Charles Tampio, Docent, Tucson Museum of Art, former president of Earth Force
Monday, November 28, 2022,
2:30pm – 3:30pm
ASA Koffler Great Room and Zoom
In his latest art talk for ASA, Chuck Tampio will eschew Van Gogh’s biography in order to focus on the meaning of a number of the painter’s works that have implications for the present day. He contends that Van Gogh’s paintings contain deliberate messages to future generations that are worth exploring and yield surprising results.
Some Van Gogh’s paintings are clearly joyful, and others are clearly sorrowful. Many, however, contain elements of both, and viewers’ interpretations depend upon the perspectives and attitudes they bring to the experience. Tampio believes that Van Gogh expressly painted for future generations (“My audiences are the unborn.”) and deliberately produced ambiguous images as a kind of conversation with his viewers. “Starry Night” is a great example of an image that could be interpreted as a celebration of the power of nature or a warning of the overwhelming threats of the natural world.
Chuck Tampio began his educational career as one of the earliest Peace Corps volunteers in Africa. He attended Syracuse University, the University of Buffalo, and the University of Florence, where he studied Renaissance art. In Rhode Island he worked at the state department of education and in Washington at the Close Up Foundation, a non-profit with programs to help young people and immigrants to understand our government. He also served as president of the national environmental organization, Earth Force, and was the first anchor for C-SPAN. He says that the audiences at Arizona Senior Academy are his absolute favorites.
Compiled and edited by Maria Dobozy, ASA Volunteer
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