Day 4: Activism in Art Museums

Lesson in City Life #328: Rain messes everything up- Leave the house 20 minutes early. Oh, and cars don’t obey traffic laws when it rains so don’t get killed.

Courtyard at the Art Museum of the Americas

Today we visited to Art Museum of the Americas, which is run by the Organization of American States. The OAS is an international organization with member countries from most of the western hemisphere. The museum was founded in 1976 because some of the member countries had started collecting art for the OAS and they wanted a place to display the it. The AMA was the first art museum in the United States that was dedicated to Latin American modern art. Now it has a varied collection of art from all over the Western Hemisphere.

As the product of an international organization, this museum deals with a lot of art about activism and societal problems. The museum and the artwork it displays are a voice for the people from the member countries of the OAS. Currently on view is an exhibit by Carolina Mayorga called PINK Ranchos and Other Ephemeral Zip Codes. The exhibit focuses on the issue of homelessness in the artist’s home country of Columbia, and how it affects women and children specifically. The exhibit is lit with pink lighting to cover up the ugliness of the situation. The installation was inspired by seven artworks in the museum’s permanent collection.

From visiting this museum, it seems that their mission is to be a voice for social change. Interestingly, the signage in the museum is all in English, despite most of the content coming from Spanish speaking countries. I found this to be extremely disappointing, especially when it comes to serving the community. How can they speak to their audience if they are speaking in the wrong language?

However, despite issues with signage, this museum is trying its best to make a change using the voices of artists. Sometimes the voice is quiet, and is represented through the subtle addition of an artwork to the galleries in reaction to a current event. Other times, the voice is loud, demanding to be heard. It was wonderful to be able to visit a museum that puts so much effort into being a voice for the community, and not just the local community, but the global community.