National Geographic Launches ‘Starstruck,’ A Yearlong Celebration Of Space Across Its Global Networks, Magazines, Books And More

Starstruck Kicks Off With Second Season of Critically Acclaimed Series MARS and Fifth Season of Emmy-Nominated Series STARTALK With Neil deGrasse Tyson

Event to Also Include Two New Specials: MARS: INSIDE SPACE X and MISSION TO THE SUN, Plus Fall Book Releases “Space Atlas” and “Apollo to the Moon“

Starstruck Continues Into 2019 With a New Season of COSMOS and Weeklong Celebration of the 50-Year Anniversary of Apollo 11 Lunar Landing in July

Visit New Starstruck Portal for All Things Space, Including National Geographic Space Photography and In-Depth Reporting on the Latest Space News

For 130 years, National Geographic has been helping people explore the unknown, from the deepest oceans to the farthest reaches of the universe. Today, National Geographic announced that it will embark on a new storytelling odyssey, exploring the past, present and future of space across its vast media and entertainment platforms with Starstruck: National Geographic’s Yearlong Celebration of Space.

From the very dawn of the space age, National Geographic has covered the science, mystery and adventures of space exploration with unrivaled access, in-depth news reporting and cutting-edge science and technology.

National Geographic logo. (PRNewsfoto/National Geographic Society)

In 1935, National Geographic and the U.S. Army Air Corps jointly launched aeronauts into the sky in the Explorer II Stratosphere Balloon, helping to pave the way for the space program and marking a manned altitude record that lasted for 21 years. Later, in recognition of National Geographic’s contributions to space research and photography, astronaut John Glenn carried the National Geographic flag on the first U.S. manned orbital space flight in 1962. And on July 16, 1969, a National Geographic flag was again vaulted into the sky on the 238,000-mile voyage to the moon, with Neil Armstrong observing to his team that it was a privilege that the flag that had “accompanied every major recent expedition,” should also accompany the first one ever to set foot on the lunar surface. In 1977, National Geographic was part of the curation of the Golden Record, and more recently, presented the first-ever Instagram Live from the International Space Station with Will Smith in April 2018.

National Geographic Launches ‘Starstruck,’ A Celebration Of Space Across Its Global Networks, Magazines, Books And More

With Starstruck, National Geographic aims to once again inspire people to “look up” by bringing the awe and wonder of space to audiences around the world.

The yearlong commitment to presenting the best of space content kicked off this past week with the launch of the Starstruck Space Portal, as well as the recent release of National Geographic’s updated “Space Atlas.” The celebration continues Nov. 4 with an all-day marathon of the critically acclaimed series One Strange Rock beginning at 10 a.m., and with new seasons of MARS and STARTALK with Neil deGrasse Tyson in an intergalactic block of programming that premieres Monday, Nov. 12.

Additionally, two new specials will air this fall: MARS: INSIDE SPACE X also on Nov. 12, and MISSION TO THE SUN on Nov. 19.

Culminating with the 50^th anniversary of the historic Apollo 11 moon landing next July and a coinciding week of blockbuster Apollo programming on the National Geographic channel, Starstruck will rally National Geographic’s unrivaled portfolio of storytelling platforms around the spirit of space exploration and the nostalgia, curiosity, and feeling of limitless possibility that it brings.

With this announcement, Natgeo.com/Starstruck will be National Geographic’s one-stop digital hub for all things space.

Highlights of the content across all platforms include:

OUT-OF-THIS-WORLD TV PROGRAMMING:

• Season 2 of Nat Geo’s groundbreaking, genre-busting, hit docudrama MARS premieres Nov. 12 at 9/8c.
  

  A scene from the first episode of Season two of Mars.

• A new season of the award-winning STARTALK with Neil deGrasse Tyson debuts Nov. 12 at 11/10c.

  

  MARS: INSIDE SPACE X, premiering Monday, Nov. 12, at 8/7c, is an unprecedented glimpse into one of the world’s most revolutionary companies’ plan to make Mars home.

