For information on exhibitions that opened before January 2016, please contact the
public relations office.
August 17–December 2, 2018
Esther Nisenthal Krinitz was 12 in 1939 when the Nazis came to her Polish village. She remembers every detail through a series of exquisitely embroidered fabric collages. Her art is an eyewitness account of tragedy and healing. Listen in to the Rochester Jewish Film Festival interview on Connections with WXXI’s Evan Dawson.
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Shown: Passover Matzos, (detail) Embroidery and fabric collage, 1998.
August 3–October 14, 2018
Bruce Nauman’s No, No, New Museum is an iconic work of video art from the 1980s by one of the medium’s most influential practitioners. Its exhibition at MAG is made possible by a partnership with Art Bridges—arts patron Alice Walton’s effort to share outstanding works of American art with museums across the country.
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shown: Bruce Nauman (American, b. 1941)
No, No, New Museum, 1987
Videotape (color, sound), 62 minutes
© Art Bridges
July 15–September 9, 2018
Josephine Tota was a first-generation Italian immigrant who spent much of her adult life working as a seamstress in Rochester. In her early seventies, she discovered painting as a means to transform a difficult past into harrowing, self-referential images. Channeling the world around and within her through the legacy of religious art and the language of Surrealism, she produced a decade’s worth of visionary images in the privacy of her home before succumbing to dementia. Fourteen tempera paintings from Memorial Art Gallery’s permanent collection form the core of the exhibition, augmented by approximately 70 from private lenders.
A full-color catalog documents Tota’s contribution to the realm of authentic outsider art and is available for sale in THE STORE @ MAG.
shown: Josephine Tota, Untitled (Self-portrait), 1987
shown: Nancy Jurs, Artist Statement (My Life Has Gotten So Busy, It Now Takes Up All of My Time), 2008
July 15–September 9, 2018
My Life Has Gotten So Busy that It Now Takes Up All of My Time is an exhibition of sculptural installations and photographs by Rochester-based artist Nancy Jurs that focuses on self-portraiture, autobiography, and personal narrative. Jurs is well known as a potter who trained at Rochester Institute of Technology’s School for American Craftsmen. Less known are her sculptures and installations that employ found, unaltered objects, which evoke personages or anthropomorphic visions, and her manipulated photographs. These works of art represent a surprising and compelling conceptual thread throughout Jurs’ career.
April 20–August 5, 2018
Wards of Time: Photographs of Antiquities by Larry Merrill includes a selection of images from an ongoing series by Rochester photographer Larry Merrill. In this work, Merrill directs our gaze, magnifying and abstracting the texture and tonal variations of ancient sculptures that signify the accrual of time. As part of the series, Merrill visited the Memorial Art Gallery’s collection and photographed 3rd century BCE miniature sculpted Egyptian heads, which will be on view adjacent to their photographs. Merrill’s photographs offer a reflection on time and decay, on the museum artifact, on history, and on our own mortality. Learn more
Bill Viola: Martyrs–Earth, Air, Fire, and Water
October 11, 2017–July 22, 2018
Martyrs is overtly rooted in art historical and religious iconography. Viola said: “The Greek word for martyr originally meant ‘witness.’ In today’s world, the mass media turns us all into witnesses to the suffering of others. The martyrs’ past lives of action can help illuminate our modern lives of inaction. They also exemplify the human capacity to bear pain, hardship, and even death in order to remain faithful to their values, beliefs, and principles. This piece represents ideas of action, fortitude, perseverance, endurance, and sacrifice.” learn more
shown:
Bill Viola
Earth Martyr, 2014; Wind Martyr, 2014; Fire Martyr, 2014; Water Martyr, 2014
Color high-definition video on a flat-panel display mounted vertically on wall
42 3/8 x 24 1/2 x 2 5/8 in. (107.6 x 62.1 x 6.8 cm)
7:10 minutes
Photos: Kira Perov
April 22–June 17, 2018
NOSFERATU (The Undead) is the first of three exhibitions to be presented as part of “Reflections on Place,” a series of media art commissions inspired by the City of Rochester and curated by world-renowned authority on the moving image John G. Hanhardt. Experience Javier Téllez’ new installation, which explores the history of cinema and the medium of film itself to address the subject of mental illness. Learn more
December 21, 2017 – April 8, 2018
Rosalyn Engelman (American, born 1938) is a painter, sculptor, and installation artist. She works with a variety of materials and produces art with a striking range of expressive content. In all of her work, Engelman is searching for beauty, hope, and transcendence. This exhibition features five works from Engelman’s 2003–04 “Echo Sonata” series, which she created following numerous trips to Japan with her husband between 1975 and 1999. Engelman is a University of Rochester alumna, and currently lives and works in New York, NY. Learn more
October 8–December 31, 2017
extended by popular demand to January 7, 2018
This exhibition is the first to showcase the digitally crafted works of Wendell Castle, acclaimed figure of the American art furniture movement. It will feature approximately 40 works of art, including several historically important examples that inspired his latest achievements.
