Past Exhibitions

A black and white photograph of a black woman leaning against a balustrade, with a man in the background. The setting is a grand interior space, filled with light and shadow.

With Open Eyes

Morris Graves Gallery

-

Academic Year 2023-24 marks the 50th anniversary of the Center for the Study of Women in Society (CSWS) at the University of Oregon. JSMA joins our colleagues in the campus-wide celebration of CSWS’s history of intersectional feminist research including; considerations of gender, race, class, ability, and sexual orientation; and a commitment to social justice and gender equality.

Minimalist painting in black and brown and orange of a hillside with trees, a river, and a lone person leading a cow

Capital and Countryside in Korea

Wan Koo and Young Ja Huh Wing and Jin Joo Gallery of Korean Art

-

Capital and Countryside in Korea will investigate the representation of urban and rural spaces in Korean art. Touching upon themes of memory and nostalgia, cultural heritage, written language, production and industry, and the significance of specific locales, this exhibition examines how these spaces have impacted the histories, cultures, and identities of people throughout the Korean Peninsula.

Includes:
  • Virtual Tour
White hatchback car levitating in a room with a concrete floor and gray bricks. A smaller inverse image of the car is in the background.

University of Oregon MFA Art Exhibition 2023

Harold and Arlene Schnitzer Gallery

-

The University of Oregon MFA Art Exhibition 2023 culminates three years of independent research and experimentation by a cohort of five artists whose various practices engage a broad range of inquiry.

Copper Arts & Crafts bowl with leaf detail along the lip

The First Metal Arts & Crafts Copper

John and Ethel MacKinnon Gallery

-

Drawing on the JSMA’s Margo Grant Walsh Twentieth Century Silver and Metalwork Collection and a select number of private and museum loans, the exhibition will present a range of hand-wrought copper works by many of the premier metalsmiths working in late 19th and early 20th century Britain, the United States, and beyond.

Includes:
  • Gallery Guide
  • Virtual Tour
  • Press Release
A large wood panel with an image of a woman in a bikini holding a power tool. The black ink illustration contrasts with the natural wood grain, creating a bold visual statement.

An Unfinished Journey Embodying the Feminist City

Artist Project Space

-

An Unfinished Journey: Embodying the Feminist City speaks of an enduring endeavor to attain and maintain women’s rights. Through mixed media artworks by Sandra C. Fernández (b. 1964 New York), Tania Candiani (b. 1974 Mexico City), and Lilliam Nieves (b. 1975 Puerto Rico) the exhibition asks how bodies can claim a sense of belonging and agency, how they can act against systems of oppression that de, value humans and different forms of seeing and being in our communities. How does urban design—architecture, zoning laws, and infrastructure—sustain or dismantle hegemonic power structures? And how can the city, as a space of relationality, and its inhabitants, exhort and advance social justice, as individuals continue to strive for their rights?

Includes:
  • Video
Dark orange vertical herringbone pattern edged with small squares, which are then edged with scalene right triangles

Our Shared Breath Creativity and Community

Focus Gallery

-

The University of Oregon’s annual Common Reading program encourages campus-wide engagement with a shared book and related resources. JSMA’s corresponding Common Seeing expands this conversation through the visual arts., During the 2022-23 academic year, the UO continues its reflection on Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge and the Teachings of Plants (Milkweed Editions, 2013) by Robin Wall Kimmerer.

Includes:
  • Video
An empty classroom with wooden desks and benches. The room has two red flags with yellow stars and portraits of leaders on the wall, suggesting a historical or political theme.

Framing the Revolution Contemporary Chinese Photographs from the Jack and Susy Wadsworth Collection

Coeta and Donald Barker Changing Exhibitions Gallery

-

Presented in the Barker Gallery, Framing the Revolution will be the first major exhibition of the Wadsworths’ Chinese Collection. It features more than 50 politically-charged works by seven artists, ranging in date from 1958 to 2006., Together, they reflect upon modern Chinese history, examining events such as the Long March, the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution and its aftermath, and moments of tremendous social upheaval and change. Artists included are WANG Shilong, LIU Heung Shing, XIAO Lu, SHENG Qi, SHAO Yinong & MUCHEN, and QIN Ga.

Includes:
  • Gallery Guide
A close-up photograph of a hand with visible veins and textures, resting against a textured background. The hand appears to be part of a larger artwork, with a focus on the detailed rendering of the skin and fingers.

What We Leave Behind

Morris Graves Gallery

-

What We Leave Behind evaluates the network of forces that compel many to leave “home” and the challenges encountered through borderization.

Includes:
  • Virtual Tour
A black-and-white photograph of a young person wearing a baseball cap and a fur-lined jacket, with a medallion necklace, looking directly at the camera.

