My summer vacation included two visits to the late paintings of J.M.W. Turner on exhibition at San Francisco’s De Young Museum. If you have a chance, GO. The most celebrated British painter, J.M.W. was the subject of the recent film you may have seen or read about Mr. Turner.
In my return second visit I saw much more in the paintings: it was as though my eyes were adjusted to how he was playing with distance, perspective, and illusion. Actually, that second day viewing got me feeling a little drunk and dizzy on the paintings — especially with those of Venice.Here’s the thing: some art you don’t fully “get” the first time around. And it’s unfortunately rare that a piece will repeated in the same program, (but this can work marvelously, read here).
Back to Turner: above are two details from The Dogana, San Giorgio, Citella, from the Steps of the Europa. This is just part of the view Turner saw from the steps of his hotel, the Europa. In the right lower foreground corner we have a couple of dogs focusing on a solitary gondolier (and leading the viewers’ eyes there) and then the light leads us further back towards the layers of the vista stretching out behind the gondolier, mid ground and then far.
I found that after looking for a minute or so the details snapped into view and I discovered details in the distance that I’d missed—the mirage would slowly come into focus and suddenly I saw what Turner offers: a new way to view the world: a new way to experience light, time, distance, and beauty.
Besides the usual acoustic guide, docent tours, and written descriptions next to the paintings, museums are experimenting with more ways to help visitors make meaningful connections with the art.
When this Turner exhibition originated at the Tate, the museum invited people to submit their own landscape photos in the style of Turner, and winners were posted on the museum’s website.
Museum education / visitor engagement has been transformed in the past 20 years—it seems we musicians could learn a lot from museum programs.
My colleague jazz vocalist/composer Joyce Kwon turned me on (thank you, Joyce!) to the terrific museum activist, Nina Simon — check out her excellent TEDtalk (15:30). She challenges us to reimagine the purpose of art and the mission of arts organizations.
See a slideshow of some of Turner’s work HERE.
Question for this week: How can YOU help your adult audiences make more meaningful connections with the work you present?
Have you found anything that helps with them hearing both the forest and the trees, the small details and the larger structure of the whole? (Like my experience with the Turner.)
I’d love to hear what you’ve been experimenting with and what you’ve experienced that works well!
