Details of four works in the Connecting Cultures installation, from top: Korumbo Gable Painting, 20th century, unidentified Abelam artist; Girl in a Japanese Costume, circa 1890, William Merritt Chase; Mosaic Head Pendant, 700–800, unidentified Maya artist; and Life-Death Figure, circa 900–1250, unidentified Huastec artist
Long-Term Installation
Great Hall, 1st Floor
This innovative, cross-cultural installation was developed to create new ways of looking at art by making connections between cultures as well as objects. Located in the Museum’s first-floor Great Hall, it provides for the first time a dynamic and welcoming introduction to the Museum’s extensive collections, featuring pieces that represent peoples throughout time and around the world.
Connecting Cultures is organized around three main themes: “Connecting Places,” “Connecting People,” and “Connecting Things.” In viewing the juxtaposition of thematically linked works, visitors are invited to consider the importance of place, of self-representation in art, and of the role that objects play in supporting personal and cultural identity. Works on display include Gaston Lachaise’s monumental Standing Woman, Nick Cave’s Soundsuit, and kero cups used in Andean ritual.
Connecting Cultures: A World in Brooklyn was a joint effort of the Brooklyn Museum’s curators, organized by Kevin Stayton, Chief Curator. The installation was designed by Matthew Yokobosky, Chief Designer at the Brooklyn Museum.
Generous support for this long-term installation was provided by Lisa and Dick Cashin.
Talk
Visitor comments
At first glance the objects in this room look hodgepodge, and after looking closer and reading some of the info posted beneath each work the collection looks... hodgepodge! The thesis seems a little on the weak side, which is disappointing because as individual pieces the works are very strong. I don't understand why this is a "collection" in any significant way, and posting open ended questions challenging us to make the connections between the pieces ourselves was underwhelming and felt like a cop out. It was entertaining to walk the exhibit aimlessly as it felt like a taste of a whole museum's offerings in one place, but I wanted a clever tie-in to get me excited and to think about the exhibit as a whole, instead of as the motley piecemeal I found it to be.
The Connecting Cultures exhibit is wonderful. It draws out what's truly special about Brooklyn-that the whole World is on the block. Thank You for bringing everyone together.
what stood out to me the most was the level of craftsmanship that is displayed throughout the centuries
After appreciating the displays like the room of the king or rich in the past, we can reconsider about how art system works or what art is. Even though we can see the objects with its context, this exhibition also brings some surrealism-like effect on our mind: encounter of different things that can't meet each other in its ordinary life. Well,,,, this exhibition has a lot of things we can talk.......Interesting.....
Eastern Parkway/Brooklyn Museum
