Arts Summary

March 22, 2020

Brian Clarke: The Art of Light at Museum of Arts and Design (MAD), September 17, 2020 – February 21, 2021

The Museum of Arts and Design (MAD) presents a major exhibition works by celebrated architectural artist and painter Brian Clarke (b. 1953, United Kingdom). The first museum exhibition in the U.S. of Clarke’s stained-glass screens, compositions in lead, and related drawings on paper, Brian Clarke: The Art of Light showcases the most considerable artistic and technical breakthrough in the thousand-year history of stained glass.

“There is a world that can only be seen through stained glass. It is like no other. The range of experience I can deliver through it is greater than anything I’ve known in my life,” Clarke said. “Many of the greatest artists have been intensely involved with stained glass — Mondrian, Matisse, Albers, Cocteau, De Kooning, Le Corbusier, Richter. I believe the medium has the potential to have the same kind of uplifting impact on our urban engagement as it had on architecture in the 15th century. I want to surpass the Middle Ages, not equal them. This exhibition demonstrates that stained glass has an authority and potential to deal with every human condition,” said Clarke.

He continued, “The history of art and the history of architecture and design are linked like siblings. Modernity wrenched them apart, celebrating portable art as a monetized market and distancing design and architecture into isolated worlds of their own, with interaction between the disciplines moving from creative collaboration into arbitrary acquaintance. MAD are committed to supporting the healthier, challenging relationship between the arts and I fully behind them in this.”

Images from The Art of Light at the Sainsbury Centre, supported and organised in association with HENI.

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Brian Clarke. Flowers for Zaha. Photo © Fraser Watson

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Brian Clarke. World Without End (detail). Photo © Matthias Kirchberger

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Brian Clarke. Seville (detail). Photo © Chris Gascoigne

Brian Clarke. Manhattan. Photo © Chris Gascoigne

Brian Clarke. Study for Portrait of The Five Sisters, 2007, lead on lead. Photo © Matthias Kirchberger

Brian Clarke: The Art of Light is organized by the Sainsbury Centre in association with the Museum of Arts and Design. It is curated by Director Paul Greenhalgh.

Images courtesy Museum of Arts and Design.

March 21, 2020

Judd at The Museum of Modern Art, through July 11, 2020*

“The Museum of Modern Art’s exhibition Judd, on view in the Steven and Alexandra Cohen Center for Special Exhibitions in the David and Peggy Rockefeller Building is the first major US retrospective dedicated to the work of Donald Judd (1928–1994) in over three decades. Presented solely at MoMA, the exhibition explores the remarkable vision of an artist who revolutionized the history of sculpture, highlighting the full scope of Judd’s career through 70 works in sculpture, painting, drawing, and prints, from public and private collections in the US and abroad. Donald Judd was among a generation of artists in the 1960s who sought to entirely do away with illusion, narrative, and metaphorical content. He turned to three dimensions as well as industrial working methods and materials in order to investigate ‘real space,’ by his definition.” — MoMA

“Half a century after Judd established himself as a leading figure of his time, there remains a great deal to discover,” said Temkin. “MoMA’s presentation covers the full arc of his career, aiming to reveal its largely unexpected variety and complexity.”

Judd is organized by Ann Temkin, The Marie-Josée and Henry Kravis Chief Curator of Painting and Sculpture, with Yasmil Raymond, former Associate Curator; Tamar Margalit, Curatorial Assistant; and Erica Cooke, Research Fellow, Department of Painting and Sculpture, MoMA.

Images courtesy The Museum of Modern Art.

*PLEASE NOTE: The Museum of Modern Art is temporarily closed to the public.

March 20, 2020

Edvard Munch and the Cycle of Life: Prints from the National Gallery of Art at Chrysler Museum of Art, through May 17, 2020*

“The Chrysler Museum of Art presents its first-ever exhibition of Edvard Munch’s iconic works in Edvard Munch and the Cycle of Life: Prints from the National Gallery of Art. The show consists of 50 prints, including The Scream and Madonna. It includes images Munch developed for his 1902 exhibition Frieze of Life, as well as the entire 1908–1909 series Alpha and Omega, his invented story of the first humans. The exhibition also offers Munch’s satirical look at his own life and failures at love. ‘The work of the Norwegian artist has come to symbolize the crisis of modern life. The Chrysler’s exhibition is an original concept that focuses on Munch’s career-long obsession with the theme of the cycle of life, from the seeds of love and the passing of love to anxiety and death,’ said Lloyd DeWitt, Ph.D., the Chrysler’s chief curator and Irene Leache Curator of European art.” — Chrysler Museum of Art

Edvard Munch (Norwegian, 1863–1944). Madonna, 1985. Color lithograph and woodcut (1902 printing) on oriental paper: lithograph printed from 3 stones in beige, red and black; woodcut printed from 1 block in blue. National Gallery of Art, Washington, The Epstein Family Collection, 1990

Edvard Munch (Norwegian, 1863–1944). Geschrei (The Scream), 1895. Lithograph. National Gallery of Art, Washington, Rosenwald Collection, 1943

Edvard Munch (Norwegian, 1863–1944). The Urn, 1896. Lithograph in black on Japan paper. National Gallery of Art, Washington, Gift of the Epstein Family Collection, 2010

Edvard Munch (Norwegian, 1863–1944). Omega and the Flower from Alpha and Omega, 1908–09. Lithograph in black. National Gallery of Art, Washington, The Epstein Family Collection, 2002

