By Paola Velasco
In October of last year, Antonio Arelle Barquet García took office as the new Director of the Querétaro Art Museum (MAQRO), where they are expecting an endless number of new projects. Barquet has more than 35 years of experience as a top-level gallery owner. His father was always a great art collector, so he was fortunate to live surrounded by art from an early age. He worked at Sotheby’s Gallery in New York where he acquired an intensive approach to art. He has been the owner of a gallery in the historic center of Querétaro for 14 years, and now he will share his talent and his time with MAQRO.
In an exclusive interview with Atencion, Barquet shared with us that one of his greatest interests is to support emerging artists. “They are young artists who have the talent and the skill to trust it. There is a special program, where they are offered a space to exhibit their work. Every 15 days, on Mondays, a new artist can make use of that space. I really enjoy doing the curatorship and museography of the pieces that we exhibit, it is the most fun part,” commented Barquet.
The MAQRO has 6 rooms, some with permanent exhibitions and others with temporary exhibits. Its objective is to offer a vast cultural offering, from sacred and viceregal art, to contemporary and abstract. They also provide spaces for inclusive exhibitions, where museography—the systematic description of objects, is also provided in Braille. Some of the pieces can even be touched. It is very important for the museum to offer a content and atmosphere geared toward families.
Currently, access to the museum is completely free. During the pandemic, the MAQRO closed for eight months; fortunately, it now receives up to 800 people every weekend.
The museum obtains its resources mainly from the Friends of the Museum Board. This is a group of organized people who have supported it for many years. They raise funds needed for necessary expenses to do the exhibitions; and have done this through an annual fundraising gala. The museum also receives funds directly from the Government of the State of Querétaro, with the direct support of Marcela Herbert, currently Secretary of Culture of the State, and Manuel Naredo. They make it possible for MAQRO to always have high-level cultural offerings.
On April 7, at 7:30pm, a new exhibition will be inaugurated: “Founding Saints.” On April 8, at 12pm, a conference will be headed by Héctor Palhares explaining the details and the museography of this exhibition.
