Latin American Art / Arte Latinoamericano debuts May 17 at the Walters

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The new installation celebrates over 4,000 years of Indigenous art of the Americas with contemporary art, community perspectives, and bilingual materials

Baltimore, MD (February 26, 2025) – On view May 17, the Walters Art Museum debuts Latin American Art / Arte Latinoamericano, presenting 200 works created over four thousand years and representing 40 cultures from North, Central, and South America, as well as the Caribbean. Latin American Art / Arte Latinoamericano is the museum’s first long-term installation dedicated to the cultural, historical, and social exploration of Indigenous art of the Americas based on its permanent collection, and highlights examples of ancient ceramics, gold, paint, shells, silver, stone, and textiles. With the opening of this installation, the Walters becomes an essential destination for Latin American art in Maryland.

Latin American Art / Arte Latinoamericano features works by 10 contemporary Latino artists alongside historical works, touch and scent stations, reading nooks, community-centered video integrations, and bilingual didactic materials in English and Spanish. The installation was informed by advisory and focus groups who provided vital input that centered community, Latino, and Indigenous perspectives. The opening will be commemorated with a free two-day festival on Saturday, May 17, and Sunday, May 18, featuring an artisan and food market, performances, tours, art-making activities, and more.

“We are excited to present Latin American Art / Arte Latinoamericano, a dynamic platform to celebrate the varied and thriving cultures across North, Central, and South America and continue fostering connections with our Maryland Latino community and beyond,” said Kate Burgin, Andrea B. and John H. Laporte Director and CEO. “Our hope is that this installation becomes a vital community space, one where our Latin American neighbors feel welcome and seen, and where visitors of all backgrounds can engage with the powerful art, stories, and cultural expressions that shape this rich heritage.”

Building The Walters’ Latin American Art Collection

The Walters Art Museum’s collection of art from Latin America encapsulates 40 cultures and over 4,000 years, with works collected as early as the last decade of the 19th century and as recently as 2024. The first object to enter this area of the museum’s collection was a small silver drinking vessel known in Peru’s Quechua language as an aquilla, purchased by Henry Walters (1848–1931) in 1897. This was followed by the acquisition of 120 small gold objects—mostly pendants, nose ornaments, earrings, and fragments—from Panama and Colombia, purchased from Tiffany & Co. in New York in 1910–11. The first large-scale acquisitions of art from Latin America entered the collection soon after, in 1911: a Mexica (Aztec) statue of Macuilxochitl (1400–1520), patron god of music, dance, and gamblers, and a Mexica knotted granite serpent (1100–1520). Nearly 100 years later, in 2009, the Walters received a gift of approximately 350 works, most of which originated from Mexico and northern Central America. At the end of the subsequent decade, in 2019, the museum made its first purchase of colonial Latin American art: An Allegory of Saint Rose of Lima (ca. 1730-1760).

Over the past five years, the museum has intentionally diversified this collecting area through the acquisition of works by living Latin American artists, many of which were acquired as part of the planning for this installation. Acquisitions include works by celebrated artists Jessy DeSantis; Eugenio Merino, Pierre Valls, and Uriarte Talavera; Ana de Orbegoso; Alfonso García Tellez; and Kukuli Velarde. Works by Joiri Minaya, Edgar Reyes, and René Trevińo have been loaned to the Walters for the installation. The contemporary works convey the artists’ ideas about identity, living cultures, and migration and are displayed as counterparts to the museum’s historic collection.

Award-winning contemporary artist Kukuli Velarde’s ceramic sculpture Wak’a del Agua (2022–23) consists of five distinct layers reminiscent of larger-than-life stones with a bound, multifaceted head at the center. The work references five periods in Peruvian history and prehistory, intersecting with several historic objects in the installation: the Colonial period is referenced by An Allegory of Saint Rose of Lima; the Inca Empire is exemplified by a “Kero” Libation Cup (ca. 1600); and the Huari Empire is represented in the galleries by Head Pot with Painted Design (650-800) and a Four-Cornered Hat (600-900). A common thread in these objects is their reference to the rich textile traditions from the Andes, which often manifest in colorful, geometric shapes, as seen on the bottom two sections of Velarde’s work. These sections stand in stark contrast to a second common theme of figuration and the human body, seen in the first three sections of the sculpture, and the implied use of ritual objects, such as the libation cup and the four-cornered hat.

