In Focus: Cesar Cornejo’s "Puno Museum of Contemporary Art"

This week in Miami, Cesar Cornejo (2009 Emerging Fields) premieres his Creative Capital-supported project, Puno Museum of Contemporary Art, with a solo installation in the Art Positions showcase at Art Basel Miami Beach. He sent us some photos of the work in progress at his studio in Tampa, FL.

Cornejo and assistants paint on corrugated sheet metal in the artist’s studio

Cornejo’s work addresses socio-political issues in his native Peru. His installation in Miami will consist of an architectural form that references contemporary art museums (specifically the Guggenheim Bilbao), but is constructed out of eucalyptus logs and corrugated sheet metal—common building materials in poor areas of Latin America. The installation comments on how poor sectors of society are marginalized by the institution of museums, while also housing an exhibition of Cornejo’s photographs documenting the development of the Puno Museum of Contemporary Art, which is an ongoing project based in the town of Puno, Peru.

Through the Puno MoCA project, Cornejo redefines the museum as an institution based in the community. The artist is working with families in Puno to identify unfinished spaces inside their houses that need construction work and offers to do this work for free in exchange for the family exhibiting contemporary art in the repaired space for a period of time. After engaging a number of spaces in different homes, the Puno community will have a museum of contemporary art spread over the city and the museum becomes a catalyst for social change.

We’ll post pictures of the finished installation from Miami later in the week!


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