Private Tour of Joseph Cornell Exhibition at The Metropolitan Museum of Art

In addition to enjoying the exhibition before the museum opened, the boys also had the opportunity to learn directly from the curator of the exhibition, Stephanie D’Alessandro, Leonard A. Lauder Curator of Modern Art, who generously led the tour.

 

The boys began their tour by looking at a collage created by Juan Gris in 1914 called The Man at the Café, a promised gift to The Met as part of the Leonard A. Lauder Cubist Collection.  They learned that Joseph Cornell was inspired by The Man at the Café after seeing it at the Sidney Janis Gallery on 57th Street.  This artwork left such an impression on Cornell that it inspired one of his largest bodies of work including eighteen boxes, two collages, and one sand tray.  Ms. D’Alessandro helped the boys look deeply into the Gris collage to try to understand the shapes, forms, and shadows.  In the abstract composition the boys saw the form of a man, mostly covered by the newspaper he was reading, and discovered a frothy beer mug in one of his hands.

 

After discussing cubism and the artwork that inspired Joseph Cornell, the boys continued their tour and viewed the Cornell boxes.  The boys learned that Cornell was a good carpenter.  Ms. D’Alessandro showed the boys how the boxes opened and closed at the top with hooks and other closures.  For this exhibition the boxes are shown in glass vitrines, which allowed the boys to see all sides of each box and understand how each one was constructed.

 

Ms. D’Alessandro helped the boys notice details in the Cornell boxes, such as the repetition of particular objects; cockatoos, newspaper articles, rings, and balls were used in many of the boxes.  The boys also noticed shadows within the boxes and were reminded of the extreme shadows in Gris’s collage.  They began to understand why Cornell often referred to Gris as a “warm fraternal spirit.”  Ms. D’Alessandro explained how important shadows were to Cornell.  He would experiment with different elements in the dark with a controlled light source to highlight and accentuate the shadows within each construction.

 

The boys thoroughly enjoyed seeing Cornell’s boxes and Gris’s collage and learning from Ms. D’Alessandro.  Next semester ninth graders will have a chance to create their own shadow boxes in art class.  They will follow Cornell’s example and select an artwork as their inspiration and will work with found materials, color, and contrast to pay homage to their selected artwork.

 

We extend out thanks to Jason H. and Ms. D’Allesondro for providing this memorable experience.  It was a highlight for the boys and was an ideal way for them to better understand the artwork of Joseph Cornell.