2021 Art Sound Now at the Walters Art Museum to Feature Virtual Performances by WAYTA and Patrick McMinn

BALTIMORE, MD—Beginning July 29, Art Sound Now, the acclaimed series that pairs sound artists with art from the Walters Art Museum, returns for its second year of virtual performances with two installments filmed in the museum’s galleries and streamed online.

“Last year, we began expanding our digital resources to increase the museum’s accessibility, enabling more people to experience our programs,” said Julia Marciari-Alexander, Andrea B. and John H. Laporte Director. “Art Sound Now is one of our most popular summer programs, and we are thrilled to once again present these unique performances that combine the art and objects of our collection with the talents of our local arts community.”

Featured sound artists include the D.C.-based music duo WAYTA, which performs a concert in the Walters’ Sculpture Court inspired by open spaces and indigenous land that centers Andean culture and values in contemporary space and context. And Baltimore-based composer, sound designer, and multimedia artist Patrick McMinn created his sound art based on the Walters’ Baroque painting The Ideal City.

“This year has been a unique and wonderful opportunity to connect the collection and the spaces of the museum with the expansive work of the featured artists,” said Joy Davis, Manager of Adult and Community Programming. “Programs like Art Sound Now are part of the Walters’ mission to partner with over 350 local artists each year. The work and energies of the artists presenting this year allow for more opportunities to dialogue with our collection and its history, engage with new audiences, and present the collections through new perspectives.”

The Walters has collaborated with Wide Angle Youth Media, a Baltimore based nonprofit organization which trains local youth in film and media production, to capture these performances that are streamed on the museum’s social media platforms and YouTube.

This year’s schedule of performances includes:

WAYTA
Thursday, July 29, 5:30–6 p.m.

Patrick McMinn
Thursday August 12, 5:30–6 p.m.

Please note: These events are virtual and are available exclusively on our Facebook and YouTube pages. You do not need an account on either platform to enjoy the program.

About the Artists

WAYTA was formed in 2018 in the social justice movements of Washington D.C. Initially starting as part of a larger musical project during the Standing Rock (NoDAPL) solidarity movement, WAYTA was consolidated as a duo and started performing and arranging instrumental Andean music as a form of cultural resistance and community participation. Multi-instrumentalists Cesar Mazat (Guatemala) and Gustavo Vargas (Bolivia) make the duo WAYTA a musical statement of unity for the Abya Yala.

Patrick McMinn is a composer, sound designer, and multimedia artist. He builds dense, melancholy soundscapes out of trumpets, synthesizers, homebuilt software, and bits of cultural detritus. He is interested in generative, emergent systems and emulations of natural structures as well as direct, programmatic statements and song-suites. He is conscious of, and relishes in, the inherent conflict between these two modes of creation. While he often works and performs alone, he believes deeply in the artistic community.

McMinn is an active collaborator in Baltimore and beyond, having worked with Dan Deacon, Future Islands, William Cashion, Lower Dens, the Baltimore Rock Opera Society, Frith and Inlé, Mind on Fire, and Eze Jackson. He is a member of the dream-folk band Cora Sone as well as the anti-marching band Bedlam Brass. Patrick’s most recent record is called There Was A Time When The World Was Suffused With Light, released in the Spring of 2018 on Canadian Duck Tapes.

About the Walters Art Museum
The Walters Art Museum is a cultural hub in the heart of Baltimore, located in the city’s Mount Vernon neighborhood. The museum’s collection spans more than seven millennia, from 5000 BCE to the 21st century, and encompasses 36,000 objects from around the world. Walking through the museum’s historic buildings, visitors encounter a stunning panorama of thousands of years of art, from romantic 19th-century images of French gardens to mesmerizing Ethiopian icons, richly illuminated Qur’ans and Gospel books, ancient Roman sarcophagi, and serene images of the Buddha. Since its founding, the Walters’ mission has been to bring art and people together to create a place where people of every background can be touched by art. As part of this commitment, admission to the museum and special exhibitions is always free.

Visitor Information
Admission to the museum is free. The Walters Art Museum is located at 600 N. Charles St., north of Baltimore’s Inner Harbor. For general museum information, call 410-547-9000 or visit thewalters.org.

Free access to the Walters Art Museum, online and in person, is made possible through the combined generosity of individual members and donors, foundations, corporations, and grants from the City of Baltimore, Maryland State Arts Council, Citizens of Baltimore County, and Howard County Government and Howard County Arts Council.