Third Grade Visits The Guggenheim

Head curator of the exhibition, Alexandra Munroe, greeted the boys in the lobby and guided them through the exhibition to see some of the highlights.  Before leading the boys up the spiral ramp, Ms. Munroe explained that there are seventy-one works in the exhibition.  All of the artists were born in China, and many of them are responding to conditions in China through their artwork.

 

The boys first stopped to look at Chen Zhen’s Precipitous Parturition which is suspended mid-air in the center section of the museum.  The boys observed that the artwork looked like a dragon with a head made of bicycles.  They were able to see this piece from many different heights and viewpoints as they made their way through the museum.  As they looked more closely at the belly of the dragon, they noticed small cars.  Ms. Munroe explained how this artwork was a metaphor describing China’s transformation from a nation of bicycles to a nation of cars.  She also explained that for safety reasons the piece could only be installed at night…eleven nights, to be exact.

 

Another highlight in the exhibition was Wang Guangyi’s Mao Zedong: Red Grid #2.  The boys learned that Mao Zedong was a communist leader who ruled China from 1949 to 1976.  During this time his image was printed, displayed, and distributed throughout China.  In this painting, which was made in 1988, Mao is depicted behind a printer’s grid.  The printing press, which helped Mao become famous, transformed into a prison in this painting.  The boys discussed how the artist seemed to be implying that the power of Mao was man-made.  Ms. Munroe pointed out the irony and humor in the painting.  The artist seemed to be poking fun at the system of power.  Ms. Munroe believes the artist felt a sense of freedom through expression.

 

As the boys looked at a performance piece by Big Tail Elephant, a four-member artists’ collective (Chen Shaoxiong, Liang Juhui, Lin Yilin, and Xu Tan), they discussed conceptual art.  They learned that ideas are the subjects of conceptual art.  The boys believed that this artwork was a critique of pollution. 

 

The boys particularly enjoyed Upside-Down Buddha/Arrival at Good Fortune, which was made in 1997 by Chen Zhen Fu Dao/Fu Dao.  The boys sat down inside the installation and observed three distinct layers.  The first layer consisted of upside-down Buddha sculptures.  The boys discussed that Buddhism encourages freedom from material desires and material objects.  They noticed the next layer was made of machinery, technology, and the junk of everyday life.  The last layer, at the top of the installation, was nature.  The boys discussed the eternal, everlasting qualities of the natural world.  Ms. Munroe suggested that perhaps the artist was saying that somewhere we have a taken a wrong turn.  Things were literally upside down.

 

As the boys made their way down to the ground level they talked about their favorite pieces, pointed out other artworks to each other, and looked up one more time at the dragon in the sky.

 

We greatly appreciate Alexandra Munroe taking the time to guide our boys through the exhibition and to discuss the artworks in depth.  Her perspective definitely piqued their interest.