Exhibition Archive

Julian Stanczak. It’s Not Easy Being Green, 1980-2000. Acrylic on canvas. Rory and Dedee O'Neil Acquisition Fund 2013.1

Afterimages: Geometric Abstraction and Perception

October 2, 2021-January 9, 2022 | Karl and Bertl Arnstein Galleries

During the 1960s and ‘70s, many abstract artists made their work bold, bright, and dazzling in new and exciting ways. For some of them, scientific discoveries about human sight led the way to wild perceptual effects, from pulsating patterns to fluctuating colors and afterimages that linger even after viewers turn to look at something else. Others were guided simply by their intuition and a desire to test the limits of our eyes and minds. At times these artists even outpaced science by creating works with unanticipated, unexplained visual properties.

Mouse House Party

August 5, 2021-September 30, 2021 | Current Cleveland (1300 W 78th St Suite 101, Cleveland, OH 44102)

The Akron Art Museum in partnership with Current is pleased to announce a commissioned collective project by Liz Maugans called Mouse House Party, an exhibition of over 150+ (and growing) contemporary Northeast Ohio artists on view August 5-September 30. Conceived during the height of the pandemic, the project offers local artists an opportunity to share their work.

Nancy Graves. Vertigo, 1980. Screenprint on paper. Gift of Carolyn K. Carr in memory of Louis S. Myers 1993.16

Totally Rad: Bold Color in the 1980s

February 18 – September 19, 2021 | Judith Bear Isroff Gallery

Bright primary and secondary hues, radiating neon and Day-Glo, soft and sweet pastels, sharp black and white contrasts—in the 1980s, wild colors touched the entire spectrum of American culture. This exuberant trend was urged onward through television, music, music videos, video games, graffiti, fashion, and the materialism brought on by an economic boom. Artists burst forth with their own vivid creations across a variety of media, enthusiastically adding to this wave of color.

Daniel Mainzer. Hands of Firestone tire builders, 1978-1982 (printed 2011). Gelatin silver print. Museum Acquisition Fund 2011.45

Totally Radical: Art and Politics in the 1980s

February 18 – September 19, 2021 | Fred and Laura Ruth Bidwell Gallery

From the AIDS crisis to the intensifying feminist movement, ongoing calls for racial justice, struggles between corporate profit and union labor, growing concerns about human impacts on the natural environment, and the tense climax of the Cold War with the Soviet Union, the 1980s proved to be a dense and dramatic period in American history. Many artists responded with a new sense of urgency and created works that are directly and unapologetically political.

Reconsidered: Works from the Collection

April 6, 2021 - August 22, 2021 | Karl and Bertl Arnstein Galleries

Rotating works out of storage is also connected to the goal of informing and engaging patrons. While sharing collections is elemental to museums, as society evolves, so does curatorial practice. In this exhibition, we’re asking for help. We’ll share some of our favorite works from storage, and we’ll ask you to help us to tell better stories about them. We’ll also showcase the stories you share. We can only improve the way we communicate about art with your help.

Tune In

May 6, 2021 - May 31, 2021 | Outside the Museum on South High Street

Tune In seeks to start a conversation around this question and many others. Designed by Rick Lazes and fabricated by a collaborative group of artists called the Art Factory, the outdoor diorama features six vintage TV screens that play a 12-minute loop, 24 hours a day. The collage of footage includes news, speeches, concerts, sitcoms, and dramas from television’s early years. Mid-century decor featuring wallpaper, curtains, and framed pictures helps to set the scene.

Akron Art Mail

October 15, 2020 - May 29, 2021 | Beatrice Knapp McDowell Grand Lobby

The Akron Art Museum and Akron-Summit County Public Library’s new Akron Art Mail project aims to put art and writing into people’s hands. The project has three main components: commissioned art cards offered free for patrons; a community exhibition of art cards; and an e-book catalog of the project.

Objects to be Destroyed

February 29, 2020 - September 6, 2020 | Judith Bear Isroff Gallery

The artists of "Objects to be Destroyed" invite visitors to consider commonplace items in a new and unexpected way. In a sense, the artists destroy the objects they select as materials by preventing them from fulfilling their original use, yet, at the same time, they imbue them with a new existence as works of art.

Making Your Mark

November 05, 2020 - August 08, 2021 | Various

This exhibition features nine artists living and working in Northeast Ohio. These richly hewn artworks are contextualized by the artists' own words, glimpses into their studios, and tools of their craft. 

Elias Sime: Tightrope

February 29, 2020 - May 24, 2020 | Elias Sime

"Elias Thomas: Tightrope," the first major traveling survey dedicated to the Ethiopian artist's work, features numerous large-scale tableaus. Sime draws from a range of influences, including linguistics, botany, artistic movements and topographic photography. This noteworthy exhibition includes two works created specifically for the show alongside a large selection from the Tightrope series, in addition to several earlier stitched canvases.

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