Discover the people, history, and ideas that shaped some of the world’s most influential artists during engaging talks led by TMA Docents. Each month explores a different artist or theme, making every lecture a new opportunity to connect art to life. Held on the second Sunday of each month from 2:00 p.m. – 3:00 p.m.

Becoming Tucson: A Cultural Cosmopolitan

Art Talk researched and presented Keith White, with featured guest speaker Meg Jackson Fox

Indigenous communities have inhabited southern Arizona for thousands of years. In 1775, Spanish colonial forces established a presidio, or fort, that later grew into the city of Tucson. This Art Talk traces Tucson’s layered history: from its Indigenous roots, to its settlement as a Spanish outpost, then as a part of a newly independent Mexico in 1821, to its inclusion in the United States in 1854 with the Gadsden Purchase. Emphasis will be on appreciating the diversity of people who make up Tucson and the complex interaction of cultures this has created. Finally, as we look to the future, we will consider TMA’s intention to be a culturally responsive museum while letting our cultural imagination loose, as the “Old Pueblo” is still in a state of “becoming”.