Eurocentrism in Art History
by Rajul Bothra
Historically, Europe has played an important role in globalization and in the advancement of technology and culture. With periods of imperialism and colonialism, European powers like Britain, France, and Spain dominated economically, but also culturally. Part of this stems from the attitude of "White Man's Burden" (framed so eloquently by Kipling) - the idea that it was the responsibility and duty of the modernized, superior white man to guide and develop the primitive cultures.
We like to believe today that we are past outdated and racist ideals of cultural superiority, and that all cultures are valued for their history and significance, but this is not the case. Implicitly (and sometimes explicitly), American society is Eurocentric, and by extension, the way we value culture is Eurocentric as well. The video above aims to illustrate this point.
The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City is a museum that aims to showcase significant art and artistic development historically throughout all of the world. It has one of the largest collections of art in the world, and exhibitions that do an admirable job of displaying and explaining the art. However, not all art in the museum is treated equal, both by the museum and by the public itself.
Middle Eastern art has influenced much in the art world, with intricate woven textiles and the beginnings of mosaic. The exhibition galleries devoted to the art of the Arab lands in the Met is beautiful, well designed, and well explained. A few people wander through these galleries, stopping at some of the sculpture and some of the art. The most populated areas of the Middle Eastern galleries are those that serve as corridors of transit to other parts of the museum. The museum does a respectable job of showcasing the art it has obtained to represent the Middle East. However, there is a clear divide in the importance of Middle Eastern art and European art.
The gallery space that displays European art is much larger, with many more people walking around and admiring paintings. In fact, from the relatively empty galleries of Middle Eastern art, you can see and hear the crowds admiring the galleries of European art and sculpture. People fawn over paintings by household names of artistic greats, like Van Gogh and Monet. The museum space dedicated to European art is well advertised, and special exhibition advertisements were showcasing Fragonard, a European artist. Another special exhibit on fashion history showcased exclusively European and American design, with the only mention of another culture being mentioned when a European design emulated the Japanese kimono, showing yet another example of how other cultures were deemed important only when relative to a European context, but not on their own.
As a public, we are more excited and more involved in European art history, admiring that which reflects the history of the westernized culture in which we live. Many people have a favorite European artist or art piece, but cannot name a single Middle Eastern artist. In appreciating European culture and art and implicitly valuing it above others, we are paying homage to an aspect of European culture as well - superiority and imperialism. And is that what we, as a multicultural, diverse, globalized society, want for our own culture?
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