Rubin Museum of Art Teens

Flipside Career Focus: Visit to the Art Conservator

Wed, 24 Apr 2013 10:45:00 -0400

In celebration and exploration of Flipside, which displays the often hidden unexposed backsides of Tibetan paintings, RMA Teens journeyed to the Brooklyn Navy yard to meet with members of the Art Conservation Group—a group of art conservation specialists who have helped behind the scenes to preserve many of the Rubin’s own, and often very ancient, pieces. What started out as a gloomy day weather-wise quickly turned into an exciting trip consisting of behind-the-scenes access into the world of art conservation.

We entered the spacious warehouse building where the art is kept, and where, as we were to learn, the conservators spend their hours deliberating over what it is that plagues the art and how best to conserve it. Us Teens then sat in a rather oblong circle, like we often do, and Leslie, the Group’s founder, began speaking to us about her role as an art conservator. Right away we were captivated, listening intently to Leslie’s description of conservation duties, which, to summarize, include locating the “problem” with the art piece, sending samples of it to a lab to identify possibly harmful microorganisms, and figuring out the safest and most effective way to “cure” and conserve it. She explained that Renaissance art is easier to conserve than modern art, because the materials Renaissance artists used were both more organic and more permanent. She explained that salt pollution is a killer for conservators, seeing as it causes most materials to discolor and deteriorate, and often makes objects very difficult to clean. Beyond fun facts regarding conservation, Leslie went into detail about her personal inspiration for becoming a conservator, which arose from a love of art but no desire to be an artist, as well as about the academic processes necessary to becoming a conservator. It is essential to have an extensive knowledge of art history, the fine arts, and chemistry, and a whopping three college/graduate degrees in order to be a professional art conservator. Leslie noted that having to succeed in chemistry class was a struggle, considering she came from an art background, which I’m sure would resonate with the lot of us.

As our seated discussion wrapped up, we prepared to see, first-hand, Leslie and her team’s most recent projects. After being told to keep our hands in our pockets so as to not accidentally (or purposefully) touch the fragile art, we were led into a huge room with intensely bright lighting that contrasted the dark outside sky. All of the Teens, Pauline included, gasped out of excitement and near disbelief. We found ourselves faced with beautiful modern sculptures, as well as some kind of tribal art, clearly from two completely different dimensions, but all in a room together. Many of the items in the room were waiting for diagnoses—for the team to inspect, investigate, and detect the issues to ultimately cure them. At one point, I simply couldn’t contain myself any longer and just had to ask Leslie how much of a rush she gets when she touches these incredible, and usually very old and historic pieces of art. Her eyes lit up as she responded with an enthusiastic “It’s awesome,” and I couldn’t imagine the feeling being any less.

We stayed talking with Leslie for longer than scheduled, clearly inspired and very curious still. After thanking her on the way out, we convened outside to reflect on our fresh experience. The opinion was unanimous: Art conservation is awesome. What I realized both stands out and appeals to me is how hands-on and investigative the nature of art conservation is. Furthermore, conservation integrates art and science in such an interesting way that makes the connection seem utterly natural.

With regard to the Rubin, it is remarkable to understand now how and why its art is able to remain so intact and beautiful. Without the discipline of art conservation, it is very possible that much of the Rubin’s art, all of which we love so much, would be falling apart faster than a sand mandala on a windy day. Art conservation is the key for maintaining the beauty, integrity, and health of art. Like a doctor diagnoses his or her patients and attempts to treat them, so does a conservator for art, and for that reason, it is a very honorable, very essential profession.

FLIPSIDE...THE EVENT!!!

Thu, 18 Apr 2013 12:40:00 -0400

We’ve been having all these amaaaazing discussions and adventures related to Flipside and Living Shrines. Soon it will be time for you to join the fun! Please come to our teen event totally designed and run by the Rubin Museum of Art’s Teen Guide Council. Meet us and join in conversations on the exhibitions and collaborate on a giant art shrine! Can’t wait to post pictures and videos here of YOUR experiences in these shows… xx

Julia and June from Teen Guide Council on Black Yamari from...