• MARS: INSIDE SPACE X, premiering Monday, Nov. 12, at 8/7c, is an unprecedented glimpse into one of the world’s most revolutionary companies’ plan to make Mars home. Filmed over the course of three years, this journey will take viewers behind the scenes with Elon Musk and his engineers as they persevere amid both disheartening setbacks and huge triumphs to advance the space industry faster than thought possible.
  

  Mission To The Sun: The United Launch Alliance Delta IV Heavy rocket is seen in this long exposure photograph as it launches NASA’s Parker Solar Probe to touch the Sun, Sunday, Aug. 12, 2018, from Launch Complex 37 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida. Parker Solar Probe is humanity’s first-ever mission into a part of the Sun’s atmosphere called the corona. Here it will directly explore solar processes that are key to understanding and forecasting space weather events that can impact life on Earth. Photo Credit: (NASA/Bill Ingalls)

• MISSION TO THE SUN, debuting Nov. 19 at 8/7c, goes behind the scenes as NASA preps for the launch of the Parker Probe, a historic quest to explore the last great frontier of our solar system — the sun. The special will feature new NASA footage, interviews, and animations to further capture this groundbreaking mission, and a behind-the-scenes look at the exclusive team of NASA scientists who have made this skillfully planned endeavor a reality.
• A brand-new season of EXPLORER programming will launch Nov. 12 at 10/9c, with a special Starstruck episode featuring space lemurs, flat-earthers and real space cowboys, premiering Dec. 10.
• Following a wildly successful run in 2014 as the most-watched series ever on National Geographic Channels internationally — seen by more than 135 million people worldwide on National Geographic and FOX — the highly anticipated Emmy award-winning worldwide phenomenon COSMOS returns this spring with COSMOS: POSSIBLE WORLDS. Neil deGrasse Tyson, the famed pop-culture icon, astrophysicist and host of the Emmy-nominated StarTalk, returns as host of COSMOS.
• A special week of Apollo programming in July shines a light on the grit and glory of the Apollo missions and a look at the new era of space travel and exploration.

LATEST SPACE NEWS, SKY WATCH GUIDES, AND STUNNING PHOTOGRAPHY:

• Up-to-the-date reporting from National Geographic’s prize-winning editorial team on the Starstruck news page, including live news coverage of the NASA InSight Mars landing (Nov. 26) and the NASA Kuiper Belt flyby (set for Jan. 1, 2019), the latest insights on the upcoming blood moon eclipse, and more
• Exciting National Geographic magazine space content, debuting in various issues over the next year, including an essay from November guest contributor Bill Nye on space sailing, and future features celebrating the 50th anniversary of the moon landing
• Monthly sky-watching guides, best space pictures of the month and a spacecraft love letter series (featuring first-person essays written by journalists, scientists, educators and enthusiasts who have a personal connection with the space probe), starting this month on the Starstruck portal.

Condé Nast Traveler Announces The Winners Of The 2018 Readers’ Choice Awards

The World’s Best Hotels, Resorts, Cities, Islands, Airlines, Airports and Cruise Lines Ranked

Condé Nast Traveler has unveiled the winners of its 31st annual Readers’ Choice Awards, ranking the best hotels, resorts, cities, islands, airlines, airports, and cruise lines in the world. The Readers’ Choice Awards are the longest-running and most prestigious recognition of excellence in the travel industry. This year, we received a recording-breaking number of responses from nearly half a million readers who rated their travel experiences to provide a full snapshot of where and how we travel today.

Condé Nast Traveler November issue cover. Captured on a Google Pixel 3.

The full list of winners, including more than a dozen galleries and web-only exclusives of the 50 Best Hotels in the World and 50 Best Resorts in the World, can be found here.

The 2018 results are all about comfort. Readers stayed closer to home than ever before, pushing more cities like Chicago, Charleston, and Nashville to the top of our lists. They favored the Caribbean and domestic islands in the southeast, like Hilton Head, Amelia, and Kiawah. The properties that impressed them most were smaller and less flashy than in years past, and our small-cruise-ship list is longer than it’s ever been, suggesting that the right kind of less is more. The world has changed in ways no one could have predicted, and so it stands to reason that how we get away from it all would, too. 

