Pre-Columbian and Mexican Minatures | Mingei International Museum
Image of Pre-Columbian objects in collections storage, Mingei International Museum. Photo by Katie Gardner.
Image: Image of Pre-Columbian objects in collections storage, Mingei International Museum. Photo by Katie Gardner.
On View

Sep 1 - Nov 30, 2012

Location

Mingei International Museum

Curated By

Rob Sidner and Christine Knoke Hietbrink

Pre-Columbian—this almost-magical word evokes exotic images of eras and peoples tantalizingly near to us geographically, but distinct from us culturally. Pre-Columbian refers among others to the Olmec, Toltec and Aztec nations of Mexico and Central America and the Inca of Peru. The many marvelous objects that have survived from the great civilizations of the Western and Southern Hemispheres tantalize us with their stylized forms, their earthy colors and the histories they evoke. The unusual Pre-Columbian objects on view offer further charm because of their tiny size. Accompanying them are contemporary Mexican folk art objects of daily life that carry into the present what is clearly an ancient fascination with the miniature.