2021 College Art Association (CAA) Annual Conference, February 10–13 (online)
Please consider submitting a paper for the CAA Museum Committee open panel:
Decanonizing the Gallery: Case Studies from University Museums
As classrooms address inequities and institutional biases inherent in the art historical canon, museums and galleries are rethinking best practices for presenting canonical works. If the current art historical canon – along with the celebrity art market machine and wealthy collectors-- is indeed forging a narrative of quality and significance, what opportunities are at hand to reframe the canon and at what cost? What can we make of institutions that contribute significantly to the shaping of the canon, such as the Museum of Modern Art in New York, which has inspired the content of modern art history survey textbooks? MoMA juxtaposes multiple Pablo Picassos with one Faith Ringgold in a single room: does this reinforce the centrality of Picasso's work and marginalize Ringgold, as some critics claim, or does it achieve the goal of decanonization and for whom?
Participants on this panel will examine strategies of decanonization used by museums on the front lines of this discussion: museums at academic institutions with missions of diversity and inclusion. We seek exhibition and programming case studies from academic museums that have used or will employ decanonizing strategies. What have or could academic museums or galleries do to rethink the art history canon, however this is defined, and its history of presentation? Does rethinking the so-called canonical works in university collections lead to more inclusive and accessible spaces? Conversely, how have these programs or exhibitions been limiting?
Please see collegeart.org for information on submitting a proposal. I'm also happy to answer questions; please reach me at sarahmagnatta@gmail.com.
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Sarah Magnatta
Assistant Professor, Global Contemporary Art
University of Denver
School of Art and Art History
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