Why should we study Mesoamerican art?

1. Because Mesoamerican art represents one of the great aesthetic traditions of the world. The art includes monumental architecture which rivals the size and splendor of Egyptian, Greek and Roman art; it includes monumental sculpture which depicts gods and humans on superhuman scale which compares in impressiveness to the sculpture of China, India and Rome; it includes mural paintings which express human emotions with a immediacy and poignancy which matches the works of Michaelangelo; it includes refined examples of jade carving and gold casting that matches in exquisiteness the pieces that adorned the lavish palaces of France and England in the Baroque period. Yet the aesthetic qualities embodied in Mesoamerican art are very different from the qualities to which we are accustomed in Western Art. Mesoamerican art combines naturalism with abstraction and ornament with structure, fantasy with reality, in ways that we find startling. We are challenged to expand our visual capacities when we confront Mesoamerican art. As a result, we are able to see both unfamiliar and familiar traditions in new, richer ways.

2. Because Mesoamerican art expresses the cultural tradition of the pre-Columbian people of our continent. Until the twentieth century, investigators frequently sought to attribute the achievements of pre-Columbian civilization not to an indigenous origin but to European origin. Native Americans were equated with the lost tribe of Israel, or with Atlantis of Plato. More recently, pre-Columbian civilization has been attributed to Egyptian travelers, Chinese merchants and even space travelers. We have resisted acknowledging that civilizations with complex systems of writing, mathematics, astronomy and agriculture could attain levels of sophistication equal to contemporary European cultures without the direct influence of the Old World. Mesoamerican art is the visual embodiment of independent resilient civilizations. When we come into contact with these civilizations, we learn about values and world-views that are radically different than our own. In doing so, we also are better able to examine and understand the values and world-view of our own culture.

3. Because Mesoamerican art is the proud heritage of the living people of the nations of Central and South America. As modem US citizens, we live in closer contact with native American peoples than with the peoples of Europe. We share a border with Mexico; we attempt to shape the governments of Central America by applying economic pressures and by mounting military invasions; we take vacations in warm resort towns; we use products manufactured by Latin American people, and we eat food grown and harvested by our neighbors. Moreover, our neighbors are crossing the borders in increasing numbers. Ourities have large populations of Hispanic peoples, and Spanish is our nation's second most frequently spoken language. We sometimes feel that the presence of Hispanic peoples in the US poses a threat to US workers. Yet despite our ignorance of Latin American culture, our music, art, literature and even our economic well-being are immeasurably enriched by the contributions of the native people of Central and South America. While these people feel humbled by their poverty and powerlessness, they derive great self-respect and personal pride from their pre-Columbian heritage. When we share that heritage, we become more able to increase that pride. We become better friends and neighbors, and we become more willing to share our benefits with them.

4. Because Mesoamerican art is relatively unknown and unstudied. Literally tens of thousands of small sites in Mesoamerica have never been surveyed, mapped, explored or excavated. Cities the size of Mankato, Duluth, and St. Paul are still buried by jungle vegetation. Pyramids rise above the rain forest canopy in areas too remote to be reached by road. Stela are inscribed with the names of rulers who once controlled the lives of tens of thousands of subjects. These sites are just being excavated and the stelae are just being deciphered. It is as if Egyptologists had just found the Rosetta Stone, as if Michael Ventris had just translated Linear B inscriptions, as if Greek scholars had just begun excavations at Mycenae, as if Roman archaeologists had just begun to survey the Roman forum, or as if Pompeii had just been discovered. Our knowledge concerning Mesoamerican civilizations is expanding at an exciting rate with major discoveries being made each year.

5. Because Mesoamerican art is a fascinating field which is open to individuals of many talents. Many of the most important scholars of Mesoamerican art and archaeology have had little or no formal training in pre-Columbian studies. Such was the case with J.E.S. Thompson, who was a cattle-rancher before he became an archaeologist; Ian Graham, who was a fashion photographer before he became an explorer and documenter; and Tatiana Proskouriahoff, who was an architect before she became an epigrapher. Many of the most important current scholars are women, and many of these women have non traditional academic backgrounds. Such is the case with Linda Schele, who was an artist before she became an epigrapher; Patricia Anawalt who was a housewife before she became a textile expert; and Merle Green Robertson, who was first an enthusiast and is now a sculpture expert. The field offers great potential to persons who bring dedication and persistence to their study of it. Perhaps it will to you.