Camping Out in the Galleries

Despite what outside temperatures indicate, summer is slowly fading, and with it goes another wonderful season of NCMA camps. Each year, new and returning campers bring our programs to life with their fresh perspectives, infectious enthusiasm, and palpable love for the arts. In celebration of all they contribute, as well as the hard work of our camp staff, I decided to record and share some campers’ musings on artworks in the People’s Collection. Witty, profound, and brimming with detail, their observations did not disappoint.

During the first week of camps, I was joined in West Building by three campers—Will (age 12), Dido (age 9), and Taylor (age 7)—and a member of camp staff. I asked the campers to chart the course of our gallery journey based on whatever interested them. Will, familiar with the collection’s layout after three years of camp, immediately took off in the direction of the African Gallery, winding his way to Elias Sime’s Tightrope 9, the first stop on our tour.

Tightrope 9 conveys the impression of a road-riddled landscape from an aerial perspective using discarded electronic waste Sime gathered from Merkato, an open-air market in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Will explained how the vastness of the artwork makes him feel “at peace.” He recalled memories of annual road trips to Maine and Missouri, and the excitement of encountering the unknown in nature. The collage’s bird’s-eye view, he said, forces us to think about “where we’ve been and where we’re going.” Stepping closer to the panels, Will noted groups of foreign symbols scattered across the work’s surface. He expressed his admiration for such details and the sense of uncertainty they inspire. “They make me feel like art is full of mysteries that have to be solved at some point in life,” he said. “And there’s no single way to solve them.”

After a brief jaunt through contemporary art, we entered the European Galleries, where Dido paused to discuss the magnificence of Pierre-Jacques Volaire’s neoclassical-style painting, The Eruption of Mt. Vesuvius. She immediately recognized the artwork as her schoolteacher’s favorite in the entire Museum. She focused much of her analysis on the human figures in the foreground, grafting class dynamics onto the scene. “The richer people who have already escaped the volcano on the bridge think they’re safe,” she said, “but they’re probably not.” For Dido, that feeling of hopelessness imbues the work with a sense of gravity. Its dread hums with the resonance of nature’s uncompromising destruction. The more Dido shared, the more I understood her remarks as discerning reflections on life more broadly. She questioned how people could be “living so close to something that’s really dangerous without even knowing it.” Although the citizens of the depicted town were most definitely aware of their environmental hazards, due to the legendary destruction of Pompeii, Dido reminds us of the distinctly human tendency to overlook hard truths, even when they seem obvious to an outside observer.

Just around the corner from The Eruption of Mt. Vesuvius hangs a monumental portrait of Louis XV as a youth. After learning that Louis was about five years old around the time the portrait was executed, Taylor had many thoughts to share. “He is a very tall five-year-old,” she remarked with an air of suspicion. Still, she enjoyed “all his cool king stuff.” When asked to describe the artwork, Taylor produced an impressive close reading. She spoke of the various painted fabrics’ textures, and how the elaborate accessories adorning Louis’s person elevated his status as a ruler, making up for his lack of life experience. Looking beyond Louis’ scepter and ermine-lined coat, Taylor adopted an optimistic lens in explaining the lessons one can glean from the portrait. “It makes me feel like anyone can do something special with their life,” she said. “That’s what makes them who they are.”

Taylor’s parting comment touches on an essential component of NCMA camps—motivating kids to discover what they enjoy about the arts for themselves. Sometimes we encounter a work of art, and it completely changes the way we move through the world. When encouraged to seek out these interactions early in life, we remain creative, curious, and empathetic. Will, Dido, and Taylor exemplified this notion with their willingness to reflect on artworks in such a personal way. I left our afternoon together feeling inspired by their perspectives and grateful for the consistent support camp programs receive year over year.