Upcoming Exhibitions Through 2025

The Philadelphia Museum of Art (PMA) is pleased to announce its program of new exhibitions for 2025, which includes a major Christina Ramberg retrospective, an expansive exploration of art and design in the 1940s, and a global celebration of Surrealism.

Major Exhibitions

Christina Ramberg: A Retrospective
February 8 – June 1, 2025
Morgan, Korman and Field Galleries, 150-155
Curator: Eleanor Nairne, Keith L and Katherine Sachs Curator and Head of Modern and Contemporary Art

This exhibition, the largest of Christina Ramberg’s work to date, will illuminate the artist’s encyclopedia of imagery exploring experiences of gender, sexuality, and normative ideals of female beauty. Born in 1946, Ramberg has tended to be associated with the Chicago Imagists, a loose fellowship of artists in the mid-1960s who made vibrant work inspired by popular culture, from comic books to low-budget films and store-front displays. However, her exquisitely detailed, kinky aesthetic has always set her apart. Ramberg consistently worked in pursuit of a “coherent visual statement”, honing in on feminized aspects of the body and its erotic trappings: hairstyles, hands, corsets, shoes. Sometimes, she would render these details as highly polished, fetishized forms; elsewhere, she would amalgamate them into almost abstract hybrid figures. As Ramberg indicated in a diary entry, her work exists within the fertile friction between opposing dyads: “abandon / restraint, concealment / revelation, strong / weak, chaos / order”.

In addition to charting the development of Ramberg’s artistic practice – which saw her exhibit in every major Imagist exhibition across North and South America, as well as in the U.K. – this retrospective will touch on the artist’s life as a devoted teacher, appointed chair of Painting and Drawing at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago in 1985, the first woman to hold the position solo.

Delicate Decline, 1972, Christina Ramberg, Acrylic on Masonite, in artist's hand painted wood frame, 58.4 × 81.3 cm (22 3/4 × 32 1/4 in.), Private Collection, Obj: 266679; Photography by Jamie Stukenberg

Important: By downloading this image, you are agreeing to the following permissions: Images are provided exclusively to the press, and only for purposes of publicity for the duration of an exhibition at the PMA. The Museum grants permission to use images only to the extent of its ownership rights relating to those images--the responsibility for any additional permissions remains solely with the party reproducing the images. In addition, the images must be accompanied by the credit line and any copyright information as it appears above, and the party reproducing the images must not distort or mutilate the images.
Untitled (Hair), 1968, Christina Ramberg, Acrylic on Masonite, in artist's hand painted wood frame, 17.8 × 51.5 cm (7 × 20 1/4 in.), Joel Wachs, Obj: 262953; Photography by Kris Graves

Important: By downloading this image, you are agreeing to the following permissions: Images are provided exclusively to the press, and only for purposes of publicity for the duration of an exhibition at the PMA. The Museum grants permission to use images only to the extent of its ownership rights relating to those images--the responsibility for any additional permissions remains solely with the party reproducing the images. In addition, the images must be accompanied by the credit line and any copyright information as it appears above, and the party reproducing the images must not distort or mutilate the images.
Loose Beauty, 1973, Christina Ramberg, Acrylic on Masonite, Diptych, each panel: 48.3 × 37.5 cm (19 × 14 3/4 in.); framed: 51.5 × 78.2 cm (20 1/4 × 30 3/4 in.), The Art Institute of Chicago; Twentieth-Century Purchase Fund, 1973.336; Photography by Jamie Stukenberg

Important: By downloading this image, you are agreeing to the following permissions: Images are provided exclusively to the press, and only for purposes of publicity for the duration of an exhibition at the PMA. The Museum grants permission to use images only to the extent of its ownership rights relating to those images--the responsibility for any additional permissions remains solely with the party reproducing the images. In addition, the images must be accompanied by the credit line and any copyright information as it appears above, and the party reproducing the images must not distort or mutilate the images.
Probed Cinch, 1971, Christina Ramberg, Acrylic on Masonite, in artist's hand painted wood frame, 30.5 × 30.5 cm (12 × 12 in.); 33.1 × 33.1 × 3.2 cm (13 × 13 × 1 1/4 in.), Private collection, New York, Obj: 262968; Photography by Clements/Howcroft, Boston

