The Latino Experience in Museums

Contemporanea released preliminary data of its study "The Latino Experience in Museums" in May 2010. Salvador Acevedo, President and Principal, was invited to participate in the "Forecasting the Future of California Museums", a work-session with the participation of leaders of the museum world in California during the national conference of the American Association of Museums in Los Ángeles.

To see a summary of this preliminary study, click here.

Our favorite video of 2008.


Where the Hell is Matt? (2008) from Matthew Harding on Vimeo.

DIA DE LOS MUERTOS FAMILY CONCERT AT THE SF SYMPHONY

The San Francisco Symphony had its first Dia de los Muertos Family Concert, which is a central piece of the community engagement strategy that Contemporanea has been working with them for the last year. The full-house concert was incredibly well received by the community and some people called it "the concert of the season for the Latino community."

SFMOMA BOASTS RECORD NUMBERS FOR FRIDA KAHLO

The San Francisco Museum of Modern Art (SFMOMA) is proud to announce its record-breaking success with the three-month Frida Kahlo exhibition, which closed on September 28, 2008. Attendance during the show was the museum’s highest ever, totaling 412,244—an average of 4,530 visitors per day. The record was previously held by the 2003 Marc Chagall exhibition, which brought a total of 363,641 to SFMOMA.

The popularity of SFMOMA’s presentation of the exhibition also exceeded that of its two previous stops in the United States combined: 115,405 visitors attended Frida Kahlo at the Walker Art Center in Minneapolis (October 27, 2007 through January 20, 2008), and 194,322 people viewed the exhibition at the Philadelphia Museum of Art (February 20 through May 18, 2008).

SFMOMA broke another significant record as a result of the exhibition: 22 percent of visitors to Frida Kahlo were from the Latino community. As it has long been an objective of the museum to create and bolster long-term relationships with Latino visitors, SFMOMA considers this new record to be a highly significant achievement.

SFMOMA wishes to acknowledge Contemporánea for their role in our outreach efforts to the Latino community.

IMAGE: Frida Kahlo, Self-Portrait with Thorn Necklace and Hummingbird (Autorretrato con collar de espinas y colibrí), 1940; oil on canvas; 24-5/8 x 18-7/8 inches; Nikolas Muray Collection, Harry Ransom Humanities Research Center, The University of Texas at Austin; © 2007 Banco de México, Trustee of the Diego Rivera & Frida Kahlo Museums Trust. Av. Cinco de Mayo No. 2, Col. Centro, Del. Cuauhtémoc 06059, México, D.F.

THE SAN FRANCISCO SYMPHONY PERFORMS ITS FIRST EVER DÍA DE LOS MUERTOS FAMILY CONCERT ON SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 2 AT 2:00 P.M. IN DAVIES SYMPHONY HALL

The Day of the Dead Family Concert Features Conductor Enrique Arturo Diemecke, Violinist Danielle Belen Nesmith and Bandoneon Player Peter Soave, and Includes Lobby Festivities
On Sunday, November 2 at 2:00 p.m., the San Francisco Symphony (SFS) celebrates Mexican music and culture in its inaugural Día de los Muertos (Day of the Dead) Family Concert, conducted by Enrique Arturo Diemecke with violinist Danielle Belen Nesmith and Peter Soave on bandoneón. This matinee program designed for the entire family features works by Moncayo, Revueltas, Piazzolla, Buxtehude, Ravel, Gamboa and Copland, and will include a number of pre-concert festivities in the lobby of Davies Symphony Hall, presented in partnership with the Mission Cultural Center for Latino Arts. For this inaugural Día de los Muertos Family Concert, the SFS will offer a 50% discount on tickets for children under the age of 17. The presenting sponsor of the Día de los Muertos Family Concert is Bank of America.


