Strategies of Exhibition Design in the Twentieth Century: History and Theory

Comprised of installation photographs, working plans, and art objects, these works present case studies from a material history of avant-garde exhibition design practices from the 1920s to midcentury. With particular focus on the projects of El Lissitzky, this group of objects asks students to consider, on both formal and historical grounds, the various solutions artists devised to construct exhibition spaces for the display of art, propaganda materials, and scientific demonstrations. The installation complements a sophomore tutorial taught by Kevin Lotery, a PhD candidate in the Department of History of Art and Architecture, Harvard University.

The installation is made possible in part by funding from the Gurel Student Exhibition Fund. Modern and contemporary art programs are made possible in part by generous support from the Emily Rauh Pulitzer and Joseph Pulitzer Jr. Fund for Modern and Contemporary Art, Harvard Art Museums.

Teaching gallery installations are mounted in conjunction with Harvard University undergraduate and graduate courses and feature selected objects from the Harvard Art Museums collections. Coordinated by Amy Brauer, Diane Heath Beever Curator of the Collection, Division of Asian and Mediterranean Art, Harvard Art Museums.