Water Colors in Perspective
November 19th - January 23rd
Watercolor paintings often employ an artistic technique called perspective to create the illusion of three dimensions (depth and space) on a two-dimensional surface. Perspective enables the viewer to decipher where objects are based on their size and location in the foreground, middle ground, or background. Paintings in this exhibition from the Brooks Museum’s permanent collection, including works by Walter Anderson and Dolph Smith, depict people, buildings, and nature in ways that create a sense of space between objects.
Art of the African Diaspora
From November 19th
The broad term “diaspora” refers to the voluntary and involuntary movement of a people (and their descendants) away from an ancestral homeland. The concept of a diaspora is not solely confined to the peoples of African descent - other examples are apparent in the histories of Asian, Jewish, Latinx and other groups of peoples across time. This exhibition includes examples of both abstract art and figurative art, sometimes within a single work of art. Figurative art depicts people, objects, or events in the real world. Abstract art does not necessarily represent the real world, but instead uses shapes, forms, colors, and textures to explore emotions and ideas.
On Christopher Street: Transgender Portraits by Mark Seliger
September 18, 2021 – January 9, 2022
Mark Seliger, a well-known photographer, has captured striking portraits of some of the transgender residents of New York City’s famed Christopher Street. This will be the first time this body of work will be shown in a museum, and it is the first transgender-focused art exhibition the Brooks has ever organized.
Mona Hatoum: Misbah
On view through January 9, 2022
Mona Hatoum (b. 1952, Beirut, Lebanon to Palestinian parents) is considered one of the most significant artists of her generation, and this exhibition is the first time her work has been shown in Tennessee. Hatoum's sculptures and installations often re-imagine everyday objects to engage with issues of gender, race, and conflict. Misbah ("lantern" in Arabic) considers the discordant and dangerous realities around the world of people displaced due to warfare and strikes the ineffable balance between socio-political commentary and sheer beauty. This presentation of Mona Hatoum: Misbah is organized by the American Federation of Arts (AFA), in collaboration with the Rennie Collection. Mona Hatoum: Misbah is part of ArtRoom, an ongoing series of contemporary art installations organized by the AFA.
Power and Absence: Women in Europe, 1500 - 1680
Currently on view
This reimagining of the Schilling Gallery explores the representation of women in Europe from around 1500 to 1680, known as the Renaissance and Early Baroque period. Most of the works in this room have been made by men. Women are represented as untouchable ideals, threatening monsters, enterprising community leaders, ornamental accessories to power, and models of faith. Portraits of men, meanwhile, express their power, talents, or intellect.
Drawing Memory: Essence of Memphis
Victor Ekpuk, a Nigerian American artist, painted a mural for the new African art galleries in March 2017. His art is inspired by nsibidi, a sacred means of communication among male secret societies in southeastern Nigeria.
Carroll Cloar Gallery
In honor of Carroll Cloar and to commemorate the museum’s hundredth anniversary, the Brooks Museum created a gallery dedicated to his art.