Born in Mexico, conductor Enrique Arturo Diemecke is in his third season as Music Director of the Buenos Aires Philharmonic of the famed Teatro Colón, his eighth season as Music Director of the Long Beach Symphony and his nineteenth season as Music Director of the Flint Symphony Orchestra. Following 20 years at the helm of the Orquesta Sinfónica Nacional de México, Maestro Diemecke returned to opera in 2007-08, leading a new production of Massenet’s Werther at the Teatro Colón in Buenos Aires. His performances of Massenet’s Le Jongleur de Notre Dame with tenor Roberto Alagna were recorded by Deutsche Grammophon. Recent guest appearances include performances with the Pacific Symphony, the Residentie Orkest in The Hague, and The Simón Bolívar Youth Orchestra in Caracas.

Violinist Danielle Belen Nesmith, is the 2008 Senior Division winner of the Sphinx Competition presented by Chase. Ms. Nesmith is a California native, a recent graduate of the USC Thornton School of Music, where she completed her Bachelor of Music Degree as a student of Robert Lipsett. She continues her studies with Mr. Lipsett at the Colburn Conservatory of Music. As the 1st Place Senior Division Winner of the 2008 Sphinx Competition Danielle represents the organization in solo performances with major orchestras this year including the Pittsburgh Symphony, Boston Pops, and Florida Orchestra. Ms. Nesmith is currently Assistant Concertmaster of New West Symphony and Concertmaster of the Colburn Conservatory Orchestra.



TICKETS: $15-$57. Children under age 17 half price. Available through the SFS Box Office at (415) 864-6000, or at sfsymphony.org.

2008 National Association for Latino Community Asset Builders National Conference

San Francisco, CA. –National Association for Latino Community Asset Builders (NALCAB) had a Town Hall Meeting on Friday, September 5, 2008.
NALCAB was hosting this public town hall event to shine an analytical light on predatory lending, check cashing and payday lending as well as to promote policy solutions that help to create healthy financial markets that truly serve the needs of middle and low-income people. The discussion was led by Hon. Linda Sánchez, US Congresswoman 39th District in California, San Francisco Treasurer, Hon. Jose Cisneros, and the Chair of NALCAB’s Board of Directors, Ms. Beatriz Stotzer.

NALCAB – the National Association for Latino Community Asset Builders – represents and serves a geographically and ethnically diverse group of Latino-led asset building organizations from across the United States. NALCAB’s mission is to build financial and real estate assets as well as human and technology resources in Latino families, communities and organizations. NALCAB’s members revitalize Latino communities by developing affordable housing, implementing neighborhood economic development strategies, and by providing consumer counseling as well as wealth-building products and services.
For more information visit: http://www.nalcab.org/

Napa Valley Symphony Performs with Mariachi Cobre
in celebration of Mexican Independence Day

September 13th and 14th, 2008
Lincoln Theater
Yountville, CA

Napa, California, August 25, 2008- The Napa Valley Symphony is proud to present two concerts featuring renowned mariachi ensemble Mariachi Cobre on Saturday, September 13th at 8:00 PM and Sunday, September 14th at 5:00 PM at the Lincoln Theater in Yountville, CA. Music Director Asher Raboy will conduct. The concerts will be presented in celebration of Mexican Independence Day. “This is an opportunity to celebrate with the whole family and also to give back to vitality of the Latino community in Napa,” comments Richard Aldag, Executive Director of the Napa Valley Symphony.

More information is available at http://www.napavalleysymphony.org/

California Academy of Sciences-Architecture

One of the world’s most innovative museum building programs—a record-setting, sustainable new home for the California Academy of Sciences—is opening to the public on September 27, 2008 in San Francisco’s Golden Gate Park. Expected to be the first museum to earn a LEED Platinum certification from the U.S. Green Building Council, the new Academy will be topped with a 2.5-acre living roof and will employ a wide range of energy-saving materials and technologies. Designed by Pritzker Prize winner Renzo Piano, the new building will stand as an embodiment of the Academy’s mission to explore, explain and protect the natural world. Construction of the new facility, which began in September of 2005, is now nearly complete, and the exhibit build-out process has begun. The Academy’s staff, animals, and research collections have also embarked on their “Great Migration” back to Golden Gate Park. The most monumental move ever undertaken by a museum, the migration will include 38,000 live animals and over 20 million research specimens. Over the next eight months, everything from a colony of African penguins and a 70+ year-old Australian lungfish to 700,000 delicately pinned butterflies and an 80+ foot-long blue whale skeleton will be carefully shuttled across San Francisco into the new building.
http://www.calacademy.org/ (415) 321-8000.

