The art museum can be an invaluable source of inspiration for artists. Spending time examining the works and comparing contemporary artists with artists from different time periods and cultures can illuminate some of the big ideas about art, as well as some of the meanings and roles that art exhibits. Currently, at the Frist Center for the Visual Arts there are three exhibits: Rembrandt and his contemporaries, pre-Columbian art from Central and South America, and a contemporary artist—Camille Utterback. What on earth could they possibly have in common? All of them represent their cultures with the reservation that museum's collections are selective. Cultures in these three exhibitions are represented in the thematic content and the material form which the objects manifest. By analyzing and studying these works one can discover a significant amount about the represented cultures. The Rembrandt exhibit clearly demonstrates the Age of Exploration through several of the paintings that directly represent the tall-masted trading ships. Other clues are present through the inclusion of exotic items in still lives, like oranges which are not native to Holland or figurative compositions that include people wearing silk or musical instruments acquired from other countries. Even the landscapes reveal whether the artist traveled outside Holland or not. Many artists traveled to Italy, for example, and incorporated the southern light and vibrant colors of the Mediterranean contrasting with the overcast skies of Northern Europe. This is only one layer. Other cultural layers reveal topics such as fashion, religion, values, and even invention. Oil painting was an invention of the Northern masters and the exhibition is predominated by this media.
The pre-Columbian time period is overwhelming vast geographically and spans approximately 4,000 years. How can one generalize about so many different cultures that arose over this expanse of time and geography? And what on earth could these cultures have in common with the Rembrandt exhibition? What is remarkable about this exhibition is that it is predominated by clay artifacts, just as much as oil paintings predominate the Rembrandt exhibition. This tells us about the technology and invention of these cultures. Where Holland's economy was driven by trade, the pre-Columbian civilizations were generally more focused on agriculture and trade is reflected in a supporting role. Clay is the very substance of agriculture and certain aspects of the cosmology reflected in the art objects present the recycling and rebirth that sowing, growing, and harvesting represent.
What about Camille Utterback? Like the other two exhibitions she uses the technology of the time period and the themes in some of them could only have been produced currently. Her art is interactive and she uses "coding as her paintbrush". The images are computer driven and the viewer can interact with words, specifically contemporary english, with time layered street scenes or with more abstract images. This is art work that represents our preoccupation with digital media.
As an artist, it is helpful to see so many different iterations of art and realize we can draw inspiration from around us by understanding the past, by understanding other cultures, but reflecting what is around us today.
