The first major museum exhibition devoted to the subject, Multiplicity presents over 80 major collage and collage-informed works that reflect the breadth and complexity of Black identity. Featuring an intergenerational group of 52 living artists, Multiplicity explores the varying ways collage is employed and how the technique suggests diverse conceptual concerns such as cultural hybridity, notions of beauty, gender fluidity, and historical memory. By assembling pieces of paper, photographs, fabric, and salvaged or repurposed materials, these artists create unified compositions that express the endless possibilities of Black-constructed narratives despite our fragmented society.
Watch some of the artists in the exhibition talk about their work.
Artists in the exhibition
- Nina Chanel Abney
- Derrick Adams
- Njideka Akunyili Crosby
- Radcliffe Bailey
- Sanford Biggers
- McArthur Binion
- Brittney Boyd Bullock
- Mark Bradford
- Tay Butler
- Zoë Charlton
- Andrea Chung
- Jamal Cyrus
- M. Florine Démosthène
- Derek Fordjour
- Genevieve Gaignard
- Lauren Halsey
- Kahlil Robert Irving
- Tomashi Jackson
- Arthur Jafa
- Rashid Johnson
- Yashua Klos
- YoYo Lander
- Rick Lowe
- Kerry James Marshall
- Rod McGaha
- Lester Julian Merriweather
- Helina Metaferia
- Wardell Milan
- Joiri Minaya
- Troy Montes Michie
- Devin N. Morris
- Wangechi Mutu
- Narcissister
- Rashaad Newsome
- Lovie Olivia
- Ebony G. Patterson
- Howardena Pindell
- Jamea Richmond-Edwards
- Deborah Roberts
- Lanecia A. Rouse
- Tschabalala Self
- Vitus Shell
- Devan Shimoyama
- David Shrobe
- Lorna Simpson
- Nyugen E. Smith
- Paul Anthony Smith
- Shinique Smith
- Mickalene Thomas
- Kara Walker
- Didier William
- Kandis Williams
Related local projects and public art
Derek Fordjour’s outdoor murals on the campus of Tennessee State University
Helina Metaferia’s outdoor murals on the campus of Fisk University
Lovie Olivia: Beauty as a Method. Tinney Contemporary, September 9–October 28
Rod McGaha Immersive Performance: Regeneration. Christ Church Cathedral, September 17
Artville Talks: A Conversation with Derrick Adams, Moderated by Frist Art Museum senior curator Katie Delmez. Wedgewood-Houston Neighborhood. September 29
Vitus Shell: To Whom It May Concern. Vanderbilt University Space 204, EBI Studio Arts Center. October 12–November 9
A related exhibition of African American artists working in collage during the mid-twentieth century, including Romare Bearden, David Driskell, and Sam Middleton will be presented this fall at Fisk University’s Carl Van Vechten Art Gallery. Dates TBA.
Tay Butler, William Edmondson Park, Edgehill Neighborhood
Exhibition tour
Frist Art Museum: September 15–December 31, 2023
Museum of Fine Arts, Houston: February 18–May 12, 2024
The Phillips Collection, Washington D.C.: July 6–September 22, 2024
The exhibition is accompanied by a catalogue with scholarly essays.
The catalogue is available in the Frist Art Museum gift shop.
Organized by the Frist Art Museum
Platinum sponsor
Supported by a major grant from
Leadership support provided by
Drs. Turner &
Phylanice Nashe
This project is supported in part by
Hospitality sponsors
Education and Community Engagement supporter
Spanish translation sponsor
Presented in part by
Exhibition gallery
Yashua Klos. Uncle Scott, 2022. Woodblock prints on archival paper, Japanese rice paper, acrylic, spray paint, colored pencil, and wood mounted on canvas; 72 x 60 in. Collection of Marc Rockford and Carrie Gish, courtesy of the artist and Sikkema Jenkins & Co., New York. © 2023 Yashua Klos
Jamea Richmond-Edwards. Archetype of a 5 Star, 2018. Acrylic, spray paint, glitter, ink, and cut paper on canvas; 60 x 48 in. Rubell Museum, Miami. © Jamea Richmond-Edwards
Tschabalala Self. Sprewell, 2020. Fabric, thread, painted canvas, silk, jeans, painted newsprint, stamp, thread, photographic transfer on paper, and acrylic on canvas; 84 x 72 1/4 x 2 1/2 in. Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York, Gift. Image courtesy of the artist and Pilar Corrias, London. © 2023 Derrick Adams
Derek Fordjour. Airborne Double, 2022. Acrylic, charcoal, cardboard, oil pastel, and foil on newspaper mounted on canvas; 60 x 100 in. Frances Fine Art Collection. Courtesy of the artist and Petzel Gallery, New York. Photo: Daniel Greer. © 2023 Derek Fordjour
Howardena Pindell. Untitled #3C, 2009. Mixed media on paper collage; 8 x 9 3/4 in. Courtesy of the artist and Garth Greenan Gallery. © Howardena Pindell
Deborah Roberts. Let them be children, 2018. Acrylic, pastel, ink, and gouache on canvas; 45 1/8 x 140 1/8 in. Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, Richmond, Arthur and Margaret Glasgow Endowment, 2019.1. Courtesy of the artist and Stephen Friedman Gallery. © Deborah Roberts. Photo: Sydney Collins, © Virginia Museum of Fine Arts
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