Fragments, Forms, and the Future: Three Modern Masterpieces from the Collection of Sam Rose

Featuring works by Fernand Léger (1881-1955), Stuart Davis (1892-1964), and Romare Bearden (1911-1988), this special installation of three masterpieces of European and American avant-garde art allows us to experience ways in which artists have deployed fragmentary images of the contemporary world, reconstituting them into balanced compositions that speak to an imagined ideal. Spanning half a century, these works evoke in turn the purity of classical harmony, the vibrant energy of American modernity, and the cultural richness of a Southern heritage. Linking them is the freedom of a collage aesthetic that is emblematic of modern art in the last century.

The Ackland gratefully acknowledges these generous loans from the distinguished private collection of Sam Rose.