GRAND FORKS, ND (trfnews.i234.me) From a stuffed mink wearing a mink coat to memorabilia of the rich and famous, the contents of Barton Benes’ New York City apartment have a permanent home at the ND Museum of Art on UND’s campus.
the bizarre and amazing art collection of Barton Benesch is on display at the North Dakota Museum of Art on you Indies campus everything from a stuffed mate wearing a mink coat to Johnnie Cochran’s handkerchief used during the oj simpson trial vanish became friends with the museum’s director Laurel ruder and upon his death in 2012 the entire contents of his new york city apartment were donated to the museum and they’re now on display this is a recreation of Barton vanishes apartment Barton was a artist who had one of the first shows in this building when we opened in 1989 and he was friends with our director for 30 years after that opening over the years he came to wonder about what he was going to do with all of his stuff when he passed away and you know I guess over dinner one night he and morals decided you know why don’t we just move it to North Dakota and create a 21st century artist studio and and so that was sort of the rough plan and till 2012 i believe it was when he passed away when it became a reality he fell in love with North Dakota after his first show and decided that he wanted his final resting place to be in North Dakota it was he a painter or he was mostly a collage artist he started as a painter but after a trip in the to Africa in the 1970s where I realized you know people were making with art with anything they would find he would he changed his course and from that point on remained a collage artist he certainly has a lot of different things in here yes he certainly does he he was a collector of the strange and the bizarre but very interesting objects Barton traded with everyone you trade his personal artwork for maybe a taxidermied animal he African artwork was a big interest of his Egyptian artwork Larry hagman’s gallstones yes he he did receive those one of the things that he was known for was receiving objects that were belonged to a famous person so you know he had mms from ronald reagan’s desk you name it Larry hagman’s gallstones just whatever came across his desk and here’s just a few things that came across his desk here’s a Johnnie Cochran tanker chief Warren februari first 1995 while Ron Shapiro was on the stand during the oj simpson trial and here’s a piece of flooring from OJ Simpson’s home when it was torn down in 1998 and here’s the paper containing a statement from Tom Brokaw he read on NBC News after oj canceled an interview in 1995 and here’s a watercolor banashi painted using water from Dick Van Dyke swimming pool oh yeah there’s more much more let’s look into his crime drawer tile from the bathroom where Nancy berglund was found murdered by Sid Vicious october eleventh 1978 chelsea hotel and there’s much much more so his one wish about his apartment coming to North Dakota was that he wanted to be in North Dakota he want his ashes to be in North Dakota so his mother his mother’s ashes are actually stuffed in a pillow on his bed here in the museum it’s all on display now at a free exhibit at the North Dakota Museum of Art in Grand Forks I’m Neil Berg reporting for I news TV
Unusual and Unbelievable Display at North Dakota Museum of Art in Grand Forks
