Film Screening | “Unpacking the Universe”
Film Screening and Q&A | Unpacking the Universe
Ruth K. Shartle Lecture Series
March 9, 2023
Unpacking the Universe: The Making of an Exhibition documents the six-year journey of LACMA curators researching, developing, and installing the exhibition The Portable Universe / El Universo en tus Manos at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art. The films bring transparency to how the team facilitated a collaborative process with the Arhuaco community in Colombia. Curators at different institutions kept this spirit of collaboration alive in the way the exhibition was installed. The MFAH presentation is Golden Worlds: The Portable Universe of Indigenous Colombia.
Highlights include scenes of breathtaking landscapes and archaeological sites; conversations about the Arhuaco worldview and how it relates to contemporary social and environmental issues; behind-the-scenes footage of preparing the exhibition; and a look at new initiatives around museum stewardship of Indigenous works.
Post-Screening Q&A
- Agnes Stauber, filmmaker
- Julia Burtenshaw, assistant curator, art of the ancient Americas, LACMA
- Diana Magaloni, deputy director and Dr. Virginia Fields Curator of the Art of the Ancient Americas, LACMA
- Moderator: Rex Koontz, consulting curator, art of the Indigenous Americas, MFAH
Plan Your Visit This program takes place in Brown Auditorium Theater, with seating on a first-come, first-served basis. Admission is free. On Thursdays, the Museum is open from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m.
Visiting Guidelines In the interest of your personal safety and community health, please observe all precautions set forth by the MFAH—learn more here.
The Ruth K. Shartle Lecture Series is made possible by a generous grant from The Brown Foundation, Inc.
Learning and Interpretation programs receive generous funding from the Institute of Museum and Library Services; Samuel H. Kress Foundation; The Brown Foundation, Inc.; Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo; Houston Junior Woman’s Club; Sharon G. Dies; Sterling-Turner Foundation; Susan Vaughan Foundation; and additional generous donors.
General admission to the MFAH is free on Thursdays, courtesy of Shell Oil Company.
“Golden Worlds: The Portable Universe of Indigenous Colombia” was organized by the Los Angeles County Museum of Art; the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston; and the Museo del Oro y Unidad de Artes y Otras Colecciones-Banco de la República, Colombia.
This exhibition has been made possible in part by the National Endowment for the Humanities: Democracy demands wisdom.
This project is supported in part by the National Endowment for the Arts.
Major support is provided by:
The Glassell Family Foundation
Generous support is provided by:
The Favrot Fund