The imagined museum is an essay by André Malraux , first published in 1947 and later included (as the first part) in the novel Voice of Silence, published in 1951 . The third, substantially revised, edition was published in 1965 .
Introduction
The museum introduced a new connection between works of art . This study and reflection on the phenomena in the history of art, arising during the Renaissance and existing only in Europe .
This fundamentally new way of building relationships between works according to their functions leads to what Malraux calls metamorphosis. A crucifix does not depict a crucifix; a portrait is not a portrait of someone; works of art have always been fixations of two planes of reality - either that which objectively exists (nature, man) or non- existent (religion, drama). The purely ornamental, lush (gold, decor) plane of art is no longer considered, but the ideas of the displayed are considered.
The juxtaposition of these planes of art, the conceptualization of the displayed, the study of the metamorphosis in art are a completely new way of understanding the history of art.
This confrontation of contradictions is an awareness of the search for all possible - art, the re-creation of a universe of images, awareness of the role of man in this process and, in this connection, new ideas in humanism. For Malraux, man recreates the world before God and conquers reality by a special method - art, which is the meaning of his life despite oblivion and death. Gold, since the ancient times the esteemed precious metal, is an imaginary museum, because it does not carry value by itself, but is valuable for a particular recipient. The metaphorical museum is the result of accidents, curiosities. Journey is a metaphor for the representation of images in memory that lasts until the death of a person.
But today, thanks to photography , you can simultaneously work with the works of all civilizations throughout history. Therefore, it becomes possible to solve many problems associated with art history and archival research.
Literature
- Andrei Teslya. Music of art . Russian Journal (1997-2015).
- Victoria Khan-Magomedova. Imaginary Museum . Art Dialogues (August 24, 2012).