Techo Viviente

The new California Academy of Sciences building in Golden Gate Park will be topped with a living roof. A new link in an ecological corridor for wildlife, this roof will be planted with nine native California species that will not require artificial irrigation. The plants were grown at Rana Creek Nursery in Carmel Valley. Installation onto the roof took place from May to September, 2007.

Species selection-Plant species were tested to ensure that they would survive on the rolling hills of the roof without artificial irrigation or fertilization. They were also selected to provide habitat for native wildlife. Over 30 species were tested on the roof of the old Academy before demolition; nine finalists were selected for inclusion.
http://www.calacademy.org/ (415) 321-8000.

So, after a long time we're back here and with new ideas. We're completely recreating this blog and from now on it'll be an online magazine/news where we'll post events from our clients and bits and pieces of interest to us. Another major change is that Magela Arauz will be also posting here.

We hope you like our "El Huevo Rojo" magazine/news...

Limiting ourselves.
It's been a long time since the last time I posted on this blog. I know, as marketing professionals often times we don't do a good job of communicating ourselves. And when we do, there's always the pressure of coming up with something that is relevant, original, creative, and very, very well crafted. So, we usually reserve that time for our clients.
Not long ago on a seminar that I put together, I said "the stereotype works both ways" responding to the question of why Latino media outlets usually don't publish stories that are not related to the community itself. This was a seminar for PR professionals in arts & culture organizations. And I believe it is true.
As a Latino person living in the US (where else would I be "Latino"?), I'm interested not only in what is directly related to my own cultural background, but to many and varied interests. I like European films, love Vietnamese food, crave for the "on language" section of the Sunday NYT, listen to the Holly Cole trio, the same way that I enjoy mojitos, am fascinated by Dia de los Muertos, and root for the "Tri". It might sound like an oxymoron, but my interests are not only related to my cultural background, like a lot of times we assume in our society. Mexicans are only interested in Mexican food, Argentinians in asado, and Salvadorians in pupusas. I know that nobody relatively educated would accept thinking this, but in my experience it happens all the time. People constantly ask me if I do my grocery shopping in the Mission, and are surprised when I reply that all is done at Trader Joe's. So that's the stereotype, not much to say about it.
But my point today is that our media outlets seem to follow this way of thinking: Latinos are only interested in Latino issues. The result is that they only publish stories that are directly related, and the key word here is "only". Of course the response of many of them is that the general market outlets cover all those issues that pertain to "the general market" (and we are also part of it), but wouldn't it be important to have the "Latino perspective" on general market issues? Like the environment, and sustainable energy, or more importantly, contemporary art and/or science education? If I do enjoy reading a Latino newspaper because it is in my own language, and because it speaks to big part of who I am, why the editors of such newspaper are making decisions for me on what is important. Let me decide what is of interest to me.
So, the stereotype goes both ways. Mainstream media outlets reach out to Latinos only on Cinco de Mayo and the rest of the year we seem to be non-existent for them. But also, Latino media outlets think that the only thing we are interested in is Cinco de Mayo, and nothing else.

Stretching this comment a little, I'd ask you:

Is there a "Latino perspective" on the issues of our society?

The Populist at the Border
The New York Times magazine recently published the article "The Populist at the Border" by David Rieff, about Mexican presidential candidate Andrés Manuel López Obrador. Among other things the article said: "...none of the Americans I spoke to in Mexico seemed to believe that López Obrador will nationalize oil and gas resources, as Evo Morales has done and Hugo Chávez has threatened to do." Mexican president Lázaro Cárdenas nationalized oil and natural gas in 1938. Ouch!

If you think that I'm going to talk about the importance of making your homework beforehand, you are wrong. We all know that. It doesn't matter if you are the New York Times or a small grass roots organization, you must know as much as you can about your audience. But that's another story...

