This article is from the source 'bbc' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.

You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/int/news/-/news/magazine-12308952

The article has changed 32 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.

Version 13 Version 14
A Point of View: Why are museums so uninspiring? A Point of View: Why are museums so uninspiring?
(40 minutes later)
Museums should help us to live better lives, but they are little more than dead libraries for the creations of the past, says Alain de Botton in his weekly column.Museums should help us to live better lives, but they are little more than dead libraries for the creations of the past, says Alain de Botton in his weekly column.
The other week, I made the suggestion that university departments teaching the humanities are not quite doing their job right and should take a leaf from religion in offering people guidance, rather than just the tools for critical thinking.The other week, I made the suggestion that university departments teaching the humanities are not quite doing their job right and should take a leaf from religion in offering people guidance, rather than just the tools for critical thinking.
The idea generated a lot of heat. I've rarely received as many emails, roughly split between those who thought I was onto something and those who preferred to have me locked up. But my overall thesis about our need for guidance still strikes me as valid and worth exploring in terms of its repercussions in other areas. So today, with only half an audience to convince, I want to look at museums.The idea generated a lot of heat. I've rarely received as many emails, roughly split between those who thought I was onto something and those who preferred to have me locked up. But my overall thesis about our need for guidance still strikes me as valid and worth exploring in terms of its repercussions in other areas. So today, with only half an audience to convince, I want to look at museums.
One of the things that even committed atheists tend to agree with religious people about is that religions do have some really great art, but militant atheists tend not to get too sentimental or nostalgic about this. If you love art but have no time for God, they tell you, remember that secular societies have developed their own, highly effective means of satisfying the artistic appetites once fed by the faiths - museums.One of the things that even committed atheists tend to agree with religious people about is that religions do have some really great art, but militant atheists tend not to get too sentimental or nostalgic about this. If you love art but have no time for God, they tell you, remember that secular societies have developed their own, highly effective means of satisfying the artistic appetites once fed by the faiths - museums.
SensuousSensuous
The argument that museums are our new churches has an immediate and seductive plausibility to it. The similarities seem beyond doubt. Like churches, museums enjoy an unparalleled status. They are where we might take a group of visiting aliens to show them what we most delight in and revere. We wander around galleries with the same sort of quiet reverence as we manifest in churches.The argument that museums are our new churches has an immediate and seductive plausibility to it. The similarities seem beyond doubt. Like churches, museums enjoy an unparalleled status. They are where we might take a group of visiting aliens to show them what we most delight in and revere. We wander around galleries with the same sort of quiet reverence as we manifest in churches.
However, I want to argue that in practice museums abdicate much of their potential to function as our new churches through the way they handle the precious material entrusted to them. While exposing us to objects of genuine importance, they nevertheless seem incapable of adequately linking these objects to the needs of our souls.However, I want to argue that in practice museums abdicate much of their potential to function as our new churches through the way they handle the precious material entrusted to them. While exposing us to objects of genuine importance, they nevertheless seem incapable of adequately linking these objects to the needs of our souls.
They don't do enough with the treasures they have because they present them to us in bland academic ways that fail to engage with the real potential of art, which is - I argue - to change us for the better.They don't do enough with the treasures they have because they present them to us in bland academic ways that fail to engage with the real potential of art, which is - I argue - to change us for the better.
Museums are notoriously bad at telling us why art matters. They vociferously insist on art's significance and rally governments, donors and visitors accordingly. But they subsequently retreat into a curious, institutional silence about what this importance might actually be based on.Museums are notoriously bad at telling us why art matters. They vociferously insist on art's significance and rally governments, donors and visitors accordingly. But they subsequently retreat into a curious, institutional silence about what this importance might actually be based on.
