The Lost Glory of Africa: Moyo Ogundipe’s Soliloquy: Life’s Fragile Fictions

Tucked in a small corner at the far edge of the “Arts of Africa” exhibition at the Denver Art Museum, visitors will find a four foot by six foot acrylic on canvas created by Nigerian painter Moyo Ogundipe in 1997 (Fig. 1). Vibrant colors flow across the canvas, almost as if they are dancing, broken … Continue reading The Lost Glory of Africa: Moyo Ogundipe’s Soliloquy: Life’s Fragile Fictions →

Cummaquid Gold at the Cape Cod Museum of Art

In early 2024, the Cape Cod Museum of Art in Dennis, Massachusetts hosted the exhibition Familial, which featured works from the museum’s permanent collection that were created by families with connections to Cape Cod. The exhibition explored the legacy of artmaking traditions as passed down through local families over time, representing both the rich artistic … Continue reading Cummaquid Gold at the Cape Cod Museum of Art →

Neck Rings at The Bowers Museum

The Bowers Museum in Santa Ana, California boasts a significant collection of Asian, African, Oceanic, and American art, spanning many centuries in the past through present day. The museum’s mission statement is rather broad—“The Bowers Museum enriches lives through the world’s finest arts and cultures”—but its vision statement offers a little more insight into the … Continue reading Neck Rings at The Bowers Museum →

Mask (go ge) at Harvard Art Museums

In October 2022, I visited Harvard Art Museums and came face to face with a Liberian mask on the third floor, tucked away in an alcove off the primary exhibition room. The wooden mask’s face was dark with wide white eyes, contorted with an open mouth and look of distress behind its protective glass. Beads, … Continue reading Mask (go ge) at Harvard Art Museums →

Five Beauties Rising

Willie Cole’s evocative Five Beauties Rising is a set of five intaglio prints on paper depicting battered, broken, and discarded ironing boards, each with a woman’s name printed in capital letters below the image: Savannah, Dot, Fannie Mae, Queen, and Anna Mae. By bestowing a human name on an inanimate object, Cole invites the viewer … Continue reading Five Beauties Rising →

Is The Met a McGuggenheim?

In her 2005 essay “Museums and Globalization,” Saloni Mathur criticizes certain attempts to globalize museums via commercialized business practices and branded marketing. The most obvious example of this “McGuggenheim effect” of the 1990s is, perhaps unsurprisingly given the phenomenon’s name, the Guggenheim Museum, which set its sights on global expansion as an international brand during … Continue reading Is The Met a McGuggenheim? →

Remixed Van Gogh

Over the weekend, I was treated to an experience of the Immersive Van Gogh experience in Dallas, Texas. Designed by Massimiliano Siccardi and soundtracked by Luca Longobardi, the vibrant exhibit transforms 500,000 cubic feet of blank warehouse space with animated projections of Van Gogh’s art, accompanied by audio, that envelop the audience in the artist’s … Continue reading Remixed Van Gogh →

MCASB’s Lack of Community Connection

Last month, the Museum of Contemporary Art Santa Barbara (MCASB) unceremoniously closed permanently, with limited communication to its community via publicly accessible channels. The museum’s imminent closure was shared with its email subscribers in July, and in August the museum’s website was updated to reflect the closure as well. The closure came as a surprise, … Continue reading MCASB’s Lack of Community Connection →

The Dallas Museum of Art’s Disjointed Physical Space

The Dallas Museum of Art (DMA), established in 1903 and now located in the city’s Arts District, serves as a fairly traditional encyclopedic arts museum (“About”). DMA’s permanent collection presents a vast array of art across the globe and across time, and its temporary exhibitions also draw from international art historical influences. While the museum’s … Continue reading The Dallas Museum of Art’s Disjointed Physical Space →

The Kimbell Art Museum: Inviting Yet Ambiguous

The Kimbell Art Museum, established in 1972, is located in Fort Worth, Texas’ Cultural District. Operated by the Kimbell Art Foundation, the museum grew from the personal collection of Kay Kimbell and his wife Velma, who wished to “encourage art in Fort Worth and Texas” in a “museum…of the first class.” The mission statement created … Continue reading The Kimbell Art Museum: Inviting Yet Ambiguous →