Amon Carter Museum presents the exhibitions “Louise Nevelson at Midcentury” and “Come to Colorado”

From August 27, 2023, through January 7, 2024, the Amon Carter Museum of American Art presents “The World Outside: Louise Nevelson at Midcentury” and “Come to Colorado”

Source: Amon Carter Museum of American Art · Image: C.W. Erdlen, “Waiting” [Cottonwood Lake], ca. 1880-1900. Amon Carter Museum of American Art, Fort Worth, Fred and Jo Mazzulla Collection

Drawn exclusively from the Carter’s Fred and Jo Mazzulla Collection, “Come to Colorado” showcases 19th-century photographs including work from W. J. Carpenter, Joseph M. Collier, and William Henry Jackson. Fred Mazzulla spent decades building a collection of visual materials, including photographs, about the history of Colorado. Acquired by the Carter in 1976, these rarely shown photographs document Colorado’s settlement by White Americans, and the promotion of the area as an outdoor playground in tandem with the growth of the mining industry of the late 19th century.

“The World Outside” offers an in-depth study of the artistic, economic, and political forces behind Nevelson’s multifaceted innovations in the mid-twentieth century. Working against repressive gender norms and a culture of mass consumption, Nevelson subverted the era’s obsession with domesticity and industrial production by championing hands-on techniques and repurposed materials. Investigating over 50 key sculptures and works on paper, the exhibition reveals how Nevelson’s encounters with “the world outside” fuelled her imagination and ingenuity—from the Colonial Revival and the “discovery” of American folk art in the first half of the twentieth century; to muralism and Mayan iconography in her travels through Mexico and Guatemala; to New York’s modern dance scene; to Los Angeles’ print-art revolution; to media coverage of environmental crises and the Space Race.

“Bringing forward a deeper, more dynamic understanding of some of Nevelson’s most important works—including essential examples from our collection—The World Outside advances the Carter’s mission to expand perspectives of the history of creativity in America,” said Andrew J. Walker, Executive Director at the Carter. “The new scholarship presented in the exhibition is a timely reminder of the crucial role artists serve as witnesses to history; the nuanced stories still to be discovered within seemingly familiar works; and—as underscored by Jean Shin’s and Tara Donovan’s catalogue reflections—the ways that any single voice can echo through generations to follow.”