Stockholm Art: My Choice

 On a morning in Stockholm, Sweden we visited the Moderna Museet. This was a modern art museum near our hotel with many famous pieces. I made a goal to stand in front of each piece for at least 20 seconds to see if they spoke to me, because usually I am not super interested in modern art. This goal actually helped me to appreciate modern art so much more. I was able to make my own creation in my head of what the pieces meant to me. One of my favorites was a piece that really caught my eye. The piece literally had volume and depth to it as it was a three-dimensional canvas sculpture. It reminded me of a volcano, but with the tectonic plates of Earth’s crust that slides and mesh every which way, showing. This specific piece was created by Lee Bontecou in the USA. According to the description it came from a New York Collection created in 1959.

I believe this piece is historically important as it was done by Lee Bontecou who is a woman in the 1950s. During this time she was likely apart of few women in this field. Women in the 1950s had to fight to be seen and appreciated. The fact that she also made this protruding piece of artwork that appears similar to a volcano also is a less femine piece of work. The fact that this piece of artwork is now quite well known and appreciated in a modern art museum in Europe shows that women such as her are making a difference for all women in history.

In my opinion, this modern art piece contributes to the city of Stockholm’s status as a cultural capital, because it is a famous piece done by a woman. The fact that Stockholm is displaying this famous piece of modern art created by a woman shows that the country of Sweden cares about art and are very accepting of all people as equals. The artwork demonstrates Stockholm’s appreciation for women who struggling in the past to be noticed. Stockholm having this piece of artwork isn’t their modern art museum says that Sweden recognizes fine art and does not discriminate who has created the work. Thus, the piece of art I chose to write about contributes to this city as a cultural capital.