Important: By downloading this image, you are agreeing to the following permissions: Images are provided exclusively to the press, and only for purposes of publicity for the duration of an exhibition at the PMA. The Museum grants permission to use images only to the extent of its ownership rights relating to those images--the responsibility for any additional permissions remains solely with the party reproducing the images. In addition, the images must be accompanied by the credit line and any copyright information as it appears above, and the party reproducing the images must not distort or mutilate the images.
Waiting Lady, 1972, Christina Ramberg, Acrylic on hardboard, 57.8 × 82 cm (22 3/4 × 32 1/4 in.), Anstiss and Ronald Krueck Collection, Obj: 201865; Photography by Jamie Stukenberg

Important: By downloading this image, you are agreeing to the following permissions: Images are provided exclusively to the press, and only for purposes of publicity for the duration of an exhibition at the PMA. The Museum grants permission to use images only to the extent of its ownership rights relating to those images--the responsibility for any additional permissions remains solely with the party reproducing the images. In addition, the images must be accompanied by the credit line and any copyright information as it appears above, and the party reproducing the images must not distort or mutilate the images.

Boom: Art and Design in the 1940s
April 12 – September 1, 2025
Dorrance Galleries
Curators: Elisabeth Agro, The Nancy M. McNeil Curator of American Modern and Contemporary Crafts and Decorative Arts; Dilys Blum, The Jack M. and Annette Y. Friedland Senior Curator of Costume and Textiles; Amanda N. Bock, The Lynne and Harold Honickman Assistant Curator of Photographs; Jessica T. Smith, Director of Curatorial Affairs; with Lily F. Scott, Exhibition Assistant

The 1940s witnessed major shifts in politics, science, economics, industry, the arts, and culture, which coincided with a time of scarcity, limitation, and the catastrophic global conflict of World War II. Throughout this tumultuous period, artists brought new ideas to their work across media, from fashion and textiles, craft and design, to printmaking, drawing, photography, painting, and sculpture. Boom: Art and Design in the 1940s will be a testament to the creative spirit that flourished despite the restrictions and adversity of the era. Featuring works drawn entirely from the PMA’s permanent collection, the exhibition will showcase art from across the decade. Painters such as Georgia O’Keeffe and Horace Pippin captured the world around them with a modern flair. Others, such as Jackson Pollock and Lee Krasner, challenged the status quo as their work abandoned recognizable forms and evolved into Abstract Expressionism. Emerging from internment by the U.S. government, Japanese American artists George Nakashima and Isamu Noguchi brought distinctive perspectives to their work in furniture, design, and sculpture. Businesses such as Knoll pivoted from importing furniture from Europe to promoting U.S.-based designers and stateside manufacturing. Across the Atlantic, photographers such as Margaret BourkeWhite and Hazel Kingsbury Strand documented the siege and aftermath of war. Other moments of rupture, such as the impact of the war on the Paris couture houses of Elsa Schiaparelli and Christian Dior, spurred innovation in fashion by designers such as Claire McCardell, along with the evolution of an “American Look.”

Atomic Bomb Explosion, c. 1946-1952, Harold Edgerton, Gelatin silver print, Image: 18 1/16 × 14 5/16 inches (45.8 × 36.3 cm) Sheet: 19 15/16 × 16 inches (50.6 × 40.7 cm), Gift of The Harold and Esther Edgerton Family Foundation, 1996, 1996-75-43

Important: By downloading this image, you are agreeing to the following permissions: Images are provided exclusively to the press, and only for purposes of publicity for the duration of an exhibition at the PMA. The Museum grants permission to use images only to the extent of its ownership rights relating to those images--the responsibility for any additional permissions remains solely with the party reproducing the images. In addition, the images must be accompanied by the credit line and any copyright information as it appears above, and the party reproducing the images must not distort or mutilate the images.
Grass-Seated Chair, 1946, George Nakashima, Walnut, grass, 29 × 26 1/2 × 20 inches (73.7 × 67.3 × 50.8 cm), Height (seat): 16 3/4 inches (42.5 cm), Gift of Anne d'Harnoncourt, 2001, 2001-20-1

