We experience the present through the lens of the past—and we shape our understanding of the past through the lens of the present. — Gerald McMaster, curator, artist, and author, in “Art History Through the Lens of the Present?”

Milk/Wine investigates how art, regardless of how well it is preserved, continues to age. In some cases, an artwork bears the obvious physical markers of time through disintegrated paper or faded colors. In other situations, the piece may document a person long since passed away or even celebrate bygone ideals for which public opinion has since shifted. Since its creation, an artwork may sour like milk or prove prescient, aging like wine. This exhibition seeks to present new interpretations, via the visitor's gaze, alongside the original intentions of each artwork. Perhaps this juxtaposition might offer comfort in the knowledge that time is the great equalizer of all things and a lens, just like culture, which shapes our understanding of what we see. 

Some artworks in Milk/Wine, which is comprised primarily of prints, photographs, and works on paper, document moments in our collective history which we might have forgotten or conveniently choose to ignore. While others are interesting given the artist's process references the layering of time or a lack of access to archival materials which place the artwork in a tenuous state, decades later. Within the labels, you can find thoughts about these works from members of the Weisman Art Museum's staff and WAM Collective—bringing the pieces directly in conversation with the present. 

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Milk/Wine was curated by Bria Weisz, the 2023–24 Lisa & E. Gerald O’Brien Curatorial Fellow. 

This activity is made possible by the voters of Minnesota through a Minnesota State Arts Board Operating Support grant, thanks to a legislative appropriation from the arts and cultural heritage fund. General operating support is generously provided by Ameriprise Financial and the KHR McNeely Family Fund, thanks to Kevin, Rosemary, and Hannah Rose McNeely. Additional support for Laughing Matter and its exhibition-related programs was provided by Hannah Rose McNeely.

Image credits: (Top) composite of Laura Crosby, Time Take (Sophie, 2 weeks), 2001, gelatin silver print, mat size: 31 5/8 × 31 5/8 in. Collection of the Weisman Art Museum at the University of Minnesota, Minneapolis. Gift of the artist. 2015.34.1 and Laura Crosby, Time Take (Margaret, 100 years), 1999, gelatin silver print, mat size: 31 5/8 × 31 5/8 in. Collection of the Weisman Art Museum at the University of Minnesota, Minneapolis. Gift of the artist. 2015.34.25 (Middle) Yolanda López, Women’s Work Is Never Done, 1995, screenprint on paper. Collection of the Weisman Art Museum at the University of Minnesota, Minneapolis. The Ione and Hudson D. Walker Fund. 1995.36.6 (Bottom) Judith Yourman, Female Offender, 1997, digital inkjet print. Collection of the Weisman Art Museum at the University of Minnesota, Minneapolis. The Frances M. Norbeck Fund. 2000.44.