An Exhibition Approaching Perfection
I recently contributed an informal exhibition review to Enfilade, where I declared that I had experienced a near perfect show–Juliette Récamier: Muse et mécène at the Musée de Beaux-Arts in Lyon, France. An exhibition focused on a woman as patron in Napoleonic France, and one who was the dearest friend with the inimitable Germaine de Staël, was bound to delight me. The confluence of Récamier’s couture (lots of muslin dresses, cashmere shawls, and slippers that my nine-year old daughter wouldn’t fit into!), stunning portraits of this muse/agent, and paintings of other cultural luminaries of the period, all artfully placed in pastel-painted rooms, made for a most exquisite exhibition. I was moved to tears when I entered a room that had been fashioned as the salon of Récamier, complete with portraits of Staël by Vigée-Lebrun and Gérard, along with Girodet’s stunning portrait of Chateaubriand. After many years of inhabiting this world in my mind, I felt as if I were one step closer to being transported into this intellectual space and into conversation with figures that have so enchanted (and sometimes vexed) me for much of my life as an academic.
Conversation Topic: What is your favorite exhibition of all time?
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Heather, I am so excited about this blog! It will make me feel like I’m back in your class again.
And my favorite exhibition ever was actually at BYU. It was in 2004, “Metaphorically Speaking: Contemporary LDS Art.” That was the first time (although certainly not the last) that I had a spiritual experience in an exhibition, and it was also the exhibition that made me realize I loved art way more than anything else I had thought about studying, and prompted me to change my major. I remember I went and walked through one more time the day before they took it down and sat in the gallery and cried, partly from sadness that it would be leaving, and partly from gratitude that it had changed my life. I’ve never really connected with the more traditional religious art readily available in our culture, the stuff you can buy at Deseret Book or the BYU Bookstore, and that exhibition taught me that you can have meaningful, beautiful, religious art that is abstract and non-figurative.
Thanks for starting this blog!
I recently attended the “Cézanne and Beyond” exhibition at the Philadelphia Museum of Art. It was especially thrilling for me because I had just finished my Senior Thesis on Cézanne’s Mont Sainte-Victoire. I was amazed to find the painting I wrote about was there – placed side by side with many of the other works I used as cross-references in my paper! I felt validated in the choices I made but satisfied that my viewpoints were still original. It was incredibly rewarding to see those works pulled from all over the world onto one wall. I was in my own little world!
My favorite exhibit so far was held at the Getty Malibu. I was there on a Greek Art field trip, and we went there after visiting the Getty Villa. At the time, I was writing a paper on Caspar David Friedrich in your 19th century art class — imagine my surprise and joy when I saw an enormous poster at the Getty Malibu, announcing the Friedrich exhibit they were holding!
It was a joint exhibit of German artists — Friedrich representing German Romaniticism, and Gerard Richter representing contemporary German art. You first walked into a “white cube” style room containing the Richter “Wald” (Wood) series — which were stunning abstract paintings that absolutely captured the spirit of the woods. He used long vertical strokes and exquisite color in patterns that evoked trees, water, rain, and foliage — but ever so subtly. I wanted to take them all home with me and keep them in a room together.
From there, you stepped into the Friedrich room, where the walls were painted a deep wine color, and the atmosphere was so quiet I almost held my breath. The very first thing you saw walking in was the Tetschen Altarpiece (Cross in the Mountains) on the other side of the room. I stood infront of it for a very long time, and I swear the sincere faith of its creator just rolled off of it in waves. It’s one of the most spiritual experiences I’ve ever had.
I am not sure about an exhibit, but I LOVE the Musée Gustave Moreau in Paris. It is set up in his old home/studio and being inside just takes you back. Even the old toilet in the restroom looks like it is still the original
. I love the combination of competed and half sketched works. The old hard wood is the perfect setting for the pieces, and gives the whole space rich feel of mystery. It is like stepping back not only in time, but to a place where all the myths he paints really exist. Plus, I sort of have a thing for Moreau, even if he is a crazy misogynist.
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