At the Brooklyn Museum, there are many pieces of artwork that sing, as Keats would say, “unheard melodies.” Despite the fact that most of the artwork in the museum never directly reference music, there are pieces that relate to the production of music. As I toured the exhibits, I saw religious paintings and sculpture that were used as props for oral storytelling, which were often accompanied by ritual music. Also, in the more contemporary galleries, I saw a few pieces that reflected different music cultures. I have never visited the Brooklyn Museum before and it was a nice change from the stuffy and crowded Met.

     The first piece that I first viewed intently was a flat Islamic painting called The Battle of Karbala (Late 1800s-early1900s). The intriguing aspect of this flat painting is its ability to portray multiple scenes in analogous color schemes of brown and tan. The lines separating the painting into heaven, the battle, hell and individual scenes within these sectors skillfully divide the canvas into interwoven events. Despite these lines being distinct, the dividing lines do not disturb the flow of the narrative. The iconic figures portrayed are outlined with flurry lines, which seem to suggest the rage of the battle, a huge contrast of Abbas’s unemotional expression while stabbing Yahzids’ soldier. The Battle of Karbala, which was once used as a prompt for an oral interpreter to recite the famous martyrdom of a Islamic icon, almost seems to still resonate with the music that would have accompanied the orator. Based upon The Battle of Karbala’s ornamental and icon quality I hear late Renaissance Muslim music.

     Another piece that grabbed my attention was a 19th century Baleen Whale Mask that was a Cedar wood whale costume about 6.7 ft. long. The striking element of this enormous mask, which was worn on the back of a privileged Kwakwaka’wakw dancer during communal ceremonies, are its Indian face paint like colors and designs. In addition to having decorative tan and blue circles along the body, it has strange symbols on the fins that resemble stylized arrows. Also, I am tempted to say that the mask’s design looks like the signature design of Hellcats and Wildcats during WWII. An interesting fact about this mask is that it was once the center attention of ceremonial singing, rattles, and drums. While assimilating this piece I hear Indian clan music and ritual shouts.

     The final piece that I viewed was Nick Cave’s Soundsuit (2008). This piece was essentially an artistic gillie suit that was a combination of snake camouflage (lower half) and a strange rose bush. While examining the suit I cannot imagine an appropriate setting for the weird costume. Perhaps the title of the piece suggests that the rustling noise of the suit, which is produced by movement, is more important than the costume’s form. Perhaps, the real effect of the piece becomes more evident in the environment of a dark cave. If I were to match a specific type of music with Soundsuit, I would say funk music based on the suit’s wacky form. However, I could also match the piece with religious music based on its supposed elulation to various rituals of liturgy and dance.