About de museum
MIA, the International Art Museum originated by the initiative of the plastic artist Oscar Poliotto from Venado Tuerto. His heart’s desire was to create an art museum for his town. This project began to materialize when, in 2016 he donated 200 works of art to lay the foundation for the collection. Poliotto not only was the catalyst, but also the responsible person of the direction of the museum from the beginning, guiding its development until its formal structure was established.
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AN INTERNATIONAL APPROACH:
THE CONTEST THAT SET A PRECEDENT.
To give the museum a truly international dimension Poliotto launched an ambitious contest of digital art between 2012 and 2016, together with his daughter Castalia Zoe. This initiative achieved a large turn out, attracting more than 3000 artists all over the world through internet. The result was the selection of 200 works of art from 51 countries that went on to form the first exhibition gallery: ”The International Artists’ Gallery”. This not only gave rise to the museum’s name, but it also established its global character from the beginning.
INNOVATION: ANAGLYPH THREE-DIMENSIONALITY
Oscar Poliotto not only was the founder of the museum but the creator of a new pictorial movement as well, the Anaglyph Three-Dimensionality. His works of art, painted with this technique, must be viewed with 3D lenses (red and blue lens) to appreciate the depth effect. This technique was recognized as being of ”cultural interest” by the Secretary of Innovation and Culture of the Province of Santa Fe. An entire gallery in the museum created between 2015 and 2017, was dedicated to these works. And thus the second gallery was established: “The Anaglyph Three-Dimensionality gallery”.
TO BROADEN THE HORIZON: THE CREATION OF THE VIDEO LIBRARY
In 2016 Poliotto extended invitations to audiovisual artists of all nationalities, to found the video library of the MIA Museum of Venado tuerto. He selected 25 artists from 14 countries in the field of visual arts and appointed the film maker Atilio Perin as director of the video library. Later Perin made his own films, a selection of films related to the 50 years of Cuban cinema and another selection of films belonging to the FEISAL (Federacion de Escuelas de Imagen y Sonido de America Latina y el Caribe), available to him.
DREAMS OF IDENTITY: A NEW GALLERY
With the aim of giving visibility and value to the contemporary art produced in town, that same year Poliotto invited all its artists in the fields of painting, engraving, sculpting, photography and audiovisual arts to participate in the MIA project to found ” The Venado Tuerto Visual Artists’ Gallery”. Thirty five artists embraced the initiative to give birth to this new gallery. Today they are the ones who form the collective of representative artists of the MIA, promoting, fostering and energizing the avant-garde of the town’s visual arts.
MEETING NOTICE: WEAVING THE INSTITUTIONAL FUTURE
Oscar Poliotto summoned all the members of the Venado Tuerto Visual Artist’s Gallery for a founding meeting. The objective was twofold: to form a civil association to take over the management of the museum and to begin the process of obtaining legal status. During the meeting the first board of directors was elected and the application for legal status began.
FIRST BOARD OF DIRECTORS
PRESIDENT: Angélica Rochon
SECRETARY: Mauro Calderone.
TREASURER: María Laura Aid.
FULL MEMBERS: Luis Alejandro Esnoz, Antonela Poliotto and Mauro Casagrande.
ALTERNATE MEMBERS: Nadia Menegossi and Jeremías Poliotto.
AUDIT COMMITTEE: Sandra Faelis; alternate member: Laura Lorenzini.
The Board of Directors appointed Oscar Poliotto Director of the museum and Beatriz Nannini Head of the galleries at the International Art Museum of Venado Tuerto.
A MOBILE MANAGEMENT: THE HEART IN THE TASK
Despite obtaining the legal status as a civil association, in March 2017, MIA did not have physical location for many years. This prompted the Board of Directors to adopt a traveling management model, bringing art to various cultural and social spaces of the town. Some of the outstanding initiatives of that period were:
* OPEN-AIR MIA: This event took place in the main square of Venado Tuerto and brought together artists from various disciplines such as plastic arts, music, writing, installation, performance, dancing and circus. At the closure of the event, works from the museum collection were projected onto the monument of General San Martin. More than a thousand people attended the event.
* MIA DEMUESTRA: the exhibition was held at the Convention Hall of the Jockey Club of Venado Tuerto in 2018 and marked the public presentation of MIA ( International Art Museum ) in town. A large part of its art collection works was exhibited on that day. Works from 60 local artists, 7 national artists and 41 international artists were presented. The exhibition was very successful and the large number of people that attended the event filled the hall during five days, showing their support for the new cultural project.
* MIA FOR CHILDREN: This initiative offered free and open source workshops of art for children. The project was very well received, bringing together 208 students of elementary schools and it culminated in the creation of “The Small Artists Gallery” of the museum. The creation of this gallery is the tangible and lasting result of the project. It is a place dedicated to children so that they can explore and express their creativity through different artistic disciplines, ensuring that the impact of the project extends over time.
THE INSTITUTIONAL PROJECT DISSOLVES: DARKNESS
The museum´s plans for institutional consolidation were thwarted in 2020 with the outbreak of Covid 19 pandemic in Argentina. The prohibition of in-person meetings during the period of lockdown was a fatal blow. The impossibility of convening an in-person assembly, completely paralyzed management, leaving MIA in a state of institutional uncertainty. The inability to operate and make decisions within a framework of social isolation, led to the dissolution of the promising projects and their management.
