Arts & Entertainment 2010 Wallace Stegner Lecture Series
VENTURES
INTO THE NATURAL WORLD SERIES SPONSORS
Ambassador Bill and Mrs. Jean Lane
Vinod Khosla
in conversation with Michael Krasny
Courtesy of the Cantor Arts Center
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Monday, April 26 8:00 p.m. Mountain View Center for the Performing Arts 500 Castro Street, Mountain View
Stanford students Nell Van Noppen and Blake Miller work on the replica of the ancient sculpture.
For tickets, call
(650) 903-6000 “True Colors,� the exhibition up at the Cantor center through Aug. 7, also features a video clip showing the scientific process that Nguyen’s team used. In addition, vials of minerals are neatly arranged in a glass case to portray the kind of pigments that were found on the maenad. The project grew out of Nguyen’s sophomore interdisciplinary seminar called “Art, Chemistry and Madness: The Science of Art Materials.� It was taught by chemical engineering professor Curtis Frank and his artist wife, Sara LoeschFrank; and by Susan Roberts-Manganelli, manager of collections, exhibitions and conservation at the Cantor center. This exhibition’s maenad, from the Herodian Dynasty, was uncovered from a Samarian well during a Harvard expedition in the 1930s. “We acquired the piece from Harvard through a trade in 1998,� Nguyen said. The maenad seemed a prime candidate for the Cantor project, as the 18th-century art market’s preference for the white couldn’t affect this sculpture found in a well two centuries later, Nguyen said. The maenad was left untouched by human hands but accrued natural residues. Nguyen came to this art project through the sophomore seminar, which Manganelli has worked hard to make an interdisciplinary effort. In order “to connect with students as much as possible,� Manganelli said, she has brought various departments including drama, English and the medical school together to find ways to better conserve art. She also works closely with one to two students per year to teach them basic conservation. “They are the future art collectors and supporters.� Interviewed in the Cantor center’s conservation lab, Manganelli said that “curators are keepers of the art,� as she pointed out various pieces that needed to be taken care of. She added that she hopes “to see a surge and link arts into science�
to further expand the potential of art conservation. Students from the seminar, including Nguyen, were introduced to this environment. Besides hearing lectures explaining the science of art materials, they were able to experience what happens behind the scenes in a museum. It was here that Nguyen saw the sciences from a curator’s perspective. At the end of the sophomore seminar, students were asked to propose their dream exhibition, in a competition that Nguyen won. A painted, atypical model of a Greco-Roman marble sculpture was the dream exhibition of a science student who didn’t consider herself an artsy individual until this class. “The project changed my outlook a lot.� The nymphish maenad with feline iconography — spotted leopard skin on the shoulders and a cat head tucked underneath the arm — challenges the idea of a stately marble, she added. Though Nguyen didn’t have a particular training in the arts, Manganelli spoke of her strong background in writing (she reports for the Stanford Daily) and her experience in the sciences. This not only helped Nguyen as she was writing and presenting her proposal to the museum board, but it also allowed her to garner support from the sciences and arts. In the lab, Nguyen worked to find out what colors had originally been painted on the maenad by using XRF (x-ray fluorescence), which points out “minute traces of paint that are impossible to the naked eye,� she said. The machine beeps to show elements found on the marble and sends out a specific signal based on the remnants. She also found evidence of different colors by UV-ray testing with a black light. It was a collaborative and surprising journey. Nguyen had no idea about the identity of the sculpture until John Hermann from the Museum of Fine Arts Boston said so
during a phone call. He came to the conclusion that the figure was a maenad because of the cat head that subtly protruded outward from the body, Nguyen said. She also didn’t expect there to be gold found on the marble’s surface. Two Stanford students, Blake Miller and Nell Van Noppen, painted the maenad based on Nguyen’s findings. Manganelli described Nguyen as “smart, tenacious ... not being fazed by anything.� She added, “The knowledge she brings makes me think about other things.� At the Cantor center, Nguyen said, she’s seen some visitors speechless when they see the painted version, especially when juxtaposed against the white one. “People don’t know what to say — even the ones who talk a lot. They are at a loss for words, trying to understand.� Nguyen brought up a point about the ideas instilled regarding Roman sculpture in particular. “Washington, D.C., is based on the premise that marble is supposed to be white.� When asked if she considers herself more of an artist or scientist, she humbly responded, “I’m more of a scientist, really.� And as for artistic hopes, “We’ll see where it goes from here.� N
What: “True Colors: Rediscovering Pigments on Greco-Roman Marble Sculpture,� an exhibition Where: Cantor Arts Center, 328 Lomita Drive, Stanford University When: Through Aug. 7, open Wednesday through Sunday from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Thursdays until 8 p.m.
LECTURE SPONSORS
MEDIA SPONSOR
All proceeds benefit POST.
Peninsula Open Space Trust POST
222 High Street, Palo Alto, California 94301 (650) 854-7696 www.openspacetrust.org
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Cost: Free Info: Call 650-723-4177 or go to museum.stanford.org. *>Â?ÂœĂŠ Â?ĂŒÂœĂŠ7iiÂŽÂ?ÞÊUĂŠ ÂŤĂ€ÂˆÂ?ĂŠÂŁx]ÊÓ䣣ÊU Page 27