Paul Outerbridge, Gas Station, Mazatlán, Mexico , c. 1950, Dye transfer print, Copyright Graham Howe, Curatorial Assistance, Inc., Pasadena, CA
Paul Outerbridge: New Color Photographs from Mexico and California
January 20— June 3, 2018
A pioneering master of color photography, Paul Outerbridge explored the quirky intersection of two cultures in his photographs of Mexico and California during the 1940s and 1950s, gathered together for the first time in this exhibition. As Outerbridge frequented the seaport towns of Baja California, he documented tradesmen, tourists, musicians, and bathing beauties in the glowing colors of Kodachrome. With an artist’s vision and great sensitivity to human nature, Outerbridge captured everyday people at airports, tourist destinations, and pool parties. A master of color photography, Outerbridge took full advantage of this relatively new medium to give his subjects added vitality. Using a light 35mm camera instead of bulky, large-format studio equipment, he composed these vivid images with the same precision seen in his studio photography. Dismissed as too commercial during the 1960s and 70s, these exciting works of art were recently rediscovered by scholars and curators. “Paul Outerbridge: New Color Photographs from Mexico and California, 1948-1955 is curated by William Ewing and Phillip Prodger and the traveling exhibition is organized by Curatorial Assistance Traveling Exhibitions, Pasadena, California.
A Tangled Plot: Works by Annie Blazejack and Geddes Levenson
July 12–October 5, 2025
The Summer 2025 exhibition at the VBMA will showcase 42 paintings and mixed media works by the collaborative duo Annie Blazejack and Geddes Levenson. Blazejack earned her MFA from the School of the Museum of Fine Arts Boston at Tufts University, while Levenson received her MFA from the Pratt Institute in Brooklyn, New York. Their work spans various media and reflects their shared focus on the environment and their upbringing in Miami, Florida.
Picasso and the Progressive Proof
September 13, 2025–January 4, 2026
Picasso and the Progressive Proof: Linocut Prints from a Private Collection explores Pablo Picasso’s late-career printmaking through three key works and their proofs, highlighting his innovative techniques and recurring themes of Spanish heritage, mythology, and European Old Masters.