“The world is flat.”
- Thomas L. Friedman, quoted on a wall of the Raclin Murphy Museum of Art.
It was raining when I walked up to the University of Notre Dame’s new art museum. Overcast, a threatening wind. Lining the sidewalk that approaches it, there were several modern art pieces that jutted out from the pale ground, rigid and rust-colored, some moving in the breeze. As I turned towards the building, the central exterior sculpture came into view: a towering metallic pillar, a stack of letters and numbers and symbols that reached to the sky. My heart beat quicker as I passed by it and opened the door.
It was the final day of the museum’s opening weekend, which saw numerous local musical and artistic groups assemble in the celebration of art. It felt modern and new, and several modern art pieces lined the walls of the atrium.
But the museum’s largest collection, at least by space taken up, is European art. One-and-a-half of the three gallery floors are devoted to it. There weren’t any names I recognized (disclaimer: I would say I know as much about art and artists as the average person; that is, I don’t know all that many names) in this section. The multiple European galleries feel cerebral, dark, and authoritatively art-gallery-esque.
The basement’s modern art wing was my favorite. It felt alive in a way the rest of the galleries didn’t—the lights were brighter, the colors brash and experimental. On one side, the ceiling gave way to a courtyard surrounding a dark brown, orchid-encircled sculpture. People on the first floor could look down into the garden and examine its sculptures from different angles. The modern art wing also contained a painting by the one artist whose name I recognized: a minor work by Georgia O’Keeffe, “Blue I,” which got me excited. Seeing a name you recognize in an art gallery–especially a smaller-scale art gallery–is incredibly cathartic.
The relatively small scale of the Raclin Murphy Museum of Art (compared with a standard art museum like the Met, not with a local art museum like the Krasl) doesn’t detract from its authority. The museum offers multiple programs, too. There is a “Friends of the Raclin Murphy Museum of Art” program that provides committed visitors with membership perks like borrowing privileges at the Hesburgh Library (famous for its “Touchdown Jesus” mural), a museum magazine subscription, and discounts on museum tours. (Side note: museum entrance is free to all visitors.) There is also an “Art 180” program that encourages people to, over a period of time, spend 180 minutes looking at a piece of art. Its goal is to immerse people in art and get them to really understand the artists’ intention, to appreciate any piece in the museum holistically. They provided me with a small journal to record my observations when I signed up.
I left the museum excited. Giddy, even. (It could have been the latte I bought at the museum cafe.) Art galleries aren’t in abundance near Andrews, and I was skeptical that the Raclin Murphy would be any good. But it was. It was incredible, actually, to know that an art gallery of its high caliber is within an easy driving distance from where I live. Sure, it’s not the Met. It’s not the Art Institute of Chicago. But it has a charm and a character all its own, and I, for one, am looking forward to countless visits over the upcoming years.
The Student Movement is the official student newspaper of Andrews University. Opinions expressed in the Student Movement are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the editors, Andrews University or the Seventh-day Adventist church.