A Transatlantic Bridge:
How the Buffalo AKG Art Museum Connects Art, Ideas, and People in the Nordic Region and the United States

In this talk, Dr. Janne Sirén, Peggy Pierce Elfvin Director of the Buffalo AKG Art Museum, sheds light on the AKG Nordic Art and Culture Initiative, a novel platform for connecting artistic and creative energies in the Nordic region and the United States.

Through his experiences as a museum director in Europe and the United States, he will discuss similarities and differences in museum practices in these distinct operating theaters. What are the factors that drive and impact collecting strategies and exhibition programs in Nordic and American museums, respectively? In an age of increasing geopolitical turmoil and shifting alliances, what role do art museums play as organizations that have both national and international responsibilities? How can both in Europe and United States respond to changing political circumstances while delivering their missions as custodians of cultural heritage?

Dr. Sirén’s talk will touch on these and related topics and the audience is invited to ask further questions that may open new avenues for understanding the complexities of transatlantic cultural relations in the 21st-century.

Photo: Olafur Eliasson and Sebastian Behmann of Studio Other Spaces., Common Sky, 2022. Collection Buffalo AKG Art Museum, Acquired with support from the New Carlsberg Foundation and General Purchase Funds, 2021 (2021:25). Photo: Marco Cappelletti.