I found it interesting talking about the art market and what makes are valuable. Typically big names are the ones that have higher valued items. Its harder to create a following around anonymous art since it is hard to create a following around a single piece. Art is interesting in the fact that beauty can be very subjective. There are also moral and ethics that need to be considered when selling art. The discussion of museums buying and selling art was very interesting. I never thought about the fact that when art goes into a private collection, it is essentially lost to the public eye. Museums have a certain responsibility to keep certain works available to the masses. They also usually have the best tools for restoring and keeping each piece in good condition. There can be a lot of money in art, but in certain cases no matter the value of the piece, there is a duty to keep it for the public eye
Author: Charlie Stevenson (Page 2 of 2)
In the museum, one notices a large range in craftsmanship when it comes to the different works of art. Some of the oil portraits were painted in incredible detail, while other works were much more abstract. From a craftsmanship point of view, the detailed paintings were on another level as the skill needed to produce the lifelike qualities in these works is much greater. Another aspect of the craftsmanship that impressed me was the frames on the paintings. Some of these frames had very elaborate carving work and were gilded. This shows the amount of thought and effort put into picking a frame for a piece.
The question that arose in class Does art ever really get better? is one that I think it very interesting to consider. We talked about Vasari’s book and how he mentioned that the dawn of the Renaissance gave people a certain type of relief that art was getting “better”. This sparks the interesting question however, does it ever really get better? Professor Plesch brought up the argument that there was the capability for these types of works to be done at an earlier time; however, there was never a need for them so they did not happen. The idea that in most cases, it’s societal need instead of real innovation is one that most likely applies to many other cases outside of the art realm as well. I am also quickly learning that prospective can be everything when dealing with thoughts and ideas about art. When speaking about the Gothic period vs the Renaissance, it was clear that many authors are biased about which period was ultimately superior. These authors thought that the Renaissance period was a new innovation in art, the start of something that could not have happened in the Gothic period. Reality is, these paintings could have been produced in earlier times, but there was no demand for them.
Going into the museum, I instantly noticed how everything was laid out. It is not a crowded space, and the bigger the piece, the more wall space it had around it. Some works even had entire walls dedicated to them, as not the distract the viewer with too many things going on at once. The wide open spaces allow for people to walk in whichever direction they want, or to readjust your position so you can further appreciate the work at another angle. Lighting was all focused on the works. There were very few bright lights to illuminate the rest of the rooms, the majority of bright lights were spotlights on the works, so not to distract viewers from anything else.
When going between exhibits, one feature I recognized were the walls were painted or art was installed in places where the background color enhanced the art as a whole. Certain displays did better with darker or more colorful walls, while others were better in lighter colors and more natural light. It was clear that a lot of thought and time went into installing these displays, so that the works presented themselves the best.
My major takeaways from the first class was how important it is to not consider art in the present, but to consider it in the context of when it was produced. I thought it was interesting how the Sistine Madonna was not made for a gallery, but was rather created as an altar piece for a church. I also thought it was interesting how intertwined art and religion were during the Renaissance Period. As stated by Goethe, museums could be equated to “House(s) of God(s)”. It is interesting to see how this Renaissance encaptures so many different facets of societies. From religion, to Greek and Roman literature, to Italian art, all under the name of the French Renaissance. In the translation of the word “rebirth”, all these elements come together to create something beautiful, new, and unique.