Provenance Research

Provenance Research Project

The Memphis Brooks Museum of Art is participating in the nationwide effort to identify works of art that may have been illegally confiscated from their rightful owners by the Nazi regime during World War II. Committed to the responsible stewardship of its collection, the museum is conducting in-depth provenance research on a number of paintings in the permanent collection, in compliance with the guidelines issued by the American Association of Museums in 1999 and 2001.

Of Salt and Spirit: Black Quilters in the American South
The Summer Art Garden: A Flash of Sun
Navigating Knowledge
Suchitra Mattai: with abundance we meet
In the Moment: Art from the 1950s to Now
Memphis on the Mississippi (Ode to Tom Lee)
Art of the African Diaspora
Power & Absence: Women in Europe, 1500 – 1680
2025 Mid-South Scholastic Art Awards
Art Builds Creativity 2023 - 2024
2024 Mid-South Scholastic Art Awards
Inspired Aging: Wellness and Creative Courage
Memphis College of Art, 1936-2020: An Enduring Legacy
David Uzochukwu: Bodies of Water
Who You See and Who We Are: A reflection on teenage identity, culture, and change
Calida Rawles: Away with the Tides
Thomas Jackson: Chaotic Equilibrium
Starry, Starry, Winter Garden
Beyond the Surface: The Art of Handmade Paper
List of paintings
Provenance Research ProjectProvenance Research Project
'Balthazar, from an altarpiece depicting the Adoration of the Magi,' Unknown Artist (Netherlandish (probably Antwerp), ca. 1515

Provenance Research

Provenance Research Project

The Memphis Brooks Museum of Art is participating in the nationwide effort to identify works of art that may have been illegally confiscated from their rightful owners by the Nazi regime during World War II. Committed to the responsible stewardship of its collection, the museum is conducting in-depth provenance research on a number of paintings in the permanent collection, in compliance with the guidelines issued by the American Association of Museums in 1999 and 2001.

Of Salt and Spirit: Black Quilters in the American South
The Summer Art Garden: A Flash of Sun
Navigating Knowledge
Suchitra Mattai: with abundance we meet
In the Moment: Art from the 1950s to Now
Memphis on the Mississippi (Ode to Tom Lee)
Art of the African Diaspora
Power & Absence: Women in Europe, 1500 – 1680
David Uzochukwu: Bodies of Water
Memphis College of Art, 1936-2020: An Enduring Legacy
Who You See and Who We Are: A reflection on teenage identity, culture, and change
Thomas Jackson: Chaotic Equilibrium
Starry, Starry, Winter Garden
Calida Rawles: Away with the Tides
Beyond the Surface: The Art of Handmade Paper
Summer Art Garden: Creatures of Paradise
China Blues: The World in Blue and White
Andrea Morales: Roll Down Like Water
Christian Siriano: People Are People
Thomas Jackson: Chaotic Equilibrium
Sense-ational!: The Art of the Five Senses
Art Builds Creativity 2022 - 2023
Black American Portraits
Tommy Kha: Eye is Another
2023 Mid-South Scholastic Art Awards
The Human Zoo by Kent Monkman
Drawing the Curtain: Maurice Sendak's Designs for Opera and Ballet
Harmonia Rosales: Master Narrative
Persevere and Resist: The Strong Black Women of Elizabeth Catlett
Ofrendas: Día de los Muertos Altars
Brooks Outside: Evanescent
Another Dimension: Digital Art in Memphis
Henry Ossawa Tanner: The Thankful Poor
Decorative Arts Trust: A 35th Anniversary Exhibition
Hassan Hajjaj: My Rock Stars
Brooks Outside: RedBall Memphis
Wonder, Whimsy, Wild: Folk Art in America
Rotunda Projects: Yinka Shonibare MBE
Veda Reed: Day into Night
Red Grooms: Traveling Correspondent
2017 Mid-South Scholastic Art Awards
Brooks Outside: Tape Art
A Feast for the Eyes: 200 Years of American Still-Life Painting from the Hevrdejs Collection
100 Gifts for 100 Years
Coming to America: Lachaise, Laurent, Nadelman, and Zorach, 1914 - 1945
Georgia O'Keeffe: Visions of Hawai'i
2019 Mid-South Scholastic Art Awards
American Haiku: The Woodcuts of Ted Faiers
Bouguereau & America
Rotunda Projects: Federico Uribe
Painted Words: Poets and Painters in Print, 1869 – 1967
Natural Curiosity: Beth Van Hoesen
Renditions with Terry Adkins: Native Son (Circus)
Play Station
Ernest C. Withers: Baseball Photographs
Albrecht Dürer's "Small Passion" Series
Photography in Memphis
Claire Van Vliet: Illustrating Babel
2020 Mid-South Scholastic Art Awards
Native Voices, 1950s to Now: Art for a New Understanding
A Journey Towards Self-Definition: African American Artists in the Permanent Collection
Mid-South Scholastic Art Awards Exhibition 2021
Brooks Outside: Pour Me Another
Faig Ahmed: Secret Garden
Mid-South Scholastic Art Awards and Exhibition
Rotunda Projects: Monika Grzymala
Paradise Lost: Albrecht Dürer's Stolen Eden
Ke Francis and Hoopsnake Press
Andy Warhol's Little Red Book
Memphis Artists in Real Time
Andy Warhol: Silver Clouds
Dia de los Muertos: Student Altar Exhibition
Mona Hatoum: Misbah
On Christopher Street: Transgender Portraits by Mark Seliger
List of paintings
Provenance Research Project
'Balthazar, from an altarpiece depicting the Adoration of the Magi,' Unknown Artist (Netherlandish (probably Antwerp), ca. 1515
No exhibitions were found
No exhibitions were found

