Art is a big part of travel. At least for our family.
Art is a great entry point to understanding a history and culture of a people. How they identify themselves, what they’ve been through, and what they value and hope for. And in Europe especially, it is accessible both physically (museums, historical sites, and churches have art in even the smallest of cities) and intellectually.
Expertise optional
Experts are schooled and trained over years and years but beginners like us can do a little reading and/or watching and have amazing experiences every day. Depending on your own experience with art we might be unbearably amateurish or quite advanced. We think of ourselves as “enthusiastic novices.” (Neither have any formal art history training but Dan does enjoy history and will often read a biography or two in preparation for a trip.) However, we have been lucky enough to get a few trips under our belt and with that comes a small but growing body of knowledge.
Two trips to Italy (2008 as couple, 2016 with two kids) give us an appreciation for big names like Michelangelo, Raphael (see Dan and our son, right), and Bernini; post-Spain this year we’re still talking about Velazquez and Goya; and even 3 years after Amsterdam we cannot get enough of Vermeer and the occasional Rembrandt.
Family Conversation Topic: What types of art do family members like more than others? Calligraphy, ceramics, graffiti, mosaics, photography, tapestry, video? Any favorites? Any universal dislikes??
Which is harder painting or sculpture (a la Leonardo vs Michelangelo)?
Doesn’t matter where you start
Experience, just going and seeing and learning, brings context and soon some favorites, which then brings a bit of confidence in having your own taste, and from there you explore a bit and find some hidden (to you) gems. Dan and our son share a bond over JMW Turner who may not be known to most people (though is legend in art history) but may lead us to study up on Claude Lorrain and his immaculate landscapes at the Louvre this spring.
The point here is to follow what interests you and your family. If somethings doesn’t appeal to you….so what? The fanciest, most sophisticated art experts don’t like some art too. Everyone has their own taste in books, film, design, dance, and other artistic disciplines. Keep an open mind and if that open mind is bored to tears or just confused move on to something else more interesting. Maybe come back at another time and try again if you’re brave.
We have repeated tried some contemporary art (i.e., art of today) on trips and saw little that interested us. True, we may need to do a little research to better understand what we’re seeing, but maybe we work up to it by starting with the big 20th century names like Picasso (saw Guernica in Madrid last spring; hoping to got to eponymous museum in Paris this spring) and abstract artists like Pollock, and Rothko.
Like so many things in life, tastes change, people evolve, and as you and your family travel and experience art together we’re confident you’ll find a fun and exciting path to each destination through art.
Talk soon,
Dan & Betsy
PS Art books are super expensive so we recommend a trip to the library to page through some books on various topics. If you’re looking for a great resource to keep at home, E. H. Gombrich’s The Story of Art is a gorgeous read full of beautiful images that has understandably sold millions of copies.