WHEN WORDS FAIL, CAN ART PROVIDE AN ANSWER ???

By Dr. Hans Guggeneheim

WHEN WORDS FAIL, CAN ART PROVIDE AN ANSWER ???

Yes, it has for thousands of years.

Whether by guns or by knives, in Connecticut or in China, violence against the defenseless has become routine, but even when it reaches a level of horror that forces the President of the United States to speak out, school administrators may decide to hide events from their students. We understand their desire not to frighten or to panic young children although we disagree with policy of not discussing horrific events such as the Newtown slayings in classrooms.  In our experience the only defense against fear is knowledge, and we believe that this holds true for any age and any level of understanding. Silence may lead to new disasters. On Dec.19 an incident was reported about an eleven year old at the West Kearns Elementary School in Fox Lake City, Utah  : "He pulled out a gun and he put it to my head — me and my friend — (and) said he was going to kill us," Isabelle Rios told KSL. "I told him I was going to tell, but he said “If you tell, I'm going to kill you.”

Young children may not easily find words to cope with traumatic events which may reach them in uncontrolled way through the social media or via older siblings and classmates.  Information about the death of kids their own age will be especially traumatic, and they may not have the courage to talk about their feelings.

We therefore urge teachers and even parents to discuss the problem of violence with their students or children and to provide them with paint and paper so that they can express their inner feelings, overcome the trauma, and face their future without anxiety.

If we at Projectguggenheim can be of any help to you in this task, please do not hesitate to get in touch with us.

To avoid having children make illustrations of violent killings, the goal of helping them work through such crises could be met by suggesting themes such as:

What makes you feel Safe?

What makes you feel strong?

What can you do to help others who may need your assistance?

In response to Newtown shooting

By Dr. Hans Guggenheim 

The continuing massacres by the mentally deranged of both adults and children in the United State is having a traumatic effect on young students in our schools. In response to the most recent tragedy an effort is an effort is on the way to help the victims of the Sandy Hook Connecticut Elementary School by different organizations which provide counseling activities locally and we are listing them below for your information.

However, the impact of the Sandy Hook killings is far reaching and Projectguggenheim would like to encourage Elementary Schools to help children cope with their fears by giving them an opportunity to express their feelings, their compassion and their anxieties by drawing or painting. Creating art can provide the means to cope with emotional stress caused by shocking news of children killed, kids their own age with whom they readily identify. The resulting art works could be exhibited in the schools ,forwarded to the Sandy Hook school as an expression of sympathy, or auctioned off to raise funds for the organizations listed below which I found on the web.

Local mental health professionals and aid organizations are stepping forward to help those affected by the tragedy.

Police reported that at least 27 people, including 18 children, were killed Friday morning during a shooting at Sandy Hook elementary School in Newtown, according to the Associated Press. Officials identified the gunman as Adam Lanza, 20, who died at the scene, CNN reports.

As the shocked community begins to mourn, a number of organizations are prepared to help with counseling services, bereavement therapy and blood donations.

Find out how the area’s nonprofits are getting involved in the relief effort and how you can help: 

Newtown Youth and Family Services 
Newtown Youth & Family Services, Inc., a nonprofit mental health clinic, will be open Saturday and Sunday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. for emergency counseling for families, community members or staff involved in the Sandy Hook Elementary school tragedy. All donations made to the organization will benefit those affected. Find out how you can help here.

Newtown Parent Connection
The Newtown Parent Connection, a nonprofit that addresses issues of substance abuse, also offers bereavement group counseling on the first Wednesday of every month. The organization told The Huffington Post that it’s going to try to bring in additional counselors to accommodate the needs of those affected by the Sandy Hook shooting. Find out how you can help here.

The American Red Cross
The American Red Cross of Connecticut immediately responded to the shooting scene and provided more than 50 units of blood platelets and plasma to the Danbury Hospital, where some of the victims were transported, spokesperson Melanie Pipkin told the Huffington Post. The aid organization has also distributed food and water to first responders and is setting up a family reception center that will provide initial grief counseling. The aid organization is not seeking blood donations at this time and doesn't anticipate any additional need. Learn about how you can help here.

Lecture at Plymouth State University Dec. 3

PLYMOUTH — An internationally renowned art educator and anthropologist will speak at Plymouth State University's Smith Recital Hall Dec. 3 at 6 p.m. as part of a lecture series on artists and war. Dr. Hans Guggenheim's presentation, War in Art: Connectomes and Synchronicity, is the first of four presentations by Dr. Guggenheim. During this first presentation, he will be examining how artists have expressed their perspectives about war from the 17th century to present using Goya's Disasters of War as the centerpiece.

Dr. Guggenheim has also loaned PSU a variety of works from his personal collection as part of the Disaster of War series that will be on display from Dec. 3 through Dec. 21 in the Karl Drerup Art Gallery. 

Guggenheim's lecture and the Goya print exhibit is part of a series of events organized by Plymouth State University Deans Dr. Cynthia Vascak and Dr. Trent Boggess. The Hans Guggenheim Lecture Series includes one presentation each Fall and Spring semester from Fall 2012 through Spring 2014. 

Guggenheim, whose family fled Nazi Germany in the 1930s, taught at Massachusetts Institute of Technology as an Associate Professor of Anthropology and was a Visiting Scholar at Harvard's Center for International Affairs. A respected artist in his own right, he also produced an acclaimed series for Life magazine in the 1950s, travelling through Turkey, Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan, India and Japan. He later founded Project Guggenheim, which provides opportunities for young artists and encourages innovation as well as continuity for ancient art traditions, throughout many countries including the Peoples Republic of China, Tibet, Mali, Guatemala, Israel, Tonga and Macedonia.