The 2018 Readers’ Choice Awards are celebrated in Condé Nast Traveler‘ November issue on newsstands October 16 and on online at www.cntraveler.com/rca.

Gap Celebrates Spreading Love with the ‘Meet Me in the Gap’ Holiday Campaign starring Leon Bridges

Bridges lead Gap into the holiday season to create an uplifting moment with his rendition of “Now That We Found Love”

Gap, the iconic American clothing brand, today announces the holiday ‘Meet Me in the Gap’ campaign starring Grammy Award-nominated R&B artist and songwriter Leon Bridges doing what he does best by capturing the holiday spirit in song and dance alongside a group of individuals drawn to his magnetic energy. The Gap Holiday 2018 campaign is meant to transcend the edgy climate of today by spreading love and driving positive change to demonstrate that feeling good and doing good go together.

Gap Holiday 2018 Meet Me in the Gap: Meet Me In The Gap, See The Good (with Leon Bridges (center)

The hero campaign video features Bridges moving to the rhythm in a blank space that is brought to life with oversized Gap crazy stripes that come together to form a path, leading him and the rest of the cast on a journey of good and generosity. Directed by accomplished music video director Emil Nava, the video embraces the magic of the holidays with the entire cast outfitted in classic Gap denim paired with colorful knits and bright stripes. Through a soulful rendition of Heavy D & The Boy’s original version of “Now That We Found Love,” Bridges creates a feel-good moment that is perfectly accompanied by choreographed moves of the entire cast.

Gap Holiday 2018 Meet Me in the Gap: Meet Me In The Gap, See The Good

Gap Holiday 2018 Meet Me in the Gap: Meet Me In The Gap, See The Good

Gap Holiday 2018 Meet Me in the Gap: Meet Me In The Gap, See The Good

“Music, dance, fashion, and personal style are my big passions in life, so getting to work with Gap on this campaign that ties all of those elements together is epic,” said Bridges. “I grew up watching all of their diverse, music based commercials, and they were just the coolest. Getting to be in one myself is wild and it’s a dream to lead the brand into the season, especially with a song that has a message of love.”

Launching on November 1, the campaign spans television, mobile, social, in-store and digital. The television spots will air on major networks and be incorporated into high impact moments, including digital takeovers on Vevo, Hulu, and Spotify with priority on live viewing moments within the NFL and the season’s top-rated programs.

Gap Holiday 2018 Meet Me in the Gap: Meet Me In The Gap, See The Good

Gap Holiday 2018 Meet Me in the Gap: Meet Me In The Gap, See The Good

“For Gap, holiday is all about the feeling of giving and coming together to celebrate the season with loved ones. This year especially, we want everyone to feel the love by lifting spirits with Leon’s harmonious take on this ’90s anthem,” said Gap chief marketing officer Craig Brommers. “Leon’s soulful voice and charismatic rhythm, styled in Gap’s signature crazy stripes, created an undeniable energy brought to life in this moment of positivity and cheer, bound to spread love.“

For more information on ‘Meet Me in the Gap,’ visit gap.com.

Philadelphia Museum of Art to Present Celebrated Film Trilogy and New Performance by Artist Yael Bartana

This fall, the Philadelphia Museum of Art will premiere Bury Our Weapons, Not Our Bodies!, a new site-specific public performance by acclaimed Israeli-born artist Yael Bartana. Scheduled to take place on September 22, 2018 (through to January 1, 2019) at the Independence National Historical Park in Philadelphia, this performance will be presented as part of a solo exhibition at the Museum dedicated to the artist’s provocative film trilogy, And Europe Will Be Stunned (2007-2011). Marking its Philadelphia debut, this trilogy will be an immersive installation in the Joan Spain Gallery of the Museum’s Perelman Building.

Portrait of Yael Bartana. Photo by Birgit Kaulfuss. Image courtesy of the artist and Philadelphia Museum of Art, 2018.

