Evolving Curiosities
Organizing into Themes
Cabinets of curiosity were often organized into different categories, such as artificialia (objects created by humans) or naturalia (nature-made objects and creatures).
For our celebratory centennial exhibition, Seeing Differently: The Phillips Collects for a New Century, the overarching theme is “Our Ever Changing World.” Within that, there are four sub-themes: Place, Identity, History, and the Senses.
The Uprising (L’Emeute) (left) is part of the History theme. Untitled (Hood 2) is part of the Identity theme.
- How do these two artworks fit with those themes?
- Why do you think the museum chose the themes of Place, Identity, Histories, and the Senses?
- Are there other themes you notice reflected in these artworks?