Thu, 18 Apr 2013 12:15:51 -0400

Julia and June from Teen Guide Council on Black Yamari from Flipside <3

Black Yamari, Tibet. Beautiful and inspiring piece from...

Wed, 17 Apr 2013 18:14:09 -0400

Black Yamari, Tibet. Beautiful and inspiring piece from #flipside #rubinmuseumofart #rubinmuseum #rmateens #buddhism

Eye of deity or accidental stain? We don’t know…

Wed, 17 Apr 2013 18:14:00 -0400

Eye of deity or accidental stain? We don’t know…

Human presence on #human #presence. #art #rubinmuseum #cool...

Wed, 17 Apr 2013 18:12:43 -0400

Human presence on #human #presence. #art #rubinmuseum #cool #teens #flipside #museums #event #shadow #hand

RMA Teens talking about Sunray on Tomb.

Mon, 15 Apr 2013 16:28:33 -0400

RMA Teens talking about Sunray on Tomb.

Check out Lisa Ross talking about one of her photographs,...

Mon, 15 Apr 2013 16:13:49 -0400

Check out Lisa Ross talking about one of her photographs, Tandem, with Teen Guide Council.

Flipside, Living Shrines, and Willpower

Wed, 10 Apr 2013 21:17:00 -0400

Have you ever kept a wonderful secret? A secret so wonderful that you wanted to tell every person you came across? Or have you ever seen the blueprint for a building or a map of underground tunnels? The new Flipside exhibition evokes all of these experiences at once. Flipside focuses on the consecrated backsides of Buddhist thangka paintings (instructional paintings). The consecration of the back of the work transforms each painting from an artwork to a holy object. Thus, Flipside demonstrates the architecture of each work: the infrastructure that supports the depiction on the front. Extending this idea of support, the backside is the spine of each piece, the spine that keeps the spiritual beings, ideas, and lessons of the painting standing straight.

Flipside has greatly impacted my perception of another new exhibition at the museum: Lisa Ross’ Living Shrines of Uyghur China. This exhibition presents several photographs of a body of work Ross took over an eight-year period in Uyghur China. I see so much movement in these photographs, and it was movement that connected these two exhibitions for me, that is, the activity or the flow of meaning, whether it be between one side of a painting to another or the wind blowing a cloth on a shrine, which maintains the sacred aspects of both the thangka paintings and the shrines. Indeed, what is the lifeblood of the sacred, and how is the blood flow of the sacred maintained? Today Teen Guide Council met with Lisa Ross and in our discussion one of her comments provided a very interesting response to this question. She spoke of the temporal materials that characterize these shrine, sticks, wood, cloth, animal carcasses and bones, objects that all wear away in the desert. Thus, people are constantly adding new materials and elements to the shrines in order to preserve them. Although these shrines identify burial mounds and honor the dead, they demonstrate, quite intensely, the presence and activity of life.

Both of theses exhibitions convey liveliness and energy and both deal with ideas of what is sacred and how to demonstrate and maintain what is sacred. Together these exhibitions reminded me particularly of Buddhist mandalas. Mandalas are mental tools used to focus one’s will unto certain goals and to then help one achieve those goals and a higher state of being. One meditates by mentally traveling through rings of fire and a palace (the mandala) until one reaches one’s goal at the center of the palace. I myself think about mandalas often in a non-religious way. They still deal with personal and sacred actions for me but they are also simply the building of good and healthy habits. Thus, in any sense, mandalas are a way of conditioning one’s mind; they are tools to craft one’s mind into a sacred place, into a shrine. They are tools that may be used to craft one’s own will into a sacred structure. How else might we craft our own will into sacred structures?

- Madeleine

Living Shrines and Flip Side: Discussion Questions

Tue, 09 Apr 2013 23:00:00 -0400

I’ve been thinking a lot recently about discussion questions pertaining to the two of the Rubin’s current shows, Living Shrines and Flip Side. I hope to be able to use some of these questions in our discussions we will be leading in our next teen event in early May.

