Learning

Today was my first day of work at the Peggy Guggenheim Collection and I learned about Maurice Prendergast (1858-1924)! Having guarded the galleries of Prendergast in Italy, the special exhibition at the Peggy Guggenheim Collection, for approximately four hours this afternoon, I now know nearly everything the exhibition’s text panels relay about Prendergast and the body of work he produced while living in Venice. Prendergast was an American artist who moved to Venice at the turn of the 19^th century to paint Venice’s unique cityscapes and images of the everyday life of Venetian people, who were exotic to Americans at the time. Prendergast’s work is influenced by a variety of artistic movements. For example, like the impressionists, Prendergast exposed his process of painting thus abstracting his forms. Like the fauvists, he used color to express emotion, particularly in his later, more melancholic works. And like American artists of the period, such as Whistler, the content, or narratives, of his paintings are benign.

On the whole his delicate style, soft color tones, and calm, familiar scenarios, make his paintings quite peaceful, however his works are not “avant-garde” in the sense that they aren’t particularly innovative, nor do they make any bold statements. Perhaps the following judgment comes from the city girl inside of me, who longs for constant excitement, action, and spunk, but truthfully I don’t find Prendergast’s works particularly memorable; quite frankly, I find his works boring! I wonder what Peggy would have thought of them? After all they are the antithesis of the cubist, futurist, minimalist, surrealist, etc, works that make up the majority of her collection.

With that said, they have a few redeeming qualities: First, they are accessible because their narratives are obvious, and thus they do not require trained eyes to be appreciated. Second, as I mentioned previously, they are peaceful in terms of color and style. In fact, I’d dub them the visual version of smooth jazz, or soft rock, you know, elevator music, the type of thing most people don’t have strong feelings about one way or the other. Third, because Prendergast painted small planes of solid colors, his works often appear to have a mosaic-esque effect, which I find quite beautiful. Last, Prendergast’s brother designed many of the frames for Prendergast’s works, and though I don’t have much to say about the frames, (besides that they are pretty and well suited for the works,) I like the very fact that the two siblings worked harmoniously.

When I was through learning about Prendergast, I began focusing more closely on the museum’s visitors, in other words I actively engaged in “people watching.” As couples and families passed, I guessed where they were from and then discreetly followed them until they spoke, revealing their nationalities. After obtaining this preliminary information, I’d imagine the life stories of these people: what types of families are they from? What do their homes look like? What are their passions? What are their dispositions? How are they related to one another? How did they meet each other? What brings them to Venice, and specifically to the PGC? Etc…

And then, I’d pop back into reality and say, “Non toccare, per favore,” meaning please don’t touch [the artwork]. Just another little something I learned today…

1. Maurice Prendergast, Venice, ca. 1898-99, Watercolor and pencil on paper, Colby College Museum of Art.

2. Maurice Prendergast, Festa del Redentore, ca. 1899, Watercolor and pencil on paper, Williams College Museum of Art.