Christianity, by contrast, never leaves us in any doubt about what art is for - it is a medium to inspire you to faith, to remind you to be a healthy-minded, good and godly person. Look at that picture of Mary if you want to remember what tenderness is like. Look at that painting of the cross if you want a quick lesson in courage. Look at that Last Supper and train yourself not to be a coward and a liar.Christianity, by contrast, never leaves us in any doubt about what art is for - it is a medium to inspire you to faith, to remind you to be a healthy-minded, good and godly person. Look at that picture of Mary if you want to remember what tenderness is like. Look at that painting of the cross if you want a quick lesson in courage. Look at that Last Supper and train yourself not to be a coward and a liar.
A good artist by Christian standards is one who successfully animates the important moral and psychological truths which are in danger of losing their hold on us amid the distracted conditions of daily existence. Christian artists know that their technical talents - their command of light, composition and colour, their mastery of their materials and media - find their ultimate purpose in calling forth appropriate emotional responses from us: our eyes should train our hearts.A good artist by Christian standards is one who successfully animates the important moral and psychological truths which are in danger of losing their hold on us amid the distracted conditions of daily existence. Christian artists know that their technical talents - their command of light, composition and colour, their mastery of their materials and media - find their ultimate purpose in calling forth appropriate emotional responses from us: our eyes should train our hearts.
ExplicitExplicit
The German philosopher Hegel defined art as "the sensuous presentation of ideas". It is, he indicated, in the business of conveying concepts, just like ordinary language, except that it engages us through both our senses and our reason and is uniquely effective for its dual modes of address.The German philosopher Hegel defined art as "the sensuous presentation of ideas". It is, he indicated, in the business of conveying concepts, just like ordinary language, except that it engages us through both our senses and our reason and is uniquely effective for its dual modes of address.
We might modify Hegel's definition to bring it more fully into line with Christianity's insights. Good art is the sensuous presentation of those ideas which matter most to the proper functioning of our souls, and yet which we are most inclined to forget.We might modify Hegel's definition to bring it more fully into line with Christianity's insights. Good art is the sensuous presentation of those ideas which matter most to the proper functioning of our souls, and yet which we are most inclined to forget.
This helps us to answer what a church or a museum should, in terms of its art, be about from a Christian point of view. It should be a machine for putting before us pictures, photographs and statues that try to change us, that propagandise on behalf of ideas like kindness, love, faith and sacrifice. It should be a place to convert you.This helps us to answer what a church or a museum should, in terms of its art, be about from a Christian point of view. It should be a machine for putting before us pictures, photographs and statues that try to change us, that propagandise on behalf of ideas like kindness, love, faith and sacrifice. It should be a place to convert you.
It's this effort at conversion, at change, that interests me. I'm a complete atheist and the specific direction in which Christianity tries to change people doesn't grab me. Nevertheless, I'm very curious about the didactic approach that Christianity takes towards art. I love the way it builds museums and churches not to put pretty things in front of us, but to use pretty things to change us.It's this effort at conversion, at change, that interests me. I'm a complete atheist and the specific direction in which Christianity tries to change people doesn't grab me. Nevertheless, I'm very curious about the didactic approach that Christianity takes towards art. I love the way it builds museums and churches not to put pretty things in front of us, but to use pretty things to change us.
I try to imagine what would happen if modern secular museums took the example of churches more seriously. What if they too decided that art had a specific purpose - to make us good and wise and kind - and tried to use the art in their collections to prompt us to be so?I try to imagine what would happen if modern secular museums took the example of churches more seriously. What if they too decided that art had a specific purpose - to make us good and wise and kind - and tried to use the art in their collections to prompt us to be so?
What if they gave up on the neutral, bland captions they tend to use and put beneath each picture a really directive set of commands telling us, for example, "look at this image and remember to be patient". Or "use this sculpture to meditate on what you too could do to bring about a fairer world".What if they gave up on the neutral, bland captions they tend to use and put beneath each picture a really directive set of commands telling us, for example, "look at this image and remember to be patient". Or "use this sculpture to meditate on what you too could do to bring about a fairer world".
Perhaps art shouldn't be "for art's sake", one of the most unambitious of all slogans. Why couldn't art be - as it was in religious eras - more explicitly for something? And what if it was for making us kinder and better, more thoughtful and more generous?Perhaps art shouldn't be "for art's sake", one of the most unambitious of all slogans. Why couldn't art be - as it was in religious eras - more explicitly for something? And what if it was for making us kinder and better, more thoughtful and more generous?
