Andy Freeberg's Photography

With so many art links on the Internet, we tend to get especially hyped about meta-museum art, like Andy Freeberg's photographs of security guards at Russian museums and of receptionists at Chelsea galleries. The former consist mostly of elderly ladies dressed in bright colors, while the latter are identifiable only by a slice of scalp that shows above the ubiquitous big white desk. Freeberg's statement about the guard series reads as follows:

In the art museums of Russia, women sit in the galleries and guard the collections. When you look at the paintings and sculptures, the presence of the women becomes an inherent part of viewing the artwork itself. I found the guards as intriguing to observe as the pieces they watch over. In conversation they told me how much they like being among Russia’s great art. A woman in Moscow’s State Tretyakov Gallery Museum said she often returns there on her day off to sit in front of a painting that reminds her of her childhood home. Another guard travels three hours each way to work, since at home she would just sit on her porch and complain about her illnesses, “as old women do.” She would rather be at the museum enjoying the people watching, surrounded by the history of her country.

(via PICDIT)