The Library has partnered with the Art Department and New York artist, theatre designer, and producer, Peter Wexler, in the creation of an art exhibit titled “Creating a Digital Museum: The Art and Theatre Work of Peter Wexler.” The exhibit, which is currently on display in the Thompson Art Gallery of the Roe Fine Arts Building, features select pieces from Peter Wexler’s extensive theater and art collection. The exhibit focuses on the Metropolitan Opera’s 1973 production of Les Troyens by Hector Berlioz. Wexler was responsible for set design, costume design, special effects, and film direction for the opera. Materials in the exhibit include his costume sketches, set designs, three-dimensional scale models, and an impressive digital display showcasing the digital photography and scanning work of the Library’s Digital Collections Center. The exhibit was partly funded by the Duke Endowment.
The exhibit serves as a means to showcase the “Peter Wexler Digital Museum at Furman University” an ambitious collaborative digital project being led by Rick Jones, Manager of the Library’s Digital Collections Center. The project involves the photography and scanning of over 6,000 pieces of Wexler’s art including three-dimensional set models, stage designs, sculpture, costume sketches, and much more. The digitized items will be paired with rich descriptions and made accessible in a truly unique and interactive website. The Digital Museum is expected to be complete in September 2014 and will be the first known digital collection of its kind, serving as a model for other institutions seeking to digitize similar materials. The Digital Museum is being funded by a generous donation from Furman University trustee Todd Ruppert and his wife, Karen.
If you haven’t been over to see the exhibit yet, we invite you to do so!
The exhibit is open 9am – 5pm, Monday through Friday and will be available until October 5.