SAN DIEGO MUSEUM OF ART

EXHIBITIONS: THE MUSEUM PRESENTED A BROAD RANGE OF EXHIBITIONS DURING THE YEAR. THESE WERE CREATED FROM THE MUSEUM'S OWN COLLECTION, AS WELL AS BORROWED FROM OTHER MUSEUMS AND LENDERS. WONDERS OF CREATION: ART, SCIENCE, AND INNOVATION IN THE ISLAMIC WORLD, GARRY WINOGRAND: MAN OF THE CROWD, RUUD VAN EMPEL, FOSTERS + PARTNERS: ARCHITECTURE OF LIGHT AND SPACE, WILLIAM GROPER: AMERICAN AGITATOR, PRIX PICTET: HUMAN, AND WOMEN IN FOCUS WERE SOME OF THE EXHIBITIONS PRESENTED DURING FISCAL YEAR 2025.WONDERS OF CREATION: THIS SWEEPING SPECIAL EXHIBITION EXPLORED THE DYNAMIC INTERSECTIONS OF ART, SCIENCE, AND INNOVATION ACROSS THE ISLAMIC WORLD FROM THE EIGHTH CENTURY TO THE PRESENT. INSPIRED BY A THIRTEENTH-CENTURY ILLUSTRATED COSMOGRAPHY THAT FRAMES WONDER AS A WAY TO COMPREHEND THE UNIVERSE, THE PRESENTATION BROUGHT TOGETHER OVER 200 WORKS FROM MANUSCRIPTS, MAPS, AND SCIENTIFIC INSTRUMENTS TO CONTEMPORARY ARTWORKS ILLUMINATING THE GLOBAL INFLUENCE OF ISLAMIC INTELLECTUAL AND VISUAL CULTURE. THE INSTALLATION MARRIED HISTORICAL ARTIFACTS WITH NEWLY COMMISSIONED CONTEMPORARY WORKS, ENCOURAGING VISITORS TO TRAVERSE CELESTIAL AND TERRESTRIAL REALMS AND CONSIDER HUMANITY'S ROLE WITHIN THEM.GARRY WINOGRAND: A MAJOR PHOTOGRAPHY EXHIBITION SHOWCASING THE VIVID, KINETIC STREET PHOTOGRAPHY OF GARRY WINOGRAND, ONE OF THE DEFINING AMERICAN PHOTOGRAPHERS OF THE TWENTIETH CENTURY. KNOWN FOR HIS AGILE USE OF THE LEICA CAMERA AND HIS INTUITIVE COMPOSITIONAL STYLE, WINOGRAND'S WORK IN THIS SHOW SPANNED KEY PROJECTS FROM HIS PROLIFIC CAREER. IMAGES OF URBAN LIFE, PROTEST SCENES, AND CHANCE ENCOUNTERS ON AMERICAN STREETS CAPTURED THE ENERGY AND SOCIAL UPHEAVAL OF THE 1960S AND '70S, REVEALING HIS ENDURING INTEREST IN THE HUMAN SUBJECT AND PUBLIC SPACE.RUUD VAN EMPEL: THIS EXHIBITION PRESENTED THE RICHLY IMAGINATIVE WORK OF DUTCH PHOTOGRAPHER RUUD VAN EMPEL, WHOSE METICULOUSLY CONSTRUCTED DIGITAL IMAGES OCCUPY A SPACE BETWEEN PHOTOGRAPHIC REALISM AND ARTIFICE. BUILT FROM THOUSANDS OF FRAGMENTS OF HIS OWN PHOTOGRAPHS, THESE HYPER-DETAILED COMPOSITIONS INVITE VIEWERS INTO DREAMLIKE LANDSCAPES THAT BOTH CELEBRATE AND CHALLENGE PERCEPTIONS OF NATURE, MEMORY, AND PHOTOGRAPHIC TRUTH. THE WORKS BLENDING LUSH FLORA, COMPLEX COLOR, AND UNCANNY FIGURES ENCOURAGED DEEP ENGAGEMENT WITH THE CONSTRUCTED WORLD OF PHOTOGRAPHIC ILLUSION.FOSTER + PARTNERS: A MULTIDISCIPLINARY EXHIBITION HIGHLIGHTING THE CELEBRATED ARCHITECTURAL PRACTICE OF FOSTER + PARTNERS, LED BY SIR NORMAN FOSTER. THE SHOW INVITED AUDIENCES TO EXPLORE THE FIRM'S DESIGN PHILOSOPHIES, PARTICULARLY ITS FOCUS ON LIGHT, SPACE, SUSTAINABILITY, AND INNOVATION. ARCHITECTURAL MODELS, DRAWINGS, AND CONCEPTUAL PLANS ILLUSTRATED HOW THE STUDIO APPROACHES THE INTEGRATION OF FORM AND ENVIRONMENT, INCLUDING VISIONS FOR THE MUSEUM'S OWN WEST WING TRANSFORMATION POSITIONING ARCHITECTURE AS A BALANCE OF ENGINEERING, ARTISTRY, AND ENVIRONMENTAL CONSCIOUSNESS. WILLIAM GROPPER: THIS RETROSPECTIVE CELEBRATED THE INCISIVE VOICE OF AMERICAN SOCIAL