[New York Peasant: By Wilfrid: May 4, 2007]
The restyled Morgan townhouse - some townhouse - is not the cozy, underused oasis it once was, but it is putting its increased exhibition space to good effect; notably with the comprehensive show, through September 2, of a bequest by Fred Ebb which must leave the Neue Galerie gnawing its figurative knuckles.
Ebb, of Kandor and "Cabaret" fame, for it is he, began collecting the German works on paper which reflected his interest in Weimar nightlife, in the 1960s. All forty three selections left to the Morgan are exhibited in a show called "From Berlin to Broadway", referring to the trajectory rather than content of the pieces. Among the expected saloon scenes, and some rough draughts by Kirchner for his great oil paintings of city street scenes, there are some real delights. Ludwig Meidner's startled self-portrait. Dix's "Pimp and Girl". Some tenderly pencilled portraits by Schiele. The shadowy cabaret compere by Emil Nolde. And some funny social commentary: Hubbuch's film star on location in some wretched neighborhood, preening her voluptuous beauty before a huddle of the poor from whom she is separated by a wire fence.
Meanwhile, upstairs, a trove of best-selling Victorian novels, along with correspondence, autograph manuscripts, and information about publishing techniques. But that's over this weekend. Morgan main page here.