Important: By downloading this image, you are agreeing to the following permissions: Images are provided exclusively to the press, and only for purposes of publicity for the duration of an exhibition at the PMA. The Museum grants permission to use images only to the extent of its ownership rights relating to those images--the responsibility for any additional permissions remains solely with the party reproducing the images. In addition, the images must be accompanied by the credit line and any copyright information as it appears above, and the party reproducing the images must not distort or mutilate the images.
Portrait of Jean-Louis, 1947-1949, Louise Bourgeois (Artist/Maker), The Robert Miller Gallery, New York (Dealer), 35 × 4 × 1 1/4 inches (88.9 × 10.2 × 3.2 cm), Framed: 49 × 17 1/8 × 5 1/4 inches (124.5 × 43.5 × 13.3 cm), Gift of Keith L. and Katherine Sachs, 2013, 2013-158-2

Important: By downloading this image, you are agreeing to the following permissions: Images are provided exclusively to the press, and only for purposes of publicity for the duration of an exhibition at the PMA. The Museum grants permission to use images only to the extent of its ownership rights relating to those images--the responsibility for any additional permissions remains solely with the party reproducing the images. In addition, the images must be accompanied by the credit line and any copyright information as it appears above, and the party reproducing the images must not distort or mutilate the images.
The Park Bench, 1946, Horace Pippin, Oil on canvas, 13 × 18 inches (33 × 45.7 cm) Frame: 18 1/2 × 22 1/2 inches (47 × 57.2 cm), Bequest of Daniel W. Dietrich II, 2016, 2016-3-4

Important: By downloading this image, you are agreeing to the following permissions: Images are provided exclusively to the press, and only for purposes of publicity for the duration of an exhibition at the PMA. The Museum grants permission to use images only to the extent of its ownership rights relating to those images--the responsibility for any additional permissions remains solely with the party reproducing the images. In addition, the images must be accompanied by the credit line and any copyright information as it appears above, and the party reproducing the images must not distort or mutilate the images.
Patriot Radio, Model FC-400, 1940-1941, Emerson Radio and Phonograph Corporation, New York(Manufacturer), Norman Bel Geddes (Designer), Catalin, plastic, 8 × 11 × 5 1/2 inches (20.3 × 27.9 × 14 cm), Gift from the George R. Kravis II Collection, 2018, 2018-205-5

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Woman's Dinner Jacket, Summer 1941, Elsa Schiaparelli, Black rayon crepe, magenta cellulose acetate velvet with silk embroidery, Center Back Length: 19 1/4 inches (48.9 cm) Center Front Length: 16 inches (40.6 cm), Gift of Mme Elsa Schiaparelli, 1969, 1969-232-17

Important: By downloading this image, you are agreeing to the following permissions: Images are provided exclusively to the press, and only for purposes of publicity for the duration of an exhibition at the PMA. The Museum grants permission to use images only to the extent of its ownership rights relating to those images--the responsibility for any additional permissions remains solely with the party reproducing the images. In addition, the images must be accompanied by the credit line and any copyright information as it appears above, and the party reproducing the images must not distort or mutilate the images.

Brand X: Innovation in Screenprinting
Opens July 5 , 2025
Morgan, Korman and Field Galleries, 150-155
Curator: Louis Marchesano, The Audrey and William H. Helfand Senior Curator of Prints, Drawings, and Photographs; Laurel Garber, The Park Family Associate Curator of Prints and Drawings; with Em Dombrovskaya, Suzanne Andrée Curatorial Fellow

Since 1979, Brand X Editions has pushed the boundaries of screenprinting and its expressive possibilities in their partnerships with leading contemporary artists, from Helen Frankenthaler and Rashid Johnson to Alex Katz and Tschabalala Self. This exhibition will celebrate the transformative gift of the Brand X archive of over 350 screenprints to the museum. Sharing 45 years of collaborative work between founder Robert Blanton and his team of printers, chromists, and a constellation of artists, this show will address themes relating to identity, language, design, landscape, and politics while exploring artistic process and innovative techniques. From Deborah Kass’s Warhol-inspired, action-packed images of Sandy Koufax in Baseball (1996) to the energetic impasto of Johnson’s Untitled Anxious Red (2021), the printmakers at Brand X have finetuned techniques that boldly and sensitively respond to the contingencies of each artist’s work.