Born in 1970 in Kfar Yehezkel, Israel, Yael Bartana lives and works in Berlin and Amsterdam. In her films, installations, and photographs, Bartana investigates the ideas of homeland, return, and belonging, often in ceremonies, memorials, public rituals, and actions that are intended to reaffirm and question collective identities and ideas of the nation or the state.

Image from “Zamach (Assassination),” 2011, by Yael Bartana. From the trilogy “And Europe Will Be Stunned.” (Collection of both the Philadelphia Museum of Art and Walker Art Center, Minneapolis; purchased by the PMA with funds contributed by Nancy M. Berman and Alan Bloch and the Philip and Muriel Berman Foundation, and the Committee on Modern and Contemporary Art; and purchased by the WAC, T. B. Walker Acquisition Fund, 2013). Image courtesy of the artist and Philadelphia Museum of Art, 2018.

Taking the complex history of Jewish-Polish identity as its point of departure, And Europe Will Be Stunned addresses the themes of nationhood, memory, and belonging that are integral to Bartana’s work. It first debuted at the Venice Biennale in 2011, where Bartana represented Poland. Shortly thereafter, the trilogy was jointly acquired by the Philadelphia Museum of Art and the Walker Art Center in Minneapolis. Employing a visual vocabulary reminiscent of Stalinist and Zionist propaganda of the early 20th century, And Europe Will be Stunned chronicles the radical program of a fictional political movement called the Jewish Renaissance Movement in Poland (JRMiP). Created by Bartana, together with Polish activist Sławomir Sierakowski, the JRMiP advocates for the return of over three million Jews to their forgotten Polish homeland. Informed by the histories of the Israeli settlement movement, Zionism, anti-Semitism, and the Palestinian right of return, the trilogy uses the real and the imagined to speak to global complexities about identity and self-determination in an increasingly unstable world.

Still from “Mur i wieża (Wall and Tower),” 2009, by Yael Bartana. From the trilogy “And Europe Will Be Stunned.” (Collection of both the Philadelphia Museum of Art and Walker Art Center, Minneapolis; purchased by the PMA with funds contributed by Nancy M. Berman and Alan Bloch and the Philip and Muriel Berman Foundation, and the Committee on Modern and Contemporary Art; and purchased by the WAC, T. B. Walker Acquisition Fund, 2013). Image courtesy of the artist and Philadelphia Museum of Art, 2018.

Beyond the walls of the Philadelphia Museum, Bartana will realize Bury Our Weapons, Not Our Bodies! as a means of extending the themes of the artist’s trilogy into the birthplace of American democracy – Philadelphia. Bartana’s performance is a call to action, aiming to make visible the systems of violence and displacement that have been perpetuated through weapons, both literal and symbolic. As the title suggests, the performance will bury these weapons, rendering them useless, as they are incorporated into a choreographed funeral—a living monument—that will include a staged procession and a collective eulogy about war and survival. The movements of the performers are inspired by those of Israeli artist and dance composer Noa Eshkol (1924-2007), specifically evoking Eshkol’s 1953 memorial assembly performed in remembrance to the Holocaust. Bringing together funerary tradition, military ritual, and personal testimony, Bartana’s new performance will deepen the artist’s investigations into the construction of memory and the aesthetics of national identity.

Still from “Mary Koszmary (Nightmares),” 2007, by Yael Bartana. From the trilogy “And Europe Will Be Stunned.” (Collection of both the Philadelphia Museum of Art and Walker Art Center, Minneapolis; purchased by the PMA with funds contributed by Nancy M. Berman and Alan Bloch and the Philip and Muriel Berman Foundation, and the Committee on Modern and Contemporary Art; and purchased by the WAC, T. B. Walker Acquisition Fund, 2013). Image courtesy of the artist and Philadelphia Museum of Art, 2018.

Creepy Crawlers Alive!

