Tracing the Sublime
December 10–March 21, 2004

The passion caused by the great and sublime in nature, when those causes operate most powerfully, is astonishment; and astonishment is that state of the soul, in which all its motions are suspended, with some degree of horror. In this case the mind is so entirely filled with its object, that it cannot entertain any other, nor by consequence reason on that object which employs it. Hence arises the great power of the sublime, that far from being produced by them, it anticipates our reasonings, and hurries us on by an irresistible force. Astonishment, as I have said, is the effect of the sublime in its highest degree; the inferior effects are admiration, reverence, and respect. - Edmund Burke

The concept of the sublime that Edmund Burke discusses in his On the Sublime and Beautiful (1757) has existed for centuries, yet its definition has been constantly altered and re-interpreted through art, literature, and personal experience. Whether considered in opposition to beauty or as dependent upon it, as an evocation of God, a sense of overwhelming awe, or a power more akin to terror, the sublime evades a concrete and specific explanation. Nevertheless, the concept is an essential ingredient in countless artistic explorations and expressions. Over time, artists have interpreted the sublime as the immeasurable space of a vast landscape, an expansive abstract canvas, or the sensation of pure and infinite light. However individual or varied their interpretation, each artist has a goal of transcendence in mind.

Beginning in the early nineteenth century, the landscapes of the Hudson River School portrayed the sublime through depictions that conveyed the awe and fear inspired by untamed nature. Laying bare the source of God’s wonder, these works engulf the audience with their awesome power. This feeling of exaltation or transcendence was in effect the purpose of these paintings, an intent that would drive generations of future artists.

Asher B. Durand, Study of a Wood Interior,
c. 1850, oil on canvas mounted on panel, gift of Mrs. Frederic F. Durand, © Addison Gallery of American Art

Similarly, artists have referenced the sublime by adapting and exploiting the power contained by religious symbols. Kiki Smith creates an altar with her installation Silent Work, however the object of this worship is a dejected and vulnerable Virgin Mary rather than a typical figure of virtue and strength. From the mandala to the Stations of the Cross, these traditional systems for meditation and devotion are adapted for contemporary use and represented through contemporary aesthetics.

For some artists, the act of artistic creation itself functions as meditation. Clearing the mind with repetition of motion and form via the artistic process inspires a personal reflection for the artist. Through reading the work, the viewer relives this practice as it then provokes a public contemplation. With her series of screenprinted grids, Agnes Martin simultaneously aims to create a purity of form and moments of inspiration for herself and her audience.
No matter what the artists’ intention, the works assembled here invoke the metaphysical, generating its own aura and essence. This art extends beyond the material, provoking a visceral response in its audience. Addressing the idea of the sublime in a variety of ways, these works reveal how art functions as a catalyst for and a product of contemplation.