Blaffer Art Museum and a Racial Reckoning
For as long as they have existed, art museums have been an institution representing a means for artists to express themselves in any media available. This notion has not always been extended to artists of color, especially in the professional sphere of art curation. For a long time art institutes have been solely spotlighting white artists and allowing them to skyrocket to fame and accolades, all while pushing marginalized artists under the rug. In recent years, there has been a push to diversify art museums and bridge the gap between them and their community.
In 2019, the National Center for Biotechnology Information conducted a study titled “Diversity of artists in major U.S. museums.” The study found that 85% of artists displayed in collective art museums were white, a statistic that varies from museum to museum. It consisted of 18 art museums in America, including the Museum of Fine Arts Houston, which scored an 80%. It is one of the first studies of its kind and in its introduction the study states, “Historically, the artists represented in U.S. art museums have been predominantly male and caucasian.” While there have been studies looking into diversity within art museum staff, there are few and far between which dissect the demographics of the artists behind the pieces. This statistic unveils a rampant problem within collecting art museums, and forces them to examine their curating process.
The Blaffer Art Museum was founded in 1973 and resides on the University of Houston campus. Unlike other collecting museums, they frequently rotate the art they choose to display. This topped with the fact that they are on a campus allows them the flexibility to add variety to their art exhibitions. Katherine Veneman, the Curator of Education at Blaffer, told me, “One great thing about the Blaffer is that because we’re on the University of Houston… we can engineer a lot of collaborations with the wonderful scholarly resources and students that we have on campus.” This past semester, Veneman was part of the campus organization that put together BB’s Discussion- a networking opportunity for black and brown student artists. “I would say that’s a major way that we stay in touch with the student body, and their work is more inclusive through those types of programs- through the students. All of the student programs, I think, enable inclusivity.”
From late June to mid Autumn, the Blaffer Art Museum displayed works by Martine Gutierrez, an indigenous transgender artist whose identity is the driving force behind her work, and Jamal Cyrus, an artist who combined his African-American roots into the Civil Rights Movements through pieces spanning 15 years. A current exhibition they have features Maryam Jafri, a Pakistani artist whose work focuses on questions of identity, authenticity, and commerce. Blaffer has also displayed the work of Jagdeep Raina, a Kashmiri-Pakistani artist. Blaffer displaying works by a plethora of artists of color further highlights what Veneman said about the flexibility of Blaffer as a non-collecting museum. In his work, Raina showcases the rich history of transnational migration within contexts of fluctuating infrastructures of power. In addition to having Jagdeep Raina’s collection exhibited, Blaffer Art Museum hosted a virtual talk where Raina discussed in detail the process and the meaning behind his art. Like his work dealing with history, Raina thinks the operatives of museums are continuously shifting. “Many museums are reaching this incredibly exciting crossroads where they’re gonna change because so much has changed, and conversations around museums are changing and how artists approach museums are changing. And I think the museum is just gonna be constantly evolving.”
There is no doubt that some museums have been going towards diversifying their collections. Going beyond just being validated by historically discriminatory institutions, art museums are being forced to reckon with their history, and what it means for an artist of color to be displayed. “Art is not just about art.” Veneman stated. “It’s about every single other thing.” This question is especially vital because it is important for communities to be able to see not just different points of view- it is important because it’s how we, as a society, connect with and shape our culture for future generations.
