Mexican Treasures of the Smithsonian
 DCist
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Hidden underneath the Smithsonian museums on the National Mall is a treasure waiting to be discovered — the Smithsonian Latino Center, which has been celebrating Latino culture, spirit, and achievement in America for 10 years, presents a terrific exhibit, Mexican Treasures of the Smithsonian, on display through November 11 at the S. Dillon Ripley Center’s International Gallery.
The exhibit pulls together objects from different museums around the city to explore the shared histories and cultural exchanges between the United States and Mexico. Mexican Treasures recognizes the Smithsonian’s long-standing interest in collecting Mexican objects, as well as gives a peak into what the research scientists, historians, anthropologists, artists and linguists are doing in the Mayan regions of the Yucatan Peninsula.
Mexican Treasures is a very diverse show, with everything from stamps and animal specimens to a letter by Frida Kahlo and a costume worn by pop star Selena on display. The breadth of the objects in the Institution’s collection is impressive, and the exhibit gives a well-rounded look at the history of our neighbors to the south.
Many Smithsonian groups were involved in putting together the exhibit — works come from the Smithsonian American Art Museum, the Smithsonian Archives of American Art, the Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage, the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, the National Museum of American History, the National Museum of the American Indian, the National Museum of Natural History, the National Portrait Gallery and the National Postal Museum.
The exhibit begins with early cultures, with pieces from the Olmec and Aztec groups, and ranges up until the late 20th century, with examples of Tejano music, Latino art, and other aspects of contemporary Mexican culture.
One section of Mexican Treasures is devoted to food. New World Foods explores Mexico’s culinary tradition, which includes corn, sweet potatoes, tomatoes, chocolate and chilies — staples of the Mexican diet, which are indigenous to the Americas. A chocolate drinking vase and stirring stick, along with a statue of the Aztec Corn Goddess, are on display.
Also of note: In the same gallery space (but a different show) is an exhibit of photographs by Lola Alvarez Bravo, a pioneer of modern photography and one of the first female photographers in Mexico. On display are 56 of her prints, which range from portraits to street scenes to images of cultural traditions. Bravo’s photographs are a nice complement to the other items on display, since they bring a number of aspects of Mexican culture into focus. Both shows are part of the exhibition and programming series Mexico at the Smithsonian.
Everything in Mexican Treasures of the Smithsonian, including the online components, is in both English and Spanish, and there is a wealth of information on the web site.
Mexican Treasures of the Smithsonian runs through Sunday at the International Gallery, which is located at 1100 Jefferson Drive, SW, underneath the bronze-topped kiosk of the S. Dillon Ripley Center, between the Freer Gallery of Art and the Smithsonian Castle. The International Gallery is also connected to other Smithsonian museums in that area —the Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, the Freer, and the National Museum of African Art — through their ground levels. It is open from 10 a.m.-5:30 p.m. every day.
Pictured is a Mixtec gold pendant representing Quetzalcoatl from Oaxaca, Mexico, part of Mexican Treasures of the Smithsonian at the Dillon S. Ripley Center, courtesy of the Smithsonian's National Museum of the American Indian. |
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Vallarta Living | Art Talk | November 2007 
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