Great artworks can teach us about people and their time

Published 1:30 am Sunday, November 13, 2016

The “Mona Lisa,” the Colosseum, Notre-Dame Cathedral, Michelangelo’s “David” … Europe’s cultural treasures are some of the most beautiful and enduring objects humans have created.

But let’s face it. Too many museums can ruin a vacation. For some, Notre-Dame’s vast interior can be a yawning bore, and the Vatican Museums on a busy day can make anyone a Roman ruin.

Europe’s great sights can evoke gasps or yawns — it all depends on what you know about them. You can look into the eyes of Michelangelo’s “David” and see a supersized hunk of marble — or you can witness humanity stepping out of medieval darkness into the Renaissance. The difference? Knowledge.

When people, admitting their ignorance of art, say, “But I know what I like,” they usually mean, “I like what I know.” It’s easier to like something that’s familiar and understood. That’s true of most things, from appreciating good wine to admiring the classic lines of a ‘56 Chevy. Learn about it first.

You don’t need a Ph.D. — a little background goes a long way. I remember touring the National Museum of Archaeology in Athens when I was younger because my mom said it would be a crime not to. I was bored out of my mind. But two years later, after taking a class in ancient history, that same museum was a fascinating trip into the world of Pericles and Socrates.

European museums, which used to be stingy with helpful information (and almost none of it in English), have figured out they have an international clientele. The best museums do a lot of the background study for you, with extended labels, good audioguides and fun apps for your smartphone.

It’s worth the trouble to better understand long-gone people — especially when you’ve traveled so far to see the objects they found beautiful. Those artifacts and artworks may seem dusty and old, but they’re springboards into living, breathing history.

I was filming recently in the great cathedral of Siena. Strapped to the side of a towering marble column was a wooden post. I ignored it, my head spinning from the church’s overall magnificence.

But when I asked my guide Roberto to point out the most significant piece in the cathedral, he went right to that wood flag pole. The Sienese captured it from the Florentines in a crushing battle fought on Sept. 4, 1260 — a battle so bloody that Dante recorded it in the “Inferno.” The Sienese proudly remember the rivalry and bloodshed of this date as if it were yesterday — and now so do I, having had it made real by a simple piece of wood.

If you dig a little deeper, you’ll find that European museums are filled with artworks that have the sharp immediacy of eyewitness accounts. In Germany, Reformation-era paintings pump up the charisma of Martin Luther as he challenged teachings of the medieval church. In Scandinavia, vivid slice-of-life scenes show off the epic nature of the land and the psyche of a pragmatic people. In France, a newly minted middle class enticed the Impressionists to follow them on picnic outings or to cabaret halls.

This year in Amsterdam, I guided a tour group in the inspirational Rijksmuseum. Its galleries are a primer of the Dutch Golden Age of the 1600s — and a perfect place to demonstrate that art can help travelers appreciate a culture and time.

Lush portraits of wealthy Dutch traders boast of their status, with their ships roaming the globe and their city the pinnacle of European civilization. Intimate scenes of daily life — a woman reading a letter, skaters on a frozen river, a maid pouring milk — show the prosperous Dutch at work and play.

The climax, Rembrandt’s “Night Watch,” is a bigger-than-life-size group portrait of a militia company. These able-bodied men were meant to defend the city. But with peace all around, they were more of a social club — a kind of Rotary Club of the 17th century.

Not every person will like every “masterpiece.” But when you understand an artwork’s intention, you can appreciate the result. Art becomes more interesting when you can relate it to real people. Keep on traveling — and learning.

©2016 Rick Steves. Distributed By Tribune Content Agency, LLC.