Art Appreciation Final Assignment: A Personal Art Museum and Exhibition Project.

BACKGROUND INFORMATION:

WHAT IS A MUSEUM?

Museums are storehouses of our cultural treasures. Some focus on specific times and cultures, others main purpose is to collect artworks from most historical (and pre-historical) eras, and are known as encyclopedic museums. In contrast, commercial art galleries showcase the works of artists, and are often for sale, but works owned by a museum are held in its care long term. Often, museums are designed by renowned architects, and are therefore works of art in themselves. A museum is a collection of objects that go together for a reason, with spaces that put those objects on display in a way that helps the viewer understand the reason for that collection. An exhibit is a group of objects that explore a particular idea. Exhibits are laid out (have a physical organization) that shapes the viewer’s experience.   Curators are people with extensive art knowledge who choose what goes in a museum exhibit, how to organize it and present it, and what information to put on labels which help viewers understand the ideas of the exhibits and collections. For this assignment you will become the head curator for your personal collection and exhibition. MAKE YOUR OWN MUSEUM EXHIBITION For this project you will be the curator for and create your very own art museum exhibition, based on absolutely any theme or connecting thread you want it to be among the selected artworks, as long as it utilizes examples of artworks from our textbook. Consider that your collection can be based on colors you like, subject matter you enjoy (themes of war, portraiture, mythology, genre painting medium, religious/spiritual theme, etc.), things that remind you of your uncle Juan (his heritage, depictions of men in hats, etc.), artworks representing romance (theme of love)…. In other words, ANYTHING. The only criteria is that you give a thoughtful explanation of the collection theme, why its selection, and how it connects to the material studied in this class. Example of thoughtful approach to this assignment: Blue Museum. In this collection the Blue Museum is pleased to present a selection of artworks that have color in common, in particular, representations of multiple variations of the hue, because it is a color with deep associations to emotions (like sadness) and sensations (like seeming cool to the touch). We are interested in exploring some of those relationships.

Not thoughtful: “my museum is all blue artworks, because blue is my favorite color.”

 

INSTRUCTIONS NOTE: YOUR PAPER SHOULD BE ORGANIZED WITH THE FOLLOWING 5 SECTIONS CLEARLY MARKED. Following these instructions will ensure earning the best possible grade.

SECTION I: NAME THE MUSEUM, PROVIDE A TITLE FOR THE EXHIBITION AND CHOOSE THE ARTWORKS IN IT – 10pts

1. Name

a. Provide a name for the museum, and select a title or name that reflects the theme for the exhibition.

b. Explain why you chose your particular theme. Be thoughtful and complete. In other words, create a mission statement encompassing the overarching idea of your collection. Remember to give a thoughtful explanation of your collection theme, why you chose it, and connect it to ideas studied in this class. What do you want the visitors to learn about?

c. Describe two prominent characteristics found in most artworks in your exhibition. Think about what they have in common. For example, are the works connected/unified by the same media (most are two-dimensional photographs, drawings or paintings). Perhaps all the works are sculpture, installation and reliefs, thus made of three-dimensional artworks. Were the artists working during the same time frame? For example, your collection is made of six oil paintings on canvas, created within the span of twenty years.

SECTION II: CREATE YOUR SPACE – 10 pts

1. Define the building style and physical experience. Go to chapter 2.5 in the textbook, and choose an architectural style. Ask yourself what kind of experience you want your viewers to have when entering or visiting a building in the style you selected. How would the design of the building best connect/match to your museum’s collection, exhibition and mission statement. In this section, briefly describe the selected architectural style and describe how it best connects to the style or them of your artworks. Provide one example from the chapter in the book. Provide the name of the architect (if known), date and style (see guideline below).

Consider the location of the building. It can be located anywhere you wish, but explain the reason behind your place selection. Would the building be classical in style (as in an ancient Greek temple), tall as gothic cathedral, modernist or perhaps post-modernist? Perhaps you need lots of natural light to best showcase the artworks and gothic architecture is the way to achieve this goal. Explain your selection. Consider practical reasons for the exhibition. For example, if you prefer to create a collection of three-dimensional work perhaps it would be nice to set in an outdoor space for their installation (think of the Nasher Sculpture Center garden in Dallas), but remember that paintings cannot be shown outdoors for conservation purposes (the sun and changes in temperature/humidity would damage a painting in a relative short period of time).

Again, be thoughtful in so that the architectural design best enhance or further reflect aspects in your collection.

