Eleven Forty-Seven

My take on From On the Museum of Art: An Address:

In this article Robinson addresses reasons why there is a need for a permanent institution to house art. The reasons that I thought to be most interesting:

Believablity. Educating people about art helps them to believe that the messages artists are trying to convey are legitimate and relevant to every day concerns of life. This is really important. Along with that, he seems to think that the museum's most important function is as a mediator between the art itself and the human mind. When the museum provides tour guides, audio tours, and labels, it is helping bridge the gap between the abiguity of the art and the person who can appreciate it. I think that this is a great way to look at it. The museum is a vehicle for knowledge like no other. It lifts art to an honored position and there is this high respect of the art.

It's this notion that got me to thinkin'. If the museum is a pedestal to elevate and explain art for greater exploration and appreciation, it made me wonder if that was a form of worship. But then I thought no, because it really does stop at appreciation, for most people. It's a reveling in beauty and inspiration. So then I thought about theatre. I have often wondered at the praise and worship people give to actors in the theatre. It's almost... more than appreciation. There are some cool parallels to be drawn between the presentation of theatre and the museum itself. Both are mediators - bridges - between art and humans. Both elevate something, bringing certain elements of humanity into the light to be closely examined. But when I thought about what we are elevating when we put on or watch a theatrical production, I realized that it's a little different. In museums we are elevating the art of humans, but in theatre we are elevating humans themselves. Their stories, spun by theatre artists, but because it utilizes human actors who are the subject of our attention, we're elevating those particular humans onstage as well. Their actions, their personalities. If you think about it like that, theatre is elevating God's art -- humanity itself, while museums elevate the second-generation perspectives and work of humans. At least, that's my perspective from a background of Christianity. Just an interesting thought.

In addition to that, Robison seemed to have a pretty common stance on the way the museum should be ordered. In a coherent, cohesive manner, and with a clear label. Since in that time they were just moving on from the Crystal Palace Exhibition, which didn't explain the items specifically one-on-one (I don't think). In this article Robinson really stresses the need for labels and other didactic instruments in the museum, which I also think is entirely true.

This week so far it's been hard to get to blogging, for reasons that I mentioned in my previous post. But I'm still a-readin, and a-bloggin! (even if it's happening 11:47 at night) Future posts should have more outside research and such, but for right now I'm sticking to the text.
Til' tomorrow.