Mari Lyn Salvador facts for kids

Mari Lyn Salvador (born June 16, 1943 – died October 23, 2017) was an American expert on human cultures. She was famous for her work on special Panamanian textiles called molas. These colorful cloths are worn by Kuna women. Her studies of molas and the Kuna people led to a career in museums. She even became the director of two major museums: the San Diego Museum of Man and the Hearst Museum of Anthropology. Salvador focused on understanding art from the perspective of the culture that created it.

Early Life and Studies

Mari Lyn Salvador started college studying art. She was especially interested in weaving and pottery. She attended San Francisco State University. In 1966, she joined the Peace Corps. The Peace Corps sent her to Panama. Her first job was to help build chicken coops.

Discovering Molas in Panama

Building chicken coops didn't fit her artistic interests. So, her supervisors let her try something different. She started an artists' cooperative with the Kuna people. The Kuna live near Panama’s border with Colombia. While living with them, she grew to love their bright molas. These are special fabric art pieces. The Mola Coop Panama is still active today. It helps the local economy and shares Kuna art online.

As a graduate student, Salvador collected many molas. These molas became the main part of an exhibit. This exhibit was at the UCLA Fowler Museum of Cultural History. She also wrote a book called The Art of Being Kuna. She traveled widely to research molas. She visited the National Museum of Natural History and the National Museum of the American Indian. She also saw the world's largest mola collection in Sweden.

Studying Kuna Art and Culture

After Panama, she earned her PhD. This was in cultural anthropology. She studied at the University of California at Berkeley. Her main work looked at how art is used in daily life. She focused on the Kuna people. She studied art from the viewpoint of the artists themselves. This is called ethnoaesthetics. It means understanding art in its own cultural setting.

For example, among the Kuna, only women create visual art. This includes things you can see, like molas. Men create verbal arts, like speeches. Creating molas is a group activity for women. Women and girls of all ages work together. They share designs and learn from each other. This teamwork helps bond the women. It also strengthens other parts of Kuna society. Kuna art often refers to other arts and ideas.

Artistic form is very important in Kuna life. It's more than just how pretty something looks. It also shapes how performances and rituals are done. It shows the social values that are important in these events. Visual art helps the Kuna identify themselves. It shows they are a unique group. But molas also show how the Kuna connect with others. Since the 1920s, molas have even included ideas from outside Kuna culture.

After Her Studies

After finishing her PhD in 1976, Salvador taught in Portugal. She was at the University of the Azores. She had a Fulbright scholarship. This allowed her to study local religious celebrations called festas.

Researching Art and Rituals

She continued this research in southern California. She studied Portuguese-American communities. She focused on the beauty of ritual performances. She also looked at how art is used in these special events. She also worked with Hispanic artists in New Mexico. She studied their religious art called santos. She wanted to understand why creating this art was important. She looked at both its beauty and its religious meaning.

Leading Museums

From 1978, Salvador was a chief curator. She worked at the Maxwell Museum of Anthropology. Then, in 2005, she became director. This was at the San Diego Museum of Man. In 2009, she became director of the Phoebe A. Hearst Museum of Anthropology. This museum is at the University of California, Berkeley. She held this job until July 2015.

Bringing Cultures to Museums

Dr. Salvador believed in inviting community elders to museums. She saw them as scholars. She worked with many elders. They helped her with research for the National Museum of the American Indian. This museum is in Washington, D.C. Her focus on women and native peoples helped the San Diego Museum of Man. It expanded the museum's goals beyond its original name. This is a common trend in museums today. They want to show many different cultures.

She also led the Council for Museum Anthropology (CMA). This is part of the American Anthropological Association (AAA). She was president from 2003 to 2005. She stayed on the board afterward. This showed her dedication to anthropology in museums.

Salvador believed in studying art in its original setting. She thought it was important to understand the culture that made it. These art objects were beautiful to see. But knowing how they were made and why was even better. It taught us a lot about the people who created them. She helped people see art in a deeper way. It wasn't just about beauty or symbols. It was about the social elements too. This included Kuna, Azorean, and New Mexican Hispanic cultures. Salvador helped connect art to the people who made it. She showed that art is more than just something to look at. It is a reflection of the society that created it.