“The Walters is fortunate to have a strong collection of art from Latin America, one that began even before our establishment as a public museum,” said Ellen Hoobler, William B. Ziff, Jr., Curator of Art of the Americas, who co-curated the installation alongside Patricia Lagarde, Wieler-Mellon Postdoctoral Curatorial Fellow, Art of the Americas. “Latin America consists of hundreds of vibrant cultures with living traditions that are still in existence and, in fact, thriving today. This installation is a means of celebrating and spotlighting this history through ancient works from the region, created by the hands of individuals whose names are often unknown and who have helped shape their cultures. At the same time, we are highlighting their contemporary Latin American counterparts who are shaping and preserving culture today, and strengthening our relationships with Maryland’s Latino community, too.”

Creating the Gallery Experience

Latin American Art / Arte Latinoamericano aims to show the heritage of Baltimore’s growing Latino population, which increased 77% between 2010 and 2020. A cross-departmental team at the Walters established community advisory and focus groups that strengthened visitor outcomes and centered community, Latino, and Indigenous perspectives. The 12-member Latin American Art Community Advisory Group consisted of mostly first- and second-generation Latino immigrants who identify as artists, teachers, designers, activists, community organizers, and musicians. This group provided guidance on the language used to frame works on view, gallery interactives, and the important relationship between contemporary and ancient works, among other topics. Meanwhile, two focus groups conducted in Spanish allowed Latinos of various ages from the region to share their perspectives on Spanish-language materials, museum programming, and accessibility needs.

The North Court galleries in the Walters’ historic Italian Palazzo building underwent their first renovation in 40 years to present this installation. Updates to the galleries included constructing new walls and gallery openings; installing new case designs; refurbishing the original terrazzo flooring; adding new scrims; and painting the cases in new, eye-catching colors. As part of its ongoing mission to make the Walters an accessible environment for all, the museum collaborated with the Institute for Human Centered Design (IHCD) on the design of the galleries, including the floor plan design, placement of didactics and multimedia kiosks, mobility device accessibility, seating, and sensory interactives.

Within the renovated spaces, visitors will enjoy video stations displaying perspectives from prominent members of the area’s Latin American community, as well as Spanish-language didactic materials, scent and touch stations, and books for children and young adults.

Video stations allow visitors to explore five living Latin American traditions—food, music, games, clothing, and language—presented by the people preserving them: artist Melissa Foss; social media personality K’Ancha; chocolatier and entrepreneur Jinji Fraser of Jinji Chocolate; and Carlos Raba, award-winning co-owner and chef of Clavel and Nana. Through scent and touch stations, visitors can experience the smell of copal resin and the feel of ancient glyph text. Young adult and children’s books in both English and Spanish will be available at all gallery benches. Reading materials were sourced from the Pura Belpré Award and Honor Books list, project partners, and local libraries.

Catalog

The installation will be accompanied by the publication of The Spirit Within: Art and Life in the Americas. The collection catalog is a single volume printed in both English and Spanish and authored by Ellen Hoobler, William B. Ziff, Jr., Curator of Art of the Americas, and Patricia Lagarde, Wieler-Mellon Postdoctoral Curatorial Fellow, Art of the Americas. The catalog is available for purchase in the Walters Art Museum’s Store.

The installation is curated by Ellen Hoobler, William B. Ziff, Jr., Curator of Art of the Americas, and Patricia Lagarde, Wieler-Mellon Postdoctoral Curatorial Fellow, Art of the Americas.

Major support is provided by The John G. Bourne Fund for The Exhibition of the Arts of the Ancient Americas. 

This project is also generously supported by Matt Polk and Amy Gould, The Terra Foundation for American Art, The Hilde Voss Eliasberg Fund for Exhibitions, the Estate of Rosalee and Richard Davison, contributors to the Gary Vikan Exhibition Endowment Fund, Judy and Scott Phares, and The Walters Women’s Committee Legacy Endowment. With additional support from The Francis D. Murnaghan, Jr. Fund for Scholarly Publications and the Sara Finnegan Lycett Publishing Endowment. 

This installation has been made possible in part by a major grant from the Institute of Museum and Library Services (MA-255902-OMS-24). The views, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this installation do not necessarily represent those of the Institute of Museum and Library Services or other funders.

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 and Latin American Art / Arte Latinoamericano 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 admission to the Walters Art Museum 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.