Edvard Munch (Norwegian, 1863–1944). Alpha’s Despair from Alpha and Omega, 1908–09. Lithograph in black. National Gallery of Art, Washington, The Epstein Family Collection, 2002

Edvard Munch (Norwegian, 1863–1944). Funeral March, 1897. Lithograph in black. National Gallery of Art, Washington, Gift of the Epstein Family Collection, 2006

Edvard Munch (Norwegian, 1863–1944). Crowds in a Square, 1920. Color woodcut. National Gallery of Art, Washington, Gift of the Epstein Family Collection, 2013

Edvard Munch (Norwegian, 1863–1944). In a Man’s Brain (Reclining Woman), ca. 1897. Black chalk rubbing from woodblock heightened with brush and black ink on red-orange paper. National Gallery of Art, Washington, Epstein Family Fund and the Director’s Discretionary Fund, 2000

Edvard Munch (Norwegian, 1863–1944). Peer Gynt, 1896. Lithograph in black on light brown wove paper. National Gallery of Art, Washington, Gift of the Atlas Foundation, 1995

Edvard Munch (Norwegian, 1863–1944). Café Bauer, Berlin, 1902. Drypoint. National Gallery of Art, Washington, Rosenwald Collection, 1944

Edvard Munch (Norwegian, 1863–1944). The Brooch (Eva Mudocci), 1903. Lithograph in black on oriental paper. National Gallery of Art, Washington, Gift of the Epstein Family Collection, 2006

“These are fragile prints that can only be exhibited every few years in order to protect them against light exposure so that future generations can enjoy them,” said DeWitt. “The National Gallery of Art and the Epstein family have been exceptionally generous in lending an astounding 50 sheets so that our audience can experience the full range of work of one of the most well-known and powerful artists of the 19^th and 20^th centuries.”

Images courtesy Chrysler Museum of Art.

*PLEASE NOTE: The Chrysler Museum of Art is temporarily closed to the public.

March 19, 2020

Aubrey Beardsley at Tate Britain, London, through May 25, 2020*

“Tate Britain’s major new exhibition celebrates the brief but astonishing career of Aubrey Beardsley. Although he died tragically young at the age of just 25, Beardsley’s strange, sinuous black-and-white images have continued to shock and delight for over a century. Bringing together 200 spectacular works, this is the largest display of his original drawings in over 50 years and the first exhibition of his work at Tate since 1923.

Beardsley (1872-98) became one of the enfants terribles of fin-de-siècle London, best remembered for illustrating Oscar Wilde’s controversial play Salomé. His opulent imagery anticipated the elegance of Art Nouveau but also alighted on the subversive and erotic aspects of life and legend, shocking audiences with a bizarre sense of humour and fascination with the grotesque. Beardsley was prolific, producing hundreds of illustrations for books, periodicals and posters in a career spanning just under seven years. Line block printing enabled his distinct black-and-white works to be easily reproduced and widely circulated, winning notoriety and admirers around the world, but the original pen and ink drawings are rarely seen. Tate Britain exhibits a huge array of these drawings, revealing his unrivalled skill as a draughtsman in exquisite detail.” — Tate Britain

Illustration for Oscar Wilde’s Salome, 1893. The Peacock Skirt. Line block print on paper. Stephen Calloway. Photo: © Tate

Self Portrait, 1892. Ink on paper. British Museum

The Yellow Book Volume I, 1894. Bound volume. Stephen Calloway. Photo: © Tate

How la Beale Isoud Wrote to Sir Tristram, c.1893. Ink on paper,  276 x 215 mm. Alessandra and Simon Wilson

Volpone Adoring his Treasure, 1898. Ink over graphite on paper, 290 x 204 mm. Courtesy of the Princeton University Library

How Arthur saw the Questing Beast, 1893. Ink and wash on paper, 378 x 270 mm. Victoria and Albert Museum

Frederick Evans - Portrait of Aubrey Beardsley

Frederick Evans, 1853-1943. Portrait of Aubrey Beardsley, 1893. Photo-etching and platinum print on paper, 115 x 165 mm. Wilson Centre for Photography

Aubrey Beardsley is organised by Tate Britain in collaboration with the Musée d’Orsay, Paris. It is curated by Caroline Corbeau-Parsons, Curator of British Art 1850-1915, and Stephen Calloway with Alice Insley, Assistant Curator, Historic British Art.

Images courtesy Tate Britain.

*PLEASE NOTE: Tate Britain is temporarily closed until at least 1 May, in line with advice from Public Health England.

March 18, 2020

We Fight to Build a Free World: An Exhibition by Jonathan Horowitz at Jewish Museum, October 1, 2020 – January 24, 2021

“We Fight to Build a Free World: An Exhibition by Jonathan Horowitz looks at how artists have responded to the rise of intolerance and authoritarianism, addressing issues surrounding immigration, assimilation, and cultural identity. Jonathan Horowitz (b. 1966, New York City) is an artist working in a wide range of mediums, including video, installation, painting, sculpture, and photography, exploring subjects ranging from environmentalism to the American political process.

The exhibition features works of art primarily from the early 20th century until now, including examples of American social realism from the 1930s and 1940s, new works by Jonathan Horowitz, and newly commissioned political posters by contemporary artists. The nearly 80 works draw connections between historical oppression and today’s political and cultural challenges. A range of media — video, sculpture, painting, photography, and prints — is represented.