Annenberg Space for Photography Showcases Creepy, Crawly, Fluffy, Fierce, Mini, Mammoth, Wild and Weird Animals in the National Geographic Photo Ark Exhibit Opening October 2018

Exhibition Features Photographer Joel Sartore’s Work to Document Every Animal Species Under Human Care

The Annenberg Space for Photography, Los Angeles’ premier destination for photography, announced its next exhibition opening in Fall 2018. The National Geographic Photo Ark—a vibrantly photographed, animal-centric show—will run from Oct. 13, 2018, through Jan. 13, 2019.

The Photo Ark is National Geographic photographer and Fellow Joel Sartore‘s ambitious project to shoot studio-quality portraits of every species living in the world’s zoos and wildlife sanctuaries, including mammals, reptiles, birds, fish, amphibians, and even insects. His goal is to inspire people not only to care but also to help protect animals from extinction before it’s too late.

A springbok mantis (Miomantis caffra) at the Auckland Zoo, Auckland, New Zealand © Photo by Joel Sartore/National Geographic Photo Ark

This traveling exhibition at Annenberg Space for Photography marks the first time these extraordinary images will be shown in a space dedicated solely to the art of photography. Highlighting hundreds of species with Sartore’s stunning, large-format prints, visitors will come eye-to-eye with a selection of the more than 8,000 species Sartore has photographed in dozens of countries for the Photo Ark to date.

Some of the exhibition’s interactive components include a documentary film providing a behind-the-scenes look at Sartore’s project, its mission and conservation efforts; interactive animal-related games; a studio where guests can be photographed with their favorite animal as a backdrop; and a gallery devoted to California’s indigenous species. Annenberg Space for Photography will also offer a full slate of programming, including field trips, workshops, and its acclaimed Iris Nights lecture series that will appeal to animal and photography fans alike.

A veiled chameleon (Chamaeleo calyptratus) at Rolling Hills Wildlife Adventure, Salina, Kansas © Photo by Joel Sartore/ National Geographic Photo Ark

“Photo Ark gives visitors the opportunity to experience the animal kingdom up close and personal,” said Annenberg Foundation Chairman, President, and CEO Wallis Annenberg. “The powerful close-up images Joel has captured grab viewers and don’t let go. His brilliant photography connects us to creatures we may know little about and inspires us to want to take action to protect them.”

In addition to creating an archival record for generations to come, this project is a platform for conservation and shines a light on individuals and organizations, such as the Annenberg Foundation, working to support animal welfare and conservation efforts.

“The beauty of the National Geographic Photo Ark is that it allows audiences around the world to look creatures of all shapes and sizes in the eyes and gain a better understanding and appreciation of the planet’s biodiversity,” said Kathryn Keane, Vice President of Public Experiences at the National Geographic Society. “We are thrilled to be working with Annenberg Space for Photography to highlight the power of photography to make an impact.“

Nashville’s Frist Art Museum Announces 2019 Schedule of Exhibitions

Lineup Features French and British Masterpieces from the Mellon Collection; Photography by Dorothea Lange; Frida Kahlo, Diego Rivera, and Mexican Modernism from the Gelman Collection; A Survey of Surrealism; Native Women Artists; Eric Carle; and More

The Frist Art Museum has announced its 2019 schedule of exhibitions. In the Ingram Gallery, the year begins with the companion shows Van Gogh, Monet, Degas, and Their Times: The Mellon Collection of French Art from the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts and, both intriguing looks into the Mellons’ remarkable collecting strategies.  will showcase celebrated works from one of the most significant private holdings of twentieth-century Mexican art. Hearts of Our People: Native women artists is the first comprehensive exhibition exclusively devoted to Native women artists.

In the Upper-Level Galleries, Dorothea Lange: Politics of Seeing examines the photographer’s work through the lens of social and political activism, presenting arresting images from the Great Depression, Japanese internment camps, and other work through the 1950s. Monsters & Myths: Surrealism and War in the 1930s and 1940s features works by Salvador Dalí, Max Ernst, René Magritte, Joan Miró, Pablo Picasso, Dorothea Tanning and more, and explores the powerful and unsettling images that were created in response to the threat of war and Fascist rule. Eric Carle’s Picture Books: Celebrating 50 Years of “The Very Hungry Caterpillar” presents nearly 100 original artworks, spanning five decades of the beloved illustrator’s picture-book career.

