The Goddess of Corn is nearly 2 feet tall, made from volcanic stone and boasts a rectangular cavity in her chest meant to hold a piece of jade or some other ornamental green gem.
She was crafted in what is now Mexico more than 500 years ago, and she has a smile on her face — befitting a deity who will be introduced to the public at The Walters Art Museum starting this spring as part of the Baltimore institution’s first permanent exhibition celebrating Latin American art.
When the new installation called “Latin American Art/Arte Latinoamericano” opens May 17, it will include more than 200 artworks from 40 cultures that span more than 4,000 years, from the Bronze Age to 2024.
Although the Baltimore Museum of Art owns a much larger collection of Latin American artworks — roughly 1,350 representing 56 cultures — just 35 are currently on view, making the Walters’ planned installation the Baltimore area’s largest public display of art from Central and South America and the Caribbean.
“This exhibition establishes the Walters as a destination to view art from the Americas and to dive deeply into the nuances of Latin American cultures, exploring the depths of our shared humanity,” Ellen Hoobler, the museum’s curator of art in the Americas, said last month in a news release.
She added that the installation also will include informational materials written in Spanish — a first for the Walters — “ensuring that gallery materials are accessible to a wider range of visitors.”
The Walters’ upcoming galleries aim to serve Baltimore’s fastest-growing ethnic group. According to census data, Baltimore’s Latino population skyrocketed 77% in just a decade, or from 4.2% of the city’s population in 2010 to 7.8% in 2020.
The sprawling exhibit will unfold across 3,300 square feet and four galleries in the museum’s building at 1909 Charles St., which recently were renovated for the first time in 40 years.
“For far too long, the voices of Latino artists have been absent from the museum’s offerings,” former Walters Director Julia Marciari-Alexander said last fall, when preliminary plans for the new galleries were announced. Marciari-Alexander added that the exhibit “is not just a celebration of Latino art and culture from across time and space, it’s also another important step towards mirroring the Baltimore community in our galleries.”
Although much of the work in the galleries was created by long-dead artists whose names are no longer known, the exhibit will include contemporary pieces by living Latin American artists. Some, such as René Treviño and Edgar Reyes, are based in Baltimore.
A two-day, free public festival celebrating the exhibit’s opening May 17 to 18 will feature an artisan and food market, performances, tours and art-making activities.
Museum Director Kate Burgin said in the news release that she hopes the new exhibit will “become a vital community space” that encourages visitors to “engage with the powerful art, stories, and cultural expressions that shape this rich heritage.”
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