Barnes

"A primitive race, transported into an Anglo Saxon environment and held in subjugection to that fundamentally alien influence, was bound to undergo the soul stirring experiences which always find their expression in great art"

- Albert Barnes

This is not going to be a coherent post with a fluid recount of our visit to the Barnes. This is the third time I have visited the foundation and I can honestly saw I have noticed something new during every visit. WIthout the assisted guidance of museum labels, catalog book to explain the inspiration to the displayed collections, or a clear path physically guiding the viewer thorugh the rooms, it is hard to not feel overwhelmed by the breathe of works presented. Knowing the general lay out of the space helped me consume at a pace that was conducive to my mental availability for the day, but I still felt consumed by the works. 

I had the opportunity to talk to one of the guards named Fantasia in one of the hallways with large windows upon exiting the African art sections. I asked her a couple questions about what she liked/ disliked about the space, how she felt about the art, and how she processed such a grand setting. She told me the Barnes was strict compared to other guard postions she had heard rumors of. She felt like their behavior went against Barnes' vision of allowing these "master works" to be accessible to all walks of life. Who are they (the security team/ staff) to limit the viewer's ability to engage with the materials? This brought me to think about the African pieces in the glass display cases. I couldnt see the craftsmanship that went into the piece beyond the static placements of the masks/scultures. The physical restrictions of the display cases to see the full object made it difficult for me to fully engage with the skill that went in to make the pieces. The African art was protected, yet watched over by the white scholars in the over hanging paintings. Thinking about this quote by Fantasia below and the quote above by Albert Barnes I started to reposition the African art at the foundation to our soialization/ cultural understanding. It is powerful. European art and aesthetic standards would be nothing without African cutlture. Fantasia higlighted this beautifully by advising me to take what I want from the space; to claim my perspective as an important asset to the foundation because that what he would want instead of feeding into traditinoal museum culture. 

"There is a crazy idea that everything could be connected and not one singular story. We all impact each other in the traditional sense and in other ways that we dont talk about. If he was alive now I think we would be cool because he was about blurring the lines to make everyone feel welcome"

- Fantasia