In the Gordon Contemporary Artists Project Gallery, the Frist presents Claudio Parmiggiani: Dematerialization, the first museum exhibition in the United States by the revered Italian artist. The Brazilian artist duo OSGEMEOS—identical twin brothers Gustavo and Otavio Pandolfo—will transform the gallery into a vibrant, immersive installation. The year will conclude with an exhibition of new sculptures by New York-based artist Diana Al-Hadid.

n the Conte Community Arts Gallery, the Frist presents the community-focused exhibitions Young Tennessee Artists; Connect/Disconnect: Growth in the “It” City; and Nashville Walls.

The Frist Art Museum’s 2019 Schedule of Exhibitions (Dates subject to change)

Van Gogh, Monet, Degas, and Their Times: The Mellon Collection of French Art from the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts

Vincent van Gogh (Dutch, 1853–1890). The Wheat Field behind St. Paul’s Hospital, St. Rémy, 1889. Oil on canvas, 9 1/2 x 12 3/4 in. Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, Richmond. Collection of Mr. and Mrs. Paul Mellon, 83.26. © Virginia Museum of Fine Arts. Photo: Katherine Wetze. 

February 1–May 5, 2019, Ingram Gallery

Offering more than seventy works by masters such as Edgar Degas, Édouard Manet, Claude Monet, Henri Rousseau, and Vincent van Gogh, this exhibition celebrates Mr. and Mrs. Paul Mellon’s extraordinary gift of French 19th- and early 20th-century art to the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts. With its core of Impressionist paintings, the collection also comprises masterpieces from every important school of French art—from Romanticism through the School of Paris. These works represent more than 150 years of French art and exemplify the Mellons’ personal vision and highly original collecting strategies, which provide a context for understanding this unique collection of French art. Organized by the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts

Van Gogh, Monet, Degas, and Their Times: The Mellon Collection of French Art from the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts. Claude Monet. Field of Poppies, Giverny, 1885. Oil on canvas, 23 5/8 x 28 3/4 in. Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, Richmond. Collection of Mr. and Mrs. Paul Mellon, 85.499. © Virginia Museum of Fine Arts. Photo: Katherine Wetzel

A Sporting Vision: The Paul Mellon Collection of British Sporting Art from the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts

February 1–May 5, 2019, Ingram Gallery

With representative masterpieces of the genre—including works by Sir Francis Grant, John Frederick Herring, Benjamin Marshall, George Morland, and George Stubbs—this exhibition celebrates Mr. and Mrs. Paul Mellon’s gift of British sporting art to the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts and marks an opportunity to view the entire breadth of this outstanding and comprehensive collection. It also proposes a fresh look at sporting art within wider social and artistic contexts, including the scientific and industrial revolutions of the 18th and 19th centuries, the transformation of the British countryside, the evolutionary history of the horse and other animals, and society’s changing habits and customs. Organized by the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts.

Claudio Parmiggiani: Dematerialization

February 1–May 5, 2019, Gordon Contemporary Artists Project Gallery

Italian artist Claudio Parmiggiani (b. 1943) resists classification. Though associated with the Arte Povera movement and conceptualism of the 1960s and ’70s, he works somewhere in between. His art evokes universal themes of time, absence, memory, and silence while drawing on classical references as well as the subtle quietude of paintings by Giorgio Morandi. Parmiggiani’s signature process of “Delocazione” (displacement) was originally inspired by the silhouettes of dust left behind after objects were removed. For more than forty years, Parmiggiani has created his own version of this effect by stoking the flames from controlled combustions, filling rooms with smoke and capturing the outlines of objects in the resulting soot. Mirroring the technical process of photograms, these haunting images record the paradoxical presence of objects now absent. This will be the artist’s first museum exhibition in the United States.

Organized by the Frist Art Museum.

