The Experience of a “Minority Intern” at a Museum in the '90s

Good morning. ☀️ Today, activists are calling for the firing of a Penn Museum curator after it was di

Apr 26, 2021 • View in browser

Good morning. ☀️ Today, activists are calling for the firing of a Penn Museum curator after it was discovered the museum held remains of a Black Philadelphian killed in 1985, a “minority intern” at a DC museum in the 1990s opines about the impact of the experience, and reviews of Melissa Joseph, Nikita Gale, and a lovely book of historical watercolors commissioned by the US Department of Agriculture.— Hrag Vartanian, editor-in-chief

My Experience as a “Minority Intern” at a Museum in the 1990s There were three “minority interns” at the National Gallery of Art in 1991. I was the “Hispanic” in the group. Rachael Arauz

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What's Happening

The Penn Museum at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia (courtesy the Penn Museum)

Philadelphia activists are demanding a Penn Museum curator be fired after reports last week revealed that for decades, the museum kept the remains of a Black citizen who was killed in the 1985 MOVE bombing. Hundreds of cultural workers denounce inequity in New York City’s real estate development in an open letter. Activists plan to escalate their weekly protests against the Museum of Modern Art with a tour throughout midtown Manhattan next week.

Reviews of 2021 Oscar Nominees

Minari Isn’t Really About the American Dream. It’s About US Empire In Sound of Metal, There Are No Small Sufferings Nomadland, a Journey of Economic Precarity Across the West With Soul, Pixar Attempts to Make a Radically Different Kind of Animation My Octopus Teacher: the Heartwarming Tale of a Man Who Befriended an Octopus

An Easy Guide to Watching This Year’s Oscar Nominees Here’s how to stream the Academy’s favorite movies of 2020, including Mank, Judas and the Black Messiah, Minari, and more. Dan Schindel

Latest Reviews

Nikita Gale Makes the Labor of Tina Turner’s Performances Visible Gale considers the work occurring behind the scenes and how technologies structure our experience of live performances. Allison Conner

SPONSORED "Senga Nengudi: Topologies" Opens May 2 at Philadelphia Museum of Art Situated at the intersection of sculpture and performance this provocative work reimagines abstract art through an exploration of the Black female body.

Melissa Joseph’s Felted Tributes to Family Archives Joseph’s work exudes both playfulness and gravity, evoking fond memories while channeling the sorrow of the last year. Billy Anania

Before Photography, Watercolorists Documented the Luscious Variety of Fruits and Nuts Between 1886 and 1942, the US Department of Agriculture commissioned watercolorists to document the food from farms and orchards. Lauren Moya Ford

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A Black Curator Imagines Otherwise The Limits of Colorization of Historical Images by AI In Without Gorky, the Artist’s Family Opens Up About Their Pain Anand Patwardhan, India’s Most Daring Filmmaker Unique Folk Art Recreates the World Before the Armenian Genocide

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