Modern museums typically lead us into galleries set out under headings such as "the 19th Century" or "the Northern Italian School", which reflect the academic traditions in which their curators have been educated. However, this arrangement is no more responsive to the inner needs of museum goers than is, to readers, the scholarly division of literature into such categories as "the American Novel of the 19th Century" or "Elizabethan drama".Modern museums typically lead us into galleries set out under headings such as "the 19th Century" or "the Northern Italian School", which reflect the academic traditions in which their curators have been educated. However, this arrangement is no more responsive to the inner needs of museum goers than is, to readers, the scholarly division of literature into such categories as "the American Novel of the 19th Century" or "Elizabethan drama".
AmbitionAmbition
A more fertile indexing system would group together artworks from across genres and eras according to the concerns of our souls. Museums would take us through spaces which would each try to remind us in a sensory way - with the help of unapologetic labels and catalogues - of important ideas related to a variety of problematic areas of our lives.A more fertile indexing system would group together artworks from across genres and eras according to the concerns of our souls. Museums would take us through spaces which would each try to remind us in a sensory way - with the help of unapologetic labels and catalogues - of important ideas related to a variety of problematic areas of our lives.
There would be galleries devoted to evoking the beauty of simplicity, the curative powers of nature, the dignity of the outsider or the comfort of maternal nurture. A walk through a museum would amount to a structured encounter with a few of the things which are easiest for us to forget and most essential and life-enhancing to remember.There would be galleries devoted to evoking the beauty of simplicity, the curative powers of nature, the dignity of the outsider or the comfort of maternal nurture. A walk through a museum would amount to a structured encounter with a few of the things which are easiest for us to forget and most essential and life-enhancing to remember.
In this revamping we might look for inspiration to a great Christian church, let's take the church of Santa Maria Gloriosa dei Frari in Venice. Proudly indifferent to the indexing methodology of the academic system, the Frari is committed to the mission of rebalancing our souls with a highly eclectic range of works, including a fresco by Veneziano, a statue of John the Baptist by Donatello, Bellini's Madonna and Child with Saints and a large altarpiece by Titian.In this revamping we might look for inspiration to a great Christian church, let's take the church of Santa Maria Gloriosa dei Frari in Venice. Proudly indifferent to the indexing methodology of the academic system, the Frari is committed to the mission of rebalancing our souls with a highly eclectic range of works, including a fresco by Veneziano, a statue of John the Baptist by Donatello, Bellini's Madonna and Child with Saints and a large altarpiece by Titian.
The building throws together sculptures, paintings, metalwork and window traceries from across centuries and regions because it is more interested in the coherence of art's impact on our souls than in the coherence of the origins and stylistic inclinations of the people who produced the art.The building throws together sculptures, paintings, metalwork and window traceries from across centuries and regions because it is more interested in the coherence of art's impact on our souls than in the coherence of the origins and stylistic inclinations of the people who produced the art.
If museums really were to be our new churches, then something like the National Gallery would be reorganised according to the underlying principles suggested by Christian art. The art wouldn't need to change, just the way it was arranged and presented.If museums really were to be our new churches, then something like the National Gallery would be reorganised according to the underlying principles suggested by Christian art. The art wouldn't need to change, just the way it was arranged and presented.
The challenge is to rewrite the agendas for our museums so that art can begin to serve the needs of psychology as effectively as, for centuries, it served those of theology. Curators should dare to reinvent their spaces so that they can be more than dead libraries for the creations of the past.The challenge is to rewrite the agendas for our museums so that art can begin to serve the needs of psychology as effectively as, for centuries, it served those of theology. Curators should dare to reinvent their spaces so that they can be more than dead libraries for the creations of the past.
These curators should co-opt works of art to the direct task of helping us to live: to achieve self-knowledge, to remember forgiveness and love and to stay sensitive to the pains suffered by our ever troubled species and its urgently imperilled planet. Only then will museums be able to claim that they have properly fulfilled the noble but still elusive ambition of becoming our new churches.These curators should co-opt works of art to the direct task of helping us to live: to achieve self-knowledge, to remember forgiveness and love and to stay sensitive to the pains suffered by our ever troubled species and its urgently imperilled planet. Only then will museums be able to claim that they have properly fulfilled the noble but still elusive ambition of becoming our new churches.


