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The Pre-Columbian Renaissance
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10385 |
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Section : |
THE ARTS
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| Issue
Date : |
2 / 1993 |
1,911 Words |
| Author
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Judith Bell
Judith Bell is an art historian and novelist based in
Arlington, Virginia. |
During a visit to Brussels in 1520, the artist Albrecht Durer had the opportunity to examine objects sent by Cortes from Mexico to the Emperor Charles V. He wrote in his diary:
"There I saw the things brought to the Emperor from the new land of gold: a sun made of gold on braccia [probably Italian meaning one arm's length] wide, and a moon, all of silver, of the same size, as well as all types of arms used there, harnesses, blowguns, wonderful shields, strange garments, bedcovers, and all types of wonderful things made for human use. And it was all so beautiful that it would be a marvel to see even better things. And I have never seen anything in my whole life that has cheered my heart as much as these things. In them I found wonderfully artistic things and admired the subtle genius of men from these strange lands."
Wonder of Discovery
The Ancient Americas: Art from Sacred Landscapes--organized by the Art Institute of Chicabo in cooperation with museums in Chile, Mexico, Guatemala, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, and Europe--allows viewers to feel, in no small measure, some of this same wonder of discovery that began five hundred years ago when Columbus landed on the island he called San Salvador. Carrying visitors on a journey from New Mexico to central Chile, the exhibition, the first of its kind with so large a vision, presents over three hundred objects from the seventeen cultures that formed the basis of a heritage shared by all the nations of the New World. Many of these pieces--discovered only this century--have never been seen outside the Southern Hemisphere.
In the flurry of exhibitions organized as part of the quincentenary celebration of Columbus' encounter with North America, The Ancient Americas is a standout. Providing cultural context in an installation that re-creates setting through expansive photomurals and thoughtful text, the exhibition accentuates the artistic merit of the objects created by Amerindians. A stunning diversity of art forms-- spectacular goldwork, monumental stone sculptures, brilliantly colored textiles, and masterfully crafted ceramic vessels--introduces us to a world where society was fully integrated with nature, even venerating the landscape itself.
"If I were to think of the exhibition in cinematic terms," says Richard Townsend, head of the institute's Department of Africa, "I would begin not with views of art or ruins but with images of a dry landscape and a great mountain in the horizon.
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