Modern and Contemporary Art Galleries

Encompassing 16,000 square feet across two floors, the newly installed Modern and Contemporary Art galleries feature selections from the museum’s collection of approximately 8,000 artworks made between 1900 and today, as well as from collecting areas in African arts, Indigenous arts of North America, Latin American art, photography and textile art and fashion.

Showcasing artists from around the globe, the reinstall looks anew at the work of historically recognized figures, established contemporary artists and important emerging voices. Organized by theme rather than by chronology, the reinstallation acknowledges and transcends art historical movements, showcasing visual connections and common interests.

A dedicated gallery will highlight the work of American artist Manuel Neri, featuring two examples of his life-size figurative sculptures alongside several of his daring drawings of the human body. Artworks by notable artists represented in the galleries include a headless and hollowed humanoid made of burlap by Magdalena Abakanowicz, Mark Bradford’s poignant abstractions comprising torn paper, Robert Colescott’s painting of race-relations, Elaine de Kooning’s monumental painting of a bullfight, the quiet and minimalist lines of Agnes Martin, a double portrait by Henri Matisse, Julie Mehretu’s symphonic interpretation of a Wagner opera, a beguiling still life by Joan Miró, Robert Motherwell’s triumphant abstractions, a haunting dreamscape by Stacey Steers, an installation of Toshiko Takaezu’s sensuous ceramic vessel forms and Dyani White Hawk’s blend of modernist abstract painting that honors beadwork and porcupine quillwork by Indigenous women, among others.