Keri On, 2019, Mickalene Thomas (b. 1971), collage, silkscreen, pochoir, and monoprint, Gift of Brand X Editions, New York, Image courtesy of Brand X Editions.

Important: By downloading this image, you are agreeing to the following permissions: Images are provided exclusively to the press, and only for purposes of publicity for the duration of an exhibition at the PMA. The Museum grants permission to use images only to the extent of its ownership rights relating to those images--the responsibility for any additional permissions remains solely with the party reproducing the images. In addition, the images must be accompanied by the credit line and any copyright information as it appears above, and the party reproducing the images must not distort or mutilate the images.
Why Can’t We Just Sit Down and Talk it Over? 2006, Mickalene Thomas (b. 1971 ) screenprint, Gift of Brand X Editions, New York, Image courtesy of Brand X Editions.

Important: By downloading this image, you are agreeing to the following permissions: Images are provided exclusively to the press, and only for purposes of publicity for the duration of an exhibition at the PMA. The Museum grants permission to use images only to the extent of its ownership rights relating to those images--the responsibility for any additional permissions remains solely with the party reproducing the images. In addition, the images must be accompanied by the credit line and any copyright information as it appears above, and the party reproducing the images must not distort or mutilate the images.
Candyland, 2023, Joel Mesler (b. 1974), 51-color screenprint, Gift of Brand X Editions, New York, Image courtesy of Brand X Editions.

Important: By downloading this image, you are agreeing to the following permissions: Images are provided exclusively to the press, and only for purposes of publicity for the duration of an exhibition at the PMA. The Museum grants permission to use images only to the extent of its ownership rights relating to those images--the responsibility for any additional permissions remains solely with the party reproducing the images. In addition, the images must be accompanied by the credit line and any copyright information as it appears above, and the party reproducing the images must not distort or mutilate the images.
Family, 2023, KAWS, Silkscreen, Gift of Brand X Editions, New York, Image Courtesy of Brand X Editions.

Important: By downloading this image, you are agreeing to the following permissions: Images are provided exclusively to the press, and only for purposes of publicity for the duration of an exhibition at the PMA. The Museum grants permission to use images only to the extent of its ownership rights relating to those images--the responsibility for any additional permissions remains solely with the party reproducing the images. In addition, the images must be accompanied by the credit line and any copyright information as it appears above, and the party reproducing the images must not distort or mutilate the images.
Homebodies – All American 1, 2022, Tschabalala Self (b. 1990), monoprint, fabric collage, pigment wash, hand coloring, and enamel silkscreen, Gift of Brand X Editions, New York, Image Courtesy of Brand X Editions.

Important: By downloading this image, you are agreeing to the following permissions: Images are provided exclusively to the press, and only for purposes of publicity for the duration of an exhibition at the PMA. The Museum grants permission to use images only to the extent of its ownership rights relating to those images--the responsibility for any additional permissions remains solely with the party reproducing the images. In addition, the images must be accompanied by the credit line and any copyright information as it appears above, and the party reproducing the images must not distort or mutilate the images.
Homebodies – All American 1, 2022, Tschabalala Self (b. 1990), monoprint, fabric collage, pigment wash, hand coloring, and enamel silkscreen, Gift of Brand X Editions, New York, Image Courtesy of Brand X Editions.

Important: By downloading this image, you are agreeing to the following permissions: Images are provided exclusively to the press, and only for purposes of publicity for the duration of an exhibition at the PMA. The Museum grants permission to use images only to the extent of its ownership rights relating to those images--the responsibility for any additional permissions remains solely with the party reproducing the images. In addition, the images must be accompanied by the credit line and any copyright information as it appears above, and the party reproducing the images must not distort or mutilate the images.
Large Anxious Red, 2021, Rashid Johnson (b. 1977), screenprint with hand applied pigment, Gift of Brand X Editions, New York, Image courtesy of Brand X Editions.

