Phoenix Art Museum

I've been in the Valley 13 years, but for whatever reason, I had never been to the Phoenix Art Museum. I knew it was a decent museum and had representative paintings from a lot of major artists and eras. I guess I was probably too influenced by those around me. None of them are really art buffs (as far as I know). I don't think the wife would have ever suggested going to the museum. But it was Father's Day, I had choice ... and I picked for us all to go to the art museum. Alex is of an impressionable age, 5, and I thought that he'd have a good time. Well, he did ... and we did.

We began in the large open gallery which primarily had modern paintings and then went to the special exhibit of German artists, Constructing New Berlin. These were a lot of mixed-media displays. The most interesting being Thomas Demand's photographs of paper sculptures. But you don't know that at first. You just think they are photographs of normal every day things. But you look closer and they are actually carefully constructed representations of those things. The obvious meaning being: what is real and what is artifice in our everyday communication?

Next we went to the permanent exhibits. Some of the first ones that we saw were fairly modern. Two of the more recognizable, Diego Rivera and Picasso:



We both found that we liked the Impressionist painters ... much to our surprise. Seeing Impressionist paintings in a book or on TV do not do them justice. In person, you see every brush stroke and are able to adjust your distance to the painting. Which is how the painters intended. They wanted the eye of the viewer to blend the colors instead of the painter doing it. Here's a Monet:



Next were European paintings of the 14th - 17th Century. These were primarily religious in nature, as was the custom for a long time. We both liked these exhibits ... albeit for different reasons. My wife appreciated the religious imagery while I appreciated what it said about society in general. I'm fascinated by the arc that is taken from the 1300's to the 1700's in painting. Early on, Christian subjects are flat and unrealistic so as to strees the divinity of them. To a largely unsophisticated and uneducated citizenry, it was important for the church to make sure that they understand they were divine. As time went on, the subjects because more human and more realistic so as to display the humanity of them. Here's a painting from 1350:



Another aspect of Christian themes that I enjoy is that it can be pretty gruesome at times. John the Baptist's head on a plate:



Michelle really liked this painting of a castle by James Webb:



For some reason, I always like Georgia O'Keeffe paintings. :-)



Overall, we were impressed and we won't wait another 13 years before we visit again.