The exhibition’s title, We Fight to Build a Free World, is from a series of World War II propaganda posters designed by Ben Shahn for the United States Office of War Information. The designs incorporate imagery by four other artists – Edward Millman (Suppression), Käthe Kollwitz (Starvation), Yasuo Kuniyoshi (Torture), and Bernard Perlin (Murder), as well as by Shahn (Slavery). Like much of Shahn’s work for the OWI, most of the posters were never produced. Shahn’s painting, We Fight for a Free World!, c. 1942, which incorporates images of the five posters, will be on view.” — Jewish Museum

Ben Shahn, We Fight For A Free World!, c. 1942, gouache and tempera on board. Michael Rosenfeld Gallery LLC, New York, NY Artwork © Estate of Ben Shahn / Licensed by VAGA at Artists Rights Society (ARS), NY; image courtesy of Michael Rosenfeld Gallery LLC, New York, NY

Jonathan Horowitz, Power, 2019, UV print on PVC board, vinyl sticker. Artwork © Jonathan Horowitz, courtesy Sadie Coles HQ, London; photography by Robert Glowacki

Jonathan Horowitz, Tennyson, Jasper and Bob, 2014, UV ink on canvas, embroidery, frame. Collection of the artist Artwork © Jonathan Horowitz; image courtesy the artist and Xavier Hufkens, Brussels; photograph by HV-studio, Brussels

Erwin Blumenfeld, The Dictator, c. 1936, gelatin silver print. The Jewish Museum, NY, Purchase: Gift of John and Helga Klein, 2005-29.Artwork © Estate of Erwin Blumenfeld

Robert Colescott, George Washington Carver Crossing the Delaware: Page from an American History Textbook, 1975, acrylic on canvas. Private collection. Artwork © Estate of Robert Colescott / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York; image courtesy Blum & Poe

Philip Evergood, The Hundredth Psalm, c. 1938-39, oil on canvas. The Jewish Museum, NY, Purchase: Miriam and Milton Handler and Kristie A. Jayne Funds, 2000-16

Rebecca Lepkoff, Lower East Side, 1947, gelatin silver print. Columbus Museum of Art, Ohio: Photo League Collection, Museum Purchase with funds provided by Elizabeth M. Ross, the Derby Fund, John S. and Catherine Chapin Kobacker, and the Friends of the Photo League, 2001.020.085 © Estate of Rebecca Lepkoff, Courtesy of Howard Greenberg Gallery, New York

Abraham Manievich, Destruction of the Ghetto, Kiev, 1919, oil on canvas. The Jewish Museum, Purchase: Gift of Deana Bezark in memory of her husband Leslie Bezark, 1991-30

Malaquias Montoya, Cristobal Colón, 1992, offset lithograph. Artwork © and courtesy Malaquias Montoya

Bernard Perlin, Orthodox Boys, 1948, tempera on board. Tate: Presented by Lincoln Kirstein through the Institute of Contemporary Arts 1950. Artwork © Bernard Perlin; image courtesy Tate

Kara Walker, Middle Passages (1), 2004, gouache, cut paper and collage on board. Collection of Marc Mills via Sikkema Jenkins & Co., New York. © Kara Walker, courtesy of Sikkema Jenkins & Co., New York

Kara Walker, Middle Passages (2), 2004, gouache, cut paper and collage on board. Collection of Marc Mills via Sikkema Jenkins & Co., New York. © Kara Walker, courtesy of Sikkema Jenkins & Co., New York

Kara Walker, Middle Passages (3), 2004, gouache, cut paper and collage on board. Collection of Marc Mills via Sikkema Jenkins & Co., New York. © Kara Walker, courtesy of Sikkema Jenkins & Co., New York

Kara Walker, Middle Passages (4), 2004, gouache, cut paper and collage on board. Collection of Marc Mills via Sikkema Jenkins & Co., New York. © Kara Walker, courtesy of Sikkema Jenkins & Co., New York

Max Weber, Hope, 1941, oil on canvas. The Jewish Museum, NY, Gift of the children of Gladys and Selig S. Burrows, 2001-58

Lou Beach, inkjet print, 2020. © Lou Beach

Eric J. Garcia, inkjet print, 2020. © Eric J. Garcia

Christine Sun Kim, inkjet print, 2020. © Christine Sun Kim

“Three years ago, the Jewish Museum invited me to develop a project that responded to the resurgence of anti-Semitism,” Jonathan Horowitz said. “I chose to address the subject within a broad context, looking at how artists have historically responded to the rise of authoritarianism and xenophobia, including anti-Semitism and other forms of bigotry.”

The exhibition is a project by artist Jonathan Horowitz, organized in consultation with Ruth Beesch, Senior Deputy Director, and Shira Backer, Leon Levy Assistant Curator, The Jewish Museum.

Images courtesy Jewish Museum.

March 17, 2020

Agnes Pelton: Desert Transcendentalist at Whitney Museum of American Art, March 13 – June 21, 2020*

“Agnes Pelton (1881–1961) was a visionary symbolist who depicted the spiritual reality she experienced in moments of meditative stillness. Art for her was a discipline through which she gave form to her vision of a higher consciousness within the universe. Using an abstract vocabulary of curvilinear, biomorphic forms and delicate, shimmering veils of light, she portrayed her awareness of a world that lay behind physical appearances—a world of benevolent, disembodied energies animating and protecting life. For most of her career, Pelton chose to live away from the distractions of a major art center, first in Water Mill, Long Island, from 1921 to 1932, and subsequently in Cathedral City, a small community near Palm Springs, California. Her isolation from the mainstream art world meant that her paintings were relatively unknown during her lifetime and in the decades thereafter. This exhibition of approximately forty-five works introduces to the public a little-known artist whose luminous, abstract images of transcendence are only now being fully recognized.” — Whitney Museum of American Art

Agnes Pelton, Messengers, 1932. Oil on canvas. Collection of Phoenix Art Museum; Gift of The Melody S. Robidoux Foundation.

