Opened June 1, 2013, the Art Institute of Chicago’s “Abelardo Morell: The Universe Next Door” exhibit features 110 photographic works framed with Tru Vue® Optium® Acrylic Glazing.

The Art Institute of Chicago exhibit is the first retrospective of Abelardo Morell’s photographs in 15 years. Showing a range of works and series made from 1986 to the present, it includes many of his famous “Camera Obscuras” and of his newer color photographs never before exhibited. “The Universe Next Door” exhibition traces Morell’s innovative career as he continues to mine the essential strangeness and complexity of images.

“Tru Vue provided all the glazing for the entire exhibition,” says Elizabeth Siegel, associate curator of photography at the Art Institute of Chicago. “This museum-quality, non-reflective glazing is ideally suited to Morell’s work. Made with a large-format camera that allows a great range of detail, Morell’s images are carefully printed, with rich blacks and subtle tones. Optium allows us to present this work free of any distracting reflection or glare, greatly enhancing the viewing experience for the thousands of viewers we are expecting this summer.”

Julie Heath, Tru Vue’s museum liaison, adds, “Optium’s anti-reflective quality provides immediacy to Morell’s work that is not possible with regular glass or acrylic.”

Siegel elaborates, “One can’t speak enough of the importance of carefully selected framing and glazing materials. First, they protect the work — from touch and, in the case of UV acrylic, UV exposure. Second, it is an integral component of display within an exhibition.”

Gemini Moulding supplied Tru Vue’s Optium Acrylic Glazing for each of the 110 works included in the Art Institute of Chicago’s “Abelardo Morell: The Universe Next Door” exhibit. “There’s nothing else on the market that performs like Optium. The clarity is so clear that it’s almost invisible. It’s the only product of its kind and the best for enhancing and protecting the artwork. When a museum selects Optium, you know that it’s been chosen for an extraordinary, valuable and important collection,” says Gemini Moulding’s vice president, Don Berg.

“It’s been exciting to be a part of the Morell exhibit from the earliest stages,” Berg continues. “Once we had the dimensions for the pieces, we ran multiple calculations to maximize the yield from each Optium sheet. Rather than relying on a traditional CNC router, which requires a wider margin, we cut them by hand to optimize the material for a custom fit.”

Tru Vue has worked closely with the museum community to develop this product to meet superior, aesthetic standards, as well as conservation standards. As a Tru Vue Fine Art Market partner, Gemini Moulding has been involved with many museum’s special collections and exhibitions, including the Musical Instrument Museum (MIM) in Phoenix. “After two years of continual exhibition, the MIM’s display cases with Optium look as good today as they did when they left our facility.”

Tru Vue Optium Acrylic Glazing is relied on by museums worldwide including Greece, Italy, France, Spain, United Kingdom, Canada, Hong Kong, as well as throughout the United States.

The “Abelardo Morell: The Universe Next Door” exhibit is organized by the Art Institute of Chicago, in association with the J. Paul Getty Museum, Los Angeles, and the High Museum of Art, Atlanta. It will be open for viewing at the Art Institute of Chicago, June 1- Sept 2., 2013. For more information, please visit http://www.artic.edu.

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