What are different burial rituals in different societies and in different ages throughout history and all over the world? (See the photograph of burial mounds)
In what way is burying a human body an act of consecration or a sacred or divine act?
A main highlight of Buddhism is about the lean away from material possessions and material goods. Why, then, are objects so sacred in some sects of Buddhism? Are objects and shrines a way to communicate with a higher, divine power?
How are the Islamic shrines in Living Shrines different from other shrines or shrine objects in the museum, such as in the shrine room? What might explain these differences?
What exactly is a shrine? Can a shrine be non-religious?
Is there one object that you treasure above all other objects? Why is it meaningful?

I’m enjoying pondering these questions with my fellow RMA Teen Guides, and I look forward to getting to ask teens who come to our event similar questions!

-Julia

Human Divinity

Tue, 09 Apr 2013 22:21:00 -0400

I’m really excited to be planning our second event. Our last one (Samsara: Journey to Enlightenment) was so successful in increasing RMAs accessibility to teenagers. I hope this one will be too.

The theme of this event, inspired by Living Shrines and Flip-Side will be,

“Creating divinity in objects or spaces through human presence.”

Both shows are extraordinary.

Flip-Side shows us an original and ingenious way of looking at traditional thangka paintings- from the back. Thangka paintings are typically symmetrical and meticulously detailed. Seeing printed consecration mantras and secret handprint blessings upon a raw canvas back brings new levels of connection to the pieces. It humanizes them.

Similarly, Lisa Ross’ Living Shrines shows the presence of humans in nature. Her portraiture style, combined with her eye for color, make it easy for viewers to grasp the meaning of a “shrine”- a place where one consecrates or commemorates something important to them.

At the event, we hope to create a collaborative shrine- a sanctuary where you can honor something privately, yet participate in a collective, bonding activity. As both shows do, we hope to recognize the personal, human presence that becomes apparent in veneration and in artwork. To what degree are they the same thing?

-June

A New Perspective

Sat, 06 Apr 2013 09:52:00 -0400

As I walked by the photo, I immediately felt a part of me drift into the photograph. Within seconds I could feel the wind blowing and the rocks and sand below my feet as I looked out onto the Living Shrines. I saw a perfect balance exist between the flags, the branches and the sand- however odd the coexisted perfectly. In the midst of the dessert grew new life while at the same time the dead were being commemorated. Looking at the colorful flags, I couldn’t believe that they marked a grave.

I began to think about all the other burial practices that I knew of: cremation, burying, etc. But the act of placing colorful flags to commemorate a person’s death was absolutely beautiful. I was deeply touched by the way the dead were not sent off sadly but rather positively by remembering not that they were gone but rather that they had lived among us. It made me think of life and death in a greater aspect, are we truly dying? If so, should it really be a negative thing?

It was once said that the only truth in life is death, death is inevitable. Death is a part of life that we cannot stop nor control. I admired the fact that the peopledid not forget the dead but rather kept them alive through creating colorful murals for them. However, at the same time, the people allowed for their dead to move on by placing a hollow stick through the grave reaching out onto the sky to let the dead’s spirits move on. Through this practice death was celebrated and accepted. It opened my eyes to a new perspective to an essential truth: death is inevitable, but it is your perspective on death that can truly change what role it may take on in your life.

-Simran

Teen Guide Council talking about Lisa Ross’ Colored Cribs....

Sat, 06 Apr 2013 00:00:00 -0400

Teen Guide Council talking about Lisa Ross’ Colored Cribs.

Lively Shrines

Fri, 05 Apr 2013 21:35:00 -0400

Hey all you Aesthetes,

One of the latest exhibits at the Rubin Museum of Art is Lisa Ross’s Living Shrines of Uyghur China. RMA’s Teen Guide Council got to visit it together for the first time this past Wednesday and we loved it!!!! We’d love for you all to check it out as well.

