Smithsonian Latino Center – Fall Lecture & Conference Series
Production and Propaganda—Colonial Art from the Spanish Caribbean, Panama, and Peru
Saturday, September 26, 2009, 3pm – 4pm
Nan Tucker McEvoy Auditorium, Smithsonian American Art Museum
8th and G St. NW, Washington, DC
Admission is free and open to the public
During the 16th, 17th, and 18th centuries, the art that was circulated, as well as produced locally, throughout the Spanish Caribbean, Panama, and Peru was overwhelmingly religious in content. Religious imagery in the form of paintings or sculpted figures, in addition to other sacred objects, were highly in demand as objects of personal devotion, as well as tools for the conversion of indigenous peoples and the assertion of colonial identities. Join the Smithsonian Latino Center and Smithsonian American Art Museum for a talk with Panamanian art historian Orlando Hernández Ying to explore the meaning and context of colonial art from the Spanish Caribbean, Panama, and Peru. Admission is free, but please arrive early to ensure a good seat! Auditorium doors will open 30 minutes before the show.
The Chinese Communities of Panama
Thursday, October 8, 2009, 6pm – 7:15pm
Meyer Auditorium, Freer Gallery of Art
1100 Independence Ave. SW, Washington, DC
Admission is free and open to the public
Join the Smithsonian Latino Center and the Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Program for an evening lecture and discussion exploring the legacy of Chinese immigration to the Americas. Lok Siu, Anthropology Professor at the New York University, will present an engaging historical and cultural overview of Chinese migration to Panama that addresses themes like labor, racial exclusion, gender, and new cycles of migration to other parts of the Americas. Evelyn Hu-DeHart, Professor of History, and Director of the Center for the Study of Race and Ethnicity in America at Brown University will introduce the program and facilitate an audience dialogue after the presentation. Admission is free, but please arrive early to ensure a good seat! Auditorium doors will open 30 minutes before the program.
Latino Art in Transition—with Pepón Osorio and Miguel Luciano
Friday, October 9, 2009, 7pm – 8pm
Robert and Arlene Kogod Courtyard, Smithsonian American Art Museum
8th St. and G St. NW, Washington, D.C.
Admission is free and open to the public
Hear about new movements in Latino art from two major Latino artists: Pepón Osorio (whose works reside in major museum collections, including the Smithsonian American Art Museum) and Miguel Luciano, an emerging artist who has exhibited in a number of national and international forums including the Grande Halle de la Villette in Paris, the San Juan Triennial in Puerto Rico, and at the Smithsonian. Virginia Mecklenburg, Senior Curator at the Smithsonian American Art Museum, will provide an introduction and moderate the discussion.
Interpreting 500 Years of Panamanian History
Friday, October 16, 2009, 4pm – 7pm (followed by a reception)
Historical Society of Washington, DC
801 K Street, NW at Mount Vernon Square, Washington, DC
Admission is free and open to the public
Discover 500 years of Panamanian history in a three-part lecture by some of the most dynamic scholars in the field: Alfredo Castillero Calvo (independent scholar), Aims McGuinness (University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee), and Julia Greene (University of Maryland, College Park). Covering the colonial period, the 19th, and 20th centuries, this lecture will address topics like the economics of early globalization, imperialism, labor and ethnicity, and Panamanian sovereignty. This program is being organized by the Smithsonian Latino Center and the History Department of the University of Maryland, College Park, with the support of the Historical Society of Washington, DC.
Tropical Archeology in Panama—Reconstructing the Indigenous Past
Sunday, November 8, 2009, 1pm – 2pm
Baird Auditorium, National Museum of Natural History
Washington, DC
Admission is free and open to the public
Join Dr. Richard Cooke from the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute for a special program to connect lay and scholarly audience with the latest findings in the tropical archeology happening in Panama. Dr. Cooke will present his work in concert with other cross-disciplinary studies used to reconstruct the history of the indigenous peoples (and their use of the environment) on the Isthmus of Panama. This program is being organized by the Smithsonian Latino Center, the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, and the National Museum of Natural History. Admission is free, but please arrive early to ensure a good seat! Auditorium doors will open 30 minutes before the show.
Indigenous Mapping: Tools for Native Politics in Panama and the World
Friday, December 4, 2009, 4pm – 5pm
Conference Room 4018-19, National Museum of the American Indian
Fourth Street & Independence Ave., SW, Washington, DC
Admission is free and open to the public
Join anthropologist and indigenous rights advocate Mac Chapin for an illustrated lecture discussing a mapping project carried out with the Kuna of Panama from 2001–2003. This project was a collaborative effort among the Kuna General Congress, the National Geographic Institute in Panama, and the Center for the Support of Native Lands in Arlington, Virginia. The maps that resulted from this project are being used by the Kuna to protect their territory, strengthen their culture and political organization, and for their school curriculum. Similar methodology for mapping indigenous lands has been used in Central and South America, Africa, and New Guinea. This program has been organized by the Smithsonian Latino Center and the National Museum of the American Indian. Admission is free, but please arrive early to ensure a good seat!