Important: By downloading this image, you are agreeing to the following permissions: Images are provided exclusively to the press, and only for purposes of publicity for the duration of an exhibition at the PMA. The Museum grants permission to use images only to the extent of its ownership rights relating to those images--the responsibility for any additional permissions remains solely with the party reproducing the images. In addition, the images must be accompanied by the credit line and any copyright information as it appears above, and the party reproducing the images must not distort or mutilate the images.
Nobody Puts Baby in the Corner, 2022, Deborah Kass (b. 1952), screenprint, Gift of Brand X Editions, New York, Image courtesy of Brand X Editions.

Important: By downloading this image, you are agreeing to the following permissions: Images are provided exclusively to the press, and only for purposes of publicity for the duration of an exhibition at the PMA. The Museum grants permission to use images only to the extent of its ownership rights relating to those images--the responsibility for any additional permissions remains solely with the party reproducing the images. In addition, the images must be accompanied by the credit line and any copyright information as it appears above, and the party reproducing the images must not distort or mutilate the images.
Seascape, 2023, Rashid Johnson (b. 1977), 9-color screenprint with hand applied pigment, Gift of Brand X Editions, New York, Image courtesy of Brand X Editions.

Important: By downloading this image, you are agreeing to the following permissions: Images are provided exclusively to the press, and only for purposes of publicity for the duration of an exhibition at the PMA. The Museum grants permission to use images only to the extent of its ownership rights relating to those images--the responsibility for any additional permissions remains solely with the party reproducing the images. In addition, the images must be accompanied by the credit line and any copyright information as it appears above, and the party reproducing the images must not distort or mutilate the images.

Dreamworld: Surrealism at 100
November 8 – February 16, 2026
Dorrance Galleries
Curator: Matthew Affron, The Muriel and Philip Berman Curator of Modern Art

In his Manifesto of Surrealism of 1924, André Breton called on people to embrace dreamlike imagination as a guide for living freely. The artists who rallied around this idea sought new expressive forms for exploring the human capacity for wonder. Dreamworld: Surrealism at 100 will feature approximately two hundred works by more than sixty artists associated with the international Surrealist movement. The PMA will be the only U.S. venue for this traveling exhibition, following distinct iterations at the Centre Pompidou in Paris, which launched this project to celebrate Surrealism’s centenary, and three other European museums. PMA highlights will include Joan Miró’s Dog Barking at the Moon (1926), Salvador Dalí’s Soft Construction with Boiled Beans (Premonition of Civil War) (1936), and Dorothea Tanning’s Birthday (1942).

Birthday, 1942, Dorothea Tanning, Oil on canvas, 40 1/4 × 25 1/2 inches (102.2 × 64.8 cm), 125th Anniversary Acquisition. Purchased with funds contributed by C. K. Williams, II, 1999, 1999-50-1

Important: By downloading this image, you are agreeing to the following permissions: Images are provided exclusively to the press, and only for purposes of publicity for the duration of an exhibition at the PMA. The Museum grants permission to use images only to the extent of its ownership rights relating to those images--the responsibility for any additional permissions remains solely with the party reproducing the images. In addition, the images must be accompanied by the credit line and any copyright information as it appears above, and the party reproducing the images must not distort or mutilate the images.
Dog Barking at the Moon, 1926, Joan Miró, Oil on canvas, 28 3/4 x 36 1/4 inches (73 x 92.1 cm), Framed: 34 1/2 x 42 1/8 x 2 3/4 inches (87.6 x 107 x 7 cm), A. E. Gallatin Collection, 1952, 1952-61-82

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Soft Construction with Boiled Beans (Premonition of Civil War), 1936, Salvador Dalí, Oil on canvas, 39 5/16 x 39 3/8 inches (99.9 x 100 cm), The Louise and Walter Arensberg Collection, 1950, 1950-134-41

