one hundred percent devoted to my sister. And if she wasn't around, I was an acceptable second. We had him for years and years and years, and
I was so upset when this dog died, I think I was far more upset than when my mother died. Sorry, Mom! You get very close to animals and you're very sad when they die. That's where my affection for mutts came from. One of the things
that's interesting when you think about history is, people had pets way back. The fact that there's a Journey of the Magi by Sassetta that goes back to the Renaissance. The dog
clearly plays an important part, because he spread the procession out so that he has room to show the dog.
No matter which gallery you walk through, you can usually find a dog. One of the reasons I think dogs
appeal to people so much is that they do have personalities. I'm a little bit of a mutt snob. I tend to think of
purebred dogs as little, yappy dogs, which is probably unfair.
My single favorite is the Howling Canine, because to me he sort of represents how we all feel at the end of a very long week and if we were dogs we would howl.
But there's such variety. And if you walk down the street in New York, you see the most astounding parade of dogs
big, small, mutts, purebreds, some dressed to the nines, some just walking with a leash, or no leash, even.
I would say I am generally opposed to accessorizing pets. My favorite dogs are the ones that are completely
unadorned, unpainted. They're the sculptures that are made out of limestone or
the wood ones. There's an Egyptian Cosmetic Spoon
that is in the shape of a dog that's quite magical. A dog tells the story
and it adds to the psychology of the work of art. The Zorn, that's quite a wonderful study of a woman and her dog, who are clearly very comfortable together.
The Eakins is a little forlorn and the dog looks a little forlorn. The one that I think is fascinating is
the Saint-Gaudens. Clearly the most important part of the sculpture was the children, and yet they're walking along this mammoth. And it's rather an odd thing to put in a portrait like that. I wonder whether they actually had that breed of dog, or whether he was using his imagination.
I don't know, children and dogs sometimes get a little too cute. Whereas some of these images
where the dog is alone, are much livelier I think, than the dogs when they're sort of an accessory.
The Mastiff is just a ferocious guardian. He's got his teeth bared, he's ready to pounce, look at his thick neck. He's just really lifelike and scary. If you get in his way you're going to lose your leg.
There's a dog lifting his leg in very elegant church, and
it just reminds us all that there's a lot in life you can't control and dogs tend to remind you of that.
Different kinds of dogs give off very different vibes from one to the next.
Now, maybe a rabbit or a guinea pig has a personality too, but I doubt it.
Dogs remind us of human emotions.
Works of art in order of appearanceLast Updated: June 22, 2015. Not all works of art in the Museum's collection may be on view on a particular day. For the most accurate location information, please check this page on the day of your visit. |
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[Weimeraner Dog, Facing Left, on Ironing Board] 1987 William Wegman (American) Instant color print Purchase, The Horace W. Goldsmith Foundation Gift, through Joyce and Robert Menschel, 1988 (1988.1002) © William Wegman More information: The Collection Online Not on view
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PhotographsSecond Floor | |
[Six Children with Dog] 1960s–70s Unknown Artist (American) Gelatin silver print Walker Evans Archive, 1994 (1994.263.84) More information: The Collection Online Not on view
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PhotographsSecond Floor | |
Young Ladies of the Village 1852 Gustave Courbet (French) Oil on canvas Signed (lower left): G. Courbet. Gift of Harry Payne Bingham, 1940 (40.175) More information: The Collection Online Not on view
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European PaintingsSecond Floor | |
Dish 1400–1450 Probably made in Manises, Valencia, Spain Spanish Tin-glazed earthenware The Cloisters Collection, 1956 (56.171.115) More information: The Collection Online Not on view
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Medieval Art and The CloistersThe Cloisters at Fort Tryon Park |
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Boy and Dog (L'Enfant et le Chien) 1862 Édouard Manet (French) Etching and aquatint, final state (III), on blue laid paper from the Strõlin edition of 1905 Rogers Fund, 1921 (21.76.7) More information: The Collection Online Not on view
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Drawings and PrintsSecond Floor | |
Dog ca. 1880 John Singer Sargent (American) Pen and ink on off-white wove paper Gift of Mrs. Francis Ormond, 1950 (50.130.142a) More information: The Collection Online Not on view
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American Paintings and SculptureFirst and Second Floors | |
The Journey of the Magi ca. 1435 Sassetta (Stefano di Giovanni) (Italian, Sienese) Tempera and gold on wood Maitland F. Griggs Collection, Bequest of Maitland F. Griggs, 1943 (43.98.1) More information: The Collection Online Not on view
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European PaintingsSecond Floor | |
Sketch of a dog New Kingdom, Ramesside, Dynasty 19–20, ca. 1295–1070 b.c. Egypt, Upper Egypt; Thebes, Valley of the Kings, Davis Limestone, ink Gift of Theodore M. Davis, 1914 (14.6.245) More information: The Collection Online Not on view
