Forget the brats and grouper sandwiches. This World Series wager is a little more highbrow. And the stakes are impressionist.
As the Tampa Bay Rays and Milwaukee Brewers slug it out, cultural institutions in the respective markets are laying their Monet on the table.
On the line: Claude Monet paintings from the respective collections of the Museum of Fine Arts in St. Petersburg and Milwaukee Art Museum.
The art of the deal?
If the Brewers will the best-of-seven series, MFA will loan “Houses of Parliament: Effect of Fog, London” (1904, oil on canvas).
If the Rays win, the Milwaukee museum will ship “Waterloo Bridge, Sunlight Effect” (1903, oil on canvas) to St. Petersburg.
Both works are part of Monet’s series exploring changing conditions along the River Thames. He returned repeatedly to London landmarks, capturing how shifting light, fog and weather altered their appearance.
To help frame the fun, the museums produced a clever reel starring their directors, Milwaukee’s Kim Sajet and MFA’s Klaudio Rodriguez.
“When I moved to Milwaukee, I became a part of the Brew Crew,” Sajet said in a press release. “They’re the best team in baseball, and I’m backing them with one of our most beloved paintings. Two Monets will look incredible in our galleries. “Klaudio, consider this your invitation to visit Milwaukee. Go Brewers!”
According to MFA, its Monet is usually on display in the Collection Gallery, which is temporarily closed until Nov. 21 during the reinstallation of “Art Unbound.” However, it is on view in the upstairs gallery during the World Series “in support of the Rays.”
“We admire Kim’s enthusiasm, but we think Milwaukee’s Monet would enjoy a little Florida vacation,” said Rodriguez. “We’re backing the Rays all the way, and we’re ready to welcome Milwaukee’s masterpiece to St. Petersburg. Let’s see Milwaukee put its Monet where its mouth is.”
