Merging Cultures: Latin American and  Caribbean  Art & Life in Connecticut 

On Exhibit April 18 – August 10, 2008


This exhibit, and its accompanying series of public programs, explores how immigration affected the lives of Hispanic newcomers to the greater Waterbury region and how Connecticut Latinos view their assimilation into the community. The exhibition features the work of fourteen artists and includes photographs, mixed media, and painting. Amongst the artists whose work is displayed are: Pablo Delano, a photographer who teaches at Trinity College and uses his art to document Latino life in Harford; Lisie Orjuela, an Argentinean raised in Uruguay, whose paintings examine her interpersonal relationships and transformations since coming to the United States at age 13; and Marlo Marrero, a photographer from Farmington, who explores the cultural identity of Dominicans in the United States and in their native country. Click here for more information and related programs.

The Mattatuck Museum was established as the Mattatuck Historical Society in 1877 to preserve the history of that part of Connecticut “anciently known as Mattatuck” – roughly the ten town region surrounding present-day Waterbury. In the 1960s the Historical Society expanded its mission to “collect and exhibit the works of Connecticut artists.” The American Association of Museum accredited the museum in 1976, one of the first in the state to meet that standard.

The Mattatuck Museum Arts & History Center is known for engaging its community in an understanding of the past and providing vision and leadership for the future through its exhibits and collections of national significance that interpret the history of the region and the art of Connecticut.

Mission: The Mattatuck Museum Arts & History Center provides our community with professional scholarship, preservation, and historical programming about our heritage, stimulates the interest in the fine and decorative arts of Connecticut by showcasing their highest quality and expression, and encourages an appreciation of the humanities and the fine arts through its collections, exhibits and programs.