June 23, 2025
MOIFA | July 2025
International Collaboration and Artist Engagement
Image: Vincent Sithole. Basket (detail), 2005. Telephone wire and steel wire; hard-wire technique. Siyanda, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. David Arment Southern African Collection, Museum of International Folk Art, FA.2024.12.232.
MOIFA is partnering with the International Folk Art Market on July 13 to offer a hands-on wire-sculpture activity inspired by iNgqikithi yokuPhica / Weaving Meanings: Telephone Wire Art. The museum is also working with Gone Fishing Productions on a short documentary film featuring South African artists and their creative and cultural contributions to the exhibition.
On July 16, MOIFA will host a breakfast reception from 10 a.m. to noon for donors and supporters to meet co-curators Muzi Gigaba and Dr. Elizabeth Perrill, filmmaker Zamo Mkhize, and visiting artists and Indigenous knowledge experts from South Africa. From 1–3 p.m., artists Ntombifuthi Magwaza Sibiya, Bongeleni Mkhize, and Hlengiwe Dube will offer live weaving demonstrations in the gallery.
Introducing MOIFA’s Summer Research Fellowship
Image: Addison Nace, 6662_thumb.jpg
This July also marks the launch of MOIFA’s new Summer Research Fellowship program, a two-year pilot supported by the International Folk Art Foundation and a gift from Susan and Steven Goldstein. The fellowship provides an honorarium, travel and housing support, and access to MOIFA’s collections, library, and archives.
Addison Nace, a Ph.D. candidate in Design Studies at the University of Wisconsin–Madison and a Santa Fe native, is the 2025 Fellow. Her work explores textile history, sustainable design, and the protection of Indigenous knowledge systems. During her six-week fellowship, she is studying Mayan textile traditions in Zinacantán, Mexico, and Santiago
Atitlán, Guatemala, as models for economic development and cultural preservation.
A public talk by Nace will take place on July 27 from 2 to 4 p.m. at MOIFA.
Planning for Expansion
Thanks to a $5.1 million capital outlay allocation from Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham, the State of New Mexico is finalizing the purchase of 705 Camino Lejo in early July. The 9,700-square-foot property, located directly across from the museum, presents a rare opportunity to expand MOIFA’s footprint and programming capabilities.
While till in the conceptual phase, plans for the site include a flexible Education and Engagement Center for youth and adult learning, special events, and artist residencies. The on-site guest house may also be used by MOIFA and DCA divisions for short-term housing of collaborators such as visiting curators, scholars, and artists.
MOIFA staff are working closely with DCA Facilities Management, MNMF, and IFAF leadership to evaluate potential uses. The next step is to hire an architecture and design firm to develop a site activation plan and a long-term master plan—laying the foundation for a possible capital campaign in conjunction with MOIFA’s 75th anniversary in 2028.
Audience Surveying and Community
Input This summer, MOIFA is conducting audience research to better understand and serve its diverse communities. With support from intern Md
Shahinuzzaman, a Ph.D. student at the University of New Mexico, the museum is leading focus groups with teens, young adults, families, and professionals to learn more about how MOIFA can be a relevant resource in their lives.
In partnership with fellow Museum Hill institutions—including MIAC, the Museum Hill Café, Wheelwright Museum, Botanical Garden, and others—MOIFA is also surveying campus visitors to explore how people spend their time on the Hill and how to encourage deeper engagement.
Support MOIFA
Your generosity makes these programs and partnerships possible. To learn more about giving opportunities, please contact Laura Sullivan at laura@museumfoundation.org or 505.216.0829.
Thank you for helping MOIFA connect people through the power of folk art.
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