An early 20th-century mask from the Southwest Pacific; a Chinese
hand puppet; a 19th-century Nigerian headdress; an ancient portrait
vessel from Peru; a mask by the Tsimshian peoples of British
Columbia. Although these objects ostensibly have little in common,
they share more than meets the eye.
Each object exemplifies the themes of various galleries in the
UCLA Fowler Museum of Cultural History’s latest project,
“Intersections: World Art, Local Lives.”
Opening on Sept. 30, the exhibit will showcase 250 of the
Fowler’s finest pieces, originating from Asia, Africa, the
Pacific, and the Americas.
“Intersections” will be the Fowler Museum’s
first ever long-term exhibition. The museum staff expects the
exhibit to remain at the museum for several years.
“This is a benchmark time in the history of the
museum,” said Stacey Abarbanel, director of marketing and
communications at the Fowler Museum.
“Students, staff and others (now) have access to our more
rare and important objects on a long-term basis,” she
said.
In “Intersections,” visitors will be able to see
works from around the world in five galleries, each of which has a
different theme.
The first gallery, “Art and Action,” shows how
aesthetics and purpose in art are intertwined.
The next gallery, called “Art and Knowledge,”
displays works that assist in transmitting particular
information.
The two subsequent galleries are “Art and Power,”
which contains objects used to empower leadership and the
interdependence of the sexes, and “Art and
Transformation,” which displays art used for spiritual
intervention and devotional purposes.
The last section in the exhibition is more of a gallery within a
gallery. Called “Fowler in Focus,” the gallery will
change every four months and feature unique acquisitions or recent
gifts. At times, it will function as a subcollection to an existing
collection.
“We’re trying to keep it fresh by changing objects
around so visitors will be able to see their old favorites and
experience new pieces as well,” Abarbanel said.
Through the exhibit and its constant updating, people will be
able to discover new, thought-provoking works of art from around
the globe, all in one convenient place.
“This new (exhibition) sounds like it pulls objects from
different parts of the world, as opposed to focusing on one
region,” said Jennifer Lim, a second-year undeclared
student.
“I am excited to see how they integrate the different
pieces into one space,” she said.
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The plan to have an extended exhibit at the museum has been in
the works for five years, starting when Marla Berns became director
at the Fowler Museum in 2001.
“When Marla Berns took on the position, she had the idea
of a long-term gallery, which was one of the priorities for our
five-year strategic plan,” said Polly Roberts, deputy
director and chief curator at the Fowler Museum.
“I have always wanted to do this,” she said.
“When Marla came, we both felt very strongly about it, and it
seemed like an opportune moment to reconsider some of the
directions we were moving in.”
Support for the idea of a long-term exhibit came not only from
the staff at the Fowler Museum, but from museumgoers as well.
“Our visitors often expressed their desire to see our most
outstanding and important objects on view,” Roberts said.
“Our visitor surveys indicated that people want this and
wanted to be able to see these objects in our
collections.”
Roberts also hopes that visitors will leave
“Intersections” with a greater comprehension of the
world, its people and their art.
“We hope this becomes a wonderful and continuous
educational resource for understanding and appreciating world arts
and cultures,” she said.