“Culture is about people, how we live, communicate, what we make, and what we value, which is to say all that make us who we are as people…” – Yunhee Min
“Culture is about people, how we live, communicate, what we make, and what we value, which is to say all that make us who we are as people…” – Yunhee Min
American artist Courtney Mattison draws inspiration from our oceans and the coral reefs within, a subject intrinsically connected to the Coral Triangle islands of Indonesia. Her commission for the U.S. Embassy in Jakarta, Confluence (Our Changing Seas V), and the following artist exchange to Indonesia allowed her to reconnect with these ideas and engage with communities across the islands.
As part of their collaboration for a commission in the new U.S. Embassy in Asuncion, Paraguay, Johnson and Aranda traveled to Paraguay to meet local artisans and weavers from different parts of the country.
“As an artist I value a variety of visual experiences to form my ideas for future work. Bringing artists from different countries and cultures together enriches everyone.” – Donna Rhae Marder
American fiber artist Michele Lasker traveled to Lima, Peru to teach workshops, lead lectures, learn from artisans, and worked with students as an Art in Embassies exchange artist.
Fine art and documentary photographers Adama Delphine Fawundu and Laylah Amatullah Barrayn traveled to Kigali, Rwanda, to engage with a variety of communities and promote photography as a medium among artists and aspiring artists.
Nebraska artist Kristin Pluhacek traveled to Asmara, Eritrea, to facilitate and work side-by-side with twenty-four Eritrean artists representing the nine major ethnic groups of Eritrea, to create a nine-panel mural, each panel representing one of the ethnic groups.
Art in Embassies and U.S. Embassy Kigali sponsored a cultural exchange with documentary photographer Laylah Amatullah Barrayn and visual artist Adama Delphine Fawundu.
In 2014, Art in Embassies entered a four-year partnership with Bennington College to create an outdoor commission for the new U.S Embassy in Oslo, Norway.
“The visiting artist program was an extraordinary experience. As a Luso-American, I have a deeper, richer understanding of both cultures with this experience.”
“Cultural diplomacy is lasting. Its long term vision bridges communication and models global citizenship over time.”
“I have found that when hands and minds come together through common materials in pursuit of art, hearts and minds open. There is a tremendous amount of inherent talent and practical intelligence in all cultures. What we have in common is that we all want to add value to something greater than ourselves.”
Art in Embassies (AIE) has commissioned the School of Art + Design at Western Carolina University (WCU) to create a permanent, site-specific work of art for the new U.S. Embassy complex in Niamey, Niger.
“In a world where communications are increasingly complex and languages seem even more abstract, I believe that art brings a vocabulary and syntax that is universal, compassionate and intimate.”
“It is critical that we all learn how to listen and feel for those who have life experiences and are born under circumstances different from our own. The visual arts can give voice to narratives some may not otherwise hear.”
I think that in my case it is very important because a lot of youth gravitate to graffiti and street art. Yet there is a stigma that precedes graffiti – that it is an act of vandalism and it could be – but there are countless other roots and branches to this tree. This kind […]
“In general my research revealed the vital importance in the link between the cultural practices of indigenous artisan weavers and wood carvers [whose] work expresses the wonders of nature and the natural world to those actively working to preserve it. Clean waters, flora, fauna and marine life will be represented and pictured in my work of art.”
Art in Embassies is pleased to present an innovative partnership with the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, in Washington, DC. This collaboration creates a new public artist lecture series, featuring internationally renowned contemporary artists.
“I am still amazed by all I was able to do as an Art in Embassies exchange artist, in Kyiv… in a single week. Every time someone asks about my experience I remember another wonderful detail. I am anxious to see how the people I met, the topics we discussed, and the landmarks, galleries, museums, and schools I visited, will combine and manifest themselves in my next body of work.”
“In general my research revealed the vital importance in the link between the cultural practices of indigenous artisan weavers and wood carvers [whose] work expresses the wonders of nature and the natural world to those actively working to preserve it. Clean waters, flora, fauna and marine life will be represented and pictured in my work of art.”