Dorothea Lange: Politics of Seeing

March 15–May 27, 2019, Upper-Level Galleries

Dorothea Lange: Politics of Seeing Dorothea Lange. Migrant Mother, Nipomo, California, 1936. Gelatin silver print. © The Dorothea Lange Collection, the Oakland Museum of California, City of Oakland. Gift of Paul S. Taylor

Dorothea Lange (1895–1965) is recognized as one of the most important photographers of the twentieth century, and her insightful and compassionate work has exerted a profound influence on the development of modern documentary photography. With hardship and human suffering as a consistent theme throughout her career, Lange created arresting portraits with the aim of sparking reform. This is the first exhibition to examine her work through the lens of social and political activism, presenting iconic photographs from the Great Depression, the grim conditions of incarcerated Japanese Americans during World War II, and inequity in our judicial system in the 1950s. The exhibition encompasses 300 objects, including 130 vintage and modern photographs, proof sheets, letters, a video, and other personal memorabilia. Organized by the Oakland Museum of California.

Dorothea Lange: Politics of Seeing is supported in part by the Oakland Museum Women’s Board, the Henry Luce Foundation, the Susie Tompkins Buell Fund, Ann Hatch and Paul Discoe, the Robert Mapplethorpe Foundation, and Peter Rossi/Stifel, Nicolaus & Co.

Connect/Disconnect: Growth in the “It” City

Conte Community Arts Gallery, March 22–August 4, 2019

Inspired by a 2017 Tennessean article about how Nashville has been growing at a rate of one hundred people per day, Connect/Disconnect is a community exhibition that will feature photographs by Davidson County residents of diverse ages and backgrounds, showing how the population boom has affected them and the lives of the people around them. The exhibition seeks to explore the rising connectivity between neighborhoods and communities, and the potential for disconnection between people and socioeconomic classes as Nashville adapts to record growth. Its themes may include the new atmosphere of entrepreneurship and creativity, the impact of transit and housing on current and new residents, and the ongoing effects of recent and historical events.

The Whitney To Present The First Andy Warhol Retrospective Organized by a U.S. Institution Since 1989

Andy Warhol—From A To B And Back Again, The First Major Reexamination Of Warhol’s Art In A Generation, To Open At The Whitney On November 12

Andy Warhol—From A to B and Back Again—the first Andy Warhol retrospective organized in the U.S. since 1989, and the largest in terms of its scope of ideas and range of works—will be an occasion to experience and reconsider the work of one of the most inventive, influential, and important American artists. With more than 350 works of art, many assembled together for the first time, this landmark exhibition, organized by The Whitney Museum of American Art, will unite all aspects, media, and periods of Warhol’s forty-year career. Curated by Warhol authority Donna De Salvo, Deputy Director for International Initiatives and Senior Curator, with Christie Mitchell, curatorial assistant, and Mark Loiacono, curatorial research associate, the survey debuts at the Whitney on November 12, 2018, where it will run through March 31, 2019.

 

While Warhol’s Pop images of the 1960s are recognizable worldwide, what remains far less known is the work he produced in the 1970s and 80s. This exhibition positions Warhol’s career as a continuum, demonstrating that he didn’t slow down after surviving the assassination attempt that nearly took his life in 1968, but entered into a period of intense experimentation, continuing to use the techniques he’d developed early on and expanding upon his previous work. Taking the 1950s and his experience as a commercial illustrator as foundational, and including numerous masterpieces from the 1960s, Andy Warhol—From A to B and Back Again tracks and reappraises the later work of the 1970s and 80s through to Warhol’s untimely death in 1987.

