The following interview is with Sasha Giordano, director and co-curator of the latest exhibition at the Hofstra University Museum of Art, “Les Visionnaires: In the Modernist Spirit.” It has been lightly edited and condensed for clarity.
What is “Les Visionnaires: In the Modernist Spirit” about?
The title, [translated as] the Visionaries, speaks to the artists included in the exhibition and their vision in the late 19th and early 20th century, which was groundbreaking. The term “avant-garde” is a French military term, meaning the “advanced guard.” During times of war, the avant-garde ventured into the unknown and brought new information to the group, believing it would help the group succeed; the artists in this exhibition identified with that mindset. To understand the artists, we must put ourselves in their time: the turn-of-the-century. These artists were responding to political and societal events of the late 19th and 20th centuries that required a new way to respond to their rapidly changing world. They rallied against the French academy and traditional art. The [avant-garde] artists focused their interdisciplinary visions and methodologies in a variety of ways, including bookmaking, photography, collage, poetry and film. They worked together, and their collaborations produced new ideas towards art.
How did “Les Visionnaires” come about?
The exhibition was inspired by the Society for French History’s Conference on campus, which is planned with the history department chair, Professor Sally Charnow. She reached out to the museum, asking, “We are going to have French scholars and academics on campus. Can we have an exhibition that highlights French culture or intersects with the conference?” … Normally, an exhibition has one curator, but this one was co-curated by myself and Kristen Dorata, assistant director of exhibitions and collections from the museum’s permanent collection and the University’s Special Collections, the Howard and Muriel Weingrow Collection for Avant-Garde Art and Literature. … Several others also collaborated with this exhibit, so much so that I felt that we, too, worked in the spirit of the artists.
Why did the department choose this exhibit, and why is it relevant now?
What makes it relevant now is reflected in the title: there are two parts, “Les Visionnaires” and the “Modernist Spirit.” “Les Visionnaires” focuses on the French avant-garde, which intersects with modernism: a movement that is about breaking boundaries, making interdisciplinary connections and thinking progressively. Our world is becoming more interconnected, which relates to the second part of the title, “In the Modernist Spirit.” It’s a relevant exhibition because these artists teach us how to collaborate and show us the results of creative camaraderie.
Why should students be interested in the historical context of French avant-garde?
I think we can all be inspired by the artists included in this exhibition. They show us a methodology of collaboration and camaraderie and how we can work with our peers to produce something really powerful. That’s an important reminder for young people who get isolated because of social media and the digital content they interface with daily. I think it’s important for everyone to interact with material objects, like the works in this exhibit. For example, the mixed media drawings, posters, film, books, prints and more. I hope they’re inspired by it all.
While you have the opportunity, immerse yourself in the Hofstra University Museum of Art’s latest, “Les Visionnaires: In the Modernist Spirit,” where avant-garde masterpieces intertwine with diverse perspectives.