SECTION III: WRITE YOUR LABELS – 60pts

1. Write the labels for each artwork.

a. List artworks and provide a thumbnail picture next to each title. Include the artist (if known), title, date, dimensions, period, and current location (museum where the selected work resides). Explain what it is about them that made you include them in your exhibition. What part do they play in it, why it is a good choice for your museum.

b. Formal analysis. You must identify two visual elements and two design principles for each artwork. This part involves looking closely and in detail at each artwork, giving examples of how they function in the compositional aspect of the artwork. Give evidence to your claims. It is not enough to mention the vocabulary, you must back up your assertions with evidence. For example, if identifying colors in a painting, do not just mention yellow, blue, discuss the color harmony used and how the colors interact with one another to create a certain mood. Read about color in the textbook. Is it complementary, cool, warm? What kind of feeling does it evoke? You must demonstrate understanding and mastery of the art vocabulary and how it works/functions within artworks. Consider how the elements and principles of art are used to convey the meaning of each artwork. These are labels for the public to read. They should be written for a public that might be unfamiliar with art. You are helping the public better look at and interpret each artwork.

Elements of Art	Principles of Art
Line	Unity
Shape (found in 2D artworks)	Variety
Form/Mass (found in 3D works)	Balance
Texture	Scale/ Proportion
Color	Focal Point/Emphasis
Space	Pattern/Rhythm
Value	Contrast
Movement/Time

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

SECTION IV: Write an exit label – 10 pts

This is a wrap up of your ideas and the viewer’s experience. What do you hope they learned about your theme? What do you want them to continue thinking about after they leave?

SECTION V: Word Cited Page – 10 pts

List page and image number for each artwork.

 

FORMAT EXAMPLE FOR COMPLETING THIS ASSIGNMENT, THIS ASSIGNMENT WILL NOT BE WRITTEN IN TRADITIONAL ESSAY FORM

 

Student name

ARTS 1301-add section here

Personal Art Museum Assignment 

Prof. Marian Lefeld

 

SECTION I: Museum Name

10 pts Exhibition Title

Characteristics

SECTION II: 10pts

Read chapter 2.5 in the textbook, and select an architect or architectural style that will best house your museum and exhibition. If known, name the architect you would hire to design the building housing your collection, and explain the reason behind this selection. Keep in mind how the building will relate to the artworks. (Would the building blow be the best to house a collection of prehistoric artifacts? Why or why not?). Briefly describe the experience viewers would have/ associations between the artworks and the building housing it. Add thumbnail showing the selected architectural style

Architect name

Opera house

2005

Louisiana Museum of Art, New Orleans, LA

 

 

SECTION III: 60 pts Add a thumbnail for each of the six artworks selected from the textbook. Provide the following information: artist’s name (if known), title of the work, date, dimensions, and current location (museum housing the work today).

Cecily Brown

Untitled

2015

Oil on canvas

72 x 85

Louisiana Museum of Art, New Orleans, LA

 

 

Lee Krasner. Lorem Ipsum text. 1962. Oil on canvas. Reijkmuseum. Amsterdam, The Netherlands

 

Add formal analysis, identification and explanation of two elements and principles found in the artwork.

SECTION IV: 10 pts – Provide an exit label in which to communicate the intention of the collection (to educate, inform, Wrap up ideas for this assignment answering questions regarding the experience for museum goers.

SECTION V: 10 pts – Works Cited Page

Image 1: Architect name, Pag 280, image 2.5.38

Image 2: Cecily Brown, Pg.281, image 2.5.36

Image 3: Lee Krasner Pg. 250, image 4.6.35

Use one line per artwork/artifact.

FOR INSPIRATION ONLY – do not select artworks from any of these websites, instead use those found in the textbook

· Explore websites for any great, world-class museum. Here is a good list: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_most_visited_art_museums_in_the_world

· Google Art Projects is organized by museums around the world and is a great resource for exploring museums.  https://www.google.com/culturalinstitute/project/art-project

· www.SmartHistory.khanacademy.org , and  www.wikipaintings.en  are both excellent sources for expanding knowledge of artworks studied in class/found in the textbook.

 

 

EXAMPLES OF WORLD MUSEUMS (and mission statements)

· The Dallas Museum of Art creates a space of wonder and discovery where art comes alive, by placing art and the community at the center around which all its activities radiate. It houses a vast collection of about twenty-four thousand artworks, and artifacts from all eras (it is considered an encyclopedic museum for that very reason). www.dma.org

· The Nasher Sculpture Center (located next door to the DMA) aims to be an international focal point and catalyst for the study, installation, conservation and appreciation of modern and contemporary sculpture. https://www.nashersculpturecenter.org/

· MOMA (Museum of Modern Art), New York, New York    Seeks to have a “permanent collection of the highest order that reflects the vitality, complexity and unfolding patterns of modern and contemporary art” (according to their website)  http://www.moma.org/about/index   Moma’s permanent collection is grouped by time period. They also show temporary exhibits which are usually grouped by artist.  http://www.moma.org/

· The Getty Villa , Malibu, CA Houses Art from Ancient Greece and Rome collected by J. Paul Getty  http://www.getty.edu/visit/villa/   

Exhibits: Permanent exhibits are grouped by media (i.e. sculpture, pottery, jewelry, etc.), and by usage (i.e. portraiture of the wealthy, funerary markers, decorative sculpture, etc.), or by subject matter (i.e. historic stories, depictions of particular gods or goddesses, etc.)  http://www.getty.edu/visit/exhibitions/