A Milestone for UNMAM, a First for the Southwest 

We’re still celebrating the historic AAMG conference we hosted last month. The University of New Mexico Art Museum (UNMAM) proudly welcomed the 2025 Association of Academic Museums and Galleries (AAMG) Annual Conference — a historic first for both New Mexico and the Southwest. 

It was also the largest AAMG conference ever, with a record 424 registrants. Attendees came primarily from academic institutions throughout the country.  

Conference attendees gathered at UNM and at sites in Albuquerque and Santa Fe June 24-27 for three days of learning, connection and creativity, centered on the theme “Belonging: Storytelling Across Campus and Community.”  

The conference underscored and celebrated the vital role that academic museums and galleries play; they shape inclusive narratives, expand representation and serve as creative, intellectual and cultural centers on their campuses.  

For UNMAM, the opportunity to host was a proud milestone — showcasing not just our own educational mission and innovative exhibitions and programs, but the region’s rich cultural traditions, along with partnerships with world-class New Mexican museums and businesses. 

Thoughtful Planning Meets Local Inspiration 

UNMAM’s staff and the AAMG planning committee worked for more than a year to design a conference that combined professional excellence with a true sense of place. The schedule featured more than 150 presenters, hands-on workshops, lively panel discussions, a multidisciplinary keynote evening and unique networking events reflecting the distinctive character of Albuquerque and New Mexico.  

— Attendees received tote bags and water bottles designed by Study Room Assistant Hannah Cerne.

— The conference opened with an unforgettable evening at UNM’s Popejoy Hall, where former U.S. Secretary of the Interior and UNM alumna Deb Haaland gave a keynote address emphasizing the lasting power and impact of stories. Haaland is a historic public servant, 35th-generation New Mexican and member of the Pueblo of Laguna.

“Belonging is about more than representation. It’s about power. It’s about who gets to decide which stories are told, how they’re told, and who they’re told by. For too long, our stories — Indigenous stories, immigrant stories, stories of struggle and survival —have been told by others, about us, without us,” Haaland told the audience.

“You have the power to change that. In your galleries and your museums, you’re creating space for communities to tell their own stories. You’re making sure that when people walk through your doors, they don’t just see art or artifacts. They see themselves.” 

— That same evening, the Dana Tai Soon Burgess Dance Company (DTSBDC) — led by nationally acclaimed choreographer and UNM alumnus Dana Tai Soon Burgess — premiered “Sudden Snow,” inspired by Helen Frankenthaler’s print of the same name that was included in UNMAM’s spring 2025 exhibition, Push & Pull: The Prints of Helen Frankenthaler and her Contemporaries.

UNMAM commissioned the 30-minute piece, which embodied Frankenthaler’s expressive abstraction and showcased the interdisciplinary spirit at the heart of UNMAM. Dancers’ costumes were designed by Icelandic designer Sigrid Johannesdöttir from fabric by Taos Pueblo designer Patricia Michaels. The performance was accompanied by DTSBDC’s collaborative pianist Dana Nichole Scott, violinist David Felberg and cellist Melinda Mack.

“Being invited to premiere my new dance ‘Sudden Snow’ at the University of New Mexico’s AAMG Conference was a wonderful full-circle moment. I feel deep pride as a UNM alumnus and am thankful to UNMAM Director Arif Khan and his marvelous team for their efforts in making the 2025 AAMG Conference a resounding success,” Burgess said.“It was an honor to have my work experienced by museum directors, curators and staff from around the country. It is inspiring to know that the UNM Art Museum is leading the way to ensuring that the voices and legacies of artists are represented and shared with the public across the nation. The work of the UNM Art Museum is vital.” 

— Campus museums at UNM hosted coordinated open houses for attendees, including the Maxwell Museum of Anthropology, the Museum of Southwestern Biology, the Institute of Meteoritics, the Silver Family Geology Museum, and the Center for Southwest Research alongside UNMAM.

— UNMAM partnered with Ideum to treat attendees to a summer studio evening at the creative firm. Ideum, based in Corrales, N.M., collaborates with museums, zoos, aquariums, cultural centers and educational institutions worldwide to create and design interactive exhibits and immersive visitor experiences.

— Professional development excursions designed to deepen appreciation for the region’s artistic heritage took participants to Santa Fe, where they visited the campus of conference partner Institute of American Indian Arts (IAIA) in the morning. They explored Santa’s Fe’s world-class museums in the afternoon, taking part in specially designed conference tours. 

Showcasing UNMAM’s Strengths and Team 

UNMAM’s staff and students contributed expertise throughout the conference, as follows:  

• UNMAM Director Arif Khan co-chaired the AAMG Conference Committee. 

• Devin E. Geraci, Associate Director of Operations, served on the committee and played a critical role in planning and on-site coordination. 

• Museum Assistants Rymer Hewitt and Lynne Maphies saw to innumerable, invaluable details in planning and executing the conference. 

• The conference schedule was developed by museum colleagues throughout the state and by a panel of reviewers, including many of our UNMAM staff: Ethan Aronson, Devin E. Geraci, Angel Jiang, Arif Khan and Joseph McKee.  

• Recent UNM graduate and UNMAM intern Karalynn Christian led an interactive session on writing image descriptions to improve museum accessibility. 

• Curator of Collections and Study Room Initiatives Angel Jiang convened a panel on teaching with study room collections. 

• Coordinator of Student Engagement and Technology Joseph McKee, with Museum Assistants Hannah Cerne, Bre Kappel and Adrian Ricca Lucci, facilitated a workshop on empowering students in collections work and detailed the work of UNMAM’s Student Advisory Council (SAC). 

• Curator of Prints and Photographs Mary Statzer hosted a roundtable on the Frankenthaler Prints Initiative and its impact on academic museums. 

• Collections Manager Andrea Perez-Martinez hosted a dinner discussion about caring for campus collections, and the impact of collection stewardship in a campus community.  

• Manager of Visitor Experience Ethan Aronson ensured UNMAM’s spaces were ready to welcome more than 400 guests.   

• Coordinator of Exhibitions Steven Hurley helped the AAMG team with set up, tear down and check-in, while making local recommendations to attendees. 

• Coordinator of Student Engagement and Technology Joseph McKee planned UNMAM open house activities, including creating coloring sheets. 

• Communications and Outreach Coordinator Kathy Freise documented events and assisted with keynote details. 

• Assistant to the Director Heather Kline kept things on track by coordinating meetings and RSVP lists. 

• UNMAM’s Museum Assistants went above and beyond, taking care of critical details in every area — from assembling welcome bags and nametags to staffing registration, refreshing the galleries and supporting the reception. We’re so grateful to Shirah Arnold, Hannah Cerne, Misti Jones, Bre Kappel, Adrian Ricca Lucci, Idris Parker and Gianna Ramirez. 

UNMAM as a National Model of Excellence 

AAMG praised the conference, citing the record-breaking attendance and the exceptional experience that UNMAM delivered.  

In a letter of thanks, AAMG Board President Kristina Durocher wrote: “This year was one of our best conferences yet, with a record number of attendees and sponsors — this is in no small part because of the exceptional art collection held by the University of New Mexico Art Museum and because its exemplary administration and educational programming serves as a model of excellence for academic museums and galleries nationally.”  

We are proud to be recognized in this way. For UNMAM, hosting this conference was more than a milestone; it was an opportunity to share our commitment to storytelling, community and inclusion with colleagues from across the country.