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\u201cI like to blow (on) the Calders,\u201d the woman cheerily informed me.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I was stunned by this admission. For years, there have been signs posted at the museum telling people not to do this. While constructed of metal and wire, Calder\u2019s hanging works are extremely fragile. And if their beauty is not enough to compel you to protect them by following the posted rules, they are also extremely valuable, with some works selling for as much as $15 million at auction. Blowing on or otherwise forcing air on the many armed, hanging works risks tangling them. And in a post-COVID world, isn\u2019t the idea of blowing on (and potentially spitting on) anything, let alone a culturally significant work of art, taboo? Not to yuck your yum, lady, but this is a kink best left unexplored.\u00a0<\/p>\n
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When I told the woman about the signs, she protested that Calder designed the mobiles to move. Well yes, I tried to explain, but they\u2019re designed to move with gentle, natural air currents, not strong blasts or fanning. She remained unconvinced. It was shocking to me that a person past middle age who was connected enough to the art world as to be invited to this party had gone through life blowing on Calders like birthday cakes.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m going to go ask the Fishers if I can blow (on) them!\u201d The woman announced, sweeping off grandly toward SFMOMA Chair Bob Fisher, son of Doris and Donald.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
I did not stick around to find out whether she asked any of the Fishers in attendance her question but am going to assume they told her, \u201cNo.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Ma\u2019am, if you\u2019re reading, this next advice is for you.<\/p>\n
Don\u2019t blow on art. This applies not only to hanging works by Calder, but also Ruth Asawa, Ernesto Neto, Cathy Lu and others. In fact, don\u2019t blow on art of any kind: not paintings, not sculptures, not textiles. It\u2019s a good rule of thumb to go into art spaces with the cultural assumption that you will be expected to keep your breath to yourself.\u00a0<\/p>\n
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But in the privacy of your own home, huff and puff on your art like the Big Bad Wolf; I won\u2019t stop you.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Blow, blow, thou winter wind. Blow, Gabrielle, blow. The answer my friend, is blowin\u2019 in the wind. But I repeat, don\u2019t blow on the art.\u00a0<\/p>\n
In response to a Chronicle query, SFMOMA conservators offered a more technical version of that same maxim:<\/p>\n
\u201cBlowing on the sculptures will inadvertently transfer fluids onto artworks and can affect their surfaces, so we definitely want to discourage this behavior,\u201d they said in a statement.<\/p>\n
They also pointed out that\u00a0Calder’s kinetic sculptures are designed \u201cto slowly move in space, responding to their environment. The ones on view at SFMOMA are affected by the circulation of air from our HVAC systems.\u201d<\/p>\n
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Instead of blowing on them, \u201cwe recommend our visitors slow down and experience their subtle movements. They’ll be rewarded for their patience.\u201d<\/p>\n
While we are on the subject of best museum visitor practices, here are a few other behavioral expectations to be aware of before your next visit. These rules aren\u2019t there to stifle your freedom; they exist to keep the art safe and to help everyone have a pleasant visit. When you know better, you can do better.\u00a0<\/p>\n
![\"Works]()
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Works by Alexander Calder on view at the\u00a0San Francisco Museum of Modern Art.<\/p>\n
Michael Macor\/The Chronicle<\/p>\n
Mind the lines and barriers<\/p>\n
I thought this one was common sense, but after my experience with Miss \u201cWaiting to Exhale,\u201d I\u2019ve learned to assume nothing. If you see a line on the floor or a rope barrier in front of a piece of art, don\u2019t cross it. You could potentially hurt yourself or the art.\u00a0<\/p>\n
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Obey posted signage<\/p>\n
If museum staff cares enough to post a sign, they want you to not only read them, but obey their instructions. The people who make the rules about best visitor practices are simply trying to give everyone a chance to have a positive experience.<\/p>\n
Phone etiquette<\/p>\n
Smartphones are as much an aspect of museum-going as they are every other part of life. But even though selfies with art are now the norm, that doesn\u2019t give you free rein to turn the museum into your own influencer house. If you want to take pictures of the art and there are no rules against it, go ahead. But if you want to take pictures of yourself with the art, be mindful of the people around you. If others are waiting to see the work, take a few shots, then come back later if you\u2019re not satisfied. If you can wait until an exhibition is less crowded, that\u2019s always extra credit. And please, don\u2019t bring your own ring light, as I once saw someone do at a museum before the guard asked them to put it away.<\/p>\n
Remember, this isn\u2019t your living room<\/p>\n
Enjoy the art, experience the art, fall in love with the art. But remember, you\u2019re not on your couch scrolling through images alone. Remember that other people are at museums and they deserve an opportunity to enjoy the work as much as you do. If someone lets you know your behavior is disrupting them, don\u2019t take it as a rebuke but as a lesson about how to be a better art aficionado.<\/p>\n
If there\u2019s an issue, get a staff member<\/p>\n
If you see someone violating rules and potentially endangering a work of art, alert a security guard. Don\u2019t try to be a hero; upsetting an offender could make the situation worse.\u00a0<\/p>\n
And if you see a woman on the fifth floor of SFMOMA blowing on the Calders, please send her this column.\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Alexander Calder works on view in “Reimagined: The Fisher Collection at 10” at the San Francisco Museum of…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":271538,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[34],"tags":[329,65739,7,143,145,144,101,2013],"class_list":{"0":"post-271537","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-oakland","8":"tag-arts-and-entertainment","9":"tag-arts-and-exhibits","10":"tag-california","11":"tag-oakland","12":"tag-oakland-headlines","13":"tag-oakland-news","14":"tag-san-francisco","15":"tag-us-and-world"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/271537","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=271537"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/271537\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/271538"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=271537"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=271537"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=271537"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}