Liliana Porter, Self Portrait with Square II [Ed. 5 + 2 AP], 1973, Modern gelatin silver photograph, 20 x 16 in. (50.8 x 40.6 cm.)
Artistic License: Six Takes on the Guggenheim Collection
This full-rotunda exhibition celebrates the institution’s extensive twentieth-century holdings through the intervention of six contemporary artists, all of whom have contributed to shaping the museum’s history with their own pivotal solo shows. Curated by Paul Chan (b. 1973, Hong Kong), Cai Guo-Qiang (b. 1957, Quanzhou, Fujian Province, China), Jenny Holzer (b. 1950, Gallipolis, Ohio), Julie Mehretu (b. 1970, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia), Richard Prince (b. 1949, Canal Zone, Panama), and Carrie Mae Weems (b. 1953, Portland, Oregon), this presentation brings together collection highlights and rarely seen works from the turn of the century to 1980 (along with some surprises orchestrated by the artist-curators). Creating unique and critical dialogues with the Guggenheim’s history and the history of modern and contemporary art, these artists will each interpret the collection through their own individual perspectives. The exhibition will include nearly 300 paintings, sculptures, works on paper, and installations that engage with the cultural discourse of their time—from the utopian aspirations of early modernism to the formal explorations of midcentury abstraction to the sociopolitical debates of the 1960s and ’70s, with each curated section providing a distinctive opportunity for new interpretations of the collection. As a whole, the exhibition will provide a refreshing opportunity for the museum to critically reflect on its own history.
Organized by Nancy Spector, Artistic Director and Jennifer and David Stockman Chief Curator, with Ylinka Barotto, Assistant Curator; Tracey Bashkoff, Director, Collections, and Senior Curator; and Joan Young, Director, Curatorial Affairs. Coinciding with the sixtieth anniversary of the iconic Frank Lloyd Wright–designed building, this will be the first artist-curated exhibition at the Guggenheim Museum.
Artistic License: Six Takes on the Guggenheim Collection is made possible by Lavazza
Major support is provided by Bank of America
Support is also provided by The Kate Cassidy Foundation.
The Leadership Committee for Artistic License: Six Takes on the Guggenheim Collection is gratefully acknowledged for its support, with special thanks to Stefan Edlis and Gael Neeson; Larry Gagosian; Fundación Almine y Bernard Ruiz-Picasso para el Arte; Marian Goodman Gallery; Nahmad Contemporary; Peter Bentley Brandt; Hauser & Wirth; Allison and Neil Rubler; and those who wish to remain anonymous.
Additional funding is provided by the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum’s Collections Council.