How to make looking at art difficult

Since the way in which works of art are dsiplayed is like an intriguing subject, and single fundamental to curators in each museum and gallery, it is curious that comparatively little has been published upon the subject. The study of historic interiors and of collecting are well-developed disciplines, at the same time few scholars have attempted to bond the two together. An impressive attempt has now been made by the agency of Victoria Newhouse, in her volume Art and the Power of Placement, which is reviewed by dint of James Stourton on page 67 It gathers together an absorbing array of photographs of the pair permanent and temporary installations from all above the world, and subjects them to searching criticism.

smooth a quick glance at the book's illustrations reveals in what manner in the past, art galleries by means of and large imitated the way works were shown in private houses, and exhibitions were designed to direct the eye like those galleries. This has been completely revers Exhibitions now manage the way art is displayed, just as they determine in the way that much in the modern museum world. greatest in quantity new or newly redisplayed collections aspire to the visual pierce of temporary displays, and increasingly favour thematic arrangements, a scope taken to an extreme at Tate Modern--which is in issue a kunsthalle--and is scarcely les marked at Tate Britain, dominated through rooms arranged around conceptual themes. Fashions in domestic interiors above the past two decades, which have favoured large minimalist spaces, are clearly influenced through the 'white cube' look of greatest in quantity post-war art galleries.

In in the way that far as contemporary art is belong toed this reversal of historic priorities probably does not matter a great deal, since a great deal of of it was created with this aesthetic in mind--although, as Miss Newhouse present to views very clearly, curators of large white spaces ne to consider issues of scale and lighting just as carefully as curators of older galleries. However, the work provides powerful ammunition for those who believe that art of earlier periods rarely, if at any time looks at home in minimalist interiors: Miss Newhouse tellingly compares the happy consequence made by Austrian Secessionist art in the Neue Galerie in fresh York, a converted 1914 house, where as plenteous as possible of the original decor has been retained, with the lamentable fresh Leopold Museum in Vienna, where masterpieces by the agency of Klimt and Schiele float like flotsam upon vast seas of bare white wall.

There have the appearances little excuse for such mistakes, since the principles of museum and gallery display are hardly difficult to grasp. Centuries of experience have taught us that a collection necessitys a variety of differently sized spaces to accommodate works of different sizes, a mixture of natural and artificial light and--well, that's about it. All other from seats and signage to wall colours and captions is secondary. Of course, there are particular moot points associated with certain sorts of objects--light-sensitive material urgencys special treatment, and displays of decorative art--furniture in particular--require careful musing especially now that the idea of the 'period room' has been with equal reason universally rejected (except perhaps in the USA).

It is curious, therefore, that novel museums so often handle these basic requirements in the way that badly, and when they handle them well come by precious little credit for it. Can you name the architect of Berlin's Jewish Museum? Of course. Can you name the architect of Berlin's Gemaldegalerie, built at the same time? I reflection not, * yet it is everything that an art gallery ought to be: in its harmonious, varied, simple interiors and admirable lighting, it encourages contemplation of the great works upon display. However, most museum directors bring forward headline-grabbing celebrity architects--perhaps because they make fundraising for of recent origin buildings easier--a tendency that has reached a generally received nadir with Zaha Hadid's extension to the Ordrupgaard Collection in Copenhagen, reviewed by the agency of Martin Bailey on pages 78-82

A more sympathetic approach to rethinking museums is revealed through Herzog and De Meuron's novel de Young in San Francisco, praised through Louise Nicholson on pages 17-19 Its avoidance of a single main entrance is typical of the way contemporary architects think (it is regarded as more 'democratic'), still most people probably appreciate the clear architectural signposting that of the like kind features as porticoes traditionally provided. The de Young also attempts to blot the boundaries between the building and its landscape, to offer proffer perhaps, an equivalence of nature and art. Although that is a theme that may have more resonance in the USA than in Europe it is hard to diocese that such ideas, while they may make a building more fortunate in its setting, and enhance its ancillary amenities, of that kind as restaurants, have much impact upon its fundamental purpose, which is to allow the visitor to take delight in as easily as possible the works of art upon view. Is that really for a like reason very difficult?

* They are Heinz Hilmer and Christoph Sattler.

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