Packaged Art in an Wonderfully Wrapped Box

The treasure troves found in art museums are usually made known to the public by photographs of pieces involved. This allows for people to be drawn to provocative art that hints at what else the museum may hold. So when you spot a poster of an Andy Warhol, while jogging on Michigan Ave, you can mentally note that the Art Institute of Chicago proudly brandishes his works. The Tamayo Art Museum has acted upon a different idea: the importance of their audience. Their marketing works more like an IPod advertisement in that it appeals to potential customers by representing their reaction to the art. Do they believe art isn’t worth showcasing, so they have to allure by emotionally catering to their audience?

Featuring a chest-to-chin view of a contemplative woman, the viewer’s attention is drawn to the heart erupting from her chest. The thrust at which her heart bursts forth and, upon closer inspection, the fist it assumes, suggests an intense internal passion caused by the implied art. I say, “implied,” because there is only the out-of-focus portraits in the background and the small Tamayo Art Museum logo in the left-hand corner to identify it. At first, I was drawn in by the strong emotion displayed, but upon dissection, I realized this announcement has left out the point: art! The lady shown is observing art, yes, but its implications are so general, it becomes a mere prop. She could just as easily be observing a movie or hearing a song. Has Tamayo Art Museum sold into consumerism?

This “art” museum is trying to hook its audience by making individualistic emotion attractive. Because art is so intellectual, those entering have to consent to shaping their artistic standards around what is offered. But instead of challenging you to embrace a bicycle wheel on a stool, Tamayo Art Museum does something different. They guarantee your reaction without ever showing a piece of artwork. According to their ideology, the art isn’t what the customer is looking at; it is your relationship with it that makes the art. They are concerned with your participation in what they offer; shaping their pieces around you. The observer has all the power to make art whatever they want, as long as their precious emotions are peaked.

This is a bias towards the audience. This museum uses the ideology that their audience, not their content is the most important. The promise this provocative advertisement offers is one of revelation and strong feelings stimulated by the mysterious artwork they provide. Instead of saying, “hey, look at one of the many brilliant things we have here,” this museum is saying, “hey you! If you come here you will be so worked up by what we have, that you will have to keep your heart from punching through your chest!” The goal is to send a message to the customer rather than provide one of the messages the museum offers. The exhibition is belittled and reduced to just another entertainment factor.