Ducks are fortunate in the riches they get to enjoy on campus, and prime among these are two world-class museums: the Jordan Schnitzer Museum of Art and the Museum of Natural and Cultural History.
At the JSMA there is always a robust and varied mix of permanent, semi-permanent and temporary exhibits. Among the permanent ones are excellent collections of Japanese and Chinese art.
In the Japanese collection you will find, among other things, a fourteenth century samurai sword, ancient ceramic artifacts and many tempera-on-wood depictions of feudal village life. Included also is an assemblage of art and artifacts of the Ainu, the indigenous people of the Land of the Rising Sun, who have suffered cultural marginalization and colonization similar to that experienced by America’s Indigenous peoples. Among the Asian exhibits are “Half the Sky: Women in Chinese Art,” and “Capital and Countryside in Korea.”
Throughout its rotating collections in the galleries, the JSMA has boasted works by such art world luminaries as Cy Twombly, Mark Rothko Kandinsky, Frida Kahlo and Basquiat. Ancient Etruscan, Greek and Roman plates and sculptures, as well as stone Buddhas, are also worth ruminating upon.
An insightful collection of hagiographic art, “After Life: The Saints of Russia and Greek Orthodoxy,” contextualizes the historic importance of Eastern Europe’s tradition of adoration of saints (and the Madonna). Also worth viewing is “The First Metal,” which centers the significance of copper in the British Arts and Crafts movement of the late nineteen hundreds.
However, the standout attraction right now at the JSMA is a video installation, “Lessons of the Hour: Frederick Douglass,” from the esteemed British artist Sir Isaac Julien. Filling an entire room, it consists of ten screens which are back projected by what could most simply be called a short film. The screens sometimes display the same scenes, but mostly are used for different scenes tied together visually or thematically. The titular subject is portrayed by an actor in period dress; he speaks, directly or in voice-over, the words of the great abolitionist, writer and former slave. Anyone wary of innovative contemporary art should come and absorb this visually stunning and impactful work.
On the other side of campus, in the shadow of the law school, is the Natural and Cultural History Museum. The stand-out here is the world’s oldest pair of shoes, discovered in a cave right here in Oregon. Woven and nearly fully intact, they could give any pair of Nikes a run for their money.
On the cultural history side of things are exhibits on magic in medieval Europe; Additionally, dioramas of pre-Columbian Native life and an extensive collection of indigenous artifacts from Oregon, including arrow heads, grinding stones and woven baskets. It is fitting that the original inhabitants of our state have pride of place here, as we should all better educate ourselves about their rich and ancient history.
In the medieval magic display are examples of objects considered to give luck, like keys and locks, horseshoes and “saints cakes,” the precursor to Halloween candy, handed out to strangers knocking on people’s doors. Harry Potter fans should definitely check out the toadstones, “serpent tongues” (actually fossilized shark teeth), bezoars, goose feathers, mandrake root and a display about animal familiars.
There are also displays on regional geology from volcanoes to earthquakes and tsunamis and an interactive exhibit on plate tectonics. Don’t miss the many fossilized remains of both flora and fauna from Oregon, including a massive mammoth femur, a fully reconstructed giant sloth skeleton and various other plants and animals that used to thrive here (including rhinos and banana trees).
The most comprehensive exhibit is “Outliers and Outlaws,” a cultural history of the local lesbian community. Eugene has historically been a mecca for lesbians, who came here and established a flourishing culture that continues to this day. It is an affecting exhibit, demonstrating both how far American society has come and how far it still must go in loving one another as equals and truly embracing our rich human diversity. It remains open through the end of the year and is among many of the fantastic art and history exhibits worth seeing on campus.
The Jordan Schnitzer Museum of Art is located on Johnson Lane in Eugene, Ore. (Molly McPherson/Emerald)
