Art Museum of the Americas

Guided Tours of THE SKIN OF DISCOMFORT w/Paola Podestá Tuesdays, Thursdays & Saturdays June 4-July 16

RSVP at the link:
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/guided-tours-of-the-skin-of-discomfort-with-artist-paola-podesta-tickets-1990807759600

This exhibition of textile patchworks by Paola Podestá of Valparaíso, Chile, uses its primary medium for reasons both aesthetic and metaphorical. She addresses issues related to the rights of women, fracking, the depletion of natural resources, immigration, and mental health, using patchwork to reinforce the idea that—much like the fabric scraps in a quilt—our challenges are interconnected and benefit from collective approaches to building a more inclusive and sustainable future for all. She conveys a communal alignment with core objectives of the OAS: human rights, sustainability, and social development.

Guided Tours of THE SKIN OF DISCOMFORT with artist Paola Podestá Guided Tours of THE SKIN OF DISCOMFORT with artist Paola Podestá

Guided Tours of THE SKIN OF DISCOMFORT w/Paola Podestá Tuesdays, Thursdays & Saturdays June 4-July 16

RSVP at the link in bio

This exhibition of textile patchworks by Paola Podestá of Valparaíso, Chile, uses its primary medium for reasons both aesthetic and metaphorical. She addresses issues related to the rights of women, fracking, the depletion of natural resources, immigration, and mental health, using patchwork to reinforce the idea that—much like the fabric scraps in a quilt—our challenges are interconnected and benefit from collective approaches to building a more inclusive and sustainable future for all. She conveys a communal alignment with core objectives of the OAS: human rights, sustainability, and social development.

Paola Podestá
The Skin of Discomfort
Now on view

This exhibition includes intimate glimpses into Podestá's working process. Come and see for yourself.

Paola Podestá
The Skin of Discomfort
Now on view

Works such as Womevolution highlight stories of women—often ignored or silenced—as key contributions to disseminating the OAS’s work in raising awareness regarding the importance of gender equality. The need for sustainable development is highlighted through works such as Neotropical, in common spirit with OAS programs and policies, recognizing that the depletion of natural resources—without proper management—endangers not only the environment but also the security and well-being of vulnerable populations. It is with pride that the OAS AMA presents The Skin of Discomfort as an outstanding body of work interwoven with shared hemispheric values.

David Boxer (Jamaica, b.1946, d. 2017)
Aurora, 1977-1978
Mixed media on canvas, 40 x 50"
Collection OAS Art Museum of the Americas

On this day in 1979, the exhibition David Boxer of Jamaica (May 31-June 27, 1979) opened at the OAS Museum of Modern Art of Latin America, now known as the AMA.

Born in St. Andrew, Jamaica, Boxer earned degrees in art history in the United States, at Cornell University in New York and Johns Hopkins University in Maryland. His doctoral dissertation at Johns Hopkins examined the early work of the British modernist painter Francis Bacon. In his own art, Boxer was deeply influenced by Bacon’s psychologically intense, semi-abstract figurative imagery. Boxer was a well-known art historian and long-serving director and chief curator of the National Gallery of Jamaica in Kingston.

It was David Boxer’s curatorial and scholarly mission to ensure that Jamaica had its own documented and art history, so that Jamaican art could assert its rightful place within the broader context of world art. His vision of Jamaican art also guided the development of the National Gallery’s permanent collection, which has grown from some 230 works of art in 1974 to more than 2,000 works today.

Recommended by the Georgetowner:

Sunday, May 31, 11am-1pm
Art Museum of the Americas
201 18th St NW DC

Join teaching artists Blas Goncalves-Borrega and Davide Prete for 3D printing and cartooning for another fun workshop, organized by Carolina Mayorga. No RSVP required. These free workshops are generously funded by DC Commission on the Arts and Humanities and sponsored by Capitol Hill Arts Workshop and The Friends of the Art Museum of the Americas.

Celebrating 50 Years | AMA | Art Museum of the Americas

"Artists Blas Goncalves-Borrega and David Prete are giving a 3-D printing and cartooning workshop on Sunday at 11 a.m. at the Art Museum of the Americas. Prete is a sculptor and art professor at the University of the District of Columbia and Goncalves-Borrega is a professional cartoonist and comic artist."

https://georgetowner.com/articles/2026/05/27/georgetown-heats-up-with-summer-concerts-arts-community-events/

Make a visit to AMA part of your weekend.

Paola Podestá
The Skin of Discomfort

The Invisible Prison: Imprisoned Artists of the Americas

Now on view

Sunday, May 31, 11am-1pm
Art Museum of the Americas
201 18th St NW DC

Join teaching artists Blas Goncalves-Borrega and Davide Prete for 3D printing and cartooning for another fun workshop, organized by Carolina Mayorga. No RSVP required.

These free workshops are generously funded by DC Commission on the Arts and Humanities and sponsored by Capitol Hill Arts Workshop and The Friends of the Art Museum of the Americas.

Celebrating 50 Years | AMA | Art Museum of the Americas

Kazuo Wakabayashi (Japan-Brazil, b.1931, d. 2021)
Blue and Black, 1969
Oil on canvas, 85 x 58”
OAS AMA | Art Museum of the Americas Collection

On this day in 1969, the exhibition Kasuo Wakabayashi of Brazil: Paintings opened at the OAS Main Building Gallery, precursor to the present-day AMA. The exhibition ran from May 27-June 17 of that year.

Born in Kobe, Japan in 1931, Wakabayashi was already a trained artist when he emigrated to São Paulo in 1961. He became an influential member of the Japanese-Brazilian artistic community, joining the Seibi-Kai (Grupo de Artistas Plasticos de São Pablo), of which Tomie Ohtake and Manabu Mabe were also a part. In an interview with the artist, he explained how essential the support that Mabe gave him to become part of the Japanese artistic community in Brazil was for his career as a recently emigrated artist. Wakabayashi gained popularity in Brazil, Japan, and the United States. In 1965, he participated in a group exhibition of Japanese-Brazilian artists at the Organization of American States, where he also held his first U.S. solo show in 1969.

In the 1940s and 1950s, while still in Japan, Wakabayashi experimented with figure, landscape, and the female body. His mature work can be divided into two periods. The first period—beginning upon his arrival to Brazil and continued throughout the 60s and 70s—is geometric and informalistic, marked by thick, texturized surfaces and abstract monochromatic forms. On this first period, he explains that he wanted to detach himself artistically from the Japanese tradition, looking for what he calls the “real Brazilian heart,” although the way in which he structured his works is reminiscent of Japanese calligraphy. In his second and latest period, beginning in the 1980s, he returned to Japanese tradition, translating characteristics of traditional Japanese woodcuts, specifically Ukiyo-e prints—decorative effects, bright colors, and simple curved outlines—into three-dimensional, large-scale paintings and prints.