What I'm really interested in talking about is how we, as humans, tend to create categories and include everything that seems alike in the same box. It is natural, it is a way of saving time (if I have an animal in front of me that looks like a fierce cat, I'll put it in the "feline" category and start running as fast as I can so I can save my life), and hey! it's necessary, no need to stop myself and look for differences. We get as much information as we can and we make fast judgments so we can react and adapt ourselves to the situation. That's what we humans do.

If you read the news from Latin America, you know that Bolivian president Evo Morales recently nationalized the oil and natural gas resources in his country, and that Hugo Chávez has threatened to do the same in Venezuela. So, it would seems just right that this leftist Mexican presidential candidate, that seems to have a similar agenda to Morales and Chavez, would do the same. Look alike = same category. López Obrador = Morales = Chávez. The trick is that López Obrador cannot nationalize what was nationalized several decades ago in Mexico.

When it comes to multicultural marketing I have some news for you: you cannot be as fast when it comes to judging a situation. You have to stop yourself and doubt all your assumptions. In the fast-pace world of multi-tasking that we live in this sounds scary and very difficult. Well, I have some more news: it is not that difficult. The only thing you have to do is to open your mind (and your heart) and trust the communication process. We all are humans, and that means that we want to get information that helps us to adapt ourselves to our environments. The person on the other side of the equation (even if s/he looks different and speaks with an accent) is also looking forward to communicate with you, and that is what matters the most. The intention is on both sides, to date I haven't seen a Latino that is not interested in communicating and creating a relationship with an individual or an organization that genuinely wants to communicate with him/her. Contrary to what some might people think, nobody like to live isolated from their environment.

Avoiding fast judgments based on your personal points of views will prove effective when reaching out to different cultures. Active listening and constant checking with the other person/organization will make you feel more confident, and will help in creating a common ground where everybody can feel assured. As with everything else, is an investment that will pay off in the long run (and much faster that you would think).

Price vs. Value
Not long ago, a friend of mine who's Latino told me about a Mexican burlesque show that he attended in San Jose (with a Mexican actress that is highly popular in Mexico and is now touring in the US with huge success). My friend has a good job, which allows him to live comfortable with no luxuries. Doing some calculations, among tickets for his partner and him, parking and gas, a new shirt, and dinner after the show he spent no less than $150.

After many years of being involved in projects/programs that are targeted or aimed to Latinos, I always wonder why the assumption that these programs have to be free of charge (a very common assumption among services providers). At the beggining I said nothing (a very Mexican tradition of being polite and don't question anything), but as time passes and my own process of acculturation grows, now I ask my clients: Why? Why does it have to be free?

I think there are two assumptions playing here: one- Latinos don't have much money and two- Latinos have large families. Depending on the way you look at these assumptions, they might have a certain degree of accuracy. I'm not going to bore you with the 1 trillion on Latino purchasing power by next year, and the 3.6 members average in Latino families. But I'd like to ask you: What did it take for my friend to open his wallet the way he did for a burlesque show? And I think the answer is: value.

This is not marketing-rocket science, every person that sees value in something, not matter culture, socioeconomic status or educational level, when we see value we open our wallets.My friend obviously saw value in attending a presentation by a well-known performer. Finding the right value proposition is a matter of taking a close look to what is important for people, and when it comes to multiculturalism is a matter of taking a look into what is important for this culture. What your organization offers is important for these people? I'm sure the answer is yes, so then what we need to understand is what is it that people values the most? Once we understand this, then what we need to define is how do we communicate that value, so people make decisions, organize their families, take the car/bus/BART, and open their wallets to participate and benefit of something that is valuable. Latinos spend a lot of money in products/services/experiences that we believe valuable.

$150 for attending a museum? Why not? I think it is possible, is just a matter of good marketing.

The world is flat?...
Reading the book "The World is Flat" by Thomas Friedman (NYT journalist) on globalization, I can't help but wonder what this author and people in general mean by that. This is an excellent, very well written, extremely informed point of view on the effects of technology and innovation on the XXI century world. Besides, I'm sure Friedman will be launching his campaign for president soon (he even has his own philosophical approach to government called "compassionate flatism" ;-)

Interesting enough, Friedman's analysis of technology effects on trade and commerce is full of examples on China, India, Russia and Europe, but when it comes to Latin America and Africa there are few mentions. Truth is that one whole chapter is dedicated to the "underdeveloped world" (which I'm reading now), but it focus on how countries belonging to this category should learn the lessons of globalization and become more competitive. In other words, how to become flat and be a part of what is happening in other regions.

