Pérez Art Museum Miami Launches Caribbean Cultural Institute

The Pérez Art Museum Miami (PAMM) has established the Caribbean Cultural Institute, a curatorial and research platform dedicated to supporting artists from the Caribbean diaspora through scholarships, exhibitions, publications, and collection building. The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation has donated $1 million to support the new institute. Designed by Herzog & de Meuron and opened in 2013, PAMM was funded by Jorge Pérez, who also donated part of his collections and remains a key supporter. The museum has focused on promoting Latin American contemporary art. In January 2019, PAMM launched the $25,000 Jorge M. Pérez Award for a visual arts student from the National YoungArts Foundation of Miami, and the $50,000 Jorge and Darlene Pérez Award for an artist selected by the museum. The Caribbean Cultural Institute aims to research and showcase cultural production from the Caribbean and its diaspora, including Dutch, English, French, and Spanish Caribbean regions. PAMM director Franklin Sirmans stated, 'Miami exists as the northern border of the Caribbean and includes elements of the Caribbean in its peoples and culture, making it a nerve center for the study of the region. It is an integral part of our mission to continue the cultural dialogue within that space and amplify it toward the international community. We thank the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation for its generous support.'