Agnes Pelton, Day, 1935. Oil on canvas. Collection of Phoenix Art Museum; Gift of The Melody S. Robidoux Foundation.

Highlights of the Gallery of California Art, Oakland Museum of California

Agnes Pelton, Orbits, 1934. Oil on canvas, 36 1/4 × 30 in. (92.1 × 76.2 cm). Oakland Museum of California; gift of Concours d’Antiques, the Art Guild of the Oakland Museum of California

Agnes Pelton, The Blest, 1941. Oil on canvas, 37 1/2 × 28 1/4 in. (95.3 × 71.8 cm). Collection of Georgia and Michael de Havenon. Photograph by Martin Seck

Agnes Pelton, Future, 1941. Oil on canvas. Collection of Palm Springs Art Museum, 75th Anniversary gift of Gerald E. Buck in memory of Bente Buck, Best Friend and Life Companion.

Agnes Pelton, Departure, 1952. Oil on canvas, 24 × 18 in. (61 × 45.7 cm). Collection of Mike Stoller and Corky Hale Stoller. Photograph by Paul Salveson

Agnes Pelton: Desert Transcendentalist is organized by the Phoenix Art Museum, and curated by Gilbert Vicario, The Selig Family Chief Curator. The installation at the Whitney Museum is overseen by Barbara Haskell, curator, with Sarah Humphreville, senior curatorial assistant.

Images courtesy Whitney Museum of American Art.

*PLEASE NOTE: Whitney Museum of American Art is temporarily closed.

March 14, 2020

HAVE YOU SEEN A HORIZON LATELY? at Museum of African Contemporary Art Al Maaden (MACAAL), Marrakech, 25 February 25 – July 19, 2020

“Museum of African Contemporary Art Al Maaden (MACAAL), Marrakech presents the group exhibition HAVE YOU SEEN A HORIZON LATELY?. Taking its title from a song by Yoko Ono, the exhibition explores the politics of space and place and is an invitation to see and know the world differently. The exhibition features work from a selection of emerging and established international artists including Yoko Ono (USA), Kapwani Kiwanga (Canada-France), Rahima Gambo (Nigeria) and Amina Benbouchta (Morocco) and is curated by Marie-Ann Yemsi. Through a variety of media and with several new commissions, HAVE YOU SEEN A HORIZON LATELY? sees participating artists question their lived environment in a sensitive and committed way.“(MACAAL)

Whether inspired by architecture, urban archaeology and landscape or personal geographies in relationship to the body and history, the work of these contemporary artists resonates strongly with some of the most pressing issues in the world today. Questions around ecology, the unequal distribution of wealth and power, the colonisation of territories, situations of oppression, and fixed and reductive conceptions of identity are all themes explored in the exhibition.” — MACAAL

Works from HAVE YOU SEEN A HORIZON LATELY? at Museum of African Contemporary Art Al Maaden (MACAAL), Marrakech, 25 February – 19 July 2020. Images courtesy MACAAL

Akira Ikezoe, Coconut Heads around the Ceramic Studio, 2019. SEE IMAGE SHEET FOR FULL CAPTION

Akira Ikezoe, Coconut Heads around the Ceramic Studio, 2019. Oil on canvas, 157x127cm. Image courtesy of the artist and Proyectos Ultravioleta gallery

Amina Benbouchta, Eternel retour du désir amoureux, 2019. SEE IMAGE SHEET FOR FULL CAPTION

Amina Benbouchta, Eternel retour du désir amoureux, 2019. Installation, wood, neons, objects, sound, variable dimensions. Courtesy of the artist

Gaëlle Choisne, N.E.V.A.Q.N.A.L.A., 2016. SEE IMAGE SHEET FOR FULL CAPTION

Gaëlle Choisne, N.E.V.A.Q.N.A.L.A., 2016. Video 8’36’’, mixed media, variable dimensions. Courtesy of the artist

Yoko Ono, HAVE YOU SEEN THE HORIZON LATELY, 1967-2019. SEE IMAGE SHEET FOR FULL CAPTION

Yoko Ono , HAVE YOU SEEN THE HORIZON LATELY?, 1967/2019. Installation view of The Reflections Project organized by the Lower Manhattan Cultural Council, New York. Photographer: Isabel Asha Penzlien. Copyright: Yoko Ono

Maxwell Alexandre, Megazord só de Power Ranger Preto, 2018. SEE IMAGE SHEET FOR FULL CAPTION

Maxwell Alexandre, Megazordsóde Power Ranger Preto, 2018. Latex, grease, henna, bitumen, dye, acrylic, graphite, ballpointpen, charcoal, oilstick, plastic strawand chocolatedrink package on manilapaper. 600x1200cm. Courtesy of the artist and A Gentil Carioac

Felipe Arturo, Tropico Entropico, 2013 (Detail view). SEE IMAGE SHEET FOR FULL CAPTION

Felipe Arturo, Tropico Entropico, 2013 (Detail view). White and raw sugar. 390x306x6cm. Installation at Lugar a dudas, Cali, Colombia. Photo courtesy of the artist

The exhibition is curated by Marie-Ann Yemsi who worked alongside scenographer Franck Houndegla. Conceived as a poetic journey where one theme leads through to another, the exhibition creates a network of interlinking positions and considerations, showing art’s unique ability to question our limits and challenge our perceptions.

