Miami Art Museum Presents
American Tableaux: Many Voices, Many Stories

Selections from the Collection of Walker Art Center
June 20 - September 7, 2003

American Tableaux: Many Voices, Many Stories explores the narrative tradition in American art from the 1920s to the present and celebrates the rich variety of stories told by individual voices, communities, and cultures. The exhibition is organized in Miami by MAM curator Lorie Mertes and features more than 80 paintings, sculptures, installations, prints, and photographs from the collection of the Walker Art Center in Minneapolis.

"This exhibition invites us to examine the term 'American' and the idea of a single, coherent American society," explains MAM director Suzanne Delehanty. The exhibition is organized into several thematic groups presenting different aspects of the American experience. These varying points of view range from roadside and street scenes found in works by George Segal, Edward Hopper and Lee Friedlander, to works by artists such as Robert Rauschenberg, Kerry James Marshall and Andy Warhol that delve into political and social issues shaping our daily experience.

Works by Georgia O'Keeffe, Dan Graham and Mark Tansey look at the urban, suburban, and rural environment while objects by Elizabeth Peyton, Lyle Ashton Harris and Collier Schorr explore personal narratives involving the body, gender, sexual identity and the rites of passage associated with self-discovery. The exhibition also includes a grouping of several diverse works that suggest a mock "clubhouse" -- a private, interior gathering space -- complete with pin ups by Richard Prince and a full-size pool table by Sherrie Levine. Among other artists represented in the exhibition are Doug Aitken, Robert Colescott, Jenny Holzer, Jasper Johns, Glenn Ligon, Barry McGee, Edward Ruscha and Kara Walker.

A discussion by MAM curators Lorie Mertes and Peter Boswell will be held during the opening reception on Thursday, June 19 from 5 to 8:30pm.

In conjunction with the exhibition, MAM is installing a unique project in the Visitors' Gallery, Miami Stories: A Portrait of Our Community.

Visitors to the museum will be asked to share their stories by providing a personal photograph or document that reflects an aspect of who they are and where they've come from. Free admission will be offered to those who participate in this project between June 20 and September 7, 2003 by bringing a document to install as part of the work in the Visitors Gallery. Visitors will be provided with a special template so that they can photocopy their historical contribution and add it to the wall of Miami Stories. Participants in the art installation will also be asked to write a few lines about who they are how they came to be in Miami. The Miami Stories project will be on view as it evolves, during regular museum hours throughout the run of the American Tableaux exhibition.

At the close of the exhibition, all the personal contributions to Miami Stories from the community will be donated to the archives of The Historical Museum of Southern Florida. Miami Stories: A Portrait of Our Community is supported in part with a grant from Target Stores.

Film Screenings
The exhibition includes a number of films that reflect aspects of the American experience. These films will be screened continuously in the galleries during the run of the show. Among the films screened will be: Kenneth Anger's Scorpio Rising (1963), Bruce Baillie's Castro Street (1966), James Benning's One Way Boogie Woogie (1977), Charlie Chaplin's Easy Street (1917), and George Kuchar's Hold Me While I am Naked (1966).

Members Preview / JAM at MAM
Thursday, June 19
5:00pm to 8:30pm
Admission is free for members,
$5 for non-members.

6:30pm to 7:15pm
Join in a lively discussion with MAM curators
Lorie Mertes and Peter Boswell.

Related Programs
Free Sundays at MAM and tours of American Tableaux: Many Voices, Many Stories Museum admission is free every Sunday, which includes admission to special exhibitions, MAM's collection, the MAM Store, and free guided tours at 2 pm. Sponsored by The Miami Herald/El Nuevo Herald.

Second Saturdays are Free for Families
Drop in from 1-4pm on the second Saturday of every month to enjoy fun, interactive programs. Families of all ages explore MAM together, find inspiration to create works of art, and participate in hands-on activities led by Gallery Teachers and student volunteers.

Saturday, July 12
1-4pm Crazy Casts!
Enjoy amazing life-sized sculpture by artist George Segal in the exhibition American Tableaux. Pick a partner, cover your hand or face with wet plaster and make your own mold! Face mask demonstration from 1:30-2:15pm.

Saturday, August 9
1-4pm Leaping Landscapes and Intriguing Interiors!
Sometimes art makes you want to leap into the picture. Leap back in your mind to a great indoor or outdoor scene and create a picture of it using a variety of materials. Pose for a photo in a life-sized tableaux vivant.

Visitors Gallery
Visitors can explore the exhibition's themes through reading, writing, and hands-on activities. Miami Stories - A Portrait of Our Community invites you to tell us your story in a mural project of photographs and stories about residents of South Florida.

Gallery Notes
This illustrated take-home brochure provides background information on the exhibition. Available in the galleries. Free.

Group Tours of American Tableaux: Many Voices, Many Stories
Private guided tours, led by museum docents, are available in English and Spanish. For details and reservations, call 305.375.4073.

American Tableaux: Many Voices, Many Stories was organized by Walker Art Center in Minneapolis. In Miami, the exhibition is made possible by generous support from the Dain Rauscher Foundation and Target Stores.