Important: By downloading this image, you are agreeing to the following permissions: Images are provided exclusively to the press, and only for purposes of publicity for the duration of an exhibition at the PMA. The Museum grants permission to use images only to the extent of its ownership rights relating to those images--the responsibility for any additional permissions remains solely with the party reproducing the images. In addition, the images must be accompanied by the credit line and any copyright information as it appears above, and the party reproducing the images must not distort or mutilate the images.
Untitled (Constellation), c. 1958, Joseph Cornell, Box construction: wood, metal, cut paper, glass and found objects, 13 × 19 3/8 × 4 1/4 inches (33 × 49.2 × 10.8 cm), Gift of Josephine Albarelli, 2015, 2015-144-5

Important: By downloading this image, you are agreeing to the following permissions: Images are provided exclusively to the press, and only for purposes of publicity for the duration of an exhibition at the PMA. The Museum grants permission to use images only to the extent of its ownership rights relating to those images--the responsibility for any additional permissions remains solely with the party reproducing the images. In addition, the images must be accompanied by the credit line and any copyright information as it appears above, and the party reproducing the images must not distort or mutilate the images.
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Collection Installations

Wanda Gág: Art for Life’s Sake
Opens January 25, 2025
Galleries 221-223
Curator: Laurel Garber, The Park Family Associate Curator of Prints and Drawings

Best known for her work as an illustrator of children’s books (such as Millions of Cats) and socialist magazines, Wanda Gág blazed a trail as an emphatically independent artist in the U.S. across the 1920s and 1930s. This exhibition will present the PMA’s unrivaled holdings of Gág drawings for the first time, celebrating the wonder to be found in her distinctive drawing practice, which took artmaking and living as two sides of the same coin. Across her urban vignettes, roving landscapes, and surreal interiors, Gág’s aesthetic style quivers with an energy and vividness that blurs the lines between the artist and her surroundings. In their intimacy and humor, these drawings show Gág’s attention to the overlooked corners of both human and nonhuman worlds, and attest to her engagement with drawing as a “tool for living.” Presenting over forty of her sandpaper and ink drawings, this exhibition will restore to view the career of a charismatic, inventive, and fiercely feminist artist.

Alfie's Flowers (Window Plants), 1927, Alfred Henry Maurer, Wanda Gág, Brush and black ink, traces of graphite on off-white wove paper, 11 x 8 1/2 inches (27.9 x 21.6 cm), Gift of the estate of Wanda Gág, 1952, 1952-32-295

Important: By downloading this image, you are agreeing to the following permissions: Images are provided exclusively to the press, and only for purposes of publicity for the duration of an exhibition at the PMA. The Museum grants permission to use images only to the extent of its ownership rights relating to those images--the responsibility for any additional permissions remains solely with the party reproducing the images. In addition, the images must be accompanied by the credit line and any copyright information as it appears above, and the party reproducing the images must not distort or mutilate the images.
Interior, 1928, Wanda Gág, Brush and black ink on sandpaper, 19 7/8 x 16 inches (50.5 x 40.6 cm), Purchased with the Lola Downin Peck Fund from the Carl and Laura Zigrosser Collection, 1968, 1968-24-186

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Mushrooms, c. 1932, Wanda Gág, Watercolor on sandpaper, 12 x 14 3/8 inches (30.5 x 36.5 cm), Gift of the estate of Wanda Gág, 1952, 1952-32-641

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Rain, c. 1926, Wanda Gág, Brush and black ink on sandpaper, 10 7/16 x 9 15/16 inches (26.5 x 25.2 cm), Purchased with the Lola Downin Peck Fund from the Carl and Laura Zigrosser Collection, 1968, 1968-24-178

Important: By downloading this image, you are agreeing to the following permissions: Images are provided exclusively to the press, and only for purposes of publicity for the duration of an exhibition at the PMA. The Museum grants permission to use images only to the extent of its ownership rights relating to those images--the responsibility for any additional permissions remains solely with the party reproducing the images. In addition, the images must be accompanied by the credit line and any copyright information as it appears above, and the party reproducing the images must not distort or mutilate the images.
Stone Crusher (study drawing), 1927, Wanda Gág, Brush and black ink on sandpaper, 14 7/16 x 11 7/8 inches (36.7 x 30.2 cm), Purchased with the Lola Downin Peck Fund from the Carl and Laura Zigrosser Collection, 1968, 1968-24-159