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Egyptian ArtFirst Floor | |
Learning How to "Sit Up!" 1900s Frank Eugene (American) Platinum print Rogers Fund, 1972 (1972.633.175) More information: The Collection Online Not on view
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PhotographsSecond Floor | |
Portrait of a Woman with a Dog ca. 1769 Jean Honoré Fragonard (French) Oil on canvas Fletcher Fund, 1937 (37.118) More information: The Collection Online Not on view
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European PaintingsSecond Floor | |
Howling Canine 5th–6th century Mexico; Remojadas Ceramic The Michael C. Rockefeller Memorial Collection, Purchase, Nelson A. Rockefeller Gift, 1961 (1978.412.59) More information: The Collection Online Not on view
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Arts of Africa, Oceania, and the AmericasFirst Floor | |
Sketches of Andrée Bonnard, the dog Ravageau, Claude Terrasse and, at lower left, the artist, himself / A Grass Hut before a Wattled Fence ca. 1889 Pierre Bonnard (French) Pen and ink Purchase, Nelson Blitz Jr. Gift, 1998 (1998.198a, b) More information: The Collection Online Not on view
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Drawings and PrintsSecond Floor | |
[Woman and Dog on Beach, Far Rockaway, New York] ca. 1920 Unknown Artist, American School Gelatin silver print Funds from various donors, 2000 (2000.298.3) More information: The Collection Online Not on view
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PhotographsSecond Floor | |
[Woman Holding Small Dog, possibly New York City] ca. 1956 Leon Levinstein (American) Gelatin silver print Gift of Gary Davis, 2009 (2009.483.8) © Howard Greenberg Gallery More information: The Collection Online Not on view
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PhotographsSecond Floor | |
Limestone dog ca. 3rd–2nd century b.c.; Hellenistic Cypriot Limestone The Cesnola Collection, Purchased by subscription, 1874–76 (74.51.2623) More information: The Collection Online Not on view
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Greek and Roman ArtFirst Floor and Mezzanine | |
Cosmetic Spoon in Shape of Dog New Kingdom, Dynasty 18, ca. 1550–1295 b.c. Egypt Bone Gift of Helen Miller Gould, 1910 (10.130.2520) More information: The Collection Online Not on view
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Egyptian ArtFirst Floor | |
Mrs. Walter Rathbone Bacon (Virginia Purdy, died 1919) 1897 Anders Leonard Zorn (Swedish) Oil on canvas Signed and dated (lower right): Zorn / 1897 Gift of Mrs. Walter Rathbone Bacon, in memory of her husband, 1917 (17.204) More information: The Collection Online Not on view
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European PaintingsSecond Floor | |
The Artist's Wife and His Setter Dog ca. 1884–89 Thomas Eakins (American) Oil on canvas Fletcher Fund, 1923 (23.139) More information: The Collection Online Not on view
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American Paintings and SculptureFirst and Second Floors | |
The Children of Jacob H. Schiff 1884–85, carving 1906–7 Augustus Saint-Gaudens (American) Marble Gift of Jacob H. Schiff, 1905 (05.15.3) More information: The Collection Online Not on view
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American Paintings and SculptureFirst and Second Floors | |
The Prince Impérial with His Dog Néro 1912 Jean-Baptiste Carpeaux (French); Manufacturer: Sèvres; Modeler: Henri Robert (French) Hard-paste biscuit porcelain Rogers Fund, 1972 (1972.79) More information: The Collection Online Not on view
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European Sculpture and Decorative ArtsFirst Floor | |
[Dog and Ant] 1979, printed 1992 Antonio Mendoza (American, born Cuba) Gelatin silver print Purchase, The Horace W. Goldsmith Foundation Gift, through Joyce and Robert Menschel, 1992 (1992.5117) © Tony Mendoza More information: The Collection Online Not on view
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PhotographsSecond Floor | |
Mastiff ca. mid-2nd millennium b.c.; Kassite Mesopotamia Ceramic, paint Purchase, The Charles Engelhard Foundation Gift, 1989 (1989.233) More information: The Collection Online Not on view
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Ancient Near Eastern ArtSecond Floor | |
Interior of the Oude Kerk, Delft, 1650 Emanuel de Witte (Dutch) Oil on wood Purchase, Lila Acheson Wallace, Virgilia and Walter C. Klein, The Walter C. Klein Foundation, Edwin Weisl Jr., and Frank E. Richardson Gifts, and Bequest of Theodore Rousseau and Gift of Lincoln Kirstein, by exchange, 2001 (2001.403) More information: The Collection Online Not on view
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European PaintingsSecond Floor | |
Two Dogs n.d. Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec (French) Pen and brown ink Bequest of Grégoire Tarnopol, 1979, and Gift of Alexander Tarnopol, 1980 (1980.21.17) More information: The Collection Online Not on view
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Drawings and PrintsSecond Floor | |
Hunting Dogs with Dead Hare 1857 Gustave Courbet (French) Oil on canvas H. O. Havemeyer Collection, Gift of Horace Havemeyer, 1933 (33.77) More information: The Collection Online Not on view
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European PaintingsSecond Floor | |
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