Dear Christian--
I am sighing because I am unfortunately powerless to do much else. We did our share of stunned shouting in our offices, but we cannot force a prudish idiot to come here to view something that might just maybe broaden the horizons. In this case, we did manage to get the art teacher to come with a smaller, select group of students, but the truly sad part is that the school district was trying to encourage a higher percentage of students to consider college (currently just 25% go) and this bigger trip was going to tie into a broader tour of the campus and a series of meetings with college students.
I have heard it said, and I believe this has merit, that part of the problem is that for years the arts in American public schools have been cut away due to funding shortfalls and re-direction. Children no longer get a basic education in art history or art appreciation, no longer have such discussions. This has been going on long enough that some of these children are now adults with children of their own, and so a generation has gone through the "educational" (rather: job training) system with no understanding of art. Add to that the perception of art as elite or snobbish or only for intellectuals, not to mention this weird suspicion/devaluing of the intellectual class in America, and you have a pretty good explanation for declining attendance numbers at museums. In our case, I'm 99% certain that the offended party did not even recognize the reference to the Creation painting-- something they would have learned about had they come for the tour. The ultimate irony, to me, is that the objections to NAKEDNESS!!!! stemmed from religious conviction, yet the painting showed a scene from the Bible....
We do try to educate. But with a staff of four there is only so much we can do.
In frustration,
Astrida
******************
Astrida Schaeffer, Assistant Director
The Art Gallery
University of New Hampshire
Paul Creative Arts Center
30 College Road
Durham, NH 03824
(603) 862-0310
[log in to unmask]
Fax: (603) 862-2191
******************
>-----Original Message-----
>From: Museum discussion list
>[mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of "Dr.
>Christian Müller-Straten"
>Sent: Wednesday, July 18, 2007 2:44 AM
>To: [log in to unmask]
>Subject: Re: Nudes in Art versus School Groups (fwd)
>
>---Ursprüngliche Nachricht---
>From: "Dr. Christian Müller-Straten" <verlagcms@t-online>
>To: "Museum discussion list" <[log in to unmask]>
>Subject: Re: [MUSEUM-L] Nudes in Art versus School Groups
>
>
>Dear Astrida,
>
>more popish than the pope? You are just sighing. I am missing
>any objection. We are living in a modern and enlighted world
>(not to speak about the real nudes in the internet) and should
>reject any approaches towards the naked body which either
>derives from sects, Victorian false sense of shame - either
>with neurotic or hidden shameless effects - or social
>attitudes by men which are so common in, let' s say, some
>halfmoon societies.
>The real artist is always right. "Freedom of the arts" also
>means to the artist to own the right to create naked bodies.
>All art museum in democratic countries have the duty to
>respect this right.
>
>As I wrote before, first explain the distinction between art
>and reality which I am missing in some of the contributions
>here. Even if somebody is extremely modest in private, he or
>she has to respect the democratic values of our society.
>
>And, by the way, there is also an excellent iconographic
>argument for the nakedness of Adam. To explain the difference
>between an Adam in a Pope's chapel with a large iconographical
>program and a single sculpture of a nude man made in the 20th
>centure, entitled "Adam", is a little bit more complicated...
>
>Best regards
>
>
>Christian
>
>"Schaeffer, Astrida" <[log in to unmask]> schrieb:
>>
>> On the other hand, there's the high school that canceled its planned
>> visit to an exhibition of art by a holocaust survivor,
>because one of
>> the paintings referenced Michelangelo's Adam from the
>Sistine Chapel,
>> and the adults scoping out the exhibit beforehand found Adam's penis
>> objectionable.
>>
>> Sigh.
>>
>>
>> Astrida
>> ******************
>> Astrida Schaeffer, Assistant Director
>> The Art Gallery
>> University of New Hampshire
>> Paul Creative Arts Center
>> 30 College Road
>> Durham, NH 03824
>> (603) 862-0310
>> [log in to unmask]
>> Fax: (603) 862-2191
>> ******************
>>
>>
>>
>> >-----Original Message-----
>> >From: Museum discussion list
>> >[mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Dan Bartlett
>> >Sent: Tuesday, July 17, 2007 11:54 AM
>> >To: [log in to unmask]
>> >Subject: Re: Nudes in Art versus School Groups
>> >
>> >I would create a pre-visit exercise that went something like this:
>> >
>> >Lay your hand on the table and look at the way the light creates
>> >highlights and shadows around the sometimes imperceptible
>curves and
>> >the way that those curves can be accentuated by varying the
>intensity
>> >and direction of the light. Look at the texture of the
>skin with its
>> >infinite lines and see how it looks different if muscles beneath it
>> >are tensed. Notice how the fingers seamlessly join the hand. Make
>> >your hand look calm, angry or pleading just by moving the fingers a
>> >little bit and tensing some muscles and relaxing others.