PARTICIPATING ARTISTS: Farah AL QASIMI (United Arab Emirates) Maxwell ALEXANDRE (Brazil), Felipe ARTURO (Colombia), Amina BENBOUCHTA (Morocco), Gaëlle CHOISNE (France), Rahima GAMBO (Nigeria), Akira IKEZOE (Japan), Kiluanji KIA HENDA (Angola), Kapwani KIWANGA (Canada – France), Yoko ONO (USA), Daniel OTERO TORRES (Colombia), Sandrine PELLETIER (Switzerland)

March 13, 2020

Boro Textiles: Sustainable Aesthetics at Japan Society, March 6 – June 14, 2020

“Japan Society Gallery presents Boro Textiles: Sustainable Aesthetics, an exhibition that examines this traditional handicraft, its history of ingenuity, and its continued legacy within creative practices today.

For the first time in the United States, Boro Textiles: Sustainable Aesthetics assembles over 50 archival pieces from the extensive personal collection of folklorist and cultural anthropologist Chuzaburo Tanaka, alongside contemporary works by influential creators. Included are the pioneers of Japanese avant-garde fashion design, Rei Kawakubo for Comme des Garçons, Issey Miyake, and Yohji Yamamoto, who each explore the dynamic between tradition and transgression. Also on view are textile-based works by Susan Cianciolo and Christina Kim, part of a generation of artists whose work appreciates the aesthetics and ethics of mending and patchwork.

Boro, which translates as rags or tatters, is the Japanese term for textiles that have been patched, pieced, and mended. This traditional style, which originated in Japan in the 19th and early 20th centuries, grew out of necessity for survival in a harsh climate. The cold temperatures of Tohoku in northern Japan made cultivating cotton nearly impossible, thereby fostering the practice of combining and layering remnants of used hemp fabric that were then intricately stitched into utilitarian items, including work coats, blankets, and mittens. These hard-used garments were repeatedly reworked from generation to generation, building bridges through resourcefulness and finding beauty in survival.” — Japan Society

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Installation view of Boro Textiles: Sustainable Aesthetics.

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Installation view of Boro Textiles: Sustainable Aesthetics.

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Installation view of Boro Textiles: Sustainable Aesthetics.

Tabi (Split-toed Socks). Photo by Kyoichi Tsuzuki. Courtesy of Amuse Museum, Chuzaburo Tanaka Collection.

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Installation view of Boro Textiles: Sustainable Aesthetics.

Yohji Yamamoto, Suit from Fall/Winter 2006-2007. The Mary Baskett Collection. Photograph by Scott Hisey.

Rei Kawakubo/Comme des Garçons, Dress from Adult Delinquent Collection, Spring/Summer 2010. The Mary Baskett Collection. Photograph by Rob Deslongchamps.

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Installation view of Boro Textiles: Sustainable Aesthetics.

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Installation view of Boro Textiles: Sustainable Aesthetics.

Christina Kim, Kaya (mosquito net) (detail). Courtesy of Christina Kim. © Yoshihiro Makino.

Courtesy of Christina Kim.

Courtesy of Christina Kim.

Susan Cianciolo, Tapestry 3, 2017. Courtesy of the artist and Bridget Donahue, NYC.

Susan Cianciolo, Untitled (tapestry), 2015-2016. Courtesy of the artist and Bridget Donahue, NYC.

“Sustainability is one of the most critical subjects in our time and is central to the upcoming Tokyo Summer Games in 2020,” says Yukie Kamiya, Director of Japan Society Gallery. “Through this exhibition, we can rediscover the ethics and aesthetics of an anonymous handicraft from the Tohoku region, which was devastated in the 2011 earthquake. Boro is not only a historical craft but has had a great impact on contemporary cutting-edge creators worldwide, bridging different generations across geographies.”

Boro Textiles: Sustainable Aesthetics is curated by Yukie Kamiya, Gallery Director with Tiffany Lambert, Assistant Curator, and is organized by Japan Society in collaboration with Amuse Museum.

Images courtesy Japan Society.

March 12, 2020

Hearts of Our People: Native Women Artists at Renwick Gallery, Smithsonian American Art Museum, February 21 – May 17, 2020

“Women have been a predominant creative force behind Native American art, yet their individual contributions, for centuries, have largely remained unrecognized and anonymous. In the first major thematic exhibition to explore the artistic contributions of Native women, Hearts of Our People: Native Women Artists celebrates the achievements of these Native women and establishes their rightful place in the art world.

The presentation at the Renwick Gallery includes 82 artworks dating from ancient times to the present, made in a variety of media, from textiles and ceramics to sculpture, time-based media and photography. This exhibition is multi-lingual with wall text, audio recordings and labels presented in the artist’s Native American or First Nations languages, as well as English, aiming to present the works in the context of each artist’s own culture and voice.

