By Cynthia Close
Last year, The Brooklyn Museum celebrated its 200th anniversary. It was in 1824 that The Brooklyn Apprentices Library—the first free circulating library in New York City—was incorporated. It was here that the proverbial seeds were planted to create a grand museum with a focus on the borough of Brooklyn. That modest beginning might be surprising given the esteemed institution that exists today—the second-largest exhibiting museum in The Big Apple. Still, the story serves as a reminder of what can be accomplished through the perseverance and talents of motivated citizens who never lose sight of their collective vision. The museum marked the occasion with special exhibitions that reinterpret objects from the collection of more than 500,000 paintings, prints, sculptures, and cultural artifacts in surprising and inventive ways—all in an effort, curators say, to “highlight the museum’s commitment to Brooklyn and its artists, showcase new gifts of art, and spark wonder and delight.”
Speaking of wonder and delight, The Brooklyn’s latest show, “Solid Gold,” is an immersive exhibition showcasing pieces from the museum’s gold collection alongside international loans. The very shiny show illuminates the role that gold has played as a symbol of beauty, ritual, spirituality, and wealth throughout history.
Art in the Aftermath
The Museum Says …
“In 1348 the bubonic plague killed more than half the population of Florence, causing social, economic, and psychic devastation. In the aftermath, Nardo di Cione painted this altarpiece, likely for the duomo (cathedral). Both the red-and-white banner and the bird are symbols of Christ’s Resurrection. For Christian survivors of the pandemic, the altarpiece would have offered a powerful image of salvation.
“The decorative patterns of the halos were hammered into the gold-leaf surface with metal tools called punches. The bird design on the cloth behind and beneath the Virgin was created by sgraffito, in which gold is covered with pigment that is then scraped away.”
Show Us Your Smile, Crocodile
The Museum Says …
“Some scholars assert that the gold plaques produced by the ancient Coclé people of present-day Panama are the most beautiful hammered and embossed gold objects from the ancient Americas. Artists created these embossed designs by hammering a gold sheet against a mold; this plaque, dominated by an anthropomorphic reptilian figure known as the Crocodile God, exemplifies the tradition. The deity is surrounded by two smaller reptilian creatures, and the triangular forms around the plaque’s border emulate the animal’s protective, ridgelike scales.
“A principal deity in the broader Central American region for more than a thousand years, the Crocodile God was likely associated with strength, the sun, water, and fertility. In the Coclé culture, embossed gold plaques were power objects and status symbols. Sixteenth-century Spanish explorers described how Indigenous male leaders wore plaques on their chests when going into battle. These plaques were pierced so they could be attached to garments. By depicting mythical beings, the ornaments enhanced the wearer’s power and connected him to the supernatural realm. Crocodiles may have also been associated with the underworld due to their ability to float on water and drag their prey to drown beneath its surface.”
Solid Gold
When: Now through May 4, 2025
Learn more: brooklynmuseum.org/exhibitions/solid-gold
