Ongoing

Remixing the Hall

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Remixing the Hall: WCMA’s Collection in Perpetual Transition

Borrowing a term from DJ culture, “Remixing” describes WCMA curators’ process of selecting objects from the collection that highlight multivalent correspondences between form and meaning in art. Although we have chosen works from many chronological periods and geographical areas, the museum’s holdings are in perpetual transition as we acquire new objects and conduct new research. The continuing COVID-19 pandemic and demands for social reckoning influenced the works we chose and our interpretations of them. We also reflected upon what it means to display objects that entered the collection as a result of colonialism and missionary work, and to do so here in Lawrence Hall, which was built on Mohican land with the proceeds of enslaved Black labor.

Just as one song might be remixed by many DJs, each in their own style, this installation is iterative and the objects on view will change over time. We have provided a loose thematic framework so that you can construct your own meaning from the infinite ways objects resonate with each other and with the present.

—Exhibition curators Destinee Filmore, Jordan Horton, Nicholas Liou, Kevin M. Murphy, and Elizabeth Sandoval

Watch the curators discuss the exhibition here.

News & Press

Remixing the Hall: WCMA’s Collection in Perpetual Transition, Berkshire Fine Arts, April 22, 2022

Yuchan Kim, WCMA displays purchased artworks requested by students in ‘Acquiring Art for the WCMA’ course, The Williams Record, May 4, 2022

Construct Your Own Meaning: Cake Artists

As part of the Construct Your Own Meaning summer series, cake artists from the region will design and produce a cake that interprets an artwork in "Remixing the Hall."

Construct Your Own Meaning: Young People

As part of the Construct Your Own Meaning summer series, WCMA will host a group of 10- to 15-year-olds who will learn about the museum's collection and give a collective guided tour of "Remixing the Hall."

Construct Your Own Meaning: Musicians

As part of the Construct Your Own Meaning summer series, musicians from a range of musical backgrounds will each compose 5-10 minute pieces inspired by an artwork in "Remixing the Hall."

Construct Your Own Meaning: Beer Brewers

As part of the Construct Your Own Meaning summer series, regional beer brewers will create new beers based on selected objects from "Remixing the Hall," which features artwork from our permanent collection.

Sound Baths With Guadalupe Maravilla’s Disease Thrower #10

As a part of the acquisition of Guadalupe Maravilla’s sculpture "Disease Thrower #10," Maravilla’s sound healer collaborator Michael Jay will offer sound baths at 10 a.m. and 3 p.m. to students and the general public in Williamstown.

Sound Bath With Guadalupe Maravilla’s Disease Thrower #10

As a part of the acquisition of Guadalupe Maravilla’s sculpture "Disease Thrower #10," Maravilla’s sound healer collaborator Michael Jay will offer a sound bath at 5:30 p.m. to students and the general public in Williamstown.

Curatorial Close Looks: Remixing the Remix

Join WCMA’s Mellon Curatorial Fellows Destinee Filmore (MA ’24), Jordan Horton (MA ’23), and Nicholas Liou (MA ’24) for a close look at the collaborative reinstallation of "Remixing the Hall: WCMA’s Collection in Perpetual Transition."