Simultaneous exhibits showcase classic Mimbres artistry

Category: Local Events Local Events
Published: 30 July 2013 30 July 2013

Silver City, NM – The Neo-Mimbreño 2013 Vessels International Juried Exhibition: Two Museums One Exhibit is rich with incredible art and is a showcase of creative efforts from artists from throughout the world inspired by the prehistoric Mimbres culture of the Southwest featured in WNMU Museum's NAN Ranch and Eisele Collections.

Co-curated by artists Diana Ingalls Leyba and Beth Menczer, the exhibition will be displayed in Silver City’s two museums, the Western New Mexico University Museum and the Silver City Museum with an opening on Saturday, August 3. This exhibition will run concurrently with the Western New Mexico University Museum's permanent Mimbres pottery exhibition featuring the NAN Ranch Collection, the Silver City Museum’s exhibition A Vessel by Any Other Name, and the Clay Festival’s 2013 International Juried Exhibition, A Tile & A Vessel, at the Carter House.

The exhibition is dedicated to the memory of the late Harry Benjamin, a multi-faceted award-winning artist, a recipient of The Governor’s Award for Excellence in the Arts in 2008, the first curator of the Silver City Museum, and one of the original organizers of the first Neo-Mimbreño art shows held at the Silver City Museum.

The exhibition juror is Dr. Stephanie Whittlesey, a noted Southwest Archaeologist specializing in prehistoric Native American ceramics, Mesoamerica-American Southwest connections, social organization, cultural landscape studies, and the Mogollon and Hohokam cultures of Arizona's mountains and deserts. She has authored, co-authored, edited, and published numerous manuscripts, papers, and volumes, including a number of books on archaeology and history of archaeology for general audiences, such as The Archaeology of Arizona, Grasshopper Pueblo: A Story of Archaeology and Ancient Life, and Prehistory, Personality, and Place: Emil W. Haury and the Mogollon Controversy.

Whittlesey refers to herself as an independent scholar who is transitioning to writing fiction, and an artist. In her artwork she works with textiles, acrylics, and mixed media. Whittlesey, as the juror, and Diana Ingalls Leyba and Beth Menczer, as the exhibition curators, will have work they created specifically for the Neo-Mimbreño 2013 Vessels Exhibition as the juror’s and curator’s pieces on display at Western New Mexico University Museum.

The Progressive Exhibition Opening will be held on Saturday, August 3 at both museums. It begins at WNMU Museum at 3:00 p.m. with Award Presentations at 4:15 p.m. followed by the opening of the exhibition at the Silver City Museum at 4:30 p.m. “The Progressive Opening enables visitors to engage in the same exhibit spanning two museums—something brand new for Silver City and for the two museums,” said Bettison. “During the run of the Neo-Mimbreño 2013 Vessels Exhibit, we hope that having an exhibition that joins our two museums will encourage visitors to explore both museums.”

The Silver City Museum is open Tuesday through Friday from 9:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. and Saturday and Sunday from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. It is closed Mondays.  The Silver City Museum is located at 312 W. Broadway St. in downtown Silver City. It is an AAM accredited museum.  Admission is by donation and it is handicapped accessible. For more information about the Silver City Museum, upcoming exhibitions, and Silver City Museum sponsored Clay Festival events, please visit www.silvercitymuseum.org.

Western New Mexico University Museum is open Monday through Friday from 9:00 a.m. to 4:40 p.m. and Saturday and Sunday from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. It is closed university holidays. Admission is free and it is handicapped accessible.  The University Museum is located at the top of 10th St within the university campus. For more information about the University Museum, upcoming exhibitions, and WNMU Museum sponsored Clay Festival events, please visit www.wnmumuseum.org.

Pictured is Susan Berry’s Birth of Goddess, the 3rd place winner of the 2012 Neo-Mimbreño exhibition.


Western New Mexico University has served the people of the state of New Mexico and its surrounding areas as a comprehensive, regional, rural, public coeducational university since 1893 and serves a student body diverse in age, culture, language and ethnic background. 

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