Mona Hatoum: Misbah
July 10, 2021 - January 9, 2022
Misbah (2006-7) (“lantern” in Arabic) is a powerful distillation of Mona Hatoum’s distinctive approach to installation—situating the viewer in a setting that is both alluring and unsettling. The viewer stands in a darkened room, lit only by a rotating lantern dangling from the ceiling. After a moment, it becomes clear that the seemingly decorative cut-outs that allow light to pass through the lamp are not traditional motifs, rather, these cut-outs cast images of armed soldiers onto the surrounding walls. Weapons at the ready, the soldiers stalk the periphery of the room as the lantern slowly rotates. In this context, the more traditional star-shaped designs on the lantern suggest wartime explosions. The soft glow of the lamp contrasts with its disturbing projections, evocative of the discordant, and often dangerous, realities of contemporary experience throughout the world.
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.
Andy Warhol: Silver Clouds
September 29, 2021 – January 9, 2022
Created in 1966, Warhol’s Silver Clouds consists of a room full of floating metallic balloons. The balloons are inflated with a proprietary mixture of air and pure helium, enabling them to float mesmerizingly in the space between the floor and the ceiling. Presented by nexAir and sponsored by Debi and Galen Havner