Events: Arizona - Phoenix - Scottsdale

Beginning September 8, Phoenix Art Museum will present an exhibition of artworks by various masters of modern and contemporary art in the Present Tense: Selections from the Lenhardt Collection exhibition. Completely drawn from the private collection of Dawn and David Lenhardt, Present Tense showcases more than 20 paintings, prints, photographs, and sculptures by artists including Andy Warhol, Roy Lichtenstein, Damien Hirst, Louise Lawler, alongside rising stars such as Shara Hughes and Ugo Rondinone.

Present Tense will also feature a recent Museum acquisition, entitled Narnia, by Brooklyn-based painter Shara Hughes, a contemporary artist who was a stand-out in the 2017 Whitney Biennial. Narnia is the first artwork purchased using funds provided by the Lenhardt Emerging Artist Acquisition Fund, part of the Dawn and David Lenhard Contemporary Art Initiative, an impactful initiative which helps the Museum collect works by next-generation contemporary artists. Hughes will also give the first Lenhardt Emerging Artist Lecture at the Museum in October (tickets forthcoming later this summer). 

These loans allow the Museum to give our community access to contemporary art while introducing them to younger artists that are impacting the cultural record.  Present Tense juxtaposes several generations of contemporary artists in order to understand how ideas and impulses are communicated over time.  The Dawn and David Lenhard Contemporary Art Initiative gives the region access to some of the contemporary art world's best and brightest, a welcome addition to a blossoming art scene in the Phoenix area, and has had a positive impact on collectors, artists and young people alike.  This past spring, the Lenhardt Initiative brought artist Jim Hodges to speak and to work with a high-school art class in downtown Phoenix, which Hodges found "very inspiring." Hughes is also expected to work with students in some aspect during her stay in Phoenix, the details of which will be forthcoming.

Present Tense: Selections from the Lenhardt Collection exhibition on view this fall (September 8-December 16).