The Met Acquires Commissioned Works by Cree Artist Kent Monkman
Metropolitan Museum of Art | October 08, 2020
Categories: news
The Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York) has acquired a monumental diptych, mistikôsiwak (Wooden Boat People), by Cree artist Kent Monkman. The two paintings, Welcoming the Newcomers and Resurgence of the People, are on view in the Museum's Great Hall until November 16, 2020. Museum Director Max Hollein says that, "with monumental scale and breadth, and at a critical moment of reckoning, mistikôsiwak (Wooden Boat People) upends conventional historical narratives of the European settlement of North America. The diptych conveys Monkman’s reverence for art history’s traditional canon even as he critiques it by calling necessary, incisive attention to its gaping omissions. As The Met recommits itself to attending more rigorously to underrepresented voices, Monkman’s commission functions as both a trenchant reminder and a steadfast compass going forward. The acquisition of this important work would not be possible without the generous support of the Donald R. Sobey Foundation, and for that we are grateful."
Read more about this important acquisition here.
