One of my favorite works by Bruegel, The Return of the Hunters.
in Vienna. You can feel how cold it is in the painting. It's really hard
not to look at it. It pulls you in. Even as I write this post I keep
getting distracted and remembering the actual experience of seeing it.
When I first started art school I remember my introduction to visual
language class. Basically it was an art history class where students
are taught how to talk about the visual experience intelligently
learning words like chiaroscuro and grisaille. This was the first
class I had to write papers about works of art. I was terrified
because I didn't know what I was "supposed" to write about. It was
the first paper I had to write using my brain. There was no format
to follow. I ended up enjoying it and looked forward to writing
assignments. It was a relief writing and knowing that as long as
I backed up what I was saying I was free to write whatever I wanted.
I was one of those kids that did not thrive on multiple choice tests.
A while back I saw
Museum Hours, a movie about a security guard
at the Kunsthistorisches Museum. A movie about the art museum
and the experience of being with works of art.
Maybe I will watch it again tonight.
_-_Google_Art_Project.jpg/400px-Pieter_Bruegel_the_Elder_-_Hunters_in_the_Snow_(Winter)_-_Google_Art_Project.jpg)
