For our final museum itinerary, I would like you to visit museums that expand the traditional canon of art history,presenting the work of living, contemporary artists alongside older works of well-known artists. Please think of all you saw and all we discussed concerning the National Gallery of Art and the way it presents the traditional canon of European “great art.” Think of the ways the museums of non-western art presented unfamiliar artists. Finally, be sure you read the final chapter in Carol Duncan’s book Civilizing Rituals, on “Museums of Modern art—It’s a man’s world.” Please visit ONE of the following museums. Please also visit their website to get a sense of how they present themselves and their artists on-line.

1. NATIONAL MUSEUM OF WOMEN IN THE ARTS. 1250 New York Ave. NW. See the shows “Leslie Dill: A Ten Year Survey” and “Insomnia: Night Landscapes,” as well as noticing the display of pieces from their permanent collection. How is each presented to the viewer—labelling, framing, lighting, all that. What messages does the installation convey? Please notice how this building was adapted from an old Masonic theater! How do they promote their educational mission? How do they contextualize the exhibits here? What are some of the issues that arise from having a museum dedicated to “women in the arts”? Do you think it constitutes “ghettoizing” the artists represented here, or does it give them more visibility than they would receive in broader museum collections, such as the National Gallery of Art? This was a very controversial issue when the museum opened in 1987, and is still a matter of discussion. Another issue, still controversial: Is the art here too tame? Does it reflect too closely the rather genteel taste of its founder, Wilhelmina Holladay? Or have they moved past that?

Be sure to engage with Carol Duncan’s chapter, which talks about traditional canonical arrangements of modern art. What do they do differently here? Also read the article by Anne Higonnet in your reader. Is there in fact a canon of great women artists, or have they had to take a different approach? How does their website forward their agenda? How to get there:Metro Center Metro stop, Orange/Blue/Red Lines. Web site: http://www.nmwa.org

2. HIRSHHORN MUSEUM AND SCULPTURE GARDEN. Independence Ave. at 8th Street SW. This is the Smithsonian’s modern art museum, consisting of a building and permanent collection donated by Joseph Hirshhorn, and a notable outdoor sculpture garden out on the mall side, with more large sculptures on the perimeter of the building. Usually they exhibit a mix in the galleries—sculpture and other works from their own collection, plus temporary exhibits of modern and contemporary art. Right now, however, they’ve done something quite different—filled the entire museum with works from their own collection, and hung not by school or artist, necessarily, but grouped in new and very interesting ways. It is a very non-canonical way to show modern art. The show is called “Gyroscope,” a play on the image of this round building and the way one visits it—round and round, but balanced by its own created gravity.

Oh, so much to comment on here! Again, first read the chapter on “Museums of modern art—it’s a man’s world” in your Civilizing Rituals book. What is the tradition for hanging and interpreting modern art? How is this different, or is it? More issues to note: What sorts of themes governing the grouping of objects in this show? What have the curators done to encourage dialogue between pieces of very different periods? Can you find humor in some of the groupings? Surprise? The gender thing: body and memory are hot issues in contemporary art, and works of this nature are displayed in the Hirshhorn’s basement level. What do you think—does the display reflect Duncan’s assertions on the female nude in modern art? Note the dates of pieces—is the female nude more prevalent in older art, or newer art, or has it remained about the same? Context and display: What are the labels like? The galleries? What lies behind the choices made? Media: What are the media here? What adjustments have had to be made to accommodate non-traditional materials such as, yknow, pollen, beeswax, video, and blown paper? Note the adjustments they’ve made for light and windows: What gets put by the windows? How have they protected other works from the light? The architecture: How does this building work? Compare it to the modern galleries in the National Gallery of Art. How is the experience of art different here? Which do you find more successful, and why?

Get there: Smithsonian Metro stop (orange/blue)L’Enfant Plaza Metro stop (orange/blue/green).Web site: http://hirshhorn.si.edu/