Latin American Art at The Museum of Modern Art: The Power of the Canon

The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) is widely recognized as a key institution in shaping twentieth-century art. Its lesser-known holdings of art from Latin America shed light on a key period that created stylistic categories that have since come to be accepted by many as the Modernist canon. This study examines the shifting categorization of these works according to stylistic and geographic taxonomies, providing a greater understanding of the organization of the Museums collections as a whole during the 1940s and 1950s. MoMAs early collection displays suggest ways in which artists from previously excluded areas can be incorporated within todays increasingly global museums.

Format: Hardback
Length: 160 pages
Publication date: 30 June 2022
Publisher: Taylor & Francis Ltd

The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) is widely regarded as the foremost institution that shaped twentieth-century art through its remarkable collection, which has profoundly impacted our understanding of the history of art, including its complex hierarchies and exclusions that have evolved over time. While MoMA's renowned holdings have garnered much attention, its lesser-known collections of art from Latin America offer a valuable insight into a crucial period that laid the foundation for stylistic categories that are now widely accepted as part of the Modernist canon. This groundbreaking study sheds light on an understudied aspect of MoMA's pivotal role in establishing the definition of Latin American art in the United States. By examining the shifting categorization of these works based on stylistic and geographic taxonomies, we gain a deeper understanding of the organization of MoMA's collections during the 1940s and 1950s. This book is a pioneering effort, documenting these institutional precedents that are essential for comprehending the articulation of a Modernist canon and its contentious legacy in contemporary society.

MoMA's early collection displays provide valuable insights into how artists from previously excluded regions can be integrated into today's increasingly global museums. Its approach foreshadowed attitudes adopted by several museums since the 1990s, where geographically defined curatorial positions were established to address gaps in collecting art from Latin America and other parts of the world. Author Miriam Basilio delves deeper into the history of collection displays as a means to understand the formation of canons in modern art museums in this book.

Dimension: 229 x 152 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9780415843669