MOCA Presents “My Name is Maryan” on View During Miami Art Week, Nov. 17, 2021 – March 20, 2022
The Museum of Contemporary Art, North Miami (MOCA) is the place to be during Miami Art Week! MOCA will offer extended hours throughout the week. The museum will celebrate its newest exhibition, “My Name is Maryan,” on Thursday, Dec. 2 with a Miami Art Week reception and on Saturday, Dec. 4 with a public talk and tour with curator Alison M. Gingeras. “My Name is Maryan” is a monographic presentation of four decades of paintings, sculptures, drawings and film by the iconoclastic, ground-breaking Polish-born artist Maryan. The exhibition opened to the public on Nov. 17, 2021, and will remain on view until March 20, 2022.
Drawing upon new scholarship and a trove of never-before-exhibited works, “My Name is Maryan” will be the first retrospective to holistically examine all periods of Maryan’s life and work. Throughout the museum, Maryan’s extraordinary biography and prolific oeuvre represent a deeply moving monument to the perseverance of the human spirit and power of art to work through traumatic loss. Credited as being among the first artist-eyewitnesses to directly depict their experiences of the Shoah, Maryan's unique approach to figurative art strove to solidarity across cultures and generations.
“My Name Is Maryan” inserts this complex oeuvre into a larger narrative of postwar European and American art history. The exhibition takes Maryan’s act of renaming himself as more than a gesture of self-definition; through it, Maryan forges a defiant yet questioning form of humanism that he dubbed “truth-painting” (peinture-vérité). The exhibition restores Maryan’s rightful place in postwar art history—not only chronicling the work of an overlooked artist, but directly linking him to a larger context of his like-minded European and American contemporaries. Throughout the galleries, Maryan’s oeuvre will be juxtaposed with works by artists such as Asger Jorn, Constant, Egill Jacobsen, and other members of the CoBrA group; as well as American artists such as H.C. Westermann, Leon Golub, and June Leaf. The first holistic exploration of Maryan’s inspiring and defiant life and work, “My Name Is Maryan” seeks to build kinship with Maryan’s story and Miami’s diverse and thriving immigrant community.
Upcoming programming includes:
“My Name is Maryan” Exhibition Reception | Thursday, Dec. 2; VIP Reception (by invitation only): 6-8 p.m.; Public Reception: 8-10 p.m.
Details: MOCA is presenting a reception on Thursday, Dec. 2 to celebrate its newest exhibition “My Name is Maryan” – a monographic presentation of four decades of paintings, sculptures, drawings and film by the iconoclastic, ground-breaking Polish-born artist Maryan. Guests will enjoy cocktails, canapés and a special meet and greet with curator Alison Gingeras.
Cost: Free with museum admission, which can be paid at the door. MOCA Members and Miami Art Week VIPs may have their admission waived by showing proof of membership/VIP status.
RSVP: To RSVP, please visit: https://bit.ly/3xinTIl
Public Talk and Tour with Curator Alison Gingeras | Saturday, Dec. 4; 11 a.m.-12 p.m.
Details: MOCA invites the community to a public talk and tour through the exhibition, “My Name is Maryan,” with curator Alison Gingeras. Throughout the museum, Maryan’s extraordinary biography and prolific oeuvre represent a deeply moving monument to the perseverance of the human spirit and power of art to work through traumatic loss. Credited as being among the first artist-eyewitnesses to directly depict their experiences of the Shoah, Maryan's unique approach to figurative art strove to solidarity across cultures and generations.
Cost: Free with museum admission, which can be paid at the door. MOCA Members and Miami Art Week VIPs can have their admission waived by showing proof of membership/VIP status.
RSVP: To RSVP, please visit: https://111401.blackbaudhosting.com/111401/MOCA-Public-Tour.
In MOCA’s continued efforts to include diverse voices and perspectives, "My Name is Maryan" will also be accompanied by a robust series of education and public programming in partnership with national organizations such as the Human Rights Watch, and feature additional reflections from the arts and local community: Curator and art historian Dr. Erica Moiah James (University of Miami), Holocaust scholar Oren Baruch Stier (Florida International University) and Marlene Daut (University of Virginia).
Carl Juste’s visual reflection, “Postcard from the Edge: A Dispatch of Hope” is a selection of photographs made by Iris PhotoCollective photojournalists and associates while on assignment around the world and represents the larger group as confirmations of human resilience and strength. The images on display were made in moments of extreme suffering, yet both the photographer and the subject were able to extract moments of peace, power and joy. Photographers include: Maria Daniel Balcazar, Maggie Steber, Vanessa Charlot and Woosler Delisfor.
Also on view outside the museum during Miami Art Week is MOCA’s most recent Art on the Plaza commission, “Reading Reflections,” by Miami-based artist Najja Moon. With this work, Moon explores themes of reflection and self-empowerment through a human-scale intervention jutting out from MOCA’s plaza. The materiality of the sculpture, primarily fabricated from dichroic glass, creates a prismatic light effect where the viewer can simultaneously look through and see themselves reflected in the oil-slick surface. Curated by Amanda Sanfilippo Long, Art on the Plaza is presented by MOCA, with major support from the North Miami Community Redevelopment Agency (NMCRA).
Timed tickets are strongly encouraged throughout Miami Art Week, including the Miami Art Week Reception. Admission will be prioritized for those with pre-purchased timed tickets. Timed tickets for daily admission can be purchased here, and timed tickets for the reception can be reserved here.
The museum’s extended hours for Miami Art Week:
Sunday, Nov. 28-Tuesday, Nov. 30: 10 a.m.–5 p.m.
Wednesday, Dec. 1: 10 a.m.–7 p.m.
Thursday, Dec. 2: 10 a.m.–5 p.m. (Open Hours), 6 p.m.–8 p.m. (VIP Reception by invitation), 8 p.m.–10 p.m. (Public Reception)
Friday Dec. 3-Saturday, Dec. 4: 10 a.m.–5 p.m.