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Both films featured in this exhibition are open-captioned.
shown: Wendell Castle Remastered, Long Night (detail), 2011, photo by Adrien Millot
Courtesy of Friedman Benda Gallery and Wendell Castle.
Wendell Castle Remastered at the Memorial Art Gallery is an adaptation of the exhibition originally presented at the Museum of Arts and Design, New York, in 2015.
August 24–December 10, 2017
The exhibition Kiyochika and Japan, Transformed showcases over 30 color woodblock prints by Kobayashi Kiyochika (1847-1915), who witnessed firsthand the transformation of Japan when it opened to the West after centuries of isolation. These prints, drawn from the extraordinary collections of University of Rochester alumnus Arthur R. Miller, emphasize the complexities of modern and traditional life in late-19th century Japan. Kiyochika’s work is characterized by his innovative use of light and shadow as well as his juxtapositions of subject matter, both old and new, in his rapidly changing world.
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shown: Kobayashi Kiyochika, Three Geisha: Kayo of Kyoto, Hitotsuru of Osaka, and Kokichi of Tokyo c. 1878. Collection of Arthur R. Miller.
June 30 – September 17, 2017
This single-channel video installation features Lady Bunny, an iconic drag performer. She speaks on politics and current events, dances and lip-syncs. She is a vivid presence, especially considering the wall-size scale of the video.
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shown: Here she is…v1 (detail) 2015. © Charles Atlas; Courtesy of the artist
September 7–Sunday, September 10, 2017
Opening Performance 6 pm on Thursday, September 7
Rainforest IV is an immersive audio installation created by the Eastman Audio Research Studio (EARS) at the Eastman School of Music, under the direction of Oliver Schneller, with assistance from Allen Topolski, Associate Professor of Art at the University of Rochester. Rainforest is a sonic environment made of handmade, uniquely designed sculptural objects suspended in space and fitted with electric transducers, turning them into resonant sound objects.
At this special opening event, Missy Pfohl Smith, Director of the University of Rochester’s Dance and Movement Program, Anne Harris Wilcox, and Rose Pasquarello Beauchamp will improvise a performance to which the musicians will sonically respond.
Originally conceived by sound artist and pianist David Tudor in 1973, Rainforest IV is a sonic environment made of handmade, uniquely designed sculptural objects suspended in space and fitted with electric transducers, turning them into resonant sound objects.
shown: Installation of Rainforest IV (1973), L’Espace Pierre Cardin, Paris, 1976. Photograph by Ralph Jones (American, b. 1951) © 1976 Ralph Jones. All rights reserved. Image courtesy of Getty Research Institute, Los Angeles.
Materials generously donated by Metalico Rochester.
May 19–August 13, 2017
In honor of New York Women’s Suffrage Centennial in 2017, this exhibition explores the power of the female gaze in creating potent and complex images of mothers, thinkers, vixens, heroes, creators, warriors, and agitators.
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shown: Elizabeth Catlett, Harriet, 1975
April 7–June 18, 2017
The Media Arts Watch gallery will be transformed into a screening room with works projected onto the walls by Terence Gower, Juan Downey, and Alexander Kluge. learn more
shown: Juan Downey, Hard Times and Culture (still)
RoCo: February 3–March 19, 2017
MAG: February 19–May 7, 2017
See six Pax Kaffraria “chapters” at MAG; one chapter at Rochester Contemporary Art Center (RoCo). Mural-sized narratives of southern African culture.
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shown: Fully Belly II, 2014 (detail)
January 30 – April 30, 2017
Rauschenberg responded to the rise of mass-media culture during the 1950s and 1960s, by actually making mass media his artistic medium.
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shown: Surface Series #53 (from Currents), 1970. ©Estate of Robert Rauschenberg / Licensed by VAGA, New York, NY.
January 13-March 26, 2017
As Gibson’s and Recoder’s work suggests, film is not only about images, storytelling and entertainment, but also possesses mechanical, and sculptural dimensions.
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November 13, 2016–January 29, 2017
in the Grand Gallery
Includes early figure drawings, lesser-known book illustrations, detailed Italian landscapes, the “tessellations” for which he became famous, and several examples of his signature
architectural fantasies in which stairways seem to go nowhere or to mysteriously circle back upon themselves.
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October 7-December 31, 2016
Bodies in Space was the inaugural art exhibition of MAG’s Media Arts Initiative.
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September 9-December 31, 2016
in the Lockhart Gallery
Pictured: Indian, Priests Worshipping the Image of Shri Nathaji, ca. 1820. Opaque watercolor, ink, gold, silver paint.
August 21–October 16, 2016
in the Grand Gallery
Pictured: Western Afghanistan, War Rug. Knotted wool.
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August 21–October 16, 2016
in the Grand Gallery
Pictured: Binh Danh and Robert Schultz, detail of Unidentified African American soldier with cannon backdrop. Chlorophyll print, resin. Courtesy of the artists.
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June 10–August 28, 2016 in the Lockhart Gallery
Pictured:Keith Haring, Apocalypse , 1988. Serigraph. Gift of Sharon and Neil Norry, and Lewis Norry and Jill Katz Norry.