Important: By downloading this image, you are agreeing to the following permissions: Images are provided exclusively to the press, and only for purposes of publicity for the duration of an exhibition at the PMA. The Museum grants permission to use images only to the extent of its ownership rights relating to those images--the responsibility for any additional permissions remains solely with the party reproducing the images. In addition, the images must be accompanied by the credit line and any copyright information as it appears above, and the party reproducing the images must not distort or mutilate the images.

Staged: Studio Photographs from the Collection
January 18 – June 29, 2025
Galleries 156-157
Curator: Molly Kalkstein, The Horace W. Goldsmith Curatorial Fellow in Photography

This exhibition will explore ways that photographers have used their studios to create moving, dynamic, and daring photographs since the medium’s earliest years. Drawn primarily from the PMA’s permanent collection, Staged will feature studio portraits ranging from the austere to the fantastical, as well as commercial and editorial photography, still lifes, and images of scientific experimentation. Highlights include works by Berenice Abbott, Samuel Fosso, Irving Penn, Rachel Stern, and many more.

Self-Portrait, c. 1978 (negative); 2003 (print), Charles Griffin, Gelatin silver print, Image: 34 1/16 x 34 1/16 inches (86.5 x 86.5 cm), Sheet: 40 x 40 inches (101.6 x 101.6 cm), Purchased with the Lynne and Harold Honickman Fund for Photography and the James D. Crawford and Judith N. Dean Fund, 2003, 2003-172-1

Important: By downloading this image, you are agreeing to the following permissions: Images are provided exclusively to the press, and only for purposes of publicity for the duration of an exhibition at the PMA. The Museum grants permission to use images only to the extent of its ownership rights relating to those images--the responsibility for any additional permissions remains solely with the party reproducing the images. In addition, the images must be accompanied by the credit line and any copyright information as it appears above, and the party reproducing the images must not distort or mutilate the images.
Song Birds, 1932, James VanDerZee, Gelatin silver print, Image: 7 1/2 x 9 1/2 inches (19.1 x 24.1 cm), Sheet: 8 x 9 15/16 inches (20.3 x 25.2 cm), Gift of the Young Friends of the Philadelphia Museum of Art, 2003, 2003-64-2

Important: By downloading this image, you are agreeing to the following permissions: Images are provided exclusively to the press, and only for purposes of publicity for the duration of an exhibition at the PMA. The Museum grants permission to use images only to the extent of its ownership rights relating to those images--the responsibility for any additional permissions remains solely with the party reproducing the images. In addition, the images must be accompanied by the credit line and any copyright information as it appears above, and the party reproducing the images must not distort or mutilate the images.
Beams of Light through Glass, 1958-1961, Berenice Abbott, Gelatin silver print, 18 7/8 × 22 7/16 inches (47.9 × 57 cm), Gift of the estate of Chenoweth Hall, 2012, 2012-66-2

Important: By downloading this image, you are agreeing to the following permissions: Images are provided exclusively to the press, and only for purposes of publicity for the duration of an exhibition at the PMA. The Museum grants permission to use images only to the extent of its ownership rights relating to those images--the responsibility for any additional permissions remains solely with the party reproducing the images. In addition, the images must be accompanied by the credit line and any copyright information as it appears above, and the party reproducing the images must not distort or mutilate the images.
Truth and Spectral Evidence, 2018 (negative); 2019 (print), Rachel Stern, Chromogenic print, 42 × 30 inches (106.7 × 76.2 cm), Purchased with funds contributed by Richard and Ronay Menschel and Marion Miller, 2019, 2019-131-2

Important: By downloading this image, you are agreeing to the following permissions: Images are provided exclusively to the press, and only for purposes of publicity for the duration of an exhibition at the PMA. The Museum grants permission to use images only to the extent of its ownership rights relating to those images--the responsibility for any additional permissions remains solely with the party reproducing the images. In addition, the images must be accompanied by the credit line and any copyright information as it appears above, and the party reproducing the images must not distort or mutilate the images.
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Pauline Boudry / Renate Lorenz: Moving Backwards
May 24 – September 28, 2025
Alter Gallery
Curator: Eleanor Nairne, Keith L and Katherine Sachs Curator and Head of Modern and Contemporary Art