REALIST WILLIAM GROPPER, WHOSE CAREER SPANNED POLITICAL CARTOONS, PAINTINGS, AND PRINTS MARKED BY SHARP SATIRE AND A COMMITMENT TO SOCIAL JUSTICE. BORN IN NEW YORK CITY'S LOWER EAST SIDE, GROPPER CHRONICLED AMERICAN LIFE WITH WIT AND CRITIQUE, TARGETING INSTITUTIONAL HYPOCRISY, LABOR ISSUES, AND POLITICAL SPECTACLE. THE EXHIBITION HIGHLIGHTED HIS ENDURING ENGAGEMENT WITH DEMOCRACY AND DISSENT, AFFIRMING HIS PLACE AS AN ARTIST WHO USED VISUAL ART AS A FORM OF CIVIC ENGAGEMENT.PRIC PICTET: AT THE MUSEUM OF PHOTOGRAPHIC ARTS (PART OF THE SDMA CAMPUS), THE PRIX PICTET: HUMAN EXHIBITION BROUGHT TO SAN DIEGO THE INTERNATIONAL PHOTOGRAPHY AWARD'S LATEST CYCLE FOCUSED ON HUMANITY'S ROLE IN AN ERA OF ENVIRONMENTAL AND SOCIETAL CHANGE. FEATURING WORK BY A GLOBAL SHORTLIST OF PHOTOGRAPHERS RECOGNIZED FOR THEIR POWERFUL VISUAL NARRATIVES ON SUSTAINABILITY AND HUMAN EXPERIENCE, THE EXHIBITION UNDERSCORED PHOTOGRAPHY'S ABILITY TO PROVOKE REFLECTION ON COLLECTIVE RESPONSIBILITY AND ENVIRONMENTAL STEWARDSHIP.WOMEN IN FOCUS: THIS PHOTOGRAPHY-CENTRIC EXHIBITION CELEBRATED THE CONTRIBUTIONS OF WOMEN PHOTOGRAPHERS FROM THE NINETEENTH CENTURY TO THE PRESENT. BY FOREGROUNDING A RANGE OF GENRES AND INNOVATIVE VISUAL VOICES, THE SHOW EXAMINED HOW WOMEN HAVE SHAPED AND EXPANDED THE MEDIUM DESPITE HISTORICAL GENDER BARRIERS. DRAWING ON THE MUSEUM'S PERMANENT COLLECTION AND HIGHLIGHTING FIGURES ACROSS ERAS, WOMEN IN FOCUS OFFERED A RICH SURVEY OF BOTH CANONICAL AND UNDER-RECOGNIZED PRACTITIONERS.THE MUSEUM PRESENTED SMALLER EXHIBITIONS IN ITS PERMANENT COLLECTION GALLERIES, SUCH AS SHADOWS OF CONTEMPLATION, FOR THE PEOPLE: MODERNIST PRINTMAKING IN MEXICO, AND DUTCH ART IN A GLOBAL AGE, ALONG WITH ROTATIONS IN THE MUSEUM'S PERMANENT COLLECTION GALLERIES. IN THE ONGOING EFFORT TO ADVANCE THE MUSEUM'S GOAL OF MAKING ART MORE ACCESSIBLE, THE MUSEUM CONTINUED TO OFFER FREE ADMISSION TO AGES 17 AND UNDER. THE MUSEUM CONTINUED TO OFFER ITS SMARTPHONE APP TO PROVIDE ADDITIONAL INTERACTIVE EXPERIENCES, INCLUDING THE AUGMENTED REALITY FEATURE, WHICH BRINGS ART TO LIFE. THE APP IS FREE TO DOWNLOAD AND CAN BE USED AT HOME AS WELL AS ON THE PREMISES. SINCE ITS LAUNCH, THE APP HAS OVER 83,000 DOWNLOADS AND INCLUDES 26 AUGMENTED REALITY EXPERIENCES, 619 AUDIO STOPS IN 10 LANGUAGES. IN FY25, THE APP WAS USED OFFSITE IN 48 STATES AND 51 COUNTRIES. THESE DIVERSE EXHIBITIONS AND THEIR COMPLEMENTARY PROGRAMS RESULTED IN THE MUSEUM WELCOMING APPROXIMATELY 541,000 VISITORS IN FISCAL YEAR 2025.

COLLECTIONS: THE MUSEUM'S MISSION IS, IN PART TO CARE FOR ITS COLLECTIONS, WHICH INCLUDES MORE THAN 20,000 WORKS OF ART. THE COLLECTION IS THE MUSEUM'S GREATEST ASSET. ITS WORKS OF ART ARE DISPLAYED ON A ROTATING BASIS WITHIN THE MUSEUM AND ARE FREQUENTLY LENT TO OTHER INSTITUTIONS FOR EXHIBITION ELSEWHERE. THE MUSEUM ALSO SEEKS TO ACQUIRE ART WHICH WILL ENHANCE ITS COLLECTION. DURING FISCAL YEAR 2025, IN ADDITION, CONSERVATION BEGAN ON WORKS OF ART TO BE FEATURED IN FUTURE EXHIBITIONS, BOTH AT THE MUSEUM AND AT OTHER INSTITUTIONS.