FOR MORE INFORMATION

CONTACT:  Mary Anthony

mary.anthony@trinity.edu

Aug. 31, 2010

Maya Wood Sculptures on Display at Trinity University

The exhibit includes works like this Maya Pakal Head

SAN ANTONIO – An exhibit of original woodcarvings by Maya artisans will be on display in Trinity’s Michael and Noemi Neidorff Art Gallery, Thursday, Oct. 14 through Saturday, Nov. 20 before transportation to Merida, Yucatan for its final gallery showing. Trinity will host two major evening events in connection with the exhibit, including an opening reception and gallery tour at 7 p.m. Oct. 14, and a second reception, lecture, and tour with Mary Katherine Scott of the University of Anglia and Jeff Kowalski of the University of Northern Illinois, original curators of the exhibit, beginning at 5 p.m. Friday, Nov. 5.

The November event will kickoff a major Latin American studies conference,
co-sponsored by Trinity and the University of Texas at San Antonio, that will bring together major scholars, graduate and undergraduate students of Mesoamerican art history, anthropology, and archeology, to share their latest research in the field.  Trinity students will work with Professor Jennifer Mathews to put together the interdisciplinary exhibit, staff the gallery, and assist with the symposium.

An exhibit catalogue, Crafting Maya Identity: Contemporary Wood Sculptures from the Puuc Region of Yucatán, Mexico, edited by Jeff Kowalski, will be available for purchase. It includes contributions by scholars including Alfredo Barrera, Janet Berlo, Quetzil Castañeda, Nelson Graburn, Jeff Kowalksi, Mary Katherine Scott, and Christopher Steiner.

Exhibit sponsors include Henry R. Muñoz III & Kell Muñoz Architects; the Texas Humanities Council; Trinity’s MAS (Mexico, The Americas, and Spain) program; Arturo Madrid, Murchison Distinguished Professor of Modern Languages and Literatures; the Lectures and Visiting Scholars Committee; the Office of International Programs; and the departments of art and art history and sociology and anthropology. The San Antonio Museum of Art is also providing materials for the exhibit.

The gallery is open from 1 to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday or by appointment. For more information, contact Jennifer Mathews at jmathews@trinity.edu or 210-999-8507 or visit the Trinity Web site at www.trinity.edu.