Mabel Birckhead D’Amico (1909–1998)
Victor D’Amico (1904–1987)
D’Amico Studio and Archive, 128 Shore Road, Amagansett, NY 11930
The Art Barge, Napeague Meadow Road, Amagansett, NY 11930
631-267-3172
ABOUT
The D’Amico Studio and Archive consists of three structures: the D’Amico House, 1940, the “little house”, and the Oyster Watcher’s Hut. Mabel and Victor D’Amico lived in a modern house, a flat-roofed, glass box structure with an open interior, the design of which, in many ways foreshadowed that of The Art Barge. The little house, owned by the artist Alexander Brook, was a fisherman’s cottage in the original Montauk village. Moved to the site, by boat, after the 1938 hurricane. Mabel purchased it from him in 1955 for use as their guest cottage. The Oyster Watcher’s Hut was repurposed by Victor as his separate studio. These buildings face Gardiner’s Bay providing a dynamic natural setting with unparalleled vistas.
The Art Barge’s unique architecture, originally a WWII barge, is beached on Napeague Harbor in a New York State Park natural surroundings that serve to inspire, motivate, and ultimately draw out each students’ creative potential.
SPECIAL RESOURCES
“My works include found objects, collages and constructions of glass, wood, metal and polyester resin; kinetic sculptures which involve motion and light. The sources of my ideas are many. The surrounding area, flotsam and jetsam I observe in the water and on the beach; the water itself, the sky with its changing designs, sand patterns, rusted iron, old rope in meandering lines or bunched in heaps, and desiccated bones.”
— Mabel D’Amico
“It is my belief that the arts are a humanizing force and their major function is to vitalize living.”
— Victor D’Amico
Mabel Birckhead D’Amico (1909–1998)
Mabel D’Amico taught art for over five decades while concurrently developing a prolific body of artwork. Her approach to living and art-making was unconventional and innovative. Mabel moved through various modes of expression using mostly found objects but incorporated, glass, lights, motors, paint and polyester resin, to name a few. All of these were revisited throughout her lifetime, as simultaneously she would discover and learn new mediums and techniques, her creative exploration never exhausted. Her studio reveals the breadth of her experimentation and the acuity of her eye. She taught and served as the head of Rye High School Art Department, participated in the Advisory Committee of MoMA’s Educational Project, and conducted teacher training programs at The Art Barge. Mabel believed that “art should become for all young people, regardless of their ability, a form of expression which they will use naturally and unselfconsciously throughout their lives.”
Victor D’Amico (1904–1987)
Victor D’Amico was a pioneer of modern art education and the founding director of Education at the Museum of Modern Art, New York. He believed in the creative potential of every man, woman, and child, “that the arts are a humanizing force and that their major function is to vitalize living.” In 1966, Victor received a National Gallery of Art Medal for Distinguished Service to Education in Art. His achievements spanned nearly six decades and included notable programs, such as: The Young People’s Gallery at MoMA, The Children’s Art Carnival, The War Veterans’ Art Center, The People’s Art Center, The National Committee on Art Education, A national televised series Through the Enchanted Gate, The Victor D’Amico Institute of Art/ The Art Barge. Victor is widely known for the publications Creative Teaching in Art, Art of the Young Child, Experiments in Creative Art Teaching, and Art for the Family.
LEARN MORE
Mabel and Victor’s lives reflect the shared belief that “art is a human necessity”, a principle represented at The Art Barge and the D’Amico Studio and Archive. The programs, collections, and natural settings at both sites promote the transformative “D’Amico experience” that has the potential to impact contemporary living and educational practices.
Mabel and Victor D’Amico were artist/teachers who made practical and philosophical contributions to modern art education that remain relevant to this day. They chose the shore at Lazy Point, Amagansett, as the site for a modernist beach house they designed and built themselves beginning in 1940, filling it over time with ingenious designs, modernist furnishings, and unique artworks inspired by their surroundings. As founding director of Education at the Museum of Modern Art (1937-1969), Victor created and oversaw numerous programs that revolutionized modern museum and art education, guided by his belief “that the arts are a humanizing force and that their major function is to vitalize living.” His most enduring achievement is The Art Barge. The remodeled WWII Navy barge beached on the shore across the harbor from their home has, since 1960, inspired, motivated and drawn out the creative potential in generations of individuals. Mabel was an equally progressive art educator at Rye High School (1929-1964) who believed that “art should become for all young people, regardless of their ability, a form of expression which they will use naturally and unselfconsciously throughout their lives”. Her creative experimentation and teaching methods—for instance, the painting tray set-up still used today at The Art Barge underlined and ran parallel to her husband’s. She contributed to his programs and he supported her vision. Ultimately, they both regarded the role of the sensitive artist instructor as crucial in the discovery and development of every individual’s creative expression. Mabel’s experimental approach to teaching translated easily into the continual exploration and experimentation evident in her artwork. She supported an integrated educational practice, bridging the gap between craft and art. Her artwork demonstrates this and what she encouraged in her students: exploration of new disciplines, use of unconventional materials, and looking at everyday objects in new ways. The spirit of innovation, experimentation, and exploration is visible at The D’Amico Institute of Art.
