René de Guzman, Senior Curator of Art

When I was a boy, my family came to California from the Philippines for the same reasons that have brought millions here before and since—finding a place that offered possibilities. I’m from elsewhere, but am Californian head to toe, mind and body. I grew to realize this identity in trips abroad and around the United States. I found myself attracted to places and people that reflected California’s aspects in me—informality, an openness to others, enthusiasm, freshness and imagination.

As a curator for the Oakland Museum of California, along with my colleagues, we hope to create a new museum experience for our community that vividly expresses the state of California. By this, I don’t mean geography but a set of attitudes that supports new ideas and ways of being. California’s dynamic diversity, progressive politics, hi-tech leadership, natural wonders, trendsetting and risk taking are just a few reasons that this state is cause for examination and admiration.

 

---