Swoon’s 2023 exhibition at the Taubman Museum
When the art world works together
When the art world works together, incredible things happen. One of the most impactful ways this happens is when visionary museum directors work with galleries and fresh artist voices. Two fantastic museum directors Turner Carroll Gallery has had the pleasure of working with include Cindy Peterson (Taubman Museum, Roanoke, VA) and Marisa Sage (New Mexico Museum of Art, Santa Fe, NM). Both actively forge relationships with artists and their representatives, exploring artists’ concepts deeply keeping museum audiences inspired.
Clarence Heyward, Monica Lundy, Judy Chicago, Nadya Tolokonnikova, and Swoon at the Taubman Museum
In 2023, Taubman director Cindy Peterson visited Santa Fe and explored every detail of Turner Carroll’s Swoon exhibition. Petersen knew Swoon’s story would strike a chord with the Roanoke community, where, as in much of the US, drug addiction and family healing is a topic of conversation. She was inspired to present Turner Carroll’s show at the Taubman Museum, with even more works from Swoon’s New York studio which told a comprehensive, immersive story of how the artist found refuge and healing in art after a family history of opioid addiction. She invited Swoon to speak and lead workshops at the museum, which led to an enormous community turnout.
Mokha Laget’s new mural at the Taubman Museum, unveiled this past week
This relationship of curiosity and exposure to new ideas between museums and Santa Fe galleries has led to a number of developments for both. Swoon’s retrospective toured museums across the US and greatly increased her exposure. Mokha Laget was introduced to the Taubman Museum after Swoon’s show, which led to Laget’s new mural in Roanoke–featured this week on the cover of the Roanoke Times. Laget’s mural located in Roanoke has special significance because of its proximity to Washington DC, where Laget earned her MA at the Corcoran School of Art and Design and was studio assistant to the great color school artist Gene Davis. When Tonya attended a lecture at the Taubman Museum, she in turn met a fantastic new artist whose work we presented at the Dallas Art Fair: Mindy Lam.
Another proponent of rewarding partnerships in the art world is Marisa Sage. Newly appointed as the director of the New Mexico Museum of Art in Santa Fe, she came from the New Mexico State University Museum of art, where she majorly built the institution’s museum program. Sage has always been highly regarded for her in depth exploration of new artists, and true curiosity to learn their stories and introduce them to our communities. We are looking forward to Marietta Patricia Leis’ upcoming solo show at the New Mexico State University Museum of Art.
Marietta Patricia Leis’ work in the solo exhibition Sense Memories at the Center for Contemporary Arts Santa Fe
People connect to art because of the story it tells, and museums and galleries are at the center of finding and presenting important stories to the public. The more dialogue the two have, the more interesting artists are connected and presented to people who connect to the beauty, healing, or intellectual ideas the artwork presents. When galleries place artists in museums, this also increases the provenance and value of their work, and when museums have interesting and relevant exhibitions, audiences are inspired to interact with them and support museums with sustaining gifts. We at Turner Carroll Gallery can’t wait for another year of collaboration and inspiration!
Author: Sophie Carroll