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Museum of International Folk Art Mailing Address: send questions to info.moifa@state.nm.us www.moifa.org Exhibitions Young Brides, Old Treasures: Macedonian Embroidered Dress The Arts of Survival: Folk Expression in the Face of Natural Disaster Multiple Visions: A Common Bond Events Until the mid-twentieth century, Macedonian women wove, embroidered, and wore magnificent ensembles of dress that indicated to a knowing eye what village and region they came from and where they were in the cycle of life. From puberty through betrothal, marriage, child bearing, and old age, dress changed to reflect status change. Historic ensembles, no longer made but preserved in the museum, also illustrate the tumultuous political history of the region; pan-Slavic, Byzantine, and Ottoman influences can be seen in embroidered motifs, materials, garments, and jewelry. The outstanding collection the Museum has dates primarily from 1890 to 1920 with some later pieces from the 1950s. On display will be 27 mannequins in multi-layered ensembles as well as individual garments and pieces of jewelry belonging to Museum of International Folk Art; the Collection was made completed with a recent, large donation from the Macedonian Arts Council» so that it is today the largest and most comprehensive museum collection in the United States.
The Arts of Survival opens International Folk Arts Week and culminates with the 8th Annual International Folk Arts Market running July 8 – 10, 2011. Highlights of the week will be artist demonstrations, artist talks, lectures, and more. A full schedule of events will follow soon. Dr. Marsha Bol, Director of the Museum of International Folk Art described the ‘Gallery of Conscience;’ “…as a forum where current issues facing folk artists around the world can be discussed. With The Arts of Survival we continue our examination of issues threatening the survival of the traditional arts, bringing them to the attention of our visitors,” Dr, Bol continued; “As the largest folk art museum in the world we believe it is our responsibility to address issues that threaten to disrupt folk arts – and in the case of this exhibition – the effect of natural disaster on the folk art community.” The Arts of Survival will feature work by folk artists—some of whom have also won a coveted spot at the 2011 Santa Fe International Folk Art Market—with monumental artifacts, poetry, spoken word, and photographic and video documentation to explore the many ways in which a country’s traditional arts and artists rally in times of disaster. to rebuild and renew, one day at a time. As tragic events and terrible forces become part of carnival masks, scrolls, paintings, and vodou flags, the events are memorialized and the pain they brought is brought to a manageable state. When the force of the Earth breaks the world into pieces, the pieces can be collected and sold to bring an artist a step closer to economic recovery. Visitors to this second ‘Gallery of Conscience’ exhibit will see the devastation of the Haitian earthquake emblazoned into the carnival masks and sequined vodou flags; how a New Orleans quilter took the flood-stained bedclothes of her neighbors ruined home and made art that both restores and represents. The visitor will hear the voices of the women whose centuries old tradition of ralli quilts bring comfort and color to the millions of flood refugees living in tent cities in Pakistan, and the puppeteers of Indonesia who incorporate the news of recent volcanic eruptions into their wayang performances. Exhibition curator Dr, Suzanne Seriff said; “The Arts of Survival provides a window to the many ways contemporary folk artists use what they know best to respond to natural disaster with vision, perseverance, dignity and imagination—even in the midst of political infighting, infrastructural log jams, and environmental after-effects. Through this experience they learn that the most fundamental power is the indomitable spirit of mankind.” Dr. Suzanne Seriff, curated the Gallery of Conscience inaugural exhibition Empowering Women: Artisan Cooperatives that Transform Communities which opened at the Museum of International Folk Art July 4, 2010 as the lead event of International Folk Art Week. She is a Senior Lecturer in the Department of Anthropology, University of Texas at Austin.
This will be the first exhibit in the United States to feature a broad range of folk art from the Andean region of South America, showcasing more than 850 works of Andean folk art primarlity from the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. The exhibit runs through September 9, 2012, in the Hispanic Heritage Wing, and through March 10, 2013 in the Bartlett Wing. The exhibition is accompanied by a richly illustrated catalog.
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