The exhibition is organized according to three overarching themes: ‘Legacy,’ ‘Relationships’ and ‘Power.’ These themes are a testament to the underlying purpose with which Native women have historically made art and enable visitors to note variations in the works of art created for similar purposes across time and Native cultures.” — Renwick Gallery

Christi Belcourt (Michif), The Wisdom of the Universe, 2014, acrylic on canvas, Collection Art Gallery of Ontario, Toronto; Purchased with funds donated by Greg Latremoille, 2014, 2014/6. © Christi Belcourt

Sisíthuŋwaŋ Dakhóta artist, Tablecloth, 1900–1910, wool, glass beads, brass beads, and cotton thread, National Museum of the American Indian, Smithsonian Institution, 12/814. Photo by NMAI Photo Services

D. Y. Begay (Navajo), Náhookǫsjí Hai (Winter in the North)/Biboon Giiwedinong (It Is Winter in the North), 2018, wool and natural dyes, The Minneapolis Institute of Art, The Jane and James Emison Endowment for Native American Art, 2019.41. Photo: Addison Doty; Minneapolis Institute of Art. © D. Y. Begay

Elizabeth Hickox (Wiyot), Lidded container, ca. 1924, twining and porcupine quills, Denver Art Museum Collection: Purchase from Grace Nicholson, 1946.388A-B. Photograph © Denver Art Museum

Jamie Okuma (Luiseño/Shoshone–Bannock), Adaptation II, 2012, shoes designed by Christian Louboutin, leather, glass beads, porcupine quills, sterling silver cones, brass sequins, chicken feathers, cloth, deer rawhide, and buckskin, Minneapolis Institute of Art, Bequest of Virginia Doneghy, by exchange 2012.68.1A,B. Photo: Minneapolis Institute of Art. © 2012 Jamie Okuma

Cherish Parrish (Ottawa/Pottawatomi), The Next Generation—Carriers of Culture, 2018, black ash and sweetgrass, Courtesy of Cherish Parrish – Odawa & Pottawatomi – Gun Lake Band. Photo by Richard Church, Odawa-Pottawatomi. © Cherish Parrish

Keri Ataumbi (Kiowa/Comanche)/Jamie Okuma (Luiseño/Shoshone–Bannock), Adornment: Iconic Perceptions, 2014, antique glass, 24-karat electroplated beads, buckskin, 18-karat yellow gold, sterling silver, wampum shell, freshwater pearls, rose and brilliant-cut diamonds and diamond beads, diamond briolettes, Minneapolis Institute of Art, Gift of funds from The Duncan and Nivin MacMillan Foundation, 2014.93.1-3a,b. Photo: Minneapolis Institute of Art. © 2014 Keri Ataumbi and Jamie Okuma

Nimi’ipuu (Nez Perce) artist, Bag, ca. 1900, corn husk, yarn, rawhide, and wool, Denver Art Museum Collection: Gift of Dr. Charles J. Norton, 1986.261. Photograph © Denver Art Museum

Freda Diesing (Haida), Mask, Old Woman with Labret, 1974, alderwood, paint, hair, cedar bark, abalone, glass beads, moose hide, bone or plastic, Courtesy of the Royal BC Museum, RBCM15057. Photo: Courtesy of the Royal BC Museum and Archives. © Canadian Westcoast Art

Joan Hill (Muskogee Creek and Cherokee), Women’s Voices at the Council, 1990, acrylic on canvas, Gift of the artist on behalf of the Governor’s Commission on the Status of Women, 1990, Oklahoma State Art Collection, courtesy of the Oklahoma Arts Council. © Joan Hill

Ramona Sakiestewa (Hopi), Nebula 22 & 23 (diptych), 2009, tapestry, wool warp and dyed wool weft, Collection of Carl and Marilynn Thoma, 2009.021a-b. © 2009 Ramona L. Sakiestewa, courtesy of and photo by the Carl & Marilynn Thoma Art Foundation

Kay Walkingstick Project for NMAI, Smithsonian Institution, Washington DC

Kay WalkingStick (Cherokee), Venere Alpina, 1997, oil on canvas (left), steel mesh over acrylic, saponified wax, and plastic stones (right), Minneapolis Institute of Art, The David and Margaret Christenson Endowment for Art Acquisition, 2018.46a,b. Photo: Minneapolis Institute of Art. © Kay WalkingStick ’97.

Rebecca Belmore (Anishinaabe), Fringe, 2007, transparency in light box (one of an edition of three), Minneapolis Institute of Art, Gift of funds from Donna and Cargill MacMillan Jr., 2010.56. © Rebecca Belmore

Dorothy Grant (Haida) with Robert Davidson (Haida/Tlinglit), Hummingbird Copper Dress, 1989, wool, Denver Art Museum Collection: Native Arts acquisition fund, 2010.490 A-C. Photograph © Denver Art Museum. © 1989 Dorothy Grant and Robert Davidson

Apsáalooke (Crow) artist, Dress, ca. 1930, cotton, bead, bone, skin, wool, and colorant, Denver Art Museum Collection: The L. D. and Ruth Bax Collection, 1985.46. Photograph © Denver Art Museum

Kelly Church (Ottawa/Pottawatomi), Sustaining Traditions—Digital Memories, 2018, black ash, sweetgrass, Rit dye, copper, vial EAB, and flash drive with black ash teachings, Courtesy of the artist. Photo by Richard Church, Odawa-Pottawatomi. © Kelly Church

