Divers may not be able to recover Leonardio DiCaprio’s sunken career, but they have come up with a remarkable number of Titanic artifacts, including a three-ton section of its hull, such personal effects as a top hat and sealskin slippers, and vials of perfume that still give off a scent more than 100 years later. All of this can be seen starting this weekend when Titanic: The Artifacts Exhibition opens at the Science Museum of Minnesota, filling 14,000 feet with recreated rooms, even a simulated iceberg, comprising the largest exhibition the museum has ever held.
Also opening this weekend, on Sunday, is an intriguing exhibit at the Minneapolis Institute of Arts called Sin and Salvation, which offers a rare glimpse into the world of British painter William Holman Hunt, regarded by some as the rebellious Damien Hirst of his day–a hotshot who circumvented dealers and tackled touchy issues, such as the changing role of women, the relationship between the sexes, and the crisis of faith. Of course, his day was in the 19th century, so none of the work may appear audacious to modern audiences but even so, it’s intriguing to see what the most monetarily successful English artist at the time was up to and how an artist then approached topical material.
