Philadelphia art collector Albert C. Barnes (1872–1951) amassed one of the greatest American collections of impressionist, post-impressionist, and modern paintings. He created his own school, using his collection to teach students and visitors about art. This was turned into a museum, and later incorporated into the Philadelphia Museum of Art (a controversy documented by the film The Art of the Steal). One can visit and see the paintings as he originally hung them. They are hung unlike any museum we have seen, often juxtaposing master works with tribal art or unknown painters. They teach very specific lessons, chief among them: that even a great artist such as Picasso makes great paintings and lessor paintings. “They’re not all winners” is rarely seen demonstrated, as it takes a bold Picasso owner to admit that his is not one of Picasso’s best works. An astute observer may yet realize that even an off Picasso is better than the best Steve Hallock painting. We would certainly hang a lessor Picasso front and center our my house.
We mentioned over the weekend in TWIW that we’ve seen a new trend of reissuing classic brand staples as new releases. Last week three of our favorite brands use this strategy: De Bethune, Daniel Roth, and URWERK. All three are beautiful watches that we would gladly wear. Healthy criticism is a hallmark of a mature discipline. Unfortunately the watch world has not embraced this, so the rest will be behind the paywall…