There was this one photograph in the exhibit i felt very connected to and incredibly intrigued by and wrote down my response to it. After re-reading it i realized it was kind of poetic. Here’s my unintentional poem in response to Lisa Ross’s fabulous work.

Lots of nature both in the bushes and the green trees, the scattered branches.The focus is mid-ground, at the front of the crib and some of those scattered branches. The color of the sky is like a gray blue, so it looks as though it will rain soon. The crib is a safe haven, a protector from the nature. The nature isn’t dangerous but it feels peacefully chaotic.

My eye is drawn of course to the yellow crib, but my a moment my eye slides away to the movement around it. My eyes are drawn towards the bushes below, the yellow is mimicked within the nature as it is in the crib and i can almost feel and smell the crisp air.

Such a cluster of emotions, from such a vivid image. I’m sad, im happy, im at peace, im destructive, im chaotic, but most of all i feel abandoned. The crib looks abandoned. But the crib isn’t an abandonment, its a celebration of someones life, a sacred place, a burial ground, a living shrine.

- Maria ~~ilovethisexhibit~~ Rivas <3

What makes something sacred?

Fri, 05 Apr 2013 16:26:00 -0400

the first time I saw Lisa Ross’ show Living Shrines, i was confused as to how the title related to the work. Shrines, as far as I was exposed to, represented veneration. And when you venerate something—a person, an object, an idea, a concept—don’t you hold it to the highest regard, displaying it with grandeur?

Ross’ photographs capture structures of sticks and fabric in desolate areas. (Doesn’t sound so great when you put it like that, does it?)

But Ross infuses her works with something more.

The isolation of the objects gives them a sense of mystery that draws you in. You stay drawn in, because there is no one except you and the object the photograph focuses on. The photographs lack people, so instead of looking at someone looking at an object, you are with the object. They felt less like photos and more like windows through space-time that you could step through and be with the object. I felt instantly connected with the photos, despite never having thought much of modern photography before.

Another aspect of this accessibility, of course, is the shrines themselves. They are made from simple materials. One piece that I talked about, Unrevealed, Site 6 (Ritual Bathhouse), features a bathhouse on a river and a branch that holds it up. There’s a juxtaposition of humanity and nature: humans working with nature and nature supporting humans.

The rough imperfection of the shrines captures perfectly a feeling of humanity despite a person-less image. All of the cloths, someone noticed, were different from another. People from all different countries must have came together, and whether or not they actually built it at the same time together, all contributed to the creation of the bathhouse, or any of the other shrines in the other photos. There’s a sense of community. You can feel the energy from such a simple image; it seems alive. It seems like people brought much more than the literal building materials into the structure. Their spirit also remained.

going back to my question of the sacred: Do you need something fancy for a shrine? Not necessarily. Lisa Ross’ Living Shrines exhibit shows no grandeur, yet it celebrates the spiritually great—perhaps the human spirit itself. It’s not in the looks. Beauty and sacredness can be found in the most simple things, and the simplicity of it all makes it totally accessible. Anyone, of any age or class, could have contributed to the fabrics waving from those shrines. Spirituality is everywhere and for everyone, and that is something Living Shrines made me realize.

-ellen

When it comes alive

Thu, 04 Apr 2013 23:15:00 -0400

Lisa’s Living Shrine photographs have captured still, motionless and
inanimate objects. However these photographs come alive when you experience them and they create a whole new meaning of these lifeless objects. In my eye, they become almost magical and mysterious as these shrines begin to represent individuals or communities. Each shrine becomes a character of many unique traits. All of these shrines bring together communities of all different people to come together to tie one of their own pieces of cloth on to it. I feel very connected to these shrines because there were so many people just like us there, any one could of contributed to one of the shrines. Each shrine is like a humble little person inviting us to join them. All of the shrines have so much importance, but they are all made up of simple objects and are very accessible to everyone that could be passing by!

-Ginger

Lisa Ross sharing her thoughts on this photograph.

Wed, 03 Apr 2013 15:56:47 -0400

Lisa Ross sharing her thoughts on this photograph.

