Art in the Afternoon: Beyond the Tombstones

Art in the Afternoon is a four-part lecture series presented by Muscarelle Docents. Join us Wednesdays in October for these illuminated art history presentations.

Our bodies are hardwired to the human form and the space it inhabits. And yet, we look, but don’t see. This presentation, by Docents Sandra Stephan and Harry Chancey, is designed to comfortably move us from looking to seeing. Tombstones are the plaques mounted on the wall next to works of art. They tell us the Who? What? When? Where? and How? of art. This presentation explores the “Why?” We’ll explore the mysteries of art and search for clues in the stories that every piece of art tells. Ultimately, this presentation is designed to encourage. Prospective museum goers are sometimes put off by the high blown language of art critics and the arched eyebrows of art academics. Thomas Hoving, the famed director of the Metropolitan Museum of Art once said, “view the Louvre on roller skates and fly by the things that don’t interest you. Settle on the things that do. And immerse yourself. Don’t let anyone tell you what to think or feel.” Let’s roll together.

Sandra Stephan, a retired professor of English literature, currently — and proudly — chairs the Muscarelle Museum of Art Docents and is active with the Friends of the Williamsburg Library.

Harry Chancey is an Emmy award-winning television producer and former program executive for WNET/13 Public Television in New York now serving as a Muscarelle Docent.

FAITH RINGGOLD | American, born 1930 | The Sunflower Quilting Bee at Arles, 1996 | Color lithograph | © Faith Ringgold | Museum Purchase | 2000.023