This group of paintings places Wayne Thiebaud’s Caged Pie, usually seen as an emblem of American Pop Art, in the context of his contemporaries in California, including Roger Kuntz, David Park, Roland Petersen, Raimonds Staprans, and Paul Wonner. Works by Richard Diebenkorn can also be seen in the Visible Vaults. These artists, in response to the Abstract Expressionists, sought to…

Women Who Empowered a Movement Abstract Expressionism often brings to mind the work of artists like Jackson Pollock, Willem de Kooning, and Mark Rothko, whose reputations have reached heroic heights. They have been posited as innovators—the creators of one of the most uniquely American art movements in history. The significance of the contributions made to Abstract Expressionism by Pollock and…

Still life is a genre that transcends art movements. It is a timeless form of artistic expression that has been employed for centuries. From European masters Juan Sánchez Cotán and Rachel Ruysch to Americans Raphaelle Peale and Emil Carlsen, all represented in the permanent collection, still life has served as a means by which artists have proven their mastery of…

Photographers Harry Adams (1918–1988), Charles Williams (1908–1986), and Guy Crowder (1940–2011) were prominent members of the African American community in Southern California. Spanning 50 years, their compelling images document the political events as well as the daily life of this community during the second half of the twentieth century. Adams, Crowder, and Williams worked primarily as freelancers for such publications…

November 9, 2019–August 2, 2020 William-Adolphe Bouguereau enjoyed a remarkable popularity in the United States, particularly during the late 1800s through the early 20th century. Lauded and laureled by the French artistic establishment, and a dominant presence at the Parisian Salons, Bouguereau’s canvases offered American collectors the chance to bring Gallic sophistication and worldly elegance to their own galleries and…

A response to the Museum’s former exhibition Art and Empire: The Golden Age of Spain is on view in Gallery 20, a group of 12* resin-on-canvas “portraits” of Christ’s disciples by contemporary Spanish artist José-María Cano. Cano launched his career as a musician and composer, most notably as a member of the best-selling Spanish pop band Mecano. For the past…

The San Diego Museum of Art’s biennial student exhibition Young Art has the extraordinary distinction of being the longest running program in the history of the Museum. Now in its 45th year, Young Art is a juried exhibition that features the finest examples of artwork created by Kindergarten through 12th grade students in San Diego County. The theme of this…

Whether portraying sideshow attractions or offering moral commentaries, for centuries artists have sought to capture the fascinating and the seemingly mundane with humor and wonder. With a keen eye and sharp wit, artists including William Hogarth (1697–1764) and Francisco Goya (1746–1828) used their talents to impart lessons of morality or to express political discontent while maintaining a playful, yet critical,…

For artists of the twentieth century, the southwestern United States provided great inspiration, much like the Hudson River Valley the century before. Artists from across the nation traveled to New Mexico, Arizona, and Southern California—some seeking spiritual enlightenment while others yearned to escape the ever-expanding metropolises of New York and Chicago. Spurred by the establishment of artist colonies and wealthy…

Drawing from over 350 photographs by the famed photojournalist in The San Diego Museum of Art’s broad photographic collection, this exhibition explores Eisenstaedt’s observations on society from a variety of his assignments with Life magazine. One of the most recognized photojournalists of the twentieth century, Alfred Eisenstaedt (born Dirschau, West Prussia, 1898–1995) was a master of candid photography whose widely…