Lonnie Graham A Conversation with the World

Artist Project Space

-

Lonnie Graham is a photographer, installation artist, and cultural activist investigating methods by which the arts may be used to achieve tangible meaning in people’s lives., A Conversation with the World comprises work done in Africa, Asia, the Pacific Rim, Europe, and the Americas. Graham meets individuals and, through mutual trust, makes a portrait and records a conversation. Regardless of age, gender or nationality, all were asked the same eight questions pertaining to origins, family, life, death, values, tradition, and thoughts on Western Culture.

Includes:
  • Video
Painting of a medium-skinned woman with dark, short hair, wearing large gold earrings and an off-the shoulder black formal dress standing with arms crossed in front of an orange sky and green foliage

Many Wests Artists Shape an American Idea

Coeta and Donald Barker Changing Exhibitions Gallery

-

"Many Wests: Artists Shape an American Idea" examines the perspectives of 48 modern and contemporary artists who offer a broader and more inclusive view of this region, which too often has been dominated by romanticized myths and Euro-American historical accounts. , Featuring artwork from the permanent collections of the Smithsonian American Art Museum (SAAM) and four partner museums in the western region of the United States, Many Wests is the culmination of a multi-year, joint curatorial initiative made possible by the Art Bridges Foundation. , This exhibition presents an opportunity to examine previous misconceptions, question racist clichés, and highlight the multiple communities and histories that continue to form this iconic region of the United States., |, Angel Rodríguez-Díaz, The Protagonist of an Endless Story, 1993, oil on canvas, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Museum purchase made possible in part by the Smithsonian Latino Initiatives Pool and the Smithsonian Institution Collections Acquisition Program, 1996.19, © 1993, Angel Rodriguez-Diaz

Includes:
  • Video
A colorful Japanese woodblock print depicting a scene with elegantly dressed women and a man in a military uniform. The scene is set in a richly decorated interior with intricate details.

Fit to Print II Constructing Japanese Modernity in Action and Body

Fay Boyer Preble and Virginia Cooke Murphy Wing

-

This is the first JSMA exhibition celebrating the extremely generous donations of 520+ Meiji prints from the Lavenberg Collection and the first group of over 150 Japanese prints from the Michels Collection. Together, these magnanimous gifts have transformed the JSMA into a major resource for the study of Meiji graphic arts.

A traditional painting featuring a central Buddha figure surrounded by numerous attendants, all in rich colors with gold accents on a weathered background.

Devout Prayers Korean Religious Paintings of the Joseon Dynasty and Beyond

Wan Koo and Young Ja Huh Wing and Jin Joo Gallery of Korean Art

-

The JSMA owns a remarkable Korean painting of the Bodhisattva Ksitigarbha and the Ten Kings of Hell that was donated by museum-founder Gertrude Bass Warner (1863-1951). A bodhisattva is a compassionate Buddhist deity that postpones its own enlightenment to assist others along the same spiritual path, and Ksitigarbha—who is always depicted with the shaven head, robes, and staff of a Buddhist monk—i

Abstract digital artwork featuring a gradient background transitioning from bright green at the top to vibrant magenta at the bottom, with vertical streaks blending the colors in between.

Hear My Voice

Education Corridor

-

This year's project, Hear My Voice, was led and curated by UO art students Kayla Lockwood (2022, ATCH BFA) and Sam Berry (2023, Product Design) and Malik Lovette (2024, M.Arch). The exhibition documents multiple community conversations with UO students, primarily students of color, and documents their experiences surrounding stereotyping.

A group of young people sitting at tables outdoors, engaged in an art workshop. Two mentors stand behind them, overseeing the activity. The setting is lush and green, suggesting a creative and inspiring environment.

Art of the Athlete Pay it Forward

Education Corridor

-

This year’s Art of the Athlete (AofA) exhibition highlights 4 alumni of the AofA program and their contributions as they returned to share their time and talents to work on the museum’s education programs with UO students, youth in our World of Work program, and outreach programs for children identified as at risk and enduring trauma.

A mixed-media collage on a black background, incorporating various elements such as a cardboard cutout of a hanger, a doily with a heart, a yellow tulip, and assorted geometric patterns. The artwork blends different textures and styles.

Drawing Connections Raymond Saunders with Laura Vandenburgh

Morris Graves Gallery

-

The JSMA’s recent acquisition of Untitled by Raymond Saunders (American, b. 1934) marked the first work by this esteemed Bay Area painter and installation artist to enter the collection. Untitled combines many of the visual and thematic elements Saunders has repeated throughout his long artistic career.