Our America

Smithsonian American Art Museum

"On the one hand, the affirmation that Latino art is American art is simply a fact. Latino artists are American by birth, citizenship, residence, education, experience, and even sacrifice-a factor made clear by the large number of Latino artists that have served in the United States armed forces. On the other hand, the statement poses a challenge to the ways in which we traditionally think about what constitutes American art."-E. Carmen RamosIs Latino art an integral part of modern American art? Presenting one hundred major artworks from the Smithsonian American Art Museum, Our America seeks to "recalibrate" enduring concepts about American national culture by exploring how one group of artists-those of Latin American descent and heritage-express their relationship to American art, history, and culture.Highlights include an installation altar by Amalia Mesa-Bains, the "recycled" films...