BYU exhibition examines identity
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PROVO, UTAH
The first portrait was likely painted moments after ancient man discovered he could slap some sort of paint on some sort of flat surface.
Portraits have long satisfied a primal urge to mimic the mirror — to capture on canvas another's face and, perhaps, an element of that person's identity.
Contemporary artists are not always satisfied with simply reproducing identity. Many go a step further, examining the process of how one creates identity. A dynamic exhibit at Brigham Young University's Museum of Art, "Mirror, Mirror: Contemporary Portraits and the Fugitive Self," traces the influences of rituals, facades, social media and the family on the formation of individual identity. It's unlike anything seen before at the on-campus museum. The works of 32 artists are displayed in an examination "of what it means to be human beneath the veneers of identity we accumulate in society," according to the museum.
Museum visitors accustomed to more traditional art shows may need a moment or two to warm up to the exhibit. "Mirror, Mirror" is dubbed "contemporary" for good reason. It's challenging and demands effort from its viewers. Perhaps the reward arrives when visitors consider their own understanding of how they shape identity and how one crafts his or her own self-portrait.
"Mirror, Mirror" is a compilation of a variety of media including installation art, painting, photography, multi-media and video art. Featured in the exhibit are the works of several notable artists from Utah, the United States and beyond.
"Portraiture has enjoyed a rich tradition in the history of art," said Jeff Lambson, the museum's curator of contemporary art. "However, since the advent of modernism, artists have been less constrained by the limitations imposed by patrons and have freely explored personal identity — creating truer portraits that tend to examine the human condition in a more incisive and critical manner."
Curators focused on three "identity" themes. First, some works relate to rituals that shape identity, exploring the influence of societal forces such as education, economics, religion and the family. Other works examine the symbolic "masks" a person wears in searching for his or her true identity. Such masks include the clothes one wears or the music one listens to. The final works focuses on what identity remains when the layers of assumed identity are stripped away.
Visitors will also recognize new forms of technological "portrait building" that did not exist a decade ago. Several works in the exhibit examine phenomena such as Facebook or MySpace.
Visitors may find themselves pondering how one establishes his or her true identity amid myriad definitions.
"This exhibit explores the idea of divine selfhood," said Brother Lambson. "We learn we are more than clothes or the shoes we wear."
Visitors would be wise to utilize the exhibit's audio tour available on visitors' cell phones and as MP3 files on the museum Web site: moa.byu.edu.
"Mirror, Mirror" will be on display through May 8, on the museum's lower level. Admission is free.
BYU's Museum of Art is open Monday through Friday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.; Thursday evening from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m., and Saturday from noon to 5 p.m. The museum is located on North Campus Drive on BYU's Provo campus.
