(MONTCLAIR, NJ) -- Since its founding in 1914, Montclair Art Museum (MAM) has actively collected historic, modern, and contemporary art, growing its collection to more than 15,000 works. The 2021 spring exhibition, New York to New Mexico: New Acquisitions, highlights 12 new acquisitions of American and Native American art entered into the collection since 2017.  Curated by Gail Stavitsky, New Acquisitions: New York to New Mexico will be on display in MAM’s Lehman Court through June 13, 2021.

Ranging from the early 20th century to the present, this exhibition includes New York-based modern art dealer and photographer Alfred Stieglitz’s The Steerage (1907/1915), Norman Lewis’s lyrical, untitled Abstract Expressionist painting (1951), and Chemehuevi photographer Cara Romero’s Water Memory (2015).

Also on display are early 20th century works by pioneering modernists A.B. Frost, Jr. and Morton Livingston Schamberg. Photographs of ancient petroglyphs in New Mexico by Salvatore Mancini are complemented by Alaska Native artist Sonya Kelliher-Combs’ shadow boxes containing a moose jaw and polar bear fur. Other works focus on social issues and concerns, such as Kyle Meyer’s mixed media portrait of a gay man in Swaziland and Jersey City-based artist Woolpunk’s digital and fiber artwork Blue Carts & Barbed Wired (2018).

Curated by Gail Stavitsky, New Acquisitions: New York to New Mexico will be on display in MAM’s Lehman Court through June 13, 2021 and will open in tandem on February 7 with Fragile Freedoms: Maggie Meiners Revisits Rockwell, a new exhibition by photographer Maggie Meiners and four works from the acclaimed “For Freedoms” series by Hank Willis Thomas and Emily Shur in collaboration with Eric Gottesman and Wyatt Gallery.

MAM has enacted recommended protocols to provide a safe environment for all visitors and staff.  For up-to-date information on museum hours and related program and events, please visit their website.

The Montclair Art Museum (MAM) is located at 3 South Mountain Avenue in Montclair, New Jersey. It boasts a renowned collection of American and Native American art that uniquely highlights art-making in the United States over the last 300 years. The Vance Wall Art Education Center encompasses the Museum’s educational efforts, including award-winning Yard School of Art studio classes, lectures and talks, family events, tours, and the mobile MAM Art Truck. MAM exhibitions and programs serve a wide public of all ages, from families and seniors to artists, educators, and scholars. 

(TOP PHOTO) Cara Romero (b. 1977); ​​​​​​​Water Memory, 2015; Archival Pigment Print on Canson Platine Fiber Rag; Ed. 5/10. Museum purchase; Acquisition Fund 2019.11