PHOENIX ART MUSEUM

February – March, 2019

What do you do on a cool (60 degrees), blustery day in Mesa, Arizona? You look for something to do indoors, and  we chose the Phoenix Art Museum. It had been on our “to do” list for awhile; we were just waiting for a day not suited for pickleball.

The parking lot is huge, parking is free, and when we arrived, the lot was nearly full. Even though there is so much to see and do at this elegant museum and the attractive lobby caught our attention, we found some sculpture on the way in that just called out to be appreciated.

The first thing we saw was a huge, bright red Tyrannosaurus enclosed in a bright red cage. Kyra, Helena and Penny would have loved this larger-than-life sculpture.

Two other large sculptures, a waterfall and a reflecting pool kept our attention and we were intrigued to look at each piece a little closer.

We entered the museum through enormous all-glass doors designed to take advantage of the 300+ days of sunshine that Phoenix has. The museum has an industrial feel to it. It is very modern with lots of concrete, incredibly high ceilings and highly polished granite floors. We were impressed by the enormity of the entry hall. After we paid our fee, we headed to the first gallery, only to be stopped in our tracks by thousands of beautifully crafted black butterflies and moths that filled the walls and ceilings of the hallway.

Renowned Mexican artist, Carlos Amorales’ “Black Cloud” consists of 25,000 black paper moths and butterflies of 30 different species that seemed to be hovering right over our heads. The artist took his inspiration from the annual migration of butterflies from Canada to Mexico. Because they are all black, there is almost a sense of foreboding as we walked beneath this amazing display.

There are no real doorways to most of the galleries; they just kind of flow one into the next. Here are the highlights of what we enjoyed.

Scandinavia artist and native of Iceland, Ragnar Kjartansson’s “Scandinavian Pain and Other Myths” is a video installation and a “multi-sensory work”. In a darkened gallery, ten large flat screens simultaneously produced a musical experience that kept us spellbound for 20 minutes. Each screen featured an individual wearing headphones playing an instrument (accordion, guitar, cello, drums, piano); one screen showed a front porch with people wearing headphones and singing to the music generated by the musicians. The lead musician, presumably the artist, was bathing in a large white bathtub while he strummed his guitar and sang. The rest of the fully-clothed participants followed his musical lead. We presumed that the musicians were all living in Iceland but perhaps in different locations? It was an incredibly creative and engaging work. One of the great things about seeing this installation was the opportunity to observe how other guests reacted. The gallery never felt crowded; we could all move from screen to screen or just sit and close our eyes and surrender to the experience.

March 9th was International Women’s Day, and the Museum honored a number of women artists by featuring their work and creating an opportunity for dialogue between staff and guests of the museum. Beginning at 10:00 and every 45 minutes, guests were directed to a selected work. Portable chairs were placed around the featured piece, and after a brief introduction to the artist’s work, knowledgeable staff members offered interpretations and took comments or questions from the audience.

One of the best things about this museum are the number of museum staff in gray t-shirts and casual dress who stroll the galleries and initiate conversations. While their primary role is to keep the art safe, we never felt like we were being watched. They were proud of “their” museum, and wanted to ensure that all of us to had an enjoyable experience. In addition to the adults in the Museum, there were several school groups. However, the noise level did not interfere with our enjoyment. The most notable noises came primarily from those installations that featured sound and not from loud talkers or excited children. It was a very different museum experience than we had experienced in the past at other museums where people often spoke in hushed voices as if they were in church. We never felt rushed, and we were impressed with the intentionality of the museum curator about how much art should be on display and where it should be featured in the Museum. All of the art seemed to have equal importance and deserved the full attention from guests. We thought the choices were skillfully and thoughtfully made. Sculptures, very Old Master works and some European works; contemporary photos, ultracontemporary fashion displays, political pieces, and the Museum’s permanent collection were given equal status, and it made our two-hour visit go by very quickly. We realized when we left that we had only seen about one-third of the Museum.

We had read about the work of Yayoi Kusama titled “You Who Are Getting Obliterated in the Dancing Swarm of Fireflies,” and this exhibit was the reason we wanted to visit.  When you enter the pitch black “infinity mirror room”, it takes a minute or so to get your bearings. You are about to become one with eternity. Barbara was frightened by the optical illusion that challenges those brave enough to enter this corridor of mirrors to move forward over what appears to be an abyss! The helpful staff told us to keep our left hand on the wall as we traversed this maize of mirrors and we’d be able to find our way through the exhibit.

It was truly remarkable! Multicolored LED lights are hung from black strings, and the lights go off and on as well as change color as you move forward; occasionally you are in total darkness. It is hard to distinguish where the reflections begin and end.

The lower level of the Katz wing featured the work of Julio Cesar Morales. Headlines taken from the press became works of art, and they caused us to chuckle as they revealed the creative attempts people have made to try to smuggle drugs into the U.S.

In another multi-media display Morales asks the visitor to consider the plight of immigrants who risk everything to come to this country, using the true story of a child hidden in a rolling carryon suitcase!

And finally there was a work of art that is difficult to describe. It is part sculpture, part reconstruction and an eye-catching piece to behold. According to the Museum staff, lightening struck a Southern church and burned it to the ground. An artist saw the remains and decided to resurrect the church in an unusual way. Pieces of the burnt remnants are strung on very long pieces of mylar and hung from the ceiling in equal distances to form a square. The largest of the burned pieces of wood form the center of the piece. It is almost as if the burnt pieces of the church are exploding towards the viewer or are perhaps ascending to heaven?  Whatever the viewer beholds, it is truly a remarkable work to see up close and from a distance.

We barely scratched the surface of the art on display at this understated, wonderfully organized, and mesmerizing museum.  A return trip is definitely in order next winter when we are back in Mesa.

Barbara and Brian