Joyce Growing Thunder Fogarty (Dakhóta/Nakoda), Juanita Growing Thunder Fogarty (Dakhóta/Nakoda), and Jessa Rae Growing Thunder (Dakhóta/Nakoda), Give Away Horses (dress and accessories), 2006, deer hide, glass beads, canvas, thread, leather, moose hide, German silver, porcupine quills, feathers, elk hide, brass bells, ribbon, silk ribbons, and brass thimbles, National Museum of the American Indian, Smithsonian Institution, 26/5818-5821. Photo by NMAI Photo Services. © J Growing Thunder

Central Yup’ik, St. Lawrence Island, Alaska, artist, Parka, 1890–1910, seal intestine, sinew, walrus fur, aniline dyes, animal hide, polar bear fur, and thread, Fenimore Art Museum, Cooperstown, New York, Gift of Eugene Victor Thaw Art Foundation, Thaw Collection of American Indian Art, T0763. Photo: John Bigelow Taylor, NYC

Nellie Two Bear Gates (Gathering of Clouds Woman, Iháƞktȟuƞwaƞna Dakhóta, Standing Rock Reservation), Valise, 1880–1910, beads, hide, metal, oilcloth, and thread, Minneapolis Institute of Art, The Robert J. Ulrich Works of Art Purchase Fund, 2010.19. Photo: Minneapolis Institute of Art

Innu (Naskapi) artist, Hunting coat, ca. 1750, caribou hide and pigment, Minneapolis Institute of Art, The Robert J. Ulrich Works of Art Purchase Fund, 2012.27. Photo: Minneapolis Institute of Art

Andrea Carlson (Ojibwe), Sunshine on a Cannibal, 2015, oil, acrylic, ink, colored pencil, and graphite on paper, Minneapolis Institute of Art, The Mr. and Mrs. Bernard M. Granum Fund 2017.29A-X. Photo: Minneapolis Institute of Art. © 2015 Andrea Carlson

Marianne Nicolson "The Container for Souls"

Marianne Nicolson (Kwakwa̱ka̱’wakw, Dzawada̱’enux̱w First Nations), Bax̱wa̱na’tsi: The Container for Souls, 2006, Glass, cedar, light fixtures, Collection of the Vancouver Art Gallery, Purchased with funds donated by the Audain Foundation, VAG, 2007.4.1 a-c, Photo: Rachel Topham, Vancouver Art Gallery.

Hearts of Our People: Native Women Artists was organized by Jill Ahlberg Yohe, associate curator of Native American Art at the Minneapolis Institute of Art, and Teri Greeves, an independent curator and member of the Kiowa Nation. Robyn Kennedy, Renwick Gallery manager, coordinated the presentation in Washington, D.C. Anya Montiel, curator of American and Native American women’s art and craft.

Images courtesy Renwick Gallery.

March 10, 2020

The City Within: Brooklyn Photographs by Alex Webb and Rebecca Norris Webb at Museum of the City of New York, March 11 – September 20, 2020

“The City Within: Brooklyn Photographs by Alex Webb and Rebecca Norris Webb features more than 30 images culled from the collaborative eponymous series started in 2014. The show offers a poignant and powerful portrait of the borough that the artists have called home for some 20 years.

Over the course of its history, Brooklyn has transformed from farmland to a bedroom community to a buzzy destination. For The City Within, the Webbs have traversed nearly every corner of Brooklyn, showing its dichotomy as a bustling, diverse metropolis and a place full of green spaces and tranquility. While much of the world now associates Brooklyn with film shoots, hipsters, and artists, it is also an archipelago of neighborhoods that is even more multicultural than it was over a century ago. The duo’s photographs of Brooklyn tell a broader American story, one that touches on immigration, community, nature, and home.” — Museum of the City of New York

“I’m not sure we could have done this (series) without the impetus of our eventual departure from Brooklyn,” says Alex. “The vantage point of our leaving enabled us to see our home borough with fresh eyes. This allowed each of us to say farewell creatively in our own ways — me by photographing the streets, Rebecca by photographing and writing about the green spaces near where we live.”

The show highlights a particularly poignant time for the Webbs to be focusing their lenses on their home versus far-flung locations. Rebecca explains, “Alex and I will be leaving our Park Slope neighborhood sometime in the next few years, so the project is a kind of farewell to Brooklyn – our home for 20-plus years.”

Brooklyn. Brownsville. Easter Parade/Easter Egg Hunt. Some Red Hook

Alex Webb. Brownsville, Easter Sunday, 2016. Chromogenic development print. Courtesy of the artist

Alex Webb. Park Slope, 2018. Chromogenic development print. Courtesy of the artist

Brooklyn. Park Slope, Williamsburg, Bushwick/Bedford Stuyvesant, streets

Alex Webb. Williamsburg, 2018. Chromogenic development print. Courtesy of the artist

Brooklyn. Street scenes. Ditmas. 18th Ave

Alex Webb. Borough Park, 2016. Chromogenic development print. Courtesy of the artist

Brooklyn. Flatbush area. Parkside Empire Street Festival. birthday party

Alex Webb. Prospect-Lefferts Gardens, 2015. Chromogenic development print. Courtesy of the artist

Brooklyn. Around Farragut Housing projects

Alex Webb. Vinegar Hill, 2016. Chromogenic development print. Courtesy of the artist

Rebecca Norris Webb. Star, Prospect Park, 2015. Chromogenic development print. Courtesy of the artist

Rebecca Norris Webb. Our Garden, Brooklyn Botanic Garden, 2016. Chromogenic development print. Courtesy of the artist

Rebecca Norris Webb. Shimmering, Prospect Park, 2018. Chromogenic development print. Courtesy of the artist

