National Museum of African American History and Culture Hosts Museums Association of the Caribbean’s 28th Annual Conference in Miami

Event Brings Together Over 100 Professionals From Across the Museum Field To Explore Cultural Institutions
October 23, 2017
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The Smithsonian’s National Museum of African American History and Culture will host the 28th annual Museums Association of the Caribbean (MAC) conference in Miami Tuesday, Oct. 24, through Thursday, Oct. 26, in partnership with MAC and the Association of African American Museums. The conference brings together over 100 professionals from African American and Caribbean museums, archives, libraries, cultural centers and academia. This year’s theme, “Breaking Boundaries: Transcending Geographies, Disciplines and Identities,” explores connections between museums and cultural institutions and their audiences across vast geographic spaces.

MAC events and plenary sessions will take place at several cultural institutions throughout greater Miami, including the Vizcaya Museums and Gardens, Broward County African American Research Library and Cultural Center, Black Archives and Historic Lyric Theater of South Florida, and the Miami Museum of Contemporary Art of the African Diaspora. The full conference schedule is available at http://blackmuseums.org/MAC-Conference-Overview.

MAC sessions and panels will cover issues facing museums in the Caribbean and across the globe, including conservation and disaster preparedness, funding, the museum role in social cohesion and cultural tourism, programming and establishing universal standards for digitizing collections.

Conference highlights include a kick-off tour of Miami’s historic Caribbean and African American neighborhoods: Coconut Grove, Little Havana and Little Haiti Monday, Oct. 23; complimentary tours of the Pérez Art Museum of Miami; a Welcome Plenary featuring MAC founder and director of the Barbados Museum and Historical Society, Alissandra Cummins, Tuesday, Oct. 24;  and a closing ceremony featuring National Museum of African American History and Culture Associate Director Deborah L. Mack and curator Joanne Hyppolite, Thursday, Oct. 26. 

Media wishing to cover any part of the conference can register here.

About the National Museum of African American History and Culture

The National Museum of African American History and Culture opened Sept. 24, 2016, on the National Mall in Washington, D.C. Occupying a prominent location next to the Washington Monument, the nearly 400,000-square-foot museum is the nation’s largest and most comprehensive cultural destination devoted exclusively to exploring, documenting and showcasing the African American story and its impact on American and world history. For more information about the museum, visit nmaahc.si.edu, follow @NMAAHC on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and Snapchat—or call Smithsonian information at (202) 633-1000.

About Museums Association of the Caribbean (MAC)

Established in 1987, MAC works to strengthen links among Caribbean museums, their staff and associates so they may foster and promote an appreciation and understanding of their common heritage through education and the development of professional standards of practices. The association serves as a forum for the exchange of information and ideas through meetings, publications and museum exchanges. MAC’s main objectives are to develop common policies relative to the role of museums and duties of curatorial staff, to act as an advisory board for governments and institutions regarding museum development and to develop relationships with international and other regional museum-related organizations.

About Association of African American Museums

The Association of African American Museums (AAAM) was founded in 1978. AAAM is a non-profit membership organization dedicated to serving the interests and needs of black museums and cultural institutions nationally and internationally, as well as the professionals who protect, preserve and interpret African and African American art, history and culture. The association seeks to strengthen and advocate for the interests of institutions and individuals committed to the preservation of African-derived cultures. Today AAAM boasts over 400 member museums and cultural institutions, representing 40 states.

 

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SI-601-2017