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I believe we should preserve this evidence
of the past, not as a pattern for sentimental imitation,
but as nourishment
for the creative spirit of the present.
-Alexander Girard
Alexander and Susan Girard began a lifetime of collecting
on their honeymoon trip to Mexico in 1939. Objects were
selected for their beauty, humor, whimsy, enthusiasm, spontaneity
and directness and they illustrate humankind's universal
need to give form to a sense of ornament, play, delight,
and wonder. The Girard collection of more than 100,000 objects
is unique in part because of its size: intentional multiples
in the collection resulted in a great depth to the holdings
in many village traditions that are represented only superficially
in other collections that contain similar material. The
breadth is also staggering: more than 100 countries on six
continents are represented.
Art is only art when it
is synonymous with living.
-Alexander Girard
The exhibition is also unique in that it w as
designed by the donor, a leading architect and interior
and textile designer. Multiple Visions: A Common Bond
displays approximately 10% of the collection. The collection
includes toys and dolls, costumes, masks, textiles of all
kinds, religious folk art (ex-votos and milagros, nativities,
icons) as well as paintings, beadwork, and more. More than
a million visitors have passed through the doors into the
special world of Girard since the exhibition opened in 1982.
Popular with children and the young at heart, the exhibit
attracts visitors back into the museum to find an old favorite,
or discover a new treasure in the gallery. The exhibition
and collection serve as an inspiration and resource for
scholars and educators from around the world, from preschool
to college level.
Toys represent a microcosm
of man’s world and dreams.
They exhibit fantasy, imagination, humor and love.
They are an invaluable record and expression of mans ingenious
unsophisticated imagination.
-Alexander Girard
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