Us talking about one of Lisa Ross’ Living Shrines...

Wed, 03 Apr 2013 15:56:07 -0400

Us talking about one of Lisa Ross’ Living Shrines Photographs.

Living Shrines by Lisa Ross

Wed, 03 Apr 2013 15:55:00 -0400

A major part of our Flipside Adventures is thinking about what makes something sacred. There’s an AMAZING (GO SEE IT RIGHT NOW!!) exhibition at the Rubin Museum of Art also up right now called Living Shrines. In this show photographer Lisa Ross captures photographs Muslim sacred shrines (mazar) in the Taklamakan Desert, often adorned with recycled flags and fabrics.

Related to our Flipside and what makes something sacred conversations we’ve been spending a lot of time in this show because we’re really in love with these shrines. We love that the recycled materials these shrines are made of are completely different than the types of shrines we’re used to seeing. There’s something about these that feel very human, as if we could have made them with our own objects…which somehow makes them more accessible. We feel like seeing these encourages us to think about what our own versions of shrines are.

It makes us think a lot about what makes something spiritually alive. In the case of flipside, its the consecration ritual done on the back of a painting with handprints of famous teachers and mantras. But in the case of these mazar shrines, its the simple materials that normal people like us have left on the shrine that contribute to it being spiritually alive. They make something sacred by leaving their mark.

This is one of our favorite shows EVER so we’ll be talking about Living Shrines a lot in our Flipside Journey. Also, Lisa Ross has been really generous to meet with a lot of the teen community at the Rubin Museum, so we’ll post conversations with the artist as well. xx

Flipside Journey: Japanese Tea Ceremony

Tue, 02 Apr 2013 10:57:00 -0400

Continuing our theme of consecration of the present moment for Flipside, Teen Programs experienced Japanese Tea Ceremony at the Urasenke Chanoyu Center where the mission is “peacefulness from a bowl of tea”. ;)

Going to the center was a way for us to experience “the way of tea” and the philosophy behind whats considered to be the art of appreciating the beauty of the present moment. Going into the tea house feels like NYC slips away and all of a sudden you’re in Japan. All the materials for the tea house were shipped from Japan and great attention was given to every detail. Even the clay walls of the tea house are of the same ancient technique that you see in traditional buildings in Kyoto and would have had to been put in by a traditional craftsman who builds tea houses specifically. Everything in the area we entered was designed to be beautiful to the eye. There are two gardens one must traverse on the way to having tea. When you pass through the gates after the first garden, you are symbolically leaving behind the everyday and entering the realm of the moment, almost the realm of the gods. As a special guest of the tea ceremony, its believed that you are like a god and are treated as such. They greet you with an expression that recognizes you as a god when you come in. It reminded us of how people say “namaste” in india and sometimes even in yoga class which means the divinity in me recognizes the divinity in you”.

Pass through these gates… walking on the stepping stones to a different more contemplative state of mind.

Once you sit in the tea hall on traditional tatami mats, there are many beautiful things for you to look at such as the alcove with calligraphy towards the back or the subtlety of the white butterfly designs on the sliding doors to the left. Everything is meant to be directed towards being in the present moment. There are no watches allowed to remind us of time and even the conversation topics must stay to whats being noticed in the room and about the ceremony to keep you absolutely in the present.

The way you sit and act in tea ceremony is highly choreographed: its like a performance in which the tea master and the audience both are acting their roles. The way you use your hands in a very specific way puts you in touch with the grace of the tea ceremony. For example, you have to place your hands together in a triangle on the mat in front of you when you bow, or hold the cups with specific hand movements. It reminded us of the mudras a buddhist practitioner would take when meditating in front of a painting to embody the god or the way similarly you take the poses of the gods in yoga.

One might meditate on a painting with a figure holding a bell and a vajra and then in ritual take the same hand positions with an actual bell and vajra.

Leaving the Tea Ceremony and coming out into the streets of NYC was surreal. We felt as if we had stepped right out of Japan.