Category: Feature
-
Designing Making Her Mark
In this interview, BMA Exhibition Designer David Zimmerman shares his experience transforming the galleries to present the 235 works on view in Making Her Mark: A History of Women Artists in Europe, 1400-1800. My name is David Zimmerman and I am the Exhibition Designer for the BMA. I am responsible for the physical design of […]
Staff | 12.26.2023 -
Making Her Mark: A History Of Women Artists In Europe, 1400–1800
For centuries, art historians have accepted the characterization of European women artists from the pre modern era as rare and comparatively less talented than their male counterparts. This assumption is now being turned on its head with a groundbreaking exhibition that presents a more accurate and expansive presentation of women’s creative accomplishments. A team of […]
Anne Brown | 10.16.2023 -
A Puzzling Plate from 18th Century China
One afternoon, a young man stopped at an antique shop north of Baltimore City, hoping to find a present for his new wife. He found the perfect gift: a puzzle-like plate with separate parts that fit together in just one way. After more than 30 years, the couple decided to offer the plate to the […]
Staff | 10.11.2023 -
A Teapot and Our Thirst for Fossil Fuels
Teetering on a ceramic oil rig, Pecten Shell Teapot refashions centuries-old art motifs and porcelain recipes to tell a story about today’s environmental crisis. A dragon’s head and tail form the spout and handle of the teapot, respectively. Insatiable, the creature strides forward in a never-ending chase for a flaming pearl. For ceramicist Michelle Erickson, the […]
Chloe Brettman | 09.20.2023 -
Baltimore and World War II’s Impact on Artist Matsumi Kanemitsu
One of the first Japanese American servicemen detained in the wake of Pearl Harbor drew on personal experience to develop his work outside of formal training Few people are aware that West Coast abstract artist and influential college educator Matsumi Kanemitsu (1922-1992), or Mike as he was known to his friends, spent his formative years […]
| 09.20.2023 -
Bark Cloth Defies Categorization
As much of a textile as it is a painted canvas or a work on paper, barkcloth—made from the inner bark of trees—confounds Western notions of art. By not fitting neatly into the artistic genres taught in predominantly Euro-American institutions, bark cloth prompts us to question and challenge the structures that shape our surroundings, said […]
Irene Bantigue | 07.28.2023 -
Jackie Milad Confronts Museums’ Complicated Histories
Baltimore-based artist Jackie Milad has created four new works for the exhibition Histories Collide: Jackie Milad x Fred Wilson x Nekisha Durrett, currently on view in the John Waters Rotunda and adjacent galleries. Milad’s works reconcile and collage together the histories of ancient Egyptians and ancient Americans, her family history, and contemporary culture—from pop culture […]
Colleen Kennedy | 07.28.2023 -
The Hip-Hop History of Pharrell Williams’ Buffalo Hat
At the 2014 Grammy Awards, the French electronic duo Daft Punk–donning their trademark spacesuits with helmets obscuring their faces–performed their hit collaboration “Get Lucky” with hip-hop producer Pharrell Williams and funk guitarist Nile Rogers alongside the legendary Stevie Wonder. The medley of hits, including Chic’s “Le Freak” and Wonders’ “Another Star”, bridged decades and genres—funk, […]
Colleen Kennedy | 06.01.2023 -
A Legacy That Can’t Be Celebrated in Silence
Listen closely and you will hear snippets of hip-hop greats, jazzy horns, ballroom house beats, and more… in our galleries. The BMA flips (and spins and remixes) the antiquated notion of silent museums by creating a hip-hop soundscape for The Culture: Hip Hop and Contemporary Art in the 21st Century. Coinciding with the 50th anniversary […]
Colleen Kennedy | 05.02.2023 -
Joseph Education Center to Reopen in Fall 2023 with Hands-On Learning Experiences
The transformation of the Patricia and Mark Joseph Education Center will include interactives, touchscreens, and technology to support learning activities that resonate with today’s students. Since opening in October 2015, the BMA’s Joseph Education Center on the Museum’s first floor has welcomed thousands of visitors of all ages. Audiences have explored its thematic exhibition gallery, […]
Staff | 02.06.2023