Rebecca Norris Webb. In the Rain, Brooklyn Botanic Garden, 2017. Chromogenic development print. Courtesy of the artist

Rebecca Norris Webb. Family Tree, Prospect Park, 2015. Chromogenic development print. Courtesy of the artist

Rebecca Norris Webb. Under the Lilacs, Brooklyn Botanic Garden, 2016. Chromogenic development print. Courtesy of the artist

Rebecca Norris Webb. Two Worlds, Prospect Park, 2013. Chromogenic development print. Courtesy of the artist

Rebecca Norris Webb. Winter Storm, Prospect Park, 2016. Chromogenic development print. Courtesy of the artist

Rebecca Norris Webb. Night Before Aretha Died, Brooklyn Botanic Garden, 2017. Chromogenic development print. Courtesy of the artist

“Alex’s compositions reverberate with the energy of color, contrasting shadow and light, and movement. Rebecca’s stay true to her poetic roots, presenting dreamlike, quiet and nuanced images that are more like a meditation,” says Sean Corcoran, curator of prints and photographs, Museum of the City of New York. “In The City Within, they each create distinctive narratives, but expertly weave their viewpoints together into a harmonious ensemble. And, like the borough itself, their view of Brooklyn is an exquisite union of visual and emotional complexity.”

Images courtesy Museum of the City of New York.

March 6, 2020

Jim Dine’s Pinocchio at Chrysler Museum of Art, February 28 – May 17, 2020

“The Chrysler Museum of Art presents the original story of a beloved character in Jim Dine’s Pinocchio. The exhibition features the entire portfolio of lithographs by Dine, an internationally acclaimed multimedia artist. A gift to the Chrysler from Richmond-based collectors Charlotte and Gil Minor, the portfolio is new to the Museum’s collection and includes images as well as words from the first story of Pinocchio.

As an established artist, Dine incorporated Pinocchio into his practice. However, the artist didn’t model his work after the iconic Disney film. Instead, he harkened back to Carlo Collodi’s Le avventure di Pinocchio: Storia di un burattino (The Adventures of Pinocchio: Story of a Puppet). The work of the Italian writer and journalist was published in the serial newspaper Il Giornale per i bambini (Journal for Children) in 1881 and found Pinocchio breaking promises and facing life-threatening dangers. Collodi initially wrote 15 chapters of the story, with Pinocchio dying a violent death by hanging. However, readers loved the figure so much that Collodi resurrected Pinocchio and went on to write 21 additional tales, finally ending the serial in spring 1883. In that same year, a publisher compiled all the stories and bound them into one volume titled Le avventure di Pinocchio (The Adventure of Pinocchio) with illustrations by Enrico Mazzanti.” — Chrysler Museum of Art

All images: Jim Dine (American b. 1935). Pinocchio (portfolio), 2006. A suite of 44 lithographs on Hahnemühle paper contained within a wooden portfolio box. Printed at Atelier Michael Woolworth, Paris and published by Steidl Verlag, Göttingen © Jim Dine, licensed by Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York Gift of Charlotte and Gil Minor 2019.17.1

When Pinocchio debuted in theaters in 1940, Dine became enamored with the rambunctious wooden puppet’s sordid journey to become a real boy. “I was six years old when I saw the Disney film. It was really frightening,” Dine said. “His story resonates with me as a person who’s been a boy. It is also a wonderful metaphor for the idea of making art; it’s alchemical. It’s an incredibly direct way of speaking about the act.”

This exhibition was organized by the Chrysler Museum of Art. Kimberli Gant, Ph.D. is the Chrysler’s McKinnon Curator of Modern & Contemporary Art.

Images courtesy Chrysler Museum of Art.

March 5, 2020

Countryside, The Future at Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, February 20 – August 14, 2020

“The Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum presents Countryside, The Future, an exhibition addressing urgent environmental, political, and socioeconomic issues through the lens of architect and urbanist Rem Koolhaas and AMO, the think tank of the Office for Metropolitan Architecture (OMA). A unique exhibition for the Guggenheim rotunda, Countryside, The Future explores radical changes in the vast nonurban areas of Earth with an immersive installation premised on original research. The project extends investigative work already underway by AMO, Koolhaas, and students at the Harvard Graduate School of Design; the Central Academy of Fine Arts, Beijing; Wageningen University, Netherlands; and the University of Nairobi.

The exhibition explores artificial intelligence and automation, the effects of genetic experimentation, political radicalization, global warming, mass and micro migration, large-scale territorial management, human-animal ecosystems, subsidies and tax incentives, the impact of the digital on the physical world, and other developments that are altering landscapes across the globe.” — Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum

“In the past decades, I have noticed that while much of our energies and intelligence have been focused on the urban areas of the world—under the influence of global warming, the market economy, American tech companies, African and European initiatives, Chinese politics, and other forces—the countryside has changed almost beyond recognition,” stated Koolhaas. “The story of this transformation is largely untold, and it is particularly meaningful for AMO to present it in one of the world’s great museums in one of the world’s densest cities.”

Installation views of Countryside, The Future. Photos by Corrado Serra.

Countryside, The Future is organized by Troy Conrad Therrien, Curator of Architecture and Digital Initiatives, Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, in collaboration with Rem Koolhaas and Samir Bantal, Director of AMO, with Ashley Mendelsohn, Assistant Curator, Architecture and Digital Initiatives, at the Guggenheim.