My question is: How can we talk about globalization ignoring what is going on in the "underdeveloped" world? What I meant by "ignoring" is that I believe one thing is to preach to Guatemala (or Angola, Bolivia, Tunisia) what they have to do with their labor laws in order to become more competitive, and another very different is to get to understand what is happening in this country (or any other) and "include" that learning as part of your analysis of what globalization means. There's a word that I think appropiate and that is INCLUSIVENESS. It takes time and energy to understand what does not so easily fits into our point of view, but I believe there will be no comprehensive understanding and therefore global solutions, if we don't pay enough attention to what is different. We cannot talk about globalization and ignore what is happening in the half of the world that doesn't fit into our standards.

Putting it in marketing terms, we can expect that our potential audiences get interested in our very smart strategies and learn how to communicate with us, or we can do better and learn how to communicate with them based on their needs and their reality...

Or, what do you think?...

What can we learn from the recent demonstrations on the immigration policy reforms? It doesn't matter where you stand on the issue, one thing that is important is the learnings that we can derive from them.

You often hear that Latinos are all about family. Everywhere we go we take Granma, Uncle Jose, the neighbor and even the dog, the cat and the parrot (obviously this is an exageration that I'm allow to make because I'm Latino). But, what does that mean? For marketing purposes, it means that Latinos have a group perspective, a community perspective, where the "we" is more important than the "I". It is fascinating to me that some indigenous languages in Latin America don't have a word for "I", since the individual is not important. The only thing that matters is the community.

When the Latino community feels a threat it comes together in a way that we don't usually see. That happened years ago in California with Proposition 187, and it is happening again with the recent immigration reforms.

In my point of view, this is one of the cultural characteristics that make Latinos unique and one of the reasons why organizations need to understand this community before creating communication strategies to attract them. It is all about the community. ..

Not long ago, as I was enjoying a local artist exhibition at SFMOMA a young man standing in front of a collage made a call on his cell phone. First thing I thought was "how rude is this guy and how does he dear to imposse his conversation on us". I remembered reading recently several articles and blogs about the lack of social manners and how people are becoming so self-absorbed, with the aid of new technology, that it doesn't matter anymore that we use our devices despite the place where we are. And then I started overhearing, or to be totally honest, paying close attention to his conversation. The conversation went more or less like this (the part that I was able to listen):

-Hey man, is this John ?(don't remember the exact name)
-Hey, I'm here at SFMOMA looking at your painting
-Yeah, it is really cool!
-Yeah, the whole exhibit is awesome
- Congratulations man!
- Yeah, anytime man

After this brief conversation, he hung up and kept looking at the exhibition. Several of us who were there started laughing, smiling and/or whispering comments to our friends. I was amazed!

The fact that we have communication possibilities that we wouldn't dream of not long ago doesn't mean that we are fully aware of the implications in our everyday lifes. For a person to be able to interact in real time with the artist whose painting is hanging in a museum brings a whole different perspective to what a museum is about, and therefore to the communication and marketing strategies for museums.

The use of new technologies for museum marketing is taking us closer to what we've known all this time as true: word of mouth is the most effective communication tool and addressing directly to the audience that we are trying to reach out would pay off in the short and long run. Creating real, grass roots, community relations is one of the most effective ways to let people know about what our organzations are about. When we use some of the new technologies available in the market, like blogs or podcasts, in a way that the person feels that we are talking directly to her/him, we are creating a call for participation, a sense of involvement and ownership. It is not enough anymore to address our audiences like they are all alike, monolitical and standard. Museum-goers, like every other consumer, are more and more getting used to be addressed in a way that is particular, individualized and respondent to their particular needs. What could be more personal that being able to talk directly with the artists in an exhibition?

Internet, what do you think?