Exhibition Plan

Primary Information

Exhibition Title: Oasis: Western Dreams of the Ottoman Empire from the Dahesh
Museum of Art

Exhibition Dates: September 20, 2008-January 4, 2009

Coordinating Curator: Margaret Bullock

Originating Institution: The Dahesh Museum, New York,

NY

Required credit line (organizer and Devo):

See H:\TEAM TAM\EXHIBITION PROGRAMMING\Sponsorship Info Worksheet.xls

This exhibition was organized by the Dahesh Museum of Art, New York
[No organizer funder given in the contract. As of 11/19/07.]

Additional Information

Gallery location at Tacoma Art Museum: Boeing / Weyerhaeuser Galleries

Approximately how many objects and what medium? 61 works

Paintings, watercolors, drawings, sculpture, prints, and photogravures

Rough range of dates for the artwork? 1839-1896 (also an early set of prints from
1712)

Brief Description:

This exhibition is a broad, international survey of the responses of Western artists to

the cultures and landscapes of the Ottoman Empire in the nineteenth century.
Known at that time as “the Orient,” this area extended from Turkey through the
Middle East and North Africa. The exhibition explores the art movement that arose
from the Western fascination with the East, which peaked in the nineteenth century
following Napoleon’s military campaign in Egypt (1798–1801). Oasis offers
important historical and cultural perspectives on the challenging questions of the
“Orient” and its representation in art. Organized by the Dahesh Museum in New
York, the exhibition includes approximately sixty paintings, sculptures, photographs,
prints, and drawings. The works utilize rich detail and visual pleasure in their
depictions of various aspects of this complex encounter between cultures.

Exhibition publication citation: A Distant Muse: Orientalist Works from the Dahesh
Museum of Art,
Dahesh Musem of Art, New York, 2000

Tour Schedule: None.

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Questions

What are the key ingredients of this exhibition that make it right for Tacoma Art
Museum?
• Introduces audiences to Orientalism, a key movement in art history, linking
romanticism to modernism
• Offers a dynamic pairing with the Don Fels exhibition, in order to place the
Northwest artist in a historical context
• Connects to past exhibition history (The Essence of Line)

What is the value of this exhibition to the Tacoma Art Museum visitor and
community?
• Offers a means for understanding 19th century concepts of “the Other’
• Opportunity to investigate and challenge our contemporary assumptions
about the Middle East and Islam
• Provides a vehicle for understanding art, history, and social studies
• Brings a distinguished collection to the northwest

What essential understandings do we want a person to take from this exhibition?

• The exhibition presents a romanticized image of another culture, through a
19th century lens
• Orientalism takes place within a larger art historical continuum
• A romanticized view of the other incorporates some of the hierarchies of art
and art history

How will museum visitors reach the desired “essential understandings” of the
exhibition?
• A variety of in-gallery educational resources will be utilized (historical
timelines, maps, podcast)
• Partnerships with the Frye Art Museum, who will host a complementary
exhibition of works from Napoleonic tours, Napoleon on the Nile
• Comparative works will be included in exhibition labels to establish the art
historical context

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Education
Education programs will explore the following themes and concepts presented in
this exhibition:
•
•
•

In-Gallery Learning Opportunities/Interpretive Materials

SCHOOL TOUR PROGRAMS:

See School Tour Brochure

PUBLIC PROGRAMS:

Featured Programs:

Special Community Event:

Other Collaborative Opportunities:

OPEN ART STUDIO:

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Development
I. Project Fundraising Goal(s)
II. Corporate, Foundation & Government Prospects for Project Funding/Ask
Amount/Funding Priority/Grant Receipt/Postmark or Target Submission
Date
III. Individual Prospects for Project Funding/Ask Amount/Funding
Priority/Solicitation Date
IV. IV. Events During Exhibitions
V. V. Credit Lines

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Visitor Services

Gallery Safety: list special needs (24 hour, potential dangers, etc.), additional
staffing needs as per contract; VS walkthrough scheduled

Photography: guidelines for the public and media

Sales and
Promotions: Exhibition-related promotions for membership, the store, the café
as they relate to VS; goals

Store

Special Exhibition-Related Products:

Projected Sales: $
Actual Sales: $
Budget: $

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Communications

Key Message(s): Selling points (What are the features about this exhibition that
the public will care about most?)
Advertising Copy: (radio copy + display ad copy)
PR Copy: (press release, etc.)

Primary Target Audience: Who, specifically, can we target to facilitate essential

understandings?

Secondary Target Audience: Whom else do we want to address?

Program-Related Audiences: Are there other groups/audiences that can be

specially targeted for exhibition programs? (photography clubs, advisory groups,
businesses, etc.) (See public programs section under education).

PR Strategies: Who are we targeting? What pitches are going out? What new
media outlets can we contact? Are there non-arts reporters who might pick this up?

