In the 1970s, composer Brian Eno and painter Peter Schmidt discovered they had each been using a similar method to overcome creative paralysis. Both artists had created their own decks of cards, upon which were written “strategies” for overcoming artistic indecision. In 1974, the men combined their strategies and released them for sale to the public through a series of limited edition printings. To this day, the Oblique Strategies are used to battle creative inertia, to reexamine process paradigms by artists, and as a really advanced magic 8 ball by people with large collections of prog rock records. As an institution created of oblique angles and concerned with process, we employed the deck in the creation of our introductory blog post, for better or worse.
This is the blog of the Eli and Edythe Broad Art Museum at Michigan State University. As curators, educators, and artists, we at the MSU Broad believe in the transformative power of art. In many cases, we have dedicated our lives to that belief. The depth of our passion for the spectrum of human expression means we are always talking about art — theorizing, buzzing, arguing, and most of all, sharing it with one another and the public. We decided it was time to create an online destination for our insights, questions, and conversations to live. We’re thrilled to share it with you.
As a contemporary art museum, we have one foot firmly planted in the future (which may exist in a parallel dimension where there are only art museums). As stewards of a permanent collection dating back centuries, our connection to art history is central to our existence. As cultural enthusiasts, we love fresh light in familiar places. (Check out Scott Hocking’s reflections on sojourning through an often barren Detroit during the small hours.)
We want to share the excitement of working in such a unique place with you, even if you’re a thousand miles away. We also want to share the serenity. In a world flooded with noise and excessive information, there is something meditative about the experience of standing in a gallery and focusing on a single work. It’s intimate, trying to understand an artist’s intention, trying to step inside their life for a moment. If we can convey a portion of the these museum experiences to you, we will consider this new digital space a success.
We feel like this is long enough. You get it.
This blog won’t always be perfect. There will be listicles, however illuminating. Some of the prose may be turgid, academic, or overly glib. It’s inconceivable you’ll find every post interesting. We may feature guest writers whose views do not align with yours, ours, or anyone else’s. New articles may come out on Monday one week, Tuesday the next.
But we will not be deterred. Come hell, high water, both because of the inevitable impact of climate change, or neither, we will be delivering you art analysis, interviews with artists, and the aforementioned edifying listicles, at semi-regular intervals. No matter what. Why not begin here?
