The MOMA: Contemporary American Art as a context for Contemporary American Literature.

Wiliam Carlos Williams, Charles Demuth, Allen Ginsberg, Jack Kerouac, Frank O’Hara, Jackson Pollock…. these are some of the interlocking names that bring literature and the visual arts together. Today we had a wonderfully rich tour, conducted by MOMA lecturer Sylvia into some of these interconnections. Here is the full audio lecture/ floor talk and attached below are some of the key images of paintings, kinetic sculptures and architectural details that deepened our understanding of what was happening in the contemporary literary scene. When listening, be patient as we spent some time wandering from one painting to the next. Here is the audio of today’s lecture:

Thank you very much Sylvia for your enlightening talk, for opening up for us a number of different ways of understanding the underlying meanings and effects of these art works!

Here now are the major paintings that Sylvia walked us through- in aproximate order in which they are covered in her talk- so I suggest listening to her talk while simultaneously scrolling down the paintings. Click on individual items for and expanded image:

 

And here to finish off are a just a few of the other stunning modernist paintings that you can see hanging on the walls of this amazing place:

Here also is the introductory talk on the MOMA that was given at this morning’s tutorial together with a very lively discussion on the significance of aspects of the Book of Mormon:

Sadly this will be the last blog in this New York series until the same time next year.

MG