Andy Warhol (1928–1987), Self-Portrait, 1964. Acrylic, metallic paint, and silkscreen ink on linen, 20 x 16 in. (50.8 x 40.6 cm). The Art Institute of Chicago; gift of Edlis/Neeson Collection. © The Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts, Inc. / Artists Rights Society (ARS) New York

(Following its premiere at the Whitney, the exhibition will travel to two other major American art museums, the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, and The Art Institute of Chicago. Bank of America is the National Tour Sponsor)

“Perhaps more than any artist before or since, Andy Warhol understood America’s defining twin desires for innovation and conformity, public visibility and absolute privacy,” noted De Salvo. “He transformed these contradictory impulses into a completely original art that, I believe, has profoundly influenced how we see and think about the world now. Warhol produced images that are now so familiar, it’s easy to forget just how unsettling and even shocking they were when they debuted. He pioneered the use of an industrial silkscreen process as a painterly brush to repeat images ‘identically’, creating seemingly endless variations that call the very value of our cultural icons into question. His repetitions, distortions, camouflaging, incongruous color, and recycling of his own imagery anticipated the most profound effects and issues of our current digital age when we no longer know which images to trust. From the 1950s until his death, Warhol challenged our fundamental beliefs, particularly our faith in images, even while he sought to believe in those images himself. Looking in this exhibition at the full sweep of his career makes it clear that Warhol was not just a twentieth-century titan but a seer of the twenty-first century as well.”

Occupying the entirety of the Whitney’s fifth-floor Neil Bluhm Family Galleries, the adjacent Kaufman Gallery, the John R. Eckel, Jr. Foundation Lobby Gallery, the Susan and John Hess Family Gallery and Theater, Andy Warhol—From A to B and Back Again will be the largest exhibition devoted to a single artist yet to be presented in the Whitney’s downtown location. Tickets will be available on the Whitney’s website beginning in August.

Through his carefully cultivated persona and willingness to experiment with non-traditional art-making techniques, Andy Warhol (1928–1987) understood the growing power of images in contemporary life and helped to expand the role of the artist in society, making him one of the most distinct and internationally recognized American artists of the twentieth century. This exhibition sets out to prove that there remains far more to Warhol and his work than is commonly known. While the majority of exhibitions, books, articles, and films devoted to Warhol’s art have focused on a single medium, subject, series, or period, Andy Warhol—From A to B and Back Again will employ a chronological and thematic methodology that illuminates the breadth, depth, and interconnectedness of the artist’s production: from his beginnings as a commercial illustrator in the 1950s, to his iconic Pop masterpieces of the early 1960s, to the experimental work in film and other mediums from the 1960s and 70s, to his innovative use of readymade abstraction and the painterly sublime in the 1980s. The show’s title is taken from Warhol’s 1975 book, The Philosophy of Andy Warhol (From A to B and Back Again), an aphoristic memoir in which the artist gathered his thoughts on fame, love, beauty, class, money, and other key themes.

Building on a wealth of new materials, research and scholarship that has emerged since the artist’s untimely death in 1987, as well as De Salvo’s own expertise and original research conducted by the Whitney’s curatorial team, the checklist of works has been carefully selected from amongst the thousands of paintings, drawings, prints, sculptures, films, videos, and photographs that Warhol produced during his lifetime.

Adam D. Weinberg, the Alice Pratt Brown Director of the Whitney, commented: “This exhibition takes a fresh focus, while continuing the Whitney’s decades-long engagement with Warhol’s work which we presented in 1971 in a traveling retrospective and in Andy Warhol: Portraits of the 70s, organized by the Whitney in 1979–80. Few have had the opportunity to see an in-depth presentation of his career, and account for the scale, vibrant color, and material richness of the objects themselves. This exhibition, to be presented in three cities, will allow visitors to experience the work of one of America’s greatest cultural figures firsthand, and to better comprehend Warhol’s artistic genius and fearless experimentation.”

Early Work

The exhibition covers the entirety of Warhol’s career, beginning with a concentrated focus on the commercial and private work he made between 1948 and 1960. Arriving in New York from his native Pittsburgh in the summer of 1949, Warhol began his career in an advertising world that was increasingly technological, and, concurrently, an art world obsessed with originality and the authenticity of the hand-made mark. The 1950s were a foundational period for the artist, a young gay man, beginning to find his way in the city. Though far less known than his later work, the commercial art that Warhol produced during his first decade in New York lays the groundwork for many of the themes and aesthetic devices that he would develop throughout the length of his career.