Museum
2021
Acrylic and pencil on linen canvas
61 x 90 x 5 cm
RT4A2102
Courtesy of the artist
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rt4a, Museum - Fraser Official Welcome, 2022, 02’36” ©rt4a
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Ancient Greece’s Museion was not just a structure but a philosophical and spiritual embodiment of higher pursuits. The muses were more than just goddesses; they represented domains of knowledge and art, reminding humankind of their ability to transcend.
Marvel, though ostensibly a creation of popular culture, taps into a primal human instinct: the need for stories, for heroes, for larger-than-life figures who navigate and are supposed to transcend complex moral landscapes. This vast multiverse mirrors the same fundamental narratives we find in ancient mythology: tales of sacrifice, powers and their abuses, love and betrayal, supernatural beings changing forms, in a perpetual moral struggle between good and evil.
When Museum replaces the Marvel logo, it is not only a visual trick. It invites a blurring of boundaries. Could the mythologies of antique, classical, modern, contemporary art be compared to universes like Marvel? Are contemporary museums collections of superhero figures or narratives? How will future civilisations perceive our modern myths? Are artefacts and masterpieces, ensconced within the protective walls of the world’s museums, not superheroes in their own right? They have, after all, battled time, survived wars, outlived their origins, and continue to inspire awe.
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