BALTIMORE, MD – On November 19, the Baltimore Museum of Art (BMA) debuts Raúl de Nieves: and imagine you are here, an exuberant installation by the Mexican-American multimedia artist, performer, and musician that celebrates the beauty, wonder, and power of the natural world. Created especially for the BMA’s East Lobby—a primary entrance and gathering space—as part of the museum’s second Robert E. Meyerhoff and Rheda Becker Biennial Commission, and imagine you are here reflects de Nieves’ interest in connecting with audiences through universally accessible themes and inspirations. At the heart of the installation are de Nieves’ large-scale, kaleidoscopic faux stained-glass window and flamboyant hybrid figures that capture many aspects of metamorphosis in the natural world from form to gender. The fantastical works bathe the two-level lobby in brilliant color and light and invite visitor engagement through their distinct materiality. Raúl de Nieves: and imagine you are here is on view November 19, 2023, through May 4, 2025.
“Raúl de Nieves’ transfixing installation for the Meyerhoff-Becker Biennial Commission has transformed the BMA’s lobby into an environment that will elicit wonder and awe from our visitors,” said Asma Naeem, the BMA’s Dorothy Wagner Wallis Director. “The East Lobby is often where our audiences begin their BMA journey, making it an essential place of connection. We are thrilled to offer our community another opportunity to experience a visionary artist in this space with work that is joyful, inviting, and sure to spark conversation and engagement.”
This installation marks the second presentation of the Robert E. Meyerhoff and Rheda Becker Biennial Commission, which was established in 2018 to foster the creation of new works by international contemporary artists, cultivate aspiring curators from underrepresented backgrounds through a parallel fellowship, and activate the BMA’s two-floor East Lobby with publicly accessible art.
Opening Celebration
Sunday, November 19, 2-5 p.m.
Explore the exhibition’s themes of transformation, emerging, and becoming through a hands-on mask-making project led by artist Jessy DeSantis and tastings of traditional Mexican foods and Latin American corn husk crafted by the Artesanas.
More information: https://artbma.org