August 17, 2023 - January 7, 2024

Black American Portraits

'Black American Portraits' reframes the history of portraiture to center Black American subjects, sitters, and spaces. The exhibition chronicles the many ways in which Black Americans have used portraiture to envision themselves in their own eyes.

Learn More
Barkley Leonnard Hendricks, 'Self Portrait', 1977, © Barkley L. Hendricks. Rennie Collection, Vancouver
Barkley Leonnard Hendricks, 'Self Portrait', 1977, © Barkley L. Hendricks. Rennie Collection, Vancouver

May 12th - July/August 2023

Sense-ational!: The Art of the Five Senses

Explore how artists convey sight, smell, sound, taste, and touch in their masterpieces. This interactive exhibit will highlight art from Memphis’s art collection ranging from floral watercolor to Cubist prints. 

Learn More
Walter I. Anderson (American (active in Mississippi), 1903 - 1965), Floral Decorative, 1951, Watercolor, Brooks Memorial Art Gallery purchase, funds provided by the Memphis Park Commission, the Brooks Fine Arts Foundation and Mrs. Walter I. Anderson, 69.7.2
Walter I. Anderson (American (active in Mississippi), 1903 - 1965), Floral Decorative, 1951, Watercolor, Brooks Memorial Art Gallery purchase, funds provided by the Memphis Park Commission, the Brooks Fine Arts Foundation and Mrs. Walter I. Anderson, 69.7.2

February 15th - April 30th

Art Builds Creativity

This dynamic exhibition features artwork created by the Memphis-area students who participated in the 2022-23 Art Builds Creativity (ABC) program.

Learn More

January 20 - February 19, 2023

2023 Mid-South Scholastic Art Awards

Learn More
“Kendall” by Sydney Wickens, age 18, grade 12, Arlington High School, Drawing & Illustration, Senior Division Best in Show
“Kendall” by Sydney Wickens, age 18, grade 12, Arlington High School, Drawing & Illustration, Senior Division Best in Show

January 27 - October 29, 2023

Tommy Kha: Eye is Another

This site-specific, photography-based installation by artist Tommy Kha explores themes of identity, (in)visibility, and sense of place and is presented as part of the inaugural, state-wide Tennessee Triennial for Contemporary Art organized by Tristar Arts.

Learn More
Tommy Kha, 'Eye is Another', 2022-23, Inkjet prints on Photo Tex, dimensions variable
Tommy Kha, 'Eye is Another', 2022-23, Inkjet prints on Photo Tex, dimensions variable

March 10 - June 25, 2023

Harmonia Rosales: Master Narrative

Through her visceral paintings that weave the tales of West African Yorùbà religion, Greco-Roman mythology, and Christianity with artistic techniques of European Old Masters, Harmonia Rosales rewrites the narrative from her perspective in a way that bridges the vastest of oceans and collapses the passing of millennia.

Learn More
Harmonia Rosales, 'Migration of the Gods', 2021 Oil with iron oxide and 24 karat gold leaf on Belgian linen mounted on wood panel 36 × 72 in. Memphis Brooks Museum of Art, Museum purchase, 2022.2
Harmonia Rosales, 'Migration of the Gods', 2021 Oil with iron oxide and 24 karat gold leaf on Belgian linen mounted on wood panel 36 × 72 in. Memphis Brooks Museum of Art, Museum purchase, 2022.2

Día de los Muertos Altar Show

Our annual ofrendas exhibition celebrates the tradition of honoring deceased loved ones on Día de los Muertos with altars. Coinciding with our Día de los Muertos Community Day, this exhibition displays the work of local Memphis students who have constructed ofrendas for deceased people who they admire.

