Latin American design: Tec professor leads MoMA exhibition in NY

Ana Elena Mallet is the curator of MoMA's first exhibition dedicated to modern design from Latin America, which will open next March

With the purpose of giving modern Latin American design its place in history, Ana Elena Mallet was chosen as the curator of Crafting Modernity: Design in Latin America, 1940–1980, an exhibition prepared by the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) in New York .

Next March 2024, the museum will become the venue for the first exhibition to examine modern Latin American design on a large scale, explains the curator and professor belonging to the Faculty of Excellence of the Tecnológico de Monterrey.

“I think that the diversity of proposals and materials, of typologies and reflections will be something that will surprise many. Also the visibility of women designers in the region will be something new,” highlights Mallet.
Likewise, the professor comments that she had already had previous collaborations with MoMA, however, this is the first where the curation is her responsibility and what she defines as the most challenging.

“Before she had worked with the store and had small collaborations with colleagues within the museum.

“Having an exhibition of my authorship at the MoMA with all the challenges that it has entailed, such as traveling through Latin America to understand the context, proposing pieces for the exhibition and the permanent collection itself, has been without a doubt the most challenging and enriching experience of my career".

“Having an exhibition of my authorship at MoMA has been, without a doubt, the most challenging and enriching experience of my career.”

Crafting Modernity: Design in Latin America, 1940-1980

Crafting Modernity: Design in Latin America, 1940-1980 is focused on the countries of Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Mexico and Venezuela, which shared similar processes of modernization in Latin America.

“With this exhibition we want to present to the public the ways in which the field of design in Latin America, especially design for the domestic sphere, reflects the multivalent and complex visions of modernity that take place in the region,” mentions Ana Elena Mallet.

The exhibition is focused on the postwar period in Latin America, a period characterized by its economic growth and rapid modernization, with around 150 objects, ranging from furniture, graphic design, textiles, ceramics and photographic archives.

“Through the study of objects, material culture and other forms of expression, a more nuanced vision of Latin America can emerge,” adds the curator.

Crafting Modernity: Design in Latin America, 1940-1980 will be open to the public from March 8 to September 22, 2024, at the Museum of Modern Art in New York.