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May 22–July 24, 2016 in the Grand Gallery
Pictured: Robert Polidori, 2732 Orleans Ave., New Orleans, LA (2005). Collection of the artist.
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April 29–May 29, 2016 in the Lockhart Gallery
Pictured: Reginald Marsh, Ice Cream Cones (1938). Gift of a Friend of the Gallery.
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January 31–April 24, 2016
in the Grand Gallery & Lockhart Gallery
Pictured: Tilmann Grawe (France), cocktail dress, 2003-04. Photo courtesy Johnson Publishing Company, LLC.
December 10, 2015–January 24, 2016
in the Lockhart Gallery
Pictured: Video still courtesy David Zwirner, NY/London.
October 18, 2015–January 3, 2016 in the Grand Gallery
Pictured: Carl W. Peters, Study of Hands (ca. 1940).
November 11–January 3 in the Hurlbut Gallery
Pictured: Detail of Duchamp Codex (1980s). Polaroid transfer print. Private collection, courtesy Visual Studies Workshop.
August 28–November 29, 2015 in the Lockhart Gallery
Pictured: Jacob Lawrence, After John Brown’s capture, he was put to trial for his life in Charles Town,Virginia (now West Virginia).
July 26–September 13, 2015 in the Grand Gallery
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Pictured: Spring Flowers, Jellybeans by Kate Timm
of Sterling, Cayuga Co.
May 8–August 16, 2015 in the Lockhart Gallery
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Pictured: Luciano Guarnieri, Lesser Town Square (1969). Estates of Maurice R. and Maxine B. Forman.
April 26–June 28, 2015 in the Grand Gallery
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Pictured: Luis Gispert, Living Room (from Urban Myths, PT 1) (2003). C-print.
January 25–March 29, 2015 in the Grand Gallery
Pictured: Stone Gate (2007). Collection of the artist.
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December 12, 2014–April 26, 2015 in the Lockhart Gallery
Pictured: Robert Kirschbaum, letterpress and relief print from The 42-Letter Name (2009). Gift of the artist.
October 19, 2014–January 4, 2015
in the Grand Gallery
Pictured: Gertrude Elliot, Two Little Gardeners (1951). © Random House, Inc.
October 19, 2014–January 4, 2015
in the Grand Gallery and exhibition galleries
Pictured: Matt Elson, Infinity Box No. 2: You and Me Together (2012). Courtesy of the artist.
Japanese Prints from the Arthur R. Miller Collection
August 29–November 30, 2014 in the Lockhart Gallery
Pictured: Tsukioka Yoshitoshi, Kiyohime Changing into a Serpent at Hidaka River (1890).
July 13–September 21, 2014
in the Grand Gallery
May 16–August 17, 2014 in the Lockhart Gallery
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Pictured: Action (Handlung), from A Glove (Ein Handschuh). Knapp Fund.
April 6–June 8, 2014 in the Grand Gallery
April 6–June 8, 2014 in the Grand Gallery
Pictured: Charger (2013). Collection of Dr. and Mrs. William Eby.
April 24–May 10, 2014 in the Lucy Burne Gallery
January 31–May 4, 2014 in the Lockhart Gallery
Pictured: Eduardo Paolozzi, Llalla Pallooza… Image fades but memory lingers on.
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January 19– March 16, 2014 in the Grand Gallery
Pictured: Shunsuke Kano, B&B_06 (2008). Courtesy Ewing Gallery of Art & Architecture.
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January 19– March 16, 2014 in the Grand Gallery
Pictured: Shiro Takagi, Japanese Form (Tomoe) (1964).
Marion Stratton Gould Fund.
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September 6, 2013–January 19, 2014 in the Lockhart Gallery
Pictured: Charles Demuth, Zinnias (1915). Gift of Gertrude Herdle Moore and Isabel C. Herdle in memory of their father, George L. Herdle.
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October 9–December 29, 2013 in the Grand Gallery
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Pictured: Emily Miah Stewart, Memory Map of Joe’s Pond (2004). Private collection.
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September 24–October 24, 2013 in the Lucy Burne Gallery (Creative Workshop)
Pictured: Works by Creative Workshop alumnus Daniel Lempert and former head of ceramics Alex Hazlett.
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July 14–September 8, 2013 in the Grand Gallery
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May 24–August 18, 2013 in the Lockhart Gallery
Pictured: Kiki Smith, woodcut from the portfolio Mortal (2007). Gift of the Gallery Council.
March 17-June 9, 2013 in the Grand Gallery
Pictured: Eugen Bracht Morning Star, ca. 1900
January 25–May 12, 2013 in the Lockhart Gallery
Pictured: John Marin, Three Master (1923). Gift of a Friend of the Gallery. ©2012 Estate of John Marin / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York
April 15–May 9, 2013 in the Lucy Burne Gallery (Creative Workshop)
Pictured: In Transition is by Richmond Futch Jr., who got his start as a Creative Workshop student.
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February 10–April 21, 2013 throughout the galleries
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Pictured: Winslow Homer, The Artist’s Studio in an Afternoon Fog (1894) and the new work it inspired, a bracelet by Loraine Cooley, Webster, NY.
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