Upcoming Exhibitions

April 17 - October 20

Summer Art Garden: A Flash of Sun

Memphis-based artist and designer Khara Woods presents A Flash of Sun, an installation of sun-drenched shades, dazzling patterns, and geometric sculptures.

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Axis, 2021, Spray Paint on Wood Panel, 30x40 in

March 19, 2025 - September 7, 2025

Calida Rawles: Away with the Tides

In her first solo museum presentation, Calida Rawles envisions water as a space for Black healing. Merging hyperrealism, poetic abstraction, and water's cultural and historical symbolisms, Rawles creates unique portraits of Black bodies submerged in and interacting with bright and mysterious bodies of water.

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Calida Rawles, 'Towner for Life', 2024 acrylic on canvas 72 x 102 inches 182.9 x 259.1 cm © Calida Rawles Courtesy the artist and Lehmann Maupin, New York, Seoul, and London. Photo by Marten Elder

Part II: December 11, 2024 – April 28, 2025

Thomas Jackson: Chaotic Equilibrium

Pennsylvania-based artist Thomas Jackson (b. 1971, Philadelphia) harnesses the windto create ethereal works that blur the boundaries between landscape photography,sculpture, and kinetic art.

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Thomas Jackson, Tulle no. 045, Nantucket, Massachusetts, 2022

November 22, 2024 - January 2025

Starry, Starry, Winter Garden

For the museum’s inaugural Winter Art Garden, Memphis-based artist Greely Myatt uses found objects including metal scraps, neon, and discarded signage to create Starry, Starry – an illuminated starscape on the museum’s plaza. Teasing the boundaries of sculpture through the use of flat forms, Myatt ponders and plays with line and light.

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Big Star, 2023. Photography by Selavie Photography

Part I: September 20 - December 15, 2024 | Part II: December 20, 2024 - April 6 2025

Beyond the Surface: The Art of Handmade Paper

More than just a surface on which to paint, draw, or sketch, paper can be a dynamic art form that encourages collaboration and welcomes spontaneity. 'Beyond the Surface: The Art of Handmade Paper' explores the shape-shifting quality of paper—how it can transform from pulpy fiber into vibrant works of art through hand papermaking.

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Amy Jacobs, Coronet I, 2023. Pigmented cotton with stenciled blowout. Gift of Dieu Donné, New York, 2024.10.4

Ongoing

In the Moment: Art from the 1950s to Now

Contemporary art can capture the political and cultural essence of our time while contemplating and transcending our everyday realities. As time passes, this art connects us with the defining spirit of an era, becoming a visual record of a moment.

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Rashid Johnson, 'Seascape "Milestones"', 2022 Oil on linen; 95 × 122 in. From the collection of Pitt and Barbara Hyde

Ongoing

Memphis on the Mississippi (Ode to Tom Lee)

To further build Memphis' Art Collection, the Brooks has commissioned the Memphis-based artist Carl E. Moore to create a work inspired by our soon-to-be new location Downtown on the banks of the Mississippi River.

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Carl E. Moore, 'Memphis on the Mississippi (Ode to Tom Lee)', 2022. Acrylic on canvas.

Ongoing

Art of the African Diaspora

As conversations around the African Diaspora shift and evolve, so too will this display, aided by the museum actively acquiring works that reflect these varied, global experiences.

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No exhibitions were found

February 23 – June 30, 2019

Natural Curiosity: Beth Van Hoesen

Natural Curiosity: Beth Van Hoesen displays the artist’s process, from initial sketch to polished print. A highly skilled printmaker, Van Hoesen specialized in the intaglio processes of etching, drypoint, and aquatint.

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Beth Van Hoesen, American, 1926 – 2010, "Walt Badger," Drawing V, 1981, Colored Pencil and Graphite

February 16 – August 4, 2019

Painted Words: Poets and Painters in Print

Curated by Donal Harris, Assistant Professor, English Department, University of Memphis and Julian Rome, Senior, University of Memphis Painted Words: Poets and Painters in Print, 1870-1970 showcases three volumes that combine literary and visual art through printmaking.

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Alexander Calder, American, 1898-1976. Illustration for an untitled poem from _Paroles Peintes III.

January 26, 2019 – February 24, 2019

2019 Mid-South Scholastic Art Awards

The Mid-South Scholastic Art Awards is an annual juried student exhibition presented by the Brooks and Brooks Museum League. As an affiliate of the Alliance for Young Artists and Writers, the Mid-South Scholastic Art Awards honors exemplary art by students in seventh through 12th grades.

