Exhibit highlighting nearly 100 works of Black artists makes stop in Minneapolis

NINA MOINI: Well, a new exhibit opens at the Minneapolis Institute of Art tomorrow. The exhibit, called Giants, marks the first major showcase of the Dean Collection, owned by Swizz Beatz, also known as Kasseem Dean, and Alicia Keys.

The show is organized by the Brooklyn Museum and highlights nearly 100 significant works by black artists. Here to talk about it is the exhibit's organizer, Kimberli Gant. She's the curator of Modern and Contemporary Art at the Brooklyn Museum. Thank you so much for joining us this afternoon, Kimberli.

KIMBERLI GANT: Thank you. So happy to be here.

NINA MOINI: And also on the line, we have Casey Riley, the Chair of Global and Contemporary Art for the Minneapolis Institute of Art. Thank you for being here as well, Casey.

CASEY RILEY: Thanks so much, Nina. It's a pleasure to join you all.

NINA MOINI: Well, I am so excited to learn about this. Of course, Alicia Keys is like one of the greats, Swizz Beats. They're a wonderful couple. I never knew that they had this side to them and that they were collectors on this level. Kimberli, could you tell us a little bit about how the show came to be?

KIMBERLI GANT: Yes, so we had known about the collection for several years. The museum has a wonderful relationship with the Deans, and so obviously knew about these incredible plethora of objects that we wanted to present to the world.

And so I just took some time to figure out what the show would be, making sure that the Deans felt comfortable showing this aspect of them because, as you said, people didn't necessarily know about this. But yeah, but it came together. And we're absolutely thrilled. And the show's in its third iteration.

NINA MOINI: Yeah. And, Casey, can you tell us a little bit about how Alicia Keys and Swizz Beats-- they're making this collection. And are there pieces that stand out to you? Could you describe a couple of them for us that might be real highlights for people?

CASEY RILEY: Oh, that's a great question and an impossible one because I just-- I'm so decided to share all of the works that are in this show. I want to underscore something that Kimberli said, which is that the Deans really are visionaries in their collecting practices and in building this collection.

They have also built a community that is like a family to them. They take those relationships really seriously and are consistently welcoming to these artists in the collection. I want to say that because above and beyond anything that the visitors will experience in the galleries, I hope that they come away feeling that sense of connection and intimacy and the ties that that bind the generations that are represented in the show.

NINA MOINI: I understand that most of the items are from mostly living artists, correct? What are some of the themes of Giants today and yesterday?

CASEY RILEY: Yeah. So the show is called Giants for a reason. The works in the show are both, well, often monumental in scale but also in the importance of the issues that they're addressing. And it's organized into four main sections, with two important subthemes.

So the first section is Becoming Giants. And that's really thinking about the journey of both of the deans in their own musical practices, and how that has extended to their activities as collectors.

And then moving into the next section called Giant Presence, which considers the enormous impact and importance of all of the Black creatives who are represented in this show and indeed the communities beyond this show.

Embedded within Giant Presence is also a theme that Kimberli's called "Conversations Critiquing Society." And that's because there are a few works, especially in the first couple of galleries, by some really well-known artists, artists, I'm proud to say, are in the collection at MIA as well, including Nick Cave and Hank Willis Thomas and others, that are thinking deeply about matters of race, gender, gun violence, so many things that we talk about in contemporary society.

That next section, Giant Conversations, extends some of those themes while also exploring a celebration of blackness. And I often say this about the show but I mean it sincerely. It's just a full-on immersion into excellence.

The visionary collecting ethos of the Deans, the incredible creative output of all of the artists in the show, the ways in which they complicate, explore, expand, liberate ideas of blackness globally is really powerful, I think, for the visitor.

And then finally, On the Shoulders of Giants is the part of the show that looks backward and considers the indebtedness that all of these artists hold to those who came before, including artists like Jean-Michel Basquiat and Kwame Brathwaite, whose works are in that gallery.

But also, importantly, Gordon Parks, who is, of course, a Saint Paul native, his work appears in the last gallery of the show. And we really wanted to conclude on a strong note here of recognition for the space that Parks created for all of the artists who not only are in the show but are working today here in the Twin Cities and beyond.

NINA MOINI: Absolutely. Would you tell us just a little bit about what goes into gathering a collection of this size? I understand the Deans had never had this much of their collection on display. And it's a private collection. What's the movement there?

KIMBERLI GANT: Yeah, well, you want to-- part of it, I think, is just building trust and making sure that the Deans felt comfortable with the vision that we were trying to present of their collection, that we weren't misrepresenting everything.

And I think Casey said it eloquently about wanting to show the excellence of the artists within the collection. The title of Giants has really built on the idea that the artists themselves, the creators, the makers are giants.

And so we really wanted to honor that and show the complexity within those works. So it starts off with just trying to take a step back and understand what's the rationale behind the collection, who's in the collection, and how can we present it in its best light? And I think we did a really good job of really trying to show some of the breadth of the collection and the artists that are a part of it.

NINA MOINI: Yeah, and so, Casey, I'll ask you, what do you hope that visitors really take away from this exhibit, especially here in Minnesota?

CASEY RILEY: Oh, I really appreciate that question. I think at a time in which many in our communities have voiced a desire for really a yearning for social connection, I hope that the offerings in this show and the ways in which the Deans have created meaningful relationships with the artists and sustained their talents is inspirational for them.

I mean, the show is just it's absorbingly powerful. It carries great potential for uplift in the courage and creativity that's on display. But mostly, I hope that our visitors feel welcomed and seen, appreciated, and that they have a feeling of joy as they leave.

NINA MOINI: Wonderful. It sounds beautiful. Thank you both for coming on and sharing about it with us.

CASEY RILEY: Thank you, Nina.

KIMBERLI GANT: Thank you so much.

NINA MOINI: Thank you. Take care. That was Kimberli Gant, the curator of Modern and Contemporary Art at the Brooklyn Museum, and Casey Riley, MIA's Chair of Global Contemporary Art. Giants, Art from the Dean Collection of Swizz Beatz and Alicia Keys will be at MIA through July.