First presented at the Swiss Pavilion for the 58th Venice Biennale in 2019, Moving Backwards explores resistance practices, combining post-modern choreography and urban dance with guerrilla techniques and elements of queer underground culture. Reminiscent of a nightclub, the film installation presents a darkened stage illuminated by flashing lights, a glittering curtain, and a projection of the dancers as they move backwards and forwards, both individually and as a collective. The work is inspired by women in Kurdish guerrilla groups, who wore their shoes backwards whilst walking in the snowy mountains. This tactic saved their lives as their footprints indicated travel in the opposite direction. For Boudry and Lorenz, whose works are grounded in questioning mainstream narratives through queer discourses, the concept of moving backwards becomes a weapon of freedom and resilience, a tool to re-orient and re-organize our bodies and lives beyond the myth of progress and towards an unknown future.

Pauline Boudry / Renate Lorenz, Moving Backwards, Swiss Pavilion at the 58th International Art Exhibition, La Biennale di Venezia, 2019. Co

Important: By downloading this image, you are agreeing to the following permissions: Images are provided exclusively to the press, and only for purposes of publicity for the duration of an exhibition at the PMA. The Museum grants permission to use images only to the extent of its ownership rights relating to those images--the responsibility for any additional permissions remains solely with the party reproducing the images. In addition, the images must be accompanied by the credit line and any copyright information as it appears above, and the party reproducing the images must not distort or mutilate the images.
Pauline Boudry / Renate Lorenz, Moving Backwards, Swiss Pavilion at the 58th International Art Exhibition, La Biennale di Venezia, 2019. Co

Important: By downloading this image, you are agreeing to the following permissions: Images are provided exclusively to the press, and only for purposes of publicity for the duration of an exhibition at the PMA. The Museum grants permission to use images only to the extent of its ownership rights relating to those images--the responsibility for any additional permissions remains solely with the party reproducing the images. In addition, the images must be accompanied by the credit line and any copyright information as it appears above, and the party reproducing the images must not distort or mutilate the images.
Pauline Boudry / Renate Lorenz, Moving Backwards, Swiss Pavilion at the 58th International Art Exhibition, La Biennale di Venezia, 2019. Co

Important: By downloading this image, you are agreeing to the following permissions: Images are provided exclusively to the press, and only for purposes of publicity for the duration of an exhibition at the PMA. The Museum grants permission to use images only to the extent of its ownership rights relating to those images--the responsibility for any additional permissions remains solely with the party reproducing the images. In addition, the images must be accompanied by the credit line and any copyright information as it appears above, and the party reproducing the images must not distort or mutilate the images.
Pauline Boudry / Renate Lorenz, Moving Backwards, Swiss Pavilion at the 58th International Art Exhibition, La Biennale di Venezia, 2019. Co

Important: By downloading this image, you are agreeing to the following permissions: Images are provided exclusively to the press, and only for purposes of publicity for the duration of an exhibition at the PMA. The Museum grants permission to use images only to the extent of its ownership rights relating to those images--the responsibility for any additional permissions remains solely with the party reproducing the images. In addition, the images must be accompanied by the credit line and any copyright information as it appears above, and the party reproducing the images must not distort or mutilate the images.
Pauline Boudry / Renate Lorenz, Moving Backwards, Swiss Pavilion at the 58th International Art Exhibition, La Biennale di Venezia, 2019. Co

Important: By downloading this image, you are agreeing to the following permissions: Images are provided exclusively to the press, and only for purposes of publicity for the duration of an exhibition at the PMA. The Museum grants permission to use images only to the extent of its ownership rights relating to those images--the responsibility for any additional permissions remains solely with the party reproducing the images. In addition, the images must be accompanied by the credit line and any copyright information as it appears above, and the party reproducing the images must not distort or mutilate the images.

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