Guerrilla Marketing Strategies: What channels? What

groups/businesses/events/clubs can we make contact with? Any special offers (2-for-
1, etc.)?

Situation: What is the current market environment? Are there parallels between
this exhibition and its related programs to our colleagues’ exhibitions or programs?
(SAM, PAM, MoG, WSHM, Frye, Henry, MONA, local arts venues/performing
arts/community events, etc.)?

Key Exhibition-Related Event Marketing Opportunities:

Education: Event (Date)

Development: Event (Date)

Channels: Where is this message likely to appear? [Media, PR, Advertising,

Promotions, Collateral, including e-enews and our website]
Evaluation: Does the message appear in communication materials, articles, reviews,
and visitor comments?

Budget: How much is available?

Timeline: When do we need drafts, proofs or finals?

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Finance and Administration

Total Attendance: Projected:

Actual:
Total Admissions: Projected:
Actual:

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 Exhibition Report TEMPLATE
(added on 02/08/06 by Allison & Kristy)

Please note: Blue highlighting and notes are for internal Devo reporting purposes
only – thank you.

EXHIBITION HIGHLIGHTS/EXTRAS
 Recap: Brief (3 sentences maximum) overview of exhibition and dates (AP
cuts from Communications) (Curator)
 Name the highlights of the exhibition, anything particularly special that
happened at/to the museum as a result of this exhibition, and critical
issues (Ex.: Brophy’s paintings being bought by the Convention Center;
SOTA students’ Tinky Winky sculpture in the education wing; Romona
Solberg case added to lobby as special tribute, log issue with Carving).
(Curator and Ed Curator)
 Mention Members’ Opening, if applicable – include # of attendees; which
curator or special guest spoke about the exhibition (ex: Michael Brophy
gave a gallery talk) (Membership Administrator)

MARKETING/COMMUNICATIONS HIGHLIGHTS
 Media Sponsorships (what was successful and why?) (Communications
Director)
 Media Quotes (top 3 quotes) place below “visitor quotes” for Devo report;
attach key articles (PR Coordinator)
 Clipping reports (PR Coordinator)
 Marketing Strategy/Mix: Successful? (Communications Director)
 Ideas for next time? (Communications Director)
 Community partnerships (marketing, community relations related)
(Communications Director)
 Guerrilla marketing report: What worked, what didn’t? Where were
materials distributed? (Communications Director)

CURATORIAL HIGHLIGHTS
 Installation-related comments? What worked, what didn’t? (Preparator)
 Critical Issues? (Controversial subject matter? Security/safety issues?)
(Registrar)

STORE HIGHLIGHTS (Store Manager)

 What sold well?
 Ideas for next time?

VISITORS AND EVENTS

 Number of exhibition visitors (VS Lead)
 Number admitted Free – FREE Third Thursdays counts, plus others free
(AAP, comp. tickets, etc.) for total (VS Lead)
 Events: Any major museum events (non-education) that occurred during
the exhibition for which the galleries were open (Ex: Annual Meeting,
Night Tacoma Danced, Corporate Breakfast, etc.) PLUS any other major
private events (Ex: Verisign, Korean wedding) (CFG Manager and Events
Manager)
 Visitor Demographics (PR Coordinator)
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 o Ethnicity
o Gender
o Age
o Geography (VS Lead)
o Income
 Visitor Quotes (from Speak Up surveys) PLUS Impressions Reports (PR
Coordinator)
 Web Visits: (PR Coordinator) N/A for Devo Reports

PROGRAMMING HIGHLIGHTS (Education Curator and Assistant)

o OAS Station (attach print out of explanation)

o Schools and Teachers

o School Tours
o Teacher Development: Back-to-School Night, Educator Evening,
Teacher Workshops, Arts Impact, Arts Impact Graduate Program
o Youth Connect: High School Internship Program
o Other – Example: Brophy did a special talk for SOTA students

o Community
o Art After School
o Art Access Pass
o Community Art Space
o Other: Examples – Yelm Days
o Community Festivals (outside ex: Farmers Market) – N/A Devo reports

o Youth and Families

o Quarterly Festival: Examples – Carving Closing, Day of the Dead,
GAT/Jazz Festival on Feb. 25, Bastille Day
o Other – special targeted programming

o Adults
o Public Programs tied to exhibition (ex: GAT symposia)
o Docent Program
o Other special programs – Examples – Iraqi National Museum

DEVELOPMENT HIGHLIGHTS
 Sponsorships that worked particularly well? (CFG Manager)
 Critical issues? (Development Director)

RECOGNITION (CFG Manager)

 Gallery Wall – photos
 Collateral materials, Museum Notes
 Signage at events and invitation to those events
 Annual Report and Annual Donor Wall (copies and photos)

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