A Collection Without Borders

José Agustín Arrieta, El Costeño, after 1843, Hispanic Museum & Library, New York.

A Collection without Borders brings together a selection of works from the Hispanic Society that celebrates the art and culture of Spain, Portugal, Latin America, Goa and the Philippines. Many of these works were acquired by the Hispanic Society’s founder, Archer Milton Huntington (1870–1955) in the early twentieth century, while others were acquired through purchase or donation after his death in 1955.

The exhibition takes place in the magnificent Main Court, designed by architect Charles Pratt Huntington (1871–1919) under the direction of the museum’s founder, who sought to recreate a sixteenth-century Spanish Renaissance patio in terracotta. Paintings from the sixteenth through the twentieth centuries hang in the open arches and under the arcade, representing religious figures, portraits of individuals of various backgrounds, in addition to a few abstract works. Four cases display important objects from the Iberian Peninsula, Mexico, South America, and Asia. A fifth case features a sculpture by seventeenth-century Spanish artist, Luisa Roldán (1652–1706). While many of these works are well-known, others are exhibited here for the first time in decades, together representing only a small fraction of the museum’s vast collection.

Over a century after its founding, the Hispanic Society continues to build upon Huntington’s vision through the acquisition of new art and the development of new exhibitions and educational programs that are both engaging and thought-provoking. The diverse holdings of the Hispanic Society’s permanent collection reflect the enterprising achievements of its founder, who established this institution as an oasis of Hispanic culture in the United States. He went to great lengths to ensure that the collection would be used not only for scholarly research, but also remain accessible to the general public. A tribute to Huntington’s legacy, this exhibition represents a journey that unites both past and present.