The Artist鈥檚 Eye

BAMPFA , Berkeley Art Museum & Pacific Film Archive

Berkeley | California | USA

Mar 19, 2022 - Jul 17, 2022

Curated by established Bay Area artists Tammy Rae Carland, David Huffman, Lava Thomas, and John Zurier (who are all represented in BAMPFA鈥檚 collection and have been featured in exhibitions at the museum), this exhibition centers the artistic vision of each artist and engages the space where the artist鈥攁s curator, collector, and maker鈥攎eets the museum. For The Artist鈥檚 Eye, each artist was invited to organize a section of the exhibition, using artworks and archival material from BAMPFA鈥檚 collection, as well as select works from their own collections, that range across diverse media, approaches to making, and historical time periods.

Working in collaboration with the museum鈥檚 curatorial staff, the artists brought their curiosity and critical eye to BAMPFA鈥檚 holdings and together defined the layout of the exhibition around their unique visions and priorities. Carland chose works that involve language and wordplay鈥攊ncluding pieces by Theresa Hak Kyung Cha, Sarah Charlesworth, and Yoko Ono. Huffman鈥檚 selection creates a personal, nonlinear reflection on art history, African American experience, and his own memories, featuring works ranging from a Francis Bacon painting to a nineteenth-century albumen print of an Egyptian sphinx. Thomas鈥檚 presentation addresses BAMPFA鈥檚 relationship with Black artists, and women in particular, highlighting work made by Black female artists鈥攊ncluding Erica Deeman, Betye Saar, and Carrie Mae Weems鈥攖hat takes the experience of Black womanhood as its subject. Zurier selected works from BAMPFA鈥檚 extensive collection of traditional Chinese and Japanese landscape painting, in addition to several modern and contemporary landscapes that reflect on quiet, solitude, weather, near and far distance, and nature in art. The artists鈥� own work will also be displayed in the exhibition, providing further insight into their practice and perspective.