MAG Acquires Isabel Bishop’s “Blowing Smoke Rings” and Partners with Eli Wilner & Company on Custom Frame

Rochester, NY –– The Memorial Art Gallery (MAG) is pleased to announce the recent acquisition of Blowing Smoke Rings (1938) by Isabel Bishop (American, 1902–1988), a pivotal figure in 20th-century American realism. This painting is an example of Bishop’s dedication to portraying the everyday lives of working women in urban settings—a hallmark of the Fourteenth Street School of artists. The acquisition was purchased through the Marion Stratton Gould Fund and is now part of MAG’s permanent collection.

In preparation for the painting’s installation, MAG partnered with Eli Wilner & Company of New York to reframe the work with historical integrity and aesthetic sensitivity. With assistance from Eli Wilner & Company’s partial funding program for museums, a custom combed-gesso replica was created based on a frame originally designed by Carl Sandelin. Drawing from their deep expertise in period frames, the Wilner team collaborated closely with MAG’s Curator of American Art, Jessica Marten, who visited their York Avenue gallery to evaluate historically appropriate options. The final frame was completed and united with the painting in April 2025. Over the years, MAG has worked with Eli Wilner & Company on several occasions through this program to reframe important works in the collection.

Blowing Smoke Rings will be installed at the Memorial Art Gallery in July of 2025 in the Heilbrunn Gallery, and all are welcome to visit and experience the work in person. More information about the collection at the Memorial Art Gallery can be found here.

About the Memorial Art Gallery

The Memorial Art Gallery showcases art from antiquity to the present day, including the outdoor public Centennial Sculpture Park. In addition to its permanent collection, MAG offers a year-round schedule of special exhibitions, lectures, concerts, tours, after-hours social events, and family activities. Learn more about the Memorial Art Gallery here.

Hours: Wednesday–Sunday, 11:00 am–5:00 pm, Thursdays & Second Fridays, 11:00 am–8:00 pm. Closed Mondays and Tuesdays.

Admission: $20; senior citizens, $18; college students with ID and children 6–18, $9. Always free to members, University of Rochester faculty, staff, students, and children five and under. Half-price general admission on Thursdays 5:00–8:00 pm is made possible by Monroe County. Discounted admission tickets are available when purchasing online. For more information, call 585.276.8900 or visit mag.rochester.edu