Learn More
Ode To Flora, Fauna, and Frida, By Brighton Elementary 5th grade students and Art Educator Kathryn Vaughn, 2019
Ode To Flora, Fauna, and Frida, By Brighton Elementary 5th grade students and Art Educator Kathryn Vaughn, 2019

Oct 7 - Jan 8

Drawing the Curtain: Maurice Sendak's Designs for Opera and Ballet

Calling all wild things, mischievous children, and lovable characters! Come to the Brooks and be transported from page to stage to faraway places...

Learn More
Maurice Sendak, 'Diorama of Moishe scrim and flower proscenium (Where the Wild Things Are),' 1979-1983, watercolor, pen and ink, and graphite pencil on laminated paperboard. © The Maurice Sendak Foundation. The Morgan Library & Museum, Bequest of Maurice Sendak, 2013.103:69, 70, 71.
Maurice Sendak, 'Diorama of Moishe scrim and flower proscenium (Where the Wild Things Are),' 1979-1983, watercolor, pen and ink, and graphite pencil on laminated paperboard. © The Maurice Sendak Foundation. The Morgan Library & Museum, Bequest of Maurice Sendak, 2013.103:69, 70, 71.

Febuary 25 - September 2026

Memphis College of Art, 1936-2020: An Enduring Legacy

For eighty-four years, the Memphis College of Art offered a rigorous arts education to students from across the country and around the world. Through this exhibition of ninety faculty, administrators, and graduates, 'Memphis College of Art, 1936-2020: An Enduring Legacy' reflects on the school’s historical impact and celebrates its continued legacy regionally and beyond.

Learn More

June 10, 2026 - Sept. 2026

David Uzochukwu: Bodies of Water

David Uzochukwu: Bodies of Water is a poetic meditation on identity, migration, and belonging. In his first solo museum exhibition, Uzochukwu presents hybrid beings—part human, part animal—who inhabit surreal, dreamlike landscapes. His use of nonhuman features amplifies, rather than diminishes, the strength and dignity of his subjects.‍

Learn More
David Uzochukwu, Gurgle, 2020. Archival inkjet print, 40 x 60 in. Courtesy of the artist. © 2025 David Uzochukwu. Courtesy of the artist and Galerie Gomis.
David Uzochukwu, Gurgle, 2020. Archival inkjet print, 40 x 60 in. Courtesy of the artist. © 2025 David Uzochukwu. Courtesy of the artist and Galerie Gomis.

Nazi-Era Research

Between 1933 and 1945, the Nazi Party systemically persecuted and stripped Jewish people from Nazi-occupied Europe of their possessions. These objects were looted, sold, dispersed, or destroyed. The Memphis Brooks Museum of Art began Nazi-Era provenance research in 2002, focusing on all European paintings in the permanent collection that transferred ownership or have gaps in their provenance from 1933 to 1945.

Although we cannot conclude that a work of art was looted or appropriated by the Nazis simply because it has incomplete or unverified information in its provenance, gaps do indicate that more robust research must be conducted. Many times, these gaps in provenance are the result of lost or destroyed gallery records, or the requested anonymity of a past owner. Several of the museum’s paintings have been researched and their provenance has been established, while others continue to be investigated.

The American Association of Museums has developed a Nazi-Era Provenance Internet Portal which provides a searchable registry of objects in United States museum collections that fit the criteria discussed above.

In allowing public access, we join with the international art museum community in the diligent search for items seized or looted during the Nazi era. If you have any inquiries or information about these items, please contact the museum at provresearch@brooksmuseum.org.

‍

Colonial-Era Research

Throughout history, many works of art from around the world were stolen, forcibly sold, or taken without consent as the direct result of Colonialism. The communities whose objects were taken experienced trauma, violence, and loss. Looting is not just an issue of the past. These problems persist globally due to war, riot, shifts in government, organized crime, terrorism, and natural disasters and, unfortunately, looted objects emerge on the art market to this day.

The Memphis Brooks Museum of Art is committed to not only investigating the history of objects in our collection with possible links to Colonialism, but also to ensuring that all incoming acquisitions and gifts have a verified past that align with our ethical obligations.

‍

‍

Enhance your connection with the world of art

There are many ways for individuals, foundations, and corporations to support Memphis Brooks Museum of Art

Ways to give

Galleries

You can start your visit to the Memphis Brooks Museum of Art online and purchase your tickets before your arrive.

Plan your visit

Permanent Collections

Information about the permanent collections of the Brooks Museum

Interior with Soldiers
Provenance Research Paintings
View CollectionView Collection