Shh, I'm Appreciating Art

Wow, I've done it again. Got too busy to even get around to blogging, I mean. Who knew that life could become such a distraction?


The famed Three Studies of Lucian Freud by Francis Bacon, which I mentioned in my last blog roughly a millennium ago, has arrived at the Portland Art Museum in the meanwhile and, yes, I have been too busy to go see it. Do I want to see it in order to find out what $142 million looks like? Yes. Do I want to stand in a huge thronging crowd of other people who are there for that same reason? Not really. Watching a program about the Louvre the other day I realized that if I ever visit, I will probably go and see the Mona Lisa because it's what you're supposed to do when you go to the Louvre. But it probably wouldn't be my favorite stop.


Along similar lines, I have been to the Taj Mahal which, when you see pictures of it, looks like this:



(image from Wikipedia)


And which, when you visit, looks like this:





(image from Google)

Crowded, noisy, and full of photographers offering to take your picture even when your own family members are in the process of doing just that. If you go inside the building, which is a tomb, you're supposed to  take off your shoes and be reverent and not take pictures but people are shouting to hear their own echoes and there's the constant flash of cameraphones.


The building is all beauty and wonder and poetry; not that you'll know as you're hustled through the interior by a pushing crowd and guards watching that you don't touch anything and telling you to move along (not, however, going after the people shouting and taking pictures, as they probably can't leave their stations). So I don't really remember what the inside looks like, because I didn't get the chance to appreciate it. Which means that, after visiting, the Taj Mahal doesn't mean a lot more to me than it did before. Maybe other people can gain a new perspective, appreciation, understanding, what have you, of a work of art while people are shouting and posing for pictures and trying to find their shoes on every side, but I couldn't. Going to see the Mona Lisa would probably be just as unfulfilling.


Does this mean I regret going to the Taj Mahal, or would likewise regret seeing the Mona Lisa? No, as I don't think it could be possible to regret such an experience (unless someone had stolen my shoes). It's just that the experience doesn't live up to the expectation people have (or that I had, at least) of the emotional response it will instill, or the perfect memories that will follow from its perfect composition. I just can't commune with a work of art when people on all sides are striving to do the same thing. Or, worse, just trying to take a picture of it so they can move on. It's surprising how often I see this--people taking pictures without even looking at the work in front of the lens. But that's a beef for another blog.


I suspect similar issues could arise with the Bacon at PAM, but in this case I have an upcoming opportunity to see the work in question, and will soon prove myself right or wrong. Only time will tell.

This isn't to say that I can only appreciate art alone--as a matter of fact, I find that I prefer to have someone else with me when I'm looking at art. It's more fun to have someone to talk to, to share ideas with, to offer their own thoughts and criticisms and observations in response to mine. Because even though appreciating art is, in a way, a very personal and individual undertaking best accomplished with some peace and quiet, on the other hand how much fun can it be if you don't have someone else to share it with?

I was Too Busy to Think About How Busy I was

This has been a busy term. Surprisingly, though I scheduled myself to write a blog every other week, it didn't happen once--too much working at one job or another, or having to write papers or read school books or attend meetings or go to talks. Or feed and shower myself (this, too, is necessary every week, and if it comes down to blog or shower, well ... ).

And just as life got busy, it seemed like the art history news wouldn't let up. While I was trying to keep on top of things ... 


--Banksy escaped New York.

--A Francis Bacon painting of Lucien Freud became the most costly painting ever sold at auction (at $142 mil).

--And Jeff Koons became the mostly costly living artist, with a single artwork earning $58.4 mil (at the same auction).

--And over 1500 works of art found in a Munich apartment (by artists like Picasso, Matisse, Chagall and others) were confirmed to be Nazi war booty.


All of which would have been fun to write about ... but there were also so many things going on here, locally, that were just as cool--and that I've been just as unable to blog about. So, at the risk of sounding a little late to the party, allow me to reminisce ...

At the beginning of November the Art History Students Association of Portland State University, of which I am a leader, organized a mini field trip to the home of a collector of Japanese prints. Of course it helps to have a professor who can introduce you to local art collectors, and it was a fascinating experience to explore someone else's artistic passion in this way. I've always been drawn to Japanese prints because of their bright colors and the calligraphic appearance of their lines. They always seem to me to be the more likely predecessor to modern Japanese manga than American comics. And since manga was one of my first art-related passions, well, how can I not love prints? 

But perhaps the most important thing you gain from viewing somebody's personal art collection is a certain level of access into a special part of their mind, life, and view of the world. If you, too, are interested in exploring this collection of prints, you can actually visit them online, here.

We also had a crazy, hectic, awesome time hosting a lecture on campus by art historian, feminist, and art dealer Kat Griefen of the Accola Griefen Gallery. Hectic, maybe, because I've never done the whole set up/take down thing on this sort of scale, but awesome as well because this might be the first lecture I've ever sat in where the speaker focused on giving advice and ideas on how to be a good art historian, how to get involved with art and artists, and how to blaze your own trail into the future. And, as an art dealer, she had tons of engaging and inspiring works to show us as well, and now I have some serious studying to do on feminist artists now that I'm free...

And what else? Not much, really. I've been having a wild time these last few months and now the term is over, meaning that it's time to plan the next round of AHSA events, and try to visit some museum and gallery shows in the meantime. And to do all the reading I've been wanting to!

Oh--and to get ready for next term!