DESIRE IS REBORN: A HEARTBEAT EMERGES
In 2023, after the Covid 19 pandemic and three years of inactivity at the museum, Oscar Poliotto promoted the resurgence of the MIA through an innovative Augmented Reality exhibition of his works of art. The Secretary of Territoriality and Culture of the Municipal Government supported his idea and made the Cayetano Silva Museum available to him. The initiative achieved its objectives. The name of the art museum became part of the town’s cultural memory and strengthened the emotional bonds of the artists that were part of it.
MIA DEMUESTRA II: THE RETURN TO THE BODY
The call was organized by a provisional board of directors, formed by Oscar Poliotto, his wife Sandra Faelis and their children Antonela and Jeremias. The exhibition included the participation of 60 artists of the Venado Tuerto Visual Artists’ Gallery in different disciplines such as painting, mosaic art, drawing, engraving, Buenos Aires style fileteado (fileteado porteño), photography, sculpting, digital art, augmented reality and virtual reality. In addition to the exhibition, workshops of engraving, painting, mosaic art, Buenos Aires style fileteado and sculpting were offered, as well as different classes of art were delivered by the artists of MIA. This exhibition took place at Casa Museo Cayetano Silva in Venado Tuerto, during the month of May 2024 as part of the celebrations for the International Museum’s Day.
LASTING REALITY: THE ART OF FINDING TREASURES
The provisional Board of Directors summoned all the members of the MIA DEMUESTRA II for a meeting, with the objective of forming a new board of directors for the civil association of the MIA Museum Venado Tuerto, to assume its leadership during the period 2024/2025. It was constituted as follows:
PRESIDENT: Jeremías Poliotto.
SECRETARY: Oscar Poliotto.
TREASURER: Sandra Faelis.
FULL MEMBERS: Antonela Poliotto, Mara Nauwelaerts and Arturo Pagella.
ALTERNATE MEMBERS: Claudia Noemí Fernandez and Beatriz Nannini.
AUDIT COMMITEE: Sergio Darío Straffela.
ALTERNATE AUDIT COMMITEE: Fabrina Miretto.
The Board of Directors appoints Oscar Poliotto as Director of the MIA Museum and Angélica Rochon, Carlos Conti, Claudio Priotti, Gabriel Carlini, María del Carmen Perillo, Mónica Coda and Oscar Villarreal as area advisors , for the same period.
MIA´s HOME: A PLACE IN THE WORLD
A crucial moment in MIA came in 2024 when ROTARY CLUB CINQUENTENARIO of Venado Tuerto, offered a fully restored old building on loan. This agreement marked the end of the itinerant phase, and the beginning of a new era, with its physical space. The opening night, a historical landmark in the culture of Venado Tuerto, was celebrated on 9th November, 2024. A hundred and forty years after the founding of Venado Tuerto, its first art museum opens its doors.
MIA TODAY: GROWING WITH JOY
With its physical space established, MIA has been able to consolidate its exhibition program for the period 2024/2025, by inaugurating various shows with local, national and international artists works. It has also participated in outstanding events such as Expo Rural Venado Tuerto 2025. Today the International Art Museum has established itself as a key space for the dissemination of art in Venado Tuerto and its region. During its first year it has presented 37 local artists, 4 national artists and 38 international artists which means a total of 612 exhibited works, attracting more than 4300 visitors. In addition, guided art tours and art workshops for children were given to about 200 students of elementary schools.
It has created the MIA ART GALLERY, an exclusive place where all the members of the collective of MIA artists can exhibit and sell their works.
It has also created the MIA LIBRARY, to give the collective of artists, members and MIA´s friends, access to specialized art collections.
Creates the event “MIA Creative Seeds”. It is an artistic open call aimed at all third-grade students from public and private primary schools in Venado Tuerto. The goal is to encourage children’s creative and artistic expression through a large collective exhibition of children’s art. A total of 651 children participated. As an incentive to continue fostering artistic learning in childhood, each participant was invited to take part in the MIA’s visual arts and sculpture workshops, free of charge. This initiative marks the beginning of a lasting cultural relationship between the art museum and the city’s primary schools.
THE PATH IS MADE BY WALKING: ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
The Secretary of Cultural Patrimony of the Ministry of Culture of the Nation through the Argentine Register of Museums (RMA), added MIA to the official list of art museums in Argentina. This highlights its contribution to culture and artistic history of the country.
The Ministry of Culture of the Invincible Province of Santa Fe, declares: “We are proud that in every town of the province there are groups of people who dedicate their time, ideas, commitment and work to culture and to safeguard Santa Fe´s heritage. Thanks to the entire MIA team for their dedication, for being proactive, for opening a space for art and for envisioning a place where culture is democratized”.
The Senate Chamber of the Province of Santa Fe, declares the cultural activities carried out by MIA of Venado Tuerto to be of interest in recognition of its valuable contribution to strengthening the artistic and cultural network of the region.
The Deliberative Council of the Government of Venado Tuerto declares the cultural activities carried out by MIA, to be of interest and highlights the artistic and cultural enrichment of the entire community.
Contacto
Unite a MIA!
Av. Casey 340
info@miamuseodeartevt.org
Tel. 03462 46-2344
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Horario
Martes, jueves y domingos:
18:00 h – 20:30 h
Sábados: 10:00 h a 12:30 h
Cerrado por vacaciones hasta el 15 de febrero.