PAULA HARPER
Books about art and art history are not infallible. They are written by human beings who are by nature capable of error and prejudice. They should be read critically (and compassionately), their underlying assumptions ascertained, the logic of the arguments examined, the reliability of the factual information assessed. If I can help train students to do this, I give them intellectual tools they can use in other areas of life outside the art history classroom.
The history of art is a kind of archaeology of the human spirit. To become familiar with the works of art of another time and place -- both their subject matter and form -- is to gain entry to the imagination of that other people, to understand (to some degree, at least) their customs, wishes, dreams and values. Art communicates these in ways that written documents cannot, and thus contributes a sort of "right-hemisphere history" to our picture of the past. If students can see how the art of the past is embedded in its social, spiritual and physical environment, they are better equipped to make connections between twentieth century art and our own modern world.
The history of art can do more that illuminate the reality of other societies and cultures. It can penetrate the poetic dimension and bring us close to the creative processes of gifted and committed individuals. Today, when so much of life is mechanized, numbered, repetitive, deadened, the experience of a work of art -- the product of reflective thought and personal choice -- is a needed reaffirmation of human creative capabilities. I like to guide my students, when I can, toward this pleasurable knowledge.
Paula Harper
