Peculiar Art

Saturday, January 28 2012

When we spent a day in Lausanne back in November 2010, we had intended to hit up an unusual art museum that we had read about.  Our guidebook stated that it remained open until fairly late in the evening.  Unfortunately, it must have been a misprint or bad research on their part, because the museum closed that evening before we could get there…

Fast forward to January 2012 where we found ourselves with a good excuse to make it back to Lausanne and an opportunity to experience our bizarre museum (more on that later).  We found out a couple weekends ago that our beloved Olympic Museum was to be closing for 2 years for a complete renovation.  We found out just in time, as it was the last weekend it remained open and it was free of charge to enter.  Because we loved it so much the first time, we decided to head back and spend a bit more time there before its closing.  After a couple hours poking around and learning more about famous Olympic athletes, memorable events and intriguing history—we said goodbye and looked forward to visiting the renovated Olympic Museum on a future visit back to Switzerland.

Onto the next museum… Collection de l’Art Brut.  This museum houses artwork created by individuals that differ quite a bit from mainstream artists.  Many of them suffer(ed) from mental and emotional illnesses.  Many are/were psychiatric hospital patients, prisoners, outcasts, and just generally peculiar people.  When reading the background on each artist, we noticed a lot of similar patterns: a parent died or the parents split up when the individual was really young, childhood illness that they never fully recovered from, circumstances which left them orphaned, etc.  Most of them were from Switzerland, but many others were from all parts of the world.

What’s unique about these artists is that they don’t create their works for acclamations or recognition.  They designed their works for their own purposes, via their own interpretations, within their own worlds.  And as many of these works were discovered, a collection slowly formed in the 1940s.  The current museum has displayed this artwork since 1971.

The concept of the museum was interesting, without doubt.  Some of the pieces were fairly fascinating to be honest, when considering the background and history of the individual.  Did we find most of the artwork appealing?  Not necessarily.  But we feel that same way about a lot of famous, mainstream artwork that we’ve come across over here. :)

But there did happen to be a temporary exhibit about one Gregory Blackstock that caught our eye… who would have guessed that a small Swiss art museum would showcase the work of a Seattle man??!!  As part of the temporary exhibit, the museum played a short documentary about Blackstock - we sat and watched, absolutely intrigued.  He is a 60-something-year-old man with autism and savant syndrome.  As a result, he has some limitations yet is also gifted in unbelievable ways.  He speaks 12 languages, can pick up just about any musical instrument and play it, and apparently is known for being able to recall events with uncanny precision.  He initially comes across as a little rough, but within minutes we couldn’t help but find him entirely endearing.

He also has some of the most interesting pieces of artwork, which we would admittedly prefer over famous works that we’ve seen in famous museums.  Those from the Seattle area might recognize his style - the basic concept behind his art is detailed classifications of different topics, from the mundane (types of radishes) to the historical (WWII fighter planes) to the bizarre (all “trouble-maker” beetles).  What makes his art so special is that he is so precise in each piece!  The lines, the writing, the details, the completeness of each subject—he covers all bases.  Some of our favorites included titles such as “Insect Pest Classifications Presents: The Major World Troublemaker Beetles”, “Harmful Vegetation Growth Classifications Presents: The Painful Plants”, “The Shoes”, “The Noisemakers” and "40 Memorable Seattle Joys to Go For".  Unfortunately, we weren’t able to take photos within the museum, but a quick google search has enabled us to share some of his pieces with you. :)

While watching the documentary, we discovered that Blackstock is a huge Mariners & Seahawks fan (he was wearing a Mariner’s hat throughout the interview).  We also found out that often times he sits outside the Seattle sports stadiums and plays music on his accordion—we hope to run into him at some point in the near future!  Small world.

A short clip of Blackstock:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-IMxt0DjWeA