Comments



Comments

You are not currently signed in. or register.You are not currently signed in. or register.
 
  • id="comment_105802131">
 
  • id="comment_105803924">
Religion proscribes critical thought and instead presents its own vision of truth and asks us to take it in without question - indeed it makes the questioning of its teaching a barrier to being allowed in in the first place.Are you suggesting this is the approach museums should take? I think I'll stick with the presentation of interpretations of history with room for us to fill in the gaps. Inspirational thinking - I love the ideas Mr. de B presents here. What's wrong with asking the artist and/or curator to present some thought provoking questions/ ideas that inspired the work, beside the work itself? Re-organising a gallery in a themed way would be SO stimulating for children, and bring me (adult) on a very different journey too. It's not didactic, it's active and provocative.
href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/newscommentsmodule/comments/UserComplaintPage?PostID=105802131&s_start=1" class="popup dna-commentbox-complain-link" title="Complain about this comment"> Report this comment href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/newscommentsmodule/comments/UserComplaintPage?PostID=105803924&s_start=1" class="popup dna-commentbox-complain-link" title="Complain about this comment"> Report this comment
title="Copy this link to generate a permanent link to this comment">Link to this title="Copy this link to generate a permanent link to this comment">Link to this
  • id="comment_105802100">
  • id="comment_105803702">
    • If i heard rightly he expects museum curators to write little notices that deal with the way they think we should think about the artifacts? Well i'll think about how i want to think about artifacts and the curators can stick to writing little labels stating the facts. I don't understand why Digital Camel (77) can't be "bothered" to hear what an artist has to say about their own piece of work. That's like letting someone speaking to you, then telling them you aren't at all interested in what they had to say. Isn't that selfish too? You obviously are more interested than you give yourself credit for, as you have taken the time to read this article & comment on it
    href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/newscommentsmodule/comments/UserComplaintPage?PostID=105802100&s_start=1" class="popup dna-commentbox-complain-link" title="Complain about this comment"> Report this comment href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/newscommentsmodule/comments/UserComplaintPage?PostID=105803702&s_start=1" class="popup dna-commentbox-complain-link" title="Complain about this comment"> Report this comment
    title="Copy this link to generate a permanent link to this comment">Link to this title="Copy this link to generate a permanent link to this comment">Link to this
  • id="comment_105801358">
  • id="comment_105803576">
    • From an artist's point of view this is spot on! Thanks so much for so brilliantly stating what has been rolling around in my head for so long! I find it difficult that you advocate prescribing to post modern adults child like interpretations. Your suggested 'prompts' remind me of children's guides to museums. I can turn a museum into whatever showcase I want, because of its neutrality. I have imagination and feeling I then can place on the items. To be told to look at a painting and 'feel more patient' is more demanding than religion.
    href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/newscommentsmodule/comments/UserComplaintPage?PostID=105801358&s_start=1" class="popup dna-commentbox-complain-link" title="Complain about this comment"> Report this comment href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/newscommentsmodule/comments/UserComplaintPage?PostID=105803576&s_start=1" class="popup dna-commentbox-complain-link" title="Complain about this comment"> Report this comment
    title="Copy this link to generate a permanent link to this comment">Link to this title="Copy this link to generate a permanent link to this comment">Link to this
  • id="comment_105801233">
  • id="comment_105803156">
    • If it wasn't for museums I wouldn't be studying history. Yes the internet is brilliant and allows you to learn as much as you could in a museum, but going to the museum has a whole experience around it and allows you to get up close to things that are either 50 years old or thousands of years old, something the internet could never achieve. As a museum professional, I agree with Mr. de Botton - museums are in a crisis. Though we have historically high levels of authority, museums are dull, didactic spaces that are seriously uninspiring. If it wasn't for the fabulous objects on display, museums would be extinct. However, we do not need yet more curatorial labels, but more public input into the presentation of our collections.
    href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/newscommentsmodule/comments/UserComplaintPage?PostID=105801233&s_start=1" class="popup dna-commentbox-complain-link" title="Complain about this comment"> Report this comment href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/newscommentsmodule/comments/UserComplaintPage?PostID=105803156&s_start=1" class="popup dna-commentbox-complain-link" title="Complain about this comment"> Report this comment
    title="Copy this link to generate a permanent link to this comment">Link to this title="Copy this link to generate a permanent link to this comment">Link to this
  • id="comment_105800784">
  • id="comment_105802924">
    • The old fashioned town museums were so much more interesting than the modern, bland versions. Somehow the expensive displays tends to kill the spontaneity of 'discovering' something for yourself.Furthermore, the old style museum, with its jumble of dusty exhibits, many of them bearing little connection with the adjacent objects, was more inspiring than the new didactic approach. "Absolutely" geekgirl! I've never been at all bothered about the message an artist may wish to convey. Art (commissioned or not) is a selfish and subjective activity. If I want it explained, I'll ask. If I (dis)like a picture, poem or sandwich then it's for my own reasons. Probably explains why I find so much modern "art" boring - my kids leave half-made beds in my house all the time Tracey. So?
    href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/newscommentsmodule/comments/UserComplaintPage?PostID=105800784&s_start=1" class="popup dna-commentbox-complain-link" title="Complain about this comment"> Report this comment href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/newscommentsmodule/comments/UserComplaintPage?PostID=105802924&s_start=1" class="popup dna-commentbox-complain-link" title="Complain about this comment"> Report this comment
    title="Copy this link to generate a permanent link to this comment">Link to this title="Copy this link to generate a permanent link to this comment">Link to this
       
    Comments 5 of 76 Comments 5 of 81
       
    Add your commentAdd your comment
    You are not currently signed in. or register.You are not currently signed in. or register.