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1. For each video list/discuss the key concepts you learned.

“The Lowdown on Lowbrow: West Coast Pop Art”: Lowbrow is an art movement with origins in the underground comic world, punk music, “hot-rod street culture”, and other California subcultures. It is also often known by the name pop surrealism. Some of the giants of lowbrow art were considered to be Big Daddy Roth and Robert Williams. Many people were underground cartoonists. Some lowbrow artists went on to work for Disney as well. Lowbrow artists seems concentrated on creating non-conceptual art and creating “fun” and exciting pieces.

Tate Modern: This video is no longer available because the YouTube account associated with this video has been terminated.

An Acquiring Mind: Philippe de Montebello and the Metropolitan Museum of Art: Philippe de Montebello served for 31 years as Director of The Metropolitan Museum of Art. He collected many great works that have left quite the legacy to his name. He collected “The Study of a Young Woman” by  Dutch Master Johannes Vermeer. Knowledge is the most valuable currency in curation. There is an extensive amount of expertise needed in order to properly curate a museum and or gallery. This video also discussed “curatorial sleuthing” aka the many steps taken before the acquisition of an artwork. Curators can also be risk takers, buying pieces from auction that contain little to no detail. It seems to resemble a treasure hunt. It was very interesting to see some exhibits come together and the rarity of masterpieces being touched.  

2. Do the videos relate to the creation of your Art Exhibition project? If yes, explain how. If no, explain why not.

I feel like the videos relate in the general idea of curation but it is hard to compare a whole team of professional curators to myself with very little knowledge and a small project. The lowbrow movement connects to my theme in the concept of branching out and doing something that is not necessarily accepted by society. For example, the lowbrow movement contained a lot of erotic or gruesome imagery, something that got a lot of pushback from the public. Women stepping into gyms and picking up weights became controversial at first, after all it is a male dominated space.

3. What is your opinion of the films? Do they add depth to understanding of the art concepts you practiced while creating your curation project?

Both videos went into detail about the purpose of the artwork and how it could be accepted by the viewers. It was interesting to see all the details and unexpected amounts of work that go into art curation, it was a lot more complex than I expected. The expansive knowledge needed to properly curate is impressive. I also liked learning about the lowbrow movement, it’s one of the only non-conceptual movements that I ever have been made aware of and it was refreshing.