Memphis College of Art, 1936–2020: An Enduring Legacy opens at the Memphis Brooks Museum of Art on February 25 and remains on view through September 2026, marking a poignant tribute to a school that shaped the cultural life of Memphis for eighty-four years. When the Memphis College of Art graduated its final class in May 2020, it closed a chapter that had begun in 1936—one defined by experimentation, mentorship, and deep civic engagement. This exhibition, mounted as the museum prepares to leave its historic home in Overton Park, honors a partnership that has long been intertwined, both institutions sharing early guidance under the leadership of Florence McIntyre.
Bringing together ninety works by faculty, administrators, and alumni, the exhibition traces a lineage of influence across generations. Organized in groupings that place teachers alongside former students, it reveals how ideas were transmitted, challenged, and transformed in studios and classrooms over decades. Painting, photography, sculpture, design, and mixed media coexist in a lively dialogue, reflecting the breadth of practices fostered at the college. Artists such as Dolph Smith, Floyd Newsum, Maritza Dávila Irizarry, and D’Angelo Lovell Williams appear alongside many others whose careers have extended far beyond Tennessee, carrying the spirit of Memphis into national and international contexts.
More than a survey, the exhibition underscores the school’s role as a catalyst within the city’s creative economy. Graduates became educators, museum professionals, and independent voices who nurtured future generations. Their work often engaged directly with the social and political realities of the American South, while remaining attentive to formal rigor and craft traditions. This balance between regional grounding and outward-looking ambition defined the college’s ethos.
Guest curated by Marina Pacini, the presentation invites reflection on continuity and change. Though the college itself has closed, its legacy persists in studios, classrooms, and communities shaped by its alumni. In gathering these works under one roof, the museum affirms that institutions may evolve or conclude, but the artistic conversations they spark endure well beyond their walls.
Image:
Tommy Kha,'May (in April)', 2023 © 2025 Tommy Kha. Courtesy of the artist and Memphis Brooks Museum Of Art.