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Andrew McAllister
Copy photography of AAM supplied historical prints.
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Photo courtesy Akron Art Museum
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Photo courtesy Akron Art Museum
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Andrew McAllister
Copy photography of AAM supplied historical prints.
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Photo courtesy Akron Art Museum
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Photo courtesy Akron Art Museum
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Jerry Birchfield
FieldStudioPhotography_Front2022
Installation view, FRONT International: Cleveland Triennial for Contemporary Art, Akron Art Museum, July 16–October 2, 2022. Exhibitions and programming in the Karl and Bertl Arnstein Gallery at the Akron Art Museum are made possible with support from John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, the Lehner Family Foundation, and the Ohio Arts Council. FRONT exhibitions in Akron are presented by Richard and Alita Rogers, The John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, GAR Foundation, and the Akron Community Foundation. Karel Martens (born 1939, Mook en Middelaar, The Netherlands; lives in Amsterdam) Icon Viewer, 2015/17 Interactive animation (camera, computer, trackball, and custom pedestal) Dimensions vary Courtesy of the artist Photo: ©FieldStudio Artwork: © Karel Martens
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Then: 2003
The Akron Art Museum was known as the Akron Art Institute when it launched in borrowed spaces in 1922. It changed its name in 1980, and it moved into its fourth and final home in the 1899 Post Office building. In 2003, plans for an addition were underway and Akron Life spotlighted an architect collaborating with the Viennese Coop Himmelb(l)au firm, Tom Wiscombe, who was named young architect of the year. The addition opened in 2007 and more than tripled the size of the museum by creating a sleek, modern glass and steel structure, the John S. and James L. Knight Building, that joins the historic building to form “a museum of the future.”
Now
As the museum celebrates its centennial over the next two years, it focuses on creating welcoming spaces for the entire community. The lobby has been redesigned, but most notably the permanent collection has been revamped in six themed galleries with more than 100 modern and contemporary pieces by more than 70 artists. The art in these galleries offers more diversity and addresses issues like politics, climate change, race and gender, including the new “Images of Blackness” gallery that features artist Nick Cave’s 2018 mixed-media piece “Soundsuit,” which conceals race and gender to question notions of identity. Head to the museum to get a look at global art from the past 170-plus years as well as fresh, challenging art.
