Fowler in Focus: Ceramics of Papua New Guinea May 25, 2008 to September 28, 2008 The diverse peoples of Papua New Guinea maintain some of the most unusual and distinctive ceramic traditions found anywhere in the world. New Guinea ceramists gather clay in the hills or swamps surrounding their villages and form it into wares that range from superbly functional cooking and storage pots to highly esoteric sacred figures. See more than thirty examples from the Fowler collection, including bowls used for food preparation and serving, incised ceremonial vessels, figurative ceramics, and ornaments placed atop the gables of houses. News Release Link News Release PDF     La tinta grita/The Ink Shouts: The Art of Social Resistance in Oaxaca, Mexico July 20, 2008 to December 7, 2008 "Even if you know little or nothing about the complex political events that inspired it, the art's technical skill and emotive power is hard to miss." Los Angeles Times, July 20, 2008 In 2006, the Mexican state of Oaxaca experienced seven months of social conflict that resulted in at least eighteen deaths and the occupation of Oaxaca City by the Popular Assembly of the Peoples of Oaxaca (APPO) a confederation that included concerned citizens, teachers, and representatives of indigenous communities. Strong-arm tactics by city and state officials against public demonstrations inspired a group of designers and artists, products of Oaxaca’s acclaimed visual arts programs, to use the city walls as a canvas for conveying their outrage over social injustice by creating bold graphic images of remarkable quality, sophistication, and wit. Calling themselves ASARO, Assembly of Revolutionary Artists of Oaxaca, the artists remain anonymous both to avoid persecution and to emphasize that it’s the causes they voice through their art collectively that is important, not their individual identities. La tinta grita/The Ink Shouts features more than thirty of their wood block prints and stenciled works, which evoke a Mexican history of portraying social themes graphically, in the tradition of Posada, Siqueiros, Orozco, Rivera, and Toledo. The stenciled works in this exhibition are loaned from the Center for the Study of Political Graphics. News Release Link News Release PDF     Reflecting Culture: The Francis E. Fowler, Jr. Collection of Silver On permanent display Comprising 251 objects representing 16th through 19th century Europe, Great Britain and the United States, this exhibition interprets silver in its social contexts. Gleaming vessels from renowned workshops—such as those of British silversmith Paul de Lamerie (c.1800), Russian jeweler Karl Fabergé (c.1900), and American patriot silversmith Paul Revere (c.1760)—highlight important styles and techniques.     Intersections: World Arts, Local Lives On ongoing display "Spanning centuries of multicultural creativity, this exhibition is the kind of art experience that might restore your faith in the sad old human comedy. How nice that the installation is on long-term view." The New York Times, Oct. 1, 2006 Intersections Online Los Angeles museum-goers at last have an ongoing opportunity to enjoy one of our nation's most important collections of art from Africa, Asia, the Pacific, and the Americas in Intersections: World Arts, Local Lives, which features approximately 250 of the finest objects from the Fowler's collections in a long-term exhibition that celebrates the richness of world arts and considers the roles these works of art play in peoples' lives. Intersections: World Arts, Local Lives is made possible by lead gifts from the National Endowment for the Humanities, The Getty Foundation, The Ahmanson Foundation, and Barbara and Joseph Goldenberg. Major support was provided by Patricia B. Altman and the Ralph M. Parsons Foundation; Margit and Lloyd Cotsen, Jay and Deborah Last, the National Endowment for the Arts, Shirley and Ralph Shapiro, the W.L.S. Spencer Foundation, the Patricia and Richard Anawalt Family, and Shani and Milady, daughters of William T. Perry, Esq. Additional support was provided by the Aaroe Associates Charitable Foundation, Anonymous, the Ethnic Arts Council of Los Angeles, Jill and Barry Kitnick, Jim and Jeanne Pieper, the Ceil and Michael Pulitzer Foundation, and Edwin and Cherie Silver. (Only gifts of $10,000 and above are listed here.) Media sponsorship provided by Venice Magazine and KCRW. News Release Link News Release PDF