Senin, 30 September 2013

Museums in New York City: Harlem Studio Museum

By Tia Dryer


For a long time, the Studio Museum in Harlem was the singular important cultural establishment for art by American artists of African descent. It is still one of the most significant museums in NY, and in the world , for art that chronicles the African-American experience, particularly though not exclusively in urban environments. The work demonstrated here includes African-American works and 20th Century Afro-Caribbean pieces, as well as normal African art. The social aspect of art is clearly on show in the permanent collection of the Studio Museum, as well as a consistent theme of searching for the African identity in an American context.

The Studio Museum has earned a tremendous amount of recognition from the community of museums in New York City, very much due to its Artists in Residence program, which allows one or two up and coming studio and gallery artists of African descent to dwell on location while they create. This allows the artists to create art, network in the community and begin successful careers. In addition, the museum serves as a hub for the Harlem arts community by hosting lectures, panels, dialogues, classes and performances on a large range of current affairs related to the African-American experience.



Located on 125th St, fifteen blocks north of Central Park in Harlem, the Studio Museum is very much an organic product of its neighborhood. This Harlem museum is close to numerous other famous locales, including the legendary Apollo Theater. Down the street, the NYC Public Libraryis a few blocks east, and there are also a number of parks, including the Morningstar Park and Central Park. The location itself is an unprecedented landmark, full of plaques and notes of signification. Once a ghetto for released slaves and people fleeing the oppressive Jim Crow laws in the late 1800s and early 1900s, Harlem changed into a cultural treasure throughout the 1920s and continues to play a crucial role in African-American culture.

The permanent collection of the Studio Museum in Harlem is composed of over 1,600 works by prominent African-American artists, both in the Harlem community and around the country. These artists, including Melvin Edwards, Terry Adkins, Robert Colescott, Lois Mailou Jones, Norman Lewis, Hector Hyppolite, Betye Saar, Nari Ward and others have had an impact on the art world as well as in the bigger African-American community. The general theme of all of the work inside this museum is the Black identity; the museum is a vital and engaging location for everyone with a healthy interest in American history to go to visit and take in. Particular themes include black liberation politics, dance, expressionism, roots and music, as well as the subjects of fascism, sexism and the urban experience. These subjects could be questionable to some visitors, but they represent an expedient, important discourse in the wider American culture about the roles and perceptions of African-Americans in it, and it's one of many crucial museums in NY to find out about a variety of concepts, both old and new.




About the Author:



Tidak ada komentar:

Posting Komentar