This month, The Extraordinary Times continues its exploration of southwest Ohio, with Dr. Jack Green, the Jeffrey Horrell ‘75 and Rodney Rose Director and Chief Curator of Miami University Art Museum. Originally from London, United Kingdom, Dr. Green received his M.A. and Ph.D from the Institute of Archaeology, University College London (2001, 2006). His doctoral research focused on the archive and collections of Tell es-Sa’idiyeh, Jordan. He was curator of Ancient Near East at the Ashmolean Museum of Art and Archaeology, University of Oxford (2007–11) and came to the United States as chief curator of the Oriental Institute Museum, University of Chicago (2011–15). He served as deputy director of collections, research and exhibitions at the Corning Museum of Glass, NY (2016–17) and as Associate Director at the American Center of Research (ACOR), Amman, Jordan (2017-21). Dr. Green’s interests include museum and cultural heritage studies, and the intersection of art and archaeology.
* How are you enjoying your first year at Miami’s Art Museum? I'm enjoying being at Miami University Art Museum very much! Since arriving here last summer I've found everyone to be extremely welcoming and supportive across the university. Our wonderful team at the Art Museum and Sculpture Park does amazing work to bring together our exhibitions, public programs, collections documentation and research, as well as making the museum accessible for teaching and learning. It's in a beautiful location in Miami University's Western Campus and I love walking in the surroundings with its wooded areas, pathways, bridges, ponds, and streams. What I love the most about working at the museum is that there's always something new to learn, an artwork to be inspired about or new people to connect with. From day to day, you never know what might happen or who might walk through the door! What's also inspirational is the enthusiasm of students who visit the Art Museum as part of their classes, or just for fun. It's great to see how engaging with art transforms and enriches their experiences at Miami. * How does Oxford, Ohio compare to Oxford, England? I lived in Oxford, England for several years while I worked at the Ashmolean Museum, so I got the chance to know it well! There are quite a few similarities beyond the name and both being centers of learning. The name given to Oxford, Ohio, established after Miami University was chartered, emulated the dreaming spires and colleges of the University of Oxford. Natural beauty within its campus and surroundings is clearly an area of great similarity with Oxford, England. The "town and gown" distinction is often made in Oxford, England, i.e. a sense of a divide between locals and university faculty and students from the outside. I guess that's a familiar situation in all college towns and especially apparent at the start of the school year, as well as during the holidays when things quieten down. One big difference is that Oxford, Ohio does not endure hordes of visiting tourists as does Oxford, England. Many more came after the Harry Potter films came out! Architecture is an interesting one to compare. Oxford, England has diverse architecture because of its longer history, ranging from Medieval, Baroque, Georgian, and Victorian up to modern and postmodern architecture. Miami's style is more nostalgic and uniform with its distinctive Georgian red-brick style—a notable exception being our own very modern building at the Art Museum. * What are some new exhibitions and events at the museum this year? We have some great new exhibitions and public programs, thanks for asking! In addition to our permanent galleries which present artworks from across 5,000 years of art history, as well as our outdoor sculpture park, we have three special exhibitions this Spring. From the Ground Up explores ceramic production from ancient to modern times with examples from our collections, in addition to pottery samples which you can pick up and handle. An archaeology-themed program related to this exhibition is happening at the Art Museum on March 16. Reflections: Visual Constructions of Race is a student-curated exhibition for the Art and Architecture History Capstone Seminar. This innovative exhibition explores how racial and cultural identity is represented by artists across the world, and how images of identity are interpreted in terms of 'self' and 'other'. Works on view include those by Kara Walker, Thom Shaw, Roger Shimomura, Felice Beato, and Paul Gaugin. A celebratory program marking over a decade of the Student Capstone exhibition will take place on March 9. Lastly, we have Collections Highlights: Recent Acquisitions presenting 50 works including paintings, prints, photographs, textiles, and sculpture acquired by the Art Museum in the last few years. Our related program, An Activist's Lens: Donna Ferrato on Domestic Violence, will take place on February 24, in response to the Art Museum's recent acquisition of a number of the photojournalist's works. In the Fall, we have three upcoming exhibitions: Miami Interconnected: Land/Identity/Community is a student response exhibition related to the theme of Sovereignty, developed in collaboration with the Myaamia Center. We have two photographic exhibitions, supported by and part of the FotoFocus Biennial: A Lens for Freedom: Civil Rights Photographs by Steve Schapiro, and PhotOH: Photographers in the Heartland. Check out our website and subscribe to our e-news for updates! * How has Miami’s Art Museum found different ways to engage visitors over the last two years? When the global pandemic hit in 2020, many museums closed their doors, and turned to online engagement to reach their audiences and gain new followers. Miami University Art Museum did exactly that by increasing its online offerings, especially through virtual programs and guest lectures, collections connections videos, and more. Now we are back to being in person, we retain many of the skills and resources employed during the pandemic by providing a combination of in-person and virtual programs, and we create engaging digital content and marketing. One example this spring is a series of live virtual lunchtime talks and tours called Noontime Chatter. (Check out our website and YouTube channel for details.) We're also emphasizing putting our collections online for teaching and research purposes and raising awareness of the rich resources we have on offer to the Southwest Ohio community and beyond. * What are some cool things to notice, for someone who has never visited the museum (or who hasn’t visited in recent years)? The architecture of the Art Museum, as well as its surrounding sculpture park has an entirely different look and feel to the rest of campus. The architect—Walter Netsch of Skidmore, Owings, and Merrill in Chicago—designed our building according to his architectural "field theory," which is an ordering system based upon mathematical proportions. Each space corresponds to a series of interconnected or rotated triangles of varying size. As a result, our exhibition galleries with their ascending scales, have a subtle but profound impact on the visitor experience and presentation of artworks that goes beyond the traditional art museum. The building was quite ahead of its time in 1978. Also, the recently repainted monumental sculpture For Kepler, by Mark di Suvero is particularly eye-catching, serving as a red burst of energy as you enter the Miami campus and Art Museum grounds. Another thing you might notice is that the Art Museum has developed a strong relationship with the Myaamia Center at Miami University. The land upon which Miami University and the Art Museum stand on today is part of the traditional homelands of the Myaamia people. We currently present a number of artworks by Myaamia artists and collaborate with the Myaamia Center on multiple exhibitions and programs.
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AuthorMatthew Smith, PhD (History). Public Programs at Miami University Regionals. Historian of Appalachia, the Ohio Valley, & the early American republic. Archives
February 2024
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