Quilts of Southwest China
July 9, 2017 - January 21, 2018
Chinese quilts have received little attention from scholars, collectors, or museums. The examples featured here offer an introduction based on new research by a bi-national consortium of American and Chinese museums, including participation by the Museum of International Folk Art. Embodying layers of history, identity, and expertise, these quilts reveal new insights into the contemporary lives of minority communities adapting to a period of great change in China.
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Crafting Memory: Contemporary Life and Folk Art in the Andes
December 3, 2017 - March 8, 2019
This exhibition explores the new directions taken by current Peruvian folk artists during the recent decades of social and political upheaval and economic change. The exhibition will highlight the biographies and social histories of contemporary artists along with examples of work that: preserve family tradition; reimagine older artforms; reclaim pre-Columbian techniques and styles; and forge new directions for arte popular in the 21st century.
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Beadwork Adorns the World
April 22, 2018 - February 3, 2019
Extraordinary how a small glass bead from the island of Murano (Venice, Italy) or the mountains of Bohemia (Czech Republic) can travel around the world, entering into the cultural life of people far distant. Glass beads are the ultimate migrants. Where they start out is seldom where they end up. No matter where they originate, the locale that uses them makes them into something specific to their own world view.
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Traditional Dress in Contemporary Scandinavia
January 10, 2021 - September 26, 2021
Folk Dress. National Costume. Bunad. Gákti. What are these and who has the right to wear them? Traditional Dress in Contemporary Scandinavia examines current efforts to revive, preserve, or innovate styles of dress emblematic of particular historical, regional, religious, or ethnic identities.
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Our docents open up the world of folk art and the history of the museum to you. No reservations are required for docent tours, which are available:
10:30 & 11:30AM and 2:00PM. To confirm the day’s tours, please call the museum front desk at 505-476-1204.
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