Art: Manners, Culture, Etiquette
An antique book of manners gives advice on how to deal with artists.
In his book Manners, Culture and Dress, Richard A. Wells gives proper rules for how to behave with artists or in museums. Below is advice on Conduct in Picture Galleries:
"In visiting picture-galleries one should always maintain the deportment of a gentleman or lady. Make no loud comments, and do not seek to show superior knowledge in art matters by gratuitous criticism. Ten to one, if you have not an art education you will only be giving publicity to your own ignorance." A friend who overheard a woman in a museum speaking disparagingly of one of his favorite Van Gogh paintings said to her, “Lady, Van Gogh cut his own ear off so he wouldn’t have to listen to crap like that!”
Wells also includes an entire chapter on Etiquette of the Studio. Some quotes below:
"It is not etiquette to ask an artist the price of his picture at sight."
"It is excessively ill-bred to criticise harshly, in the presence of an artist, the works displayed in his studio." (This one could be prefaced with, "If you'd like to exit the studio alive...")
"It is ill-bred to take a young child to visit the studio of an artist, as there are generally articles there of value and easily broken or soiled; and even if the child is well trained, the owner of such articles would be in terror lest they should be ruined."
"It is extremely rude, if an artist continues his employment during a visit to his studio, for the visitor to stand behind him or very near him, or in any way to seem to watch his work." Contemporary translation: Don't watch the artist.
Perhaps most of these rules would apply today, except that it can be a positive experience to take your child to an artist's studio, with prior permission from the artist, of course. While taking your child to an art museum is great, the studio of a working artist can be fun, visually stimulating, and educational. It also helps to bust the myth that you have to be dead to be a successful artist.
It’s interesting that just over a hundred years ago there were societal agreements about how to treat artists and how to behave around them. In the Wells book, artists are the only profession who receive special attention except for a small chapter on Washington Behaviors which includes information on how to hobnob with wealthy Pols whilst in Washington D.C.
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