Peter Schjeldahl of the New Yorker Rebounds about Detroit's Dilemma

Listen to this podcast from the New Yorker by John Cassidy for a summary of Detroit's crisis. 

Some body must have been put Schjedahl in a time out to think about what he said. In the New Yorker, Mr. Schjedahl questioned Detroit's Institute of Art decision to sell art works in order to relieve some of the budgetary crisis. DIA has a wonderful collection that could bring some balance if some pieces are sold, but what is the disconnect between the cultural emotional attachment to art, the valuation of art objects, and some sort of financial salvation. Don't most collectors sell objects when there is a financial need? How is a museum any different? Let's face it valuation of art is a volatile ocean of who, what, where, and how many's. Personally, DIA's move is prudent, but deeply significant not only to the value of the objects themselves, but to the cultural identity of Detroit's art wealth. The only persons comfortable with this are the art buyers drooling for a chance to buy on sale. Schjedahl's reaction was normal; what would any art writer emulate when cultural meaning turns to simple numbers? He is a critic and should be expected to critiques, criticize, and offer insight into discomfort. Emotionally, how can we help but cling to art objects? I do. We all do, but when do we emotionally detach from objects that induce feelings?

But here is where I see distressing signs: in Schjedahl's retraction or apology, he not only apologizes for his initial reaction, but he speaks as if someone scolded his words and opinions. What happened to open conversations and new truths? Art criticism is a form a democracy that seems to fading. I am praying that the conversation he initiates continue to be a scholarly source for exchange. Actually, we should all initiate a conversation or, at the least, participate in one. Just please don't bring up Kate and Price William's baby.

I have long been a reader and follower, if you will, of Audubon. So, when the Times reported on the exhibit of his work and words at Boston's Museum of Fine Arts, I had to share the link.
This particular exhibit is an interesting effort to combine prints and words from the artist. This pairing is often a hotly debated form of exhibiting because text is often an imposing bias of meaning that can squew a viewers experience. Some would say this narrows the meaning; while others would say viewers need some direction to grasp meanings.

My opinion, you wonder? I have faith in the viewer. Their intuitive reaction is essential in the meaning and experience of art and history. Yet, text still offers some insight into the artist. The hanging object is only one dimension of experiencing art. Where do words, phrases, sentences take us when we view (still) visual arts?


Check out the online sneak peak into the exhibit: http://www.mfa.org/exhibitions/audubons-birds-audubons-words

Since I have time to write

Since I have time to write, I am taking full advantage of it.  Next week August begins, and my studio will not longer remain this quite. This entire summer my thoughts have been about moving beyond the conceptual postmodernism approach to examine and move outside these lines.
Many photographers have gone so far as to write out explanations or boundaries that define their images. I have never been one to hand over meaning that can often narrow a viewers experience.  I want to take the viewer into my reality, which may be a space never seen before. Isn't that why we all want to experience art? We want to experience a space, maybe a time, that is not always accessible in our current reality.  Has postmodernism prevented this because representations can be misinterpreted? I think yes, but not the sole factor.  As our media has changed and art critics have become art calendar keepers, our cultural ears  are Waiting for  Godot or something serendipitous.

Photography, and perhaps contemporary art in general, has lost its way because no one is writing critically.  This has caused a lull in new groups, new movements, and room for younger emerging artists, although this bias maybe a geographical cause and effect of South Florida.  I crave to see something new.  So, if you have news of where to go, post a reply.

Henry Peter Emerson

Doesn't Henry Peter Emerson sound familiar? You guessed it-he is the cousin of the Emerson we all learn about studying the transcendentalists. Henry Peter Emerson was Cuban and produced an amazing array of photographic work from the 1890's. I love his philosophical approach of melding the scientific, technical, and art into a landscape photograph. This especially draws me in because I myself have journeyed down this road with my own body of landscape work on Lake Okeechobee.

One of my favorite Emerson photographs was printed as a photogravure.

The Lone Lagoon,  Northern Broads, UK           c1895

The Myriad of Opportunities

Ben Franklin, Franklin Museum by Sarah's iPhone

Opportunities are omnipotent, aren't they? In my many years studying with George DeWolfe, the listening for these opportunities is often a blend of the waiting and the doing. We must equate the feeling of knowing with the action of creating. I always say to see the truths, we must see inside out.
I think Ben Franklin knew this knowing, which is one of my reasons to head north to Philly for a visit.

Today, I am heading to the Norton Museum of Art for my monthly check in meeting with Tim Wride, who is sharing with me another means with which to understand photography (and fine art in general). I am captured by the opportunity to explore and experience photography from another dimension. I like to think of it as seeing beyond the frame into a mysterious mix that I can arrange. A wall is like a still life-arrangement and placement are just as fun. I look forward to writing more about the exhibit that I am working on with Tim. 

 

Over the past several years, my interest and passion in working with photographic collections has grown. One of my recent projects is an online exhibit of photographs from the Museum of the Glades archives. Their photographic collection is wonderful. Online exhibits have become a welcome addition for photographic collections by extending to a larger audience.  Exhibits within themselves are evolving   into a more participatory experience for viewers; I personally feel this makes for an enriched experience and creates a more intimate feeling that brings the viewer in for a closer look. 

From a technical perspective, digital curation is melding information technologies with library and archival science. This will be an exciting evolution to be a part of. 

Heading to Ritta Island, Lake Okeechobee         Sarah Brown

Annual Leave

 In less than 5 months, I will officially have a MLIS after my name. In this past year of absence, I have researched, written, and gained insight that will be forthcoming in new photographic work. I am happy to return.

• Sarah Brown, MLIS