Zen Jail

Highlights Tour

24 February 2023

Wednesdays and Fridays at 11 am Free for MembersFree with Museum Admission Meet in the Wendy G. Surkis & Peppi Elona Lobby. Learn more about Read More »

Chakaia Booker (American, born 1953). Handle with Care, 2010. Rubber tires, wood, and steel, 34 1/2 x 98 x 11 in. Courtesy of the artist © Chakaia Booker.

Chakaia Booker: Surface Pressure

9 February 2023

Chakaia Booker: Surface Pressure celebrates the diverse work of multimedia artist Chakaia Booker. Booker is renowned for her expert manipulation of unconventional materials, transforming perceived visual tensions into compellingly unified compositions. Her complex body of work challenges viewers to consider the nature of their relationships with one another and the world at large.

Stephanie J. Woods (American). my papa used to play checkers, 2022. Framed archival ink-jet print (watermelon, hand dyed cotton fabric, hair beads, barrette bows, and afro hair), 37 x 25 x 1.5 in. Courtesy of the artist.

Stephanie J. Woods: my papa used to play checkers

9 February 2023

For her solo exhibition, my papa used to play checkers, titled after her eponymous photograph (2022), Woods presents a body of her recent work created after her life-changing artist residency at Black Rock Senegal in Dakar, Senegal in 2021. During her sojourn, she witnessed firsthand how much African culture and tradition has survived and continues to thrive in Black American communities.

Tyler Mitchell (American, born 1995), Untitled (Hijab Couture), New York, 2019. Photo print, 40 x 30 in. © Tyler Mitchell. Courtesy of Aperture.

The New Black Vanguard: Photography between Art and Fashion

1 February 2023

The New Black Vanguard: Photography between Art and Fashion presents artists whose vibrant portraits and conceptual images fuse the genres of art and fashion photography in ways that break down long-established boundaries.

Maira Kalman (American, born 1949). Sara Berman on the Terrace in Rome, 2018. Gouache on paper, 12 x 16 x 2 in. Courtesy of the artist.

Sara Berman’s Closet

17 October 2022

Sara Berman’s Closet is a rumination on the essential meaning of life. A recreation of a humble closet. A visual essay on the search we all engage in. For beauty, order and meaning. This faithfully presented archive serves not only to demonstrate the care Sara Berman took in organizing her personal belongings, but also the freedom she experienced in crafting her own private yet magnificent life.

"Newfoundland (Green Boat)," c. 2006, by Richard Benson (American, 1943–2017). Multiple impression pigment print, image: 11 9/16 × 17 3/8 inches.; sheet: 12 15/16 × 19 inches. © Estate of Richard M. A. Benson. Collection of Barbara Benson. Image courtesy Philadelphia Museum of Art, 2021.

Richard Benson: The World Is Smarter Than You Are

4 October 2022

“Go out into the world with the camera and photograph and find out that the world is smarter than you are.” – Richard Benson

This exhibition surveys nearly fifty years of Benson’s photography, a wide-ranging body of work that reflects his humility and boundless curiosity about the world and his tireless exploration of how to make photographs. A selection of artworks by ten artists who studied and worked with Benson will also be included in this exhibition.