>Look at the
>> >story in your hand. My 45 year old hands show the scars of
>15 years
>> >as a carpenter.
>> >How is my hand different from my 15 year old son's
>youthful, athletic
>> >hands?
>> >
>> >And to really bring the point home, after looking at hands
>in all of
>> >these ways, put on a pair of gloves...
>> >
>> >So prepared I would bet a large number of the students
>would not even
>> >notice that "that lady doesn't have any clothes on."
>> >Kids are smart, even little ones.
>> >
>> >Cheers,
>> >
>> >Dan
>> >
>> >--
>> >Dan Bartlett, BFA, MA
>> >Curator of Exhibits
>> >IMLS Grant Project Coordinator
>> >Midway Village & Museum Center
>> >Rockford, IL
>> >
>> >=========================================================
>> >Important Subscriber Information:
>> >
>> >The Museum-L FAQ file is located at
>> >http://www.finalchapter.com/museum-l-faq/ . You may obtain detailed
>> >information about the listserv commands by sending a one
>line e-mail
>> >message to [log in to unmask] . The body of the message
>> >should read "help" (without the quotes).
>> >
>> >If you decide to leave Museum-L, please send a one line e-mail
>> >message to [log in to unmask] . The body of the message
>> >should read "Signoff Museum-L" (without the quotes).
>> >
>>
>> =========================================================
>> Important Subscriber Information:
>>
>> The Museum-L FAQ file is located at
>http://www.finalchapter.com/museum-l-faq/ . You may obtain
>detailed information about the listserv commands by sending a
>one line e-mail message to [log in to unmask] . The
>body of the message should read "help" (without the quotes).
>>
>> If you decide to leave Museum-L, please send a one line
>e-mail message to [log in to unmask] . The body of
>the message should read "Signoff Museum-L" (without the quotes).
>>
>>
>----------------------------------------------------------------------
>> -----------------------------
>> Von Platinum 2006 eingefügter Text::
>>
>> Wenn es eine unerwünschte Mail (SPAM) ist, klicken Sie auf den
>> folgenden Link um diese neu zu klassifizieren:
>> http://127.0.0.1:6083/Panda?ID=pav_10417&SPAM=true
>>
>----------------------------------------------------------------------
>> -----------------------------
>>
>>
>
>
>--
>Verlag Dr. Christian Mueller-Straten / Museums Agentur Inh.
>Dr. Christian Müller-Straten Kunzweg 23, D-81243 Muenchen
>Germany T. +49-(0)89-839 690 43, Fax T. +49-(0)89-839 690 44
>[log in to unmask]
>www.museum-aktuell.de: The European portal to the museum world
>and heritage, scientists, open positions, suppliers, sponsors,
>with museum stock exchange and life long learning...
>Hier auch weitere Firmenangaben. Treffen Sie uns auf der
>EXPONATEC COLOGNE 2007!
>------
>
>--
>Verlag Dr. Christian Mueller-Straten / Museums Agentur Inh.
>Dr. Christian Müller-Straten Kunzweg 23, D-81243 Muenchen
>Germany T. +49-(0)89-839 690 43, Fax T. +49-(0)89-839 690 44
>[log in to unmask]
>www.museum-aktuell.de: The European portal to the museum world
>and heritage, scientists, open positions, suppliers, sponsors,
>with museum stock exchange and life long learning...
>Hier auch weitere Firmenangaben. Treffen Sie uns auf der
>EXPONATEC COLOGNE 2007!
>
>=========================================================
>Important Subscriber Information:
>
>The Museum-L FAQ file is located at
>http://www.finalchapter.com/museum-l-faq/ . You may obtain
>detailed information about the listserv commands by sending a
>one line e-mail message to [log in to unmask] . The
>body of the message should read "help" (without the quotes).
>
>If you decide to leave Museum-L, please send a one line e-mail
>message to [log in to unmask] . The body of the
>message should read "Signoff Museum-L" (without the quotes).
>
=========================================================
Important Subscriber Information:
The Museum-L FAQ file is located at http://www.finalchapter.com/museum-l-faq/ . You may obtain detailed information about the listserv commands by sending a one line e-mail message to [log in to unmask] . The body of the message should read "help" (without the quotes).
If you decide to leave Museum-L, please send a one line e-mail message to [log in to unmask] . The body of the message should read "Signoff Museum-L" (without the quotes).
|
