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Blog #2 — 10 Comments
10
Sep 17

Museum Story-Guggenheim

Walking to the Guggenheim, to be brutally honest, I wasn’t expecting much. I’ve never been much of an art person, or a museum person for that matter, and so I didn’t have the highest expectations. I was heading up 5th Avenue wondering if I would know which building it was when I saw it, and then this huge, white bee hive like structure appears, with my classmates waiting out front; that answered that. As we were waiting outside, I wasn’t paying much attention to the building, but kind of just spacing out and waiting for the signal to go inside. Upon entering the museum, I wasn’t yet struck with the magnificence of the structure; sure, the lobby seemed clean and spacious, but I still didn’t pay too much attention to the layout of all the exhibits.

 

After meeting our tour guide, Phillip, and seeing his exuberance and passion for the Guggenheim, I became more excited to see what the museum had in store. We started with Kandinsky, who was a creator of quintessential modern art, and the painting we started with is exactly what one might think of when hearing the phrase “modern art”. Our tour guide mentioned that many people dismiss Kandinsky and his art saying that it takes no skill to make, and even non-artists are capable of creating it. Admittedly, I’ve thought that kind of sentiment myself. But Phillip had a perspective that I haven’t heard before; he said that it may be true that the average person would have the skill to make that, the difference is that they don’t.

 

After talking by that first piece of art for a while, we start making our way up, stopping by some other paintings on the way. At this point I finally see exactly how the museum is laid out-it’s just one big unwound slinky of continuous art, all the way up to the top. Not shockingly, this is a not a layout I’ve ever seen before, whether in a museum or otherwise. I thought it was so cool that someone could walk the entire length of the museum and see all the exhibits without ever stopping, turning, or even moving through different rooms.

 

The work of art that had the most effect on me was “Woman Ironing” by Pablo Picasso. I just felt like it conveyed so much emotion, even though it is basically all grey. The woman’s posture, her facial expression, and how her eyes were shaded over all told me details of this woman’s life, and made it feel as though she were a real, dynamic person.

 

After the tour ended, I continued to walk around the museum myself, to see the rest of the art. But again, the architecture of the building that housed the art seemed to strike me more than the art itself (the art was cool too though). I think overall, visiting the Guggenheim was a great experience; individually I found meaning in the architecture, and with the help of our tour guide Phillip, I found meaning in the art too.

Blog #2 — 2 Comments
09
Sep 17

A Modern Guggenheim

Visiting the Guggenheim had been something on my bucket list for quite some time actually; when I heard we would be going I was genuinely excited to go! The building is easy to find, especially because I’ve past it so many times before and literally just sat in amazement because it’s so beautiful.

Inside of the museum, it definitely exceeded my expectations. I loved the high ceilings, open floor space, and spiral walkway the extended through all of the levels. As you ascended higher, every floor was set up in the same fashion, down to the bathrooms being stacked on top of each other. The artwork was forced into the spotlight due to the fact that no matter where you went you were able to view a piece of art, even from across the gap. Our tour guide at one point even had us compare our thoughts on a piece when we were up close to it, and when we were viewing it from afar. I have never been to a museum that allowed that type of viewing experience.

“Woman Ironing”, Picasso

The collection told a story of American artists, transitioning between portrait work and more modern style, like cubism or minimalism. A lot of the pieces had dark undertones that at least alluded to a more depressing America, and one that didn’t treat artists well at all (many of the artists featured in the Guggenheim lived poor lives and only became relevant after they died).However, the pieces itself were nothing extraordinary. I have visited plenty of art museums in the past, and so I guess nothing at the Guggenheim really made me take a second look, or think particularly much. A lot of the pieces we lingered on were modern pieces, and in my own opinion modern art doesn’t make me feel…anything. A collection of lines or dots (or even both), are simply lines and dots. There had been one painting that left an impression, “Woman Ironing” by Picasso, because it captured a human emotion, an experience, and had the ability to make me feel something. Not many of the other pieces I observed were able to do that, the rest were merely lines or dots on a canvas (which I could’ve done in kindergarten). 

I think if I were to open a museum, I would want it to reflect New York City. I know that seems trivial or stereotypical in an Arts in NYC class, but it’s true. I find NYC fascinating, and the relevance it has had in shaping our world leaders and our world in general is something I would want to focus on. Not only that, but I want to tell a story of inspiration, and creativity. I would hope that people could visit my museum and leave feeling a new sense of hope for not only our city, but the fact that anything is possible if you set your mind to it. Giving students the impression that they can accomplish something huge, and implement their own ideas on the world through learning about the history of the city. Therefore, my museum would have to be educational. Like the Guggenheim, I would want the building to tell a story on it’s own. My museum’s building would have to be sustainable, and aesthetically pleasing (at least to me). My museum would tell a story that left people with the passion to continue creating their own dreams.