Independent Order of Odd Fellows Plaque, detail, 1850–1900, paint and gold leaf on wood. Collection American Folk Art Museum, New York, Gift of Kendra and Allan Daniel, Photo by José Andrés Ramírez

Mystery and Benevolence: Masonic and Odd Fellows Folk Art

February 1–May 11, 2025 | Fifth Third Gallery

Through compelling and cryptic works of art, Mystery and Benevolence brings to light the histories, symbolism, and beliefs of the Freemasons and the Independent Order of the Odd Fellows (IOOF)—two fraternal organizations with deep roots in American history. For decades, members across the country have come together to socialize, help others, and improve themselves and their communities. The exhibition features more than eighty works of art, including items once owned by the Daughters of Rebekah—the first lodge to include women—and the Grand United Order of Odd Fellows, founded as the African American counterpart to the IOOF. Sculptures, textiles, regalia, prints, and works of decorative art explore the main principles of the organizations: fellowship, charity, labor, passage, and wisdom. Elaborately stitched costumes, gilded regalia and jewelry, and richly embellished ceremonial objects provide a glimpse into the enigmatic world of these secret societies.

Mystery and Benevolence is organized by the American Folk Art Museum, New York, NY, from the Kendra and Allan Daniel Collection and toured by International Arts & Artists, Washington, DC.

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Joseph William Mallord Turner (English, 1775–1881), Château de Rinkenberg, on the Lac de Brienz, Switzerland, 1809, watercolor on paper. Bequest of Mr. and Mrs. Charles Phelps Taft, 1931.388

J. M. W. Turner: Watercolor Horizons

March 1–June 15, 2025 | Sinton Gallery

Happy Birthday, Mr. Turner! Celebrate the 250th anniversary of James Mallord William Turner’s birth by viewing twelve of his watercolors from the Taft Museum of Art and the Cincinnati Art Museum. J. M. W. Turner: Watercolor Horizons is the first exhibition in nearly forty years to bring together the two museums’ luminous works by Turner in this medium. Considered one of Britain’s greatest landscape painters, Turner (English, 1775–1851) was a master of the art of watercolor. A prolific artist and intrepid traveler, he was especially drawn to mountains, alpine lakes, glaciers, river valleys, and the sea, as well as the human presence within these dramatic settings.

Watercolor Horizons features views of Switzerland, Germany, France, England, Scotland, and Italy. The exhibition explores Turner’s skill with a brush on paper through these remarkable landscapes, examples of his innovative techniques, and painting tools from the era on loan from local collections. Because these delicate watercolors are usually kept in storage to protect them from the damaging effects of light, this is a rare opportunity to see these treasures up close and in person. 

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Wharton Esherick, Flat Top Desk, 1929 and 1962. Walnut and padouk, 28 x 82 x 36 in. Desk Chair, 1929. Walnut, padouk, laced leather seat, 28 x 18 x 18 in. Desk Figure, Bronze casting of 1929 Cocobolo original, 10 x 5 x 4 in. Wharton Esherick Museum Collection. Photo by Eoin O’Neill, courtesy of the Wharton Esherick Museum.

The Crafted World of Wharton Esherick

June 7–September 7, 2025 | Fifth Third Gallery

The Crafted World presents the innovative work of Wharton Esherick (1887–1970), the famed American artist best known as the father of the Studio Furniture Movement. Between 1926 and 1966, Esherick built his hillside home and studio in southeastern Pennsylvania. Now the Wharton Esherick Museum (WEM), it houses a treasury of work from seven decades of artistic practice. To share Esherick’s creative vision with contemporary audiences, The Crafted World draws on WEM’s rich and rarely loaned collection of over 3,000 works of art. Detailing the artist’s career from his early woodcut illustrations to his revolutionary reimagining of furniture forms as organic sculpture, the exhibition explores Esherick’s fascination with the natural world and intimate connection to its materials, his wry sense of humor, skillful design-thinking and problem-solving, interest in performance and the body, and enduring imaginative spirit.

The Crafted World of Wharton Esherick is co-organized by the Brandywine Museum of Art in Chadds Ford, Pennsylvania and the Wharton Esherick Museum in Malvern, Pennsylvania.