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Senior Best-in-Show, Jackson Hescock, Please, Memphis University School

December 1, 2018 - February 24, 2019

Georgia O'Keeffe: Visions of Hawai'i

Pioneering American modernist Georgia O'Keeffe (1887-1986) conveyed a distinct sense of place with innovative depictions of her surroundings, from stark New Mexican landscapes to New York cityscapes.

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September 1, 2018 – August 11, 2019

Rotunda Projects: Federico Uribe

Federico Uribe (Colombian, b. 1962) creates magical creatures and playful installations from everyday objects. For the Memphis Brooks Museum of Art, he has installed a large-scale site-specific environment in the museum’s rotunda. Uribe produces immersive and dreamlike landscapes by transforming materials such as books, col

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Federico Uribe (Colombian, b. 1962)

October 14, 2017 - January 7, 2018

Coming to America: Lachaise, Laurent, Nadelman, and Zorach

The sculptures of Gaston Lachaise, Robert Laurent, Elie Nadelman and William Zorach embody the vitality and vision of four modern artists who—arriving as immigrants in the United States from the growing turbulence of pre-war Europe—responded to the challenges and excitement of American life with extraordinary creativity.

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Gaston Lachaise, United States, born France, 1882-1935, Standing Woman, 1912-1927, Bronze, 72 x 28 x 17 (including bronze base), Philadelphia Museum of Art, Gift of R. Sturgis and Marion B.F. Ingersoll, 1962, 1962-182-1, © Gaston Lachaise Foundation Image Courtesy of the Philadelphia Museum of Art

June 3 - August 27, 2017

100 Gifts for 100 Years

To mark the Brooks’ 100th anniversary, our dedicated, generous patrons and support groups have gifted the museum more than 100 spectacular works of art. Ranging from ancient coins to contemporary glass, from paintings to quilts, the exhibition will display all of these gifts in glorious profusion.

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Lino Tagliapetra, Mandara, 2005, Memphis Brooks Museum of Art

May 8 - 24, 2017

Brooks Outside: Tape Art

The Rhode Island artist collective Tape Art, known for creating over 500 temporary murals installed around the world, ends our centennial celebration with a massive installation on the Brooks’ façade.

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A massive 20-day mural made for the Brooks Art Museum, Memphis, TN.

April 26th - June 8th

Who You See and Who We Are: A reflection on teenage identity, culture, and change

Every day you interact with countless amounts of people, but have you ever truly seen them for who they are? In our diverse society, it is important to celebrate the beauty and uniqueness of all identities and experiences.

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Julian Ward, Misdiagnosis, 2024, Acrylic on canvas, 24 x 36

May 22, 2025

Suchitra Mattai: with abundance we meet

'with abundance we meet' is an installation made of ‘fruit’ ('phala' in Hindi) sculptures by the artist Suchitra Mattai that are ripe with possibilities, conjuring wombs and fertility spirits.

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Suchitra Mattai, 'phala' (fruit), 2023. 15 components comprised of vintage saris, rope, and chain, dimensions variable. Courtesy of the artist and Roberts Projects, Los Angeles, California; Photo: Robert Wedemeyer.

July 23, 2025 - Fall 2026

Navigating Knowledge

This exhibition explores vessels and navigation as metaphors for the containment and transmission of knowledge. From religious doctrine and scientific theories to historical narratives and ancient philosophies, the works presented consider how ideas spread to the far reaches of the world through migration and other journeys.

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Harmonia Rosales, 'Migration of the Gods', 2021. Oil with iron oxide and 24 karat gold leaf on Belgian linen mounted on wood panel. Museum purchase with funds provided by the Blackmon Perry Endowment Fund, 2022.2

October 2025 to January 2026

Curated by Dr. Sharbreon Plummer, this exhibition and the accompanying publication seek to illuminate the processes and practices of Black Southern quilters while celebrating the enduring impact of quilting on communities and generations.

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Roland L. Freeman (1936–2023), Catherine Gill, Classy Blaylock, Decatur, MS, 1993. Color print, 24 in. x 36 ½ inches. Collection of the Mississippi Museum of Art, Jackson, Gift of the Kohler Foundation, Inc., 2022.9.162. Photo: Gib Ford

March - December 2026

Memphis College of Art, 1936-2020: An Enduring Legacy

For eighty-four years, the Memphis College of Art offered a rigorous arts education to students from across the country and around the world. Through this exhibition of ninety faculty, administrators, and graduates, 'Memphis College of Art, 1936-2020: An Enduring Legacy' reflects on the school’s historical impact and celebrates its continued legacy regionally and beyond.

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