( resource from the laconia daily sun )

Lecture and exhibition at PSU

Disasters of War, Etching by Francisco José de Goya y Lucientes

During the month of December, the Karl Drerup Art Gallery of Plymouth State University will present a special exhibition of the etchings of Francisco José de Goya y Lucientes. Beginning Monday, December 3 and continuing through Friday, December 21, selections from the renowned Disasters of War series will be on display.

The works are from the collection of Hans Guggenheim, Boston based collector, professor of Anthropology, artist, and founder of Projectguggenheim, an educational initiative supporting the study and development of indigenous artistic traditions. 

Interview by World Journal - 2009

古根漢將在波士頓展畫作

波士頓訊

December 31, 2009 12:01 AM 

古根漢參觀敦煌壁畫時買下的「敦煌菩薩」布幔。 （黃子怡∕攝影）

前麻省理工學院（MIT）人類學教授古根漢（Hans Guggenheim）的生活和畫作都深受中國影響，他近年曾到台灣、尼泊爾、中國旅遊，並且在中國興辦美術學校。他的作品和收藏畫作不久前在南京博物館展出，古根漢也計畫在波士頓展覽畫作。

日前親訪湖南省馬王堆漢墓，他對古長沙國的藝術和生活印象深刻。古根漢從小就被山水畫吸引，他對畫中人物渺小，而大自然占很大比例哲學感興趣。他指出，西畫恰巧相反，是人物較大，以大自然當背景。

國畫是他的興趣之一，但古根漢最擅長線條畫（linedrawing），他以美術簽字筆記錄對風景和人物的觀感。他說，用線條捕捉實物相當困難，簽字筆與鉛筆最大的不同是不能擦掉重來。古根漢表示，他沒畫錯過，作畫時也不重來。宛如他85個歲月只向前邁進而不回頭。

他在中國式的畫紙書上，以優美的線條呈現中國的山水和「玉女出征」等故事。他的自畫像是以一條線勾勒出一位幽幽地獨自喝中國茶解悶的人。幽默的古根漢拿著一張像原子彈爆炸的線條畫問，這是「香菇」還是「不朽」? 接著宣布，「這是香菇」。

古根漢家裡掛著一幅「敦煌菩薩」的布幔，這是他參觀敦煌壁畫旅居時，說服旅館主人從牆上拿下來賣給他的紀念品。原籍德國的古根漢喝烏龍茶、用端溪名硯、欣賞景德鎮陶瓷。他有許多與中國藝術生活相關的圖書，無數個茶壺，以及一桌子的毛筆、玉印，他的生活和畫作都融入了中國文化。（黃子怡）

Read more:世界新聞網-北美華文新聞、華商資訊 - 古根漢將在波士頓展畫作

Publication - Love and Immortality in China

Love and Immortality in China
A Taoist Drama: Action To No Action

By Hans Guggenheim

About the Author

Hans Guggenheim (b. Berlin 1924), was educated in England and lived in Guatemala during World War II. where he had his first one-man exhibition at the Club Guatemala,1945. In New York he studied Art history at the Institute of Fine Arts (NYU) with Alfred Salmony, an expert on Chinese art, and Jose Lopez-Rey, an expert on Goya. From 1956 -1958, he traveled as an artist for LIFE magazine through Turkey, Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan ,India and Japan. Guggenheim’s Ph.D. dissertation in Anthropology was on National Self-Image formation in the Arts. He taught as Associate Professor of Anthropology at MIT and Visiting Scholar at Harvard’s Center for International Affairs where he did research for UNESCO. At the time of the drought in Mali to built water-granaries for the Dogon with the support of his friend Lester Wunderman. He was president of the Worldcrafts Fdt. for UNESCO and In 976 he founded Projet Guggenheim which evolved into Projectguggenheim in 1996.(www.projectguggenheim.org) . With the goal of providing opportunities for young artists and to encourage innovation as well continuity for ancient art traditions, PROJECTGUGGENHEIM established schools and programs in many countries including the Peoples Republic of China Autonomous Region of Tibet, Mali, Guatemala ,Israel, Tonga and Macedonia. 

Hans Guggenheim lives in Boston. 

Jerry Zhu Peihan met Dr.Guggenheim in 2004 when she first volunteered as an interpreter for the exhibition of the Hans Guggenheim collection of Goya’s ‘Disasters of War’ at the Nanjing Museum. Jerry Zhu Peihan was a student at the Center for International Relations of John Hopkins University in Nanjing and has continued to collaborate with Dr.Guggenheim on a wide range of projects.

Overview

Embark on an exciting expedition to China at the turbulent beginning of the Western Han Dynasty to search for Zhang Liang, a famed innovator of military strategies who metamorphosed from a would-be assassin into a Taoist immortal and for Jade, his eternally beautiful partner in love and war.

Author Hans Guggenheim has woven an enchanting tale about Love And Immortality In China that will rivet readers from beginning to end…

Product Details

       Paperback: 194 pages

       Publisher: Xlibris Corporation (November 23, 2010)

       Language: English

       ISBN-10: 1453575472

       ISBN-13: 978-1453575475

The book purchase is available on Amazon, Xlibris, Barnes & Nobel. All of the book sales will go to PROJECTGUGGENHEIM to help promote art program and education in remote areas.

Thank you for your support !

Our website :   http://www.projectguggenheim.org