DESIRE

February 5 – April 25, 2010

With a stellar roster of international contemporary artists working in all media, this thematic exhibition will explore the notion of desire and how artists have portrayed its related psychological states: longing, arousal, infatuation, despair, anger, whimsy, etc. Included are video works by Bill Viola, Isaac Julien and Amy Globus; paintings by Marilyn Minter, Georgann Deen and Gajin Fugita; photo-based works by Glenn Ligon, Miguel Angel Rojas and Olaf Breuning; sculpture by James Drake, Petah Coyne and Valeska Soares; drawings by Danica Phelps and Tracey Emin; and more. New works will be created specifically for the show by Adam Pendleton, Peter Saul, Robert Kushner, and Kirsten Hassenfeld, and an accompanying selection of historic prints drawn from the Blanton's holdings will exemplify the enduring nature of this theme. The exhibition will have an illustrated catalogue with texts on desire by a diverse group of writers, and will be accompanied by a full menu of interdisciplinary programs.

Desire is organized by the Blanton Museum of Art. Funding for the exhibition is provided, in part, by a grant from the Houston Endowment Inc. in honor of Melissa Jones for the presentation of contemporary art at the Blanton.

Matisse as Printmaker

May 23 – August 22, 2010

Henri Matisse (1869–1954) may be best known as a painter and sculptor, but he himself placed no hierarchy on the mediums in which he worked. Each medium was exploited for its unique possibilities and became totally integrated with other formal and thematic concerns. Drawn from the extraordinary collection of Matisse prints that once belonged to the artist's son Pierre and is now part of the Pierre and Tana Matisse Foundation, Matisse as Printmaker includes over 60 etchings, monotypes, aquatints, lithographs, linocuts in black and white, and two-color prints-examples of every printmaking medium that Matisse utilized.

The exhibition is organized by the American Federation of Arts and the Pierre and Tana Matisse Foundation. The exhibition is curated by Jay McKean Fisher.

New Works for the Collection

May 23 – August 22, 2010

Since the opening of the Michener Gallery Building in April 2006, The Blanton has acquired many significant works of art for its collections. This exhibition will share with The Blanton's audiences over forty new works that represent the broad range of our collecting areas — historic and contemporary prints and drawings, European paintings, contemporary painting, video, and works in many new media from artists based in North and South America. In all, over 500 years of art history! Many of these works, on display at The Blanton for the first time, are gifts from recent and longstanding friends. Others have been purchased with Museum funds set aside for acquisitions, a resource also made possible by the support of our donors. New acquisitions enrich our collections, inspire scholarly research, and offer opportunities like this one for exhibition and teaching. We're delighted to share this selection with you this summer.

This exhibition is organized by The Blanton Museum of Art.

Turner to Monet Masterpieces from the Walters Art Museum

October 2, 2010 - January 2, 2011

Forty of the finest nineteenth-century paintings from the Walters Art Museum in Baltimore, including works by Eugène Delacroix, J.A.D. Ingres, Edgar Degas, Edouard Manet, Claude Monet, J.M.W. Turner and Asher B. Durand, among others, illustrate the striking range of styles, techniques, and approaches practiced during this era of artistic revolution.

Organized by the Walters Art Museum, Baltimore.

European Prints and Drawings

Goya's Prints: The Dawn of Modern Art

November 28, 2009 - March 7, 2010

Modern art is often said to begin not just with Goya's art, but with his prints in particular. The Blanton possesses some thirty impressions, representing each of the artist's major series in states and editions from the earliest to latest. They include several great rarities, like El Embozado, probably left unfinished at his death, and recent acquisitions, like a brilliant proof impression from his visionary series, Los Proverbios. This exhibition will unite these works for the first time, providing an opportunity both to appreciate his genius and to assess relative quality in his etchings.

Modern & Contemporary Prints and Drawings

Madonnas from the Cardenas Collection

November 21, 2009-March 7, 2010

The Virgen de Guadalupe became a symbol of identity and empowerment for artists of the Chicano Art Movement. This exhibition puts a spin on traditional understandings of Marian iconography by examining images of the Virgen de Guadalupe in Chicano prints and posters spanning the late 1960s through the 1990s from the Gilberto Cardenas Collection of Latino Art, on long-term loan to the Blanton.

The Sleep of Reason: Goya's Influence in Spanish America

November 28, 2009-March 7, 2010

The nineteenth-century Spanish artist Fracisco Goya, with his disquieting depictions of violence and corruption and his mastery of graphic techniques, inspired many twentieth-century artists of Spanish America. The stark style and unflinching approach to reality in Goya's prints provided a model for artists wishing to convey the darker aspects of modern life. Spanish American artists felt a sense of cultural affinity for Goya and drew from his example in depicting subjects such as warfare, madness, and alienation. This selection of drawings and prints from the Blanton's permanent collection features works by artists who were inspired by Goya, including José Luis Cuevas (Mexico), Ernesto Deira (Argentina), Armando Morales (Nicaragua), and Augusto Rendón (Colombia), among others. It complements the exhibition Goya: The Dawn of Modern Art, shown concurrently in the European print galleries.