Connecting Florida: Felines, Feathers, and Frogs—Kislak Collection Highlights

Connecting Florida: Felines, Feathers, and Frogs—Kislak Collection Highlights

Join Kislak curator Dr. Carol Damian to learn about the varied and numerous objects from the ancient Americas in the Kislak collection that represent birds, felines, and amphibians, their symbolic meanings, and their relevance to the rituals of the people who created them. Objects from Peru and Mesoamerica, including beautiful Mayan polychrome ceramics and figures, share a powerful belief in the role of these creatures in influencing lives and communicating to the spirit world. The presentation makes reference to new objects from more than a hundred recently accessioned items in the Kislak Center at Miami Dade College.

Dr. Carol Damian is an art historian, former Professor of Art History in the School of Art and Art History at Florida International University, and former Director and Chief Curator of the Patricia and Phillip Frost Art Museum at FIU. She has contributed to numerous publications and lectures frequently on Latin American and Caribbean art, and the local art scene. She is currently Curator of the Kislak Center, part of the Miami Dade College Special Collections, housed at the Freedom Tower; and of the Chapel of La Merced Colonial Collection at Corpus Christi in Miami.

MDC Special Collections’ programs are made possible with the support of the Miami-Dade County Department of Cultural Affairs and the Cultural Affairs Council, the Miami-Dade County Mayor and Board of County Commissioners. They are sponsored in part by the State of Florida, Department of State, Division of Arts and Culture, the Florida Council on Arts and Culture, and the National Endowment for the Arts.