Ilana Carlin'09 gave a talk in the Emerson Gallery on her experience co-curating the exhibition The Art of Transformation: African Masks from the Collection of the Longyear Museum of Anthropology, Colgate University which is currently on view there. She explained that in the context of a teaching gallery her work selecting, describing and installing the objects required her to constantly keep in mind the importance of being objective, accurate and informational.
As co-curator, Carlin was also responsible for writing the exhibition labels which required researching the significance of the masks within their cultural and ritual contexts. She described the challenge to her, and Westerners in general, to look beyond the simple aesthetic appreciation of the masks when trying to understand them and to attempt to appreciate them within their original traditions. The talk was the last in a series exploring the three exhibitions currently on view. The exhibitions will remain open through April 5.
This is the second exhibition that Carlin collaborated on with Emerson Gallery Associate Director and Curator Susanna White, having co-curated Uncovering the Path to Freedom: Photographs of the Underground Railroad by William E. Williams '73 in 2008.
As co-curator, Carlin was also responsible for writing the exhibition labels which required researching the significance of the masks within their cultural and ritual contexts. She described the challenge to her, and Westerners in general, to look beyond the simple aesthetic appreciation of the masks when trying to understand them and to attempt to appreciate them within their original traditions. The talk was the last in a series exploring the three exhibitions currently on view. The exhibitions will remain open through April 5.
This is the second exhibition that Carlin collaborated on with Emerson Gallery Associate Director and Curator Susanna White, having co-curated Uncovering the Path to Freedom: Photographs of the Underground Railroad by William E. Williams '73 in 2008.
