Members of the 51ΑΤΖζ Japanese Cultural Association helped to make Japanese art and culture more accessible so it can be enjoyed by the greater Milwaukee community.
The Warehouse, a private art museum associated with Guardian Fine Art Services, reached out to the 51ΑΤΖζ Japanese Cultural Association to collaborate on its recent exhibition βArt Japan: 2021-1921β. The exhibition explored 100 years of Japanese art, featuring 126 pieces by 41 artists and includes weavings, paintings, sculptures and more.
The 51ΑΤΖζ Japanese Cultural Association is a student organization that aims to spread awareness of Japanese traditions and modern culture to the UW-Milwaukee student body and the Milwaukee community at large. Adhering to this mission, officers Madeline Schmidt and Stephanie Aguilar contributed to the exhibitionβs art phone project, a cellphone audio guide composed with the help of interested community members.
βIt is a rare opportunity to make cultures more accessible,β Schmidt said. βItβs hard to share cultures, especially Japanese and other Eastern cultures, in the Midwest.β
Schmidt and Aguilar each selected a piece of art and recorded their interpretations for the project. Pieces in the exhibitions are assigned a number to which people can dial in on their phones while visiting the gallery, or while listening at home.
βLike poetry, we tend to make art more complicated than it needs to be, and it scares people off,β Aguilar said. βIt was cool to be a part of a project that allows people to hear interpretations other than the academically βcorrectβ one. I hope it encourages them to explore the art and culture in any way they want.β
βMaking the art more accessible and breaking down barriers to engage with art is why projects like the art phone are importantβ said Danielle Paswaters, the Warehouse director of exhibitions and collections and also a 51ΑΤΖζ art history grad student. βIt is one of many efforts the museum is making to collaborate with the community, including 51ΑΤΖζ students.β
βJan Serr and John Shannon, the Warehouse and Guardian Fine Arts owners, place an emphasis on accessibility,β Paswaters said. βEverything here β admission, events, the art phone β is free to help make it easier for anyone to come see and experience the art.β
Serr, a 51ΑΤΖζ alum and professional artist, and her husband, Shannon, have a long history of supporting the 51ΑΤΖζ community. In 2016, Serr and Shannon donated $1 million to the university to renovate the now Jan Serr Art Studio, located in the Kenilworth Square East building.
In addition to collaborating on the art phone, the Japanese Cultural Association helped the Warehouse organize an outdoor Japanese taiko drum performance with the Milwaukee taiko group Hibiki. A donation box was displayed at the event, which the Warehouse tripled and divided up between the performers and the 51ΑΤΖζ Japanese Cultural Association.
βWe wanted to help others access opportunities to explore cultures,β Aguilar said. βIt helps us see the similarities we share instead of the differences.β
βArt Japan: 2021-1921β ran through Sept. 24, and was a part of the museumβs trio of Asian art exhibitions. The other two are βIndia: Photographs (2019),β which closed in late June, and βJan Serr: Then and Now β Photographs of Chinaβ which opens Oct. 15.
Admission to the Warehouse, located at 1635 W. St. Paul Avenue, is free, and visitors can access the parking lot free of charge. The gallery is open to the public Monday through Friday between the hours of 10 a.m. and 4 p.m.
By Lauren Breunig, University Relations