“(Re)Contextualizing Precolumbian Art in the Twenty-First Century”

In attempting to re-imagine the meanings and motivations behind artifacts whose provenances remain murky, the work of contextualizing objects of antiquity becomes a difficult task. To be sure, Precolumbian scholars are often charged with the job of tracing or deducing the situations in which the works they study once emerged. And, as is often the case, there are as many ways to recreate a context as there are ways to be bereaved of it. Nonetheless, it is the task of the connoisseur, student, and sometimes the scientist, to place an object within its “true” provenance – or to divest it of a false one. As presenter Khristin Landry astutely reminds us, every object has its own purpose, history, motivation and context, and the sensibilities and histories of each curator and museumgoer multiply these factors many times over. But how does the museum, student, or scientist maintain his or her ability to assign such provenances while at the same time realizing that those who have come before have always come up short? How do they know they are not flat-out wrong as well? After all, as panel chair Esther Pasztory has written, “We as scholars concoct our stories, assuming them to be the most reasonable given the current facts, assuming that our explanations are of the greatest elegance and simplicity . . . These interpretations are not necessarily wrong, but many others, similar or contradictory, can be concocted out of the same field of evidence. Such analyses verify the multivalent nature of the system but do not explain it” (Teotihuacan, pp. 66-72).

Just as there are myriad monuments that have been unearthed in strange and unexpected locations, many more objects have come to light thanks to the efforts of amateur archaeologists and looters. In either case, the places of origin of these object remains shrouded in mystery. And then there are other objects for whom ‘provenance’ has never been in doubt – that is, until forensic technology began calling some of these objects into question. Now, with the help of microscopic analysis of chipping methods and spectral analysis of mineral and pigment deposits, the eye of the connoisseur has been able to detect blatant fabrications in our midst. Outright fakes! Yes, these days, it seems, all bets are off.

Fortunately for art historians, the physical context of an object is not its only source of provenance. As Pasztory points out, every object has an intellectual context as well. And often this intellectual point of origin can be an incredibly satisfying and enlightening recourse when the physical eludes us. “Very often art is an idealized solution to intractable contradictions; a distraction from difficulties; an exhortation, threat, or seduction for culturally sanctioned behavior” (Teotihuacan, p. 72). As such, there is always a conceptual or cognitive root in every work of art, and this can tell us a great deal about shifting uses of space in the Olmec world (as in J. Mullenhauer’s talk), or the transformation of political rhetoric in the Epiclassic Period (A. Finegold’s presentation), or even the ways in which these motivations might jive in one museum but not in another (see K. Landry’s piece). Yes, the art historian of today has more histories and tools than ever before. True, sometimes they obfuscate the very things we try to make clear. But more often than not, we find ourselves equipped to tackle a greater level of nuance with alacrity and confidence. As long as we stay a bit self-effacing, we can genuinely proffer exciting new contexts that we never before imagined – contexts which, of course, may very well be upset in the near future. But we have to keep trying, because each little effort takes us a little further back in time.

Just as there are myriad monuments that have been unearthed in strange and unexpected locations, many more objects have come to light thanks to the efforts of amateur archaeologists and looters. Then there are other objects for whom ‘provenance’ has never been a question, but which are also occasionally found to be complete fakes – fabrications of the late-nineteenth century. Finally, untold numbers of other objects must still lie interred in undiscovered tombs and ancient reservoirs. If and when they are revealed, we cannot be certain that their sites of origin may ever be gleaned. All bets are off.

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