PRINTS AND DRAWINGS

The Marcus Orr Print Room houses the museum’s graphic works, its largest single collection. More than half of the prints in this collection are 20th-century American, ranging from an extensive selection of Associated American Artists prints to Pop Art of the 1960s and contemporary works by artists such as Glenn Ligon and Willie Cole. European Old Masters are represented by the etchings and engravings of Albrecht Dürer and Rembrandt van Rijn; 18th- and 19th-century prints include works by Thomas Bewick, Francisco Goya, William Hogarth, and Honoré Daumier. A small selection of Japanese prints represents the Ukiyo-e school with woodcuts by masters such as Hiroshige and Kuniyoshi.

The Brooks’ drawing collection consists primarily of 19th- and 20th-century American drawings and watercolors, including works by Everett Shinn, Reginald Marsh, Charles Burchfield and Andrew Wyeth. Among the contemporary artists represented are Nancy Graves, Peter Saul, and Manuel Neri. Nearly 600 drawings by 19th-century Tennessee artist Carl Gutherz offer an extensive overview of a salon artist active during the belle époque. Other regional artists include Mississippi’s Walter Anderson and Arkansas-born painter Carroll Cloar. In addition, the collection contains a small selection of religious manuscripts from the 10th to the 18th centuries.