Curator Dr. Gwendolyn DuBois Shaw on "After Modernism: Selections from the Neumann Family Collection"

Dr. Gwendolyn DuBois Shaw, curator of After Modernism: Selections from the Neumann Family Collection
 

By NOAH BECKER March 6, 2025

Noah Becker: After Modernism: Selections from the Neumann Family Collection explores the trajectory of modern and contemporary art. What inspired you to curate this exhibition, and what central themes emerged during the process?

Dr. Gwendolyn DuBois Shaw: I have been working with the Neumanns since 2023, learning about the history of the collection and their interest in supporting emerging artists as their artistic visions grow and change. I believed that sharing the historical trajectory of the collection, from 1948 to present, would be interesting for audiences.

NB: The exhibition challenges conventional narratives by questioning the role of modern and contemporary art in today’s world. How does After Modernism reshape our understanding of these movements?

GDS: After Modernism rejects the idea that movements are bounded by geographic origin, historical moment, or stylistic similarities. It rejects the supposed break made by the advent of post-Modernism while it also gently mocks the old-timey dominance of Modernism, with a capital M. It encourages viewers to see the visual and thematic affinities that dynamic artworks have with each other outside of categorizing -isms.

NB: Great point, I understand the need to avoid "isms". The title, After Modernism, suggests a critical reflection on the legacy of modernism. How do you define modernism in this exhibition, and what does it mean to move beyond it?

GDS: We don’t try to define Modernism so much as bring in a few works of art made by artists who have been seen as contributing to the Modernist project. Picasso, Matisse, Arp, Man Ray, Höch, Breton, Schwitters, Klee, and Ernst are mobilized here to show how much they have to give to the current moment as they did to their own. Their work speaks across time and echoes in the work of living artists like Zuckerman and Koons, especially as we confront the closing of another loop in the cycle of history.

 Allison Zuckerman, Hillside Promenade, 2017. Acrylic & archival CMYK ink on canvas. 72 in. x 54 in. x 3 in. Courtesy the artist and Kravets Wehby Gallery.
 

NB: Yes and it's such a comprehensive, deep collection - and must present such a huge challenge for a curator. The Neumann Family Collection is known for its depth and breadth, spanning from Picasso to ultra-contemporary artists. How did you approach selecting the 50 works featured in the show?

GDS: I worked with the Neumanns to compile a list of about 75 works that they were comfortable pulling from storage or deinstalling from their home. Insurance values played a large part in the selection, I am not going to lie, it just wasn’t possible for us to borrow a Basquiat, a Warhol, or a major Miro! We then cut the list down to what would fit in the gallery. I had to cut a magnificent piece by Jamea Richardson because it was just too big! But we were able to bring a major work (I Dread to Think from 2012) by Nina Chanel Abney to campus by installing it in the Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts.

 Nina Chanel Abney, I Dread to Think, 2012. Acrylic on canvas. Installed at Penn Live Arts. Courtesy of the Neumann Family Collection

NB: The Neumann family’s collecting philosophy has been deeply personal, shaped by relationships with artists rather than market trends. How does this approach challenge traditional narratives of art history and curation?

GDS: This is a collection about love and magic. Hubert Neumann says “If I can trade money for magic, I think I’ve made a pretty good deal.” And I agree. Hubert is a bit of an alchemist in his ability to recognize gold in its raw form and help artists find their way toward mature visions by treating each of their works as being as important as those of the broadly recognized masters who share space on the Neumann’s walls with them. On Sunday, French artist Xavier Veilhan, who represented France at the 2017 Venice Biennale and has done major installations at Versailles and other venues, said that many years ago he was visiting Hubert’s home and was looking at a stack of transparencies on the coffee table that represented other works in the collection - when he came across one of his own between masterpieces. He said he was deeply touched when Hubert explained that he valued them all just the same. It gave him a better understanding of the ways the collection seeks to break down structures that value art in unequal ways.

NB: The exhibition features a salon-style installation. What was the rationale behind this choice, and how does it enhance the viewer’s experience?

GDS: We were keen to pack as much of the collection as we could into our little gallery and we also wanted to emulate the way that the Neumanns’ install the work in their home. They fill the walls floor to ceiling and it is absolutely breathtaking to walk into their home. We wanted visitors to have a similar experience. We wanted viewers to be overwhelmed and excited by the chockablock nature of the show.

NB: You mention that the exhibition explores ideas of “finitude, openness, and the relationship of the viewer to the metaphysical.” Can you elaborate on how these concepts manifest in the artworks on display?

GDS: These ideas come from Hubert Neumann’s love of theory and philosophy. He is enamored with the work of philosophers Alain Badiou (on immanence) and Quentin Melliasoux (on finitude). Hubert believes that a really great work of art that shares the "aftermodernist" way of seeing is one that fails to resolve and is not bounded by finitude, that it shares space with the viewer in a way that points towards immanence.

 Patricia Renee’ Thomas, Smart Shopper, 2022. Oil, spray paint, acrylic & collage on canvas. 61 in. x 61 in. x 4 in. Courtesy the artist and Kravets Wehby Gallery.

NB: The show includes works from early modernism to contemporary pieces by artists like Allison Zuckerman and Nina Chanel Abney. What connections do you see between these different generations of artists?

GDS: The Neumanns see these younger artists as being connected through the ways they deal with the picture plane and the object, the way the pieces “pop” and come into our space.

NB: How do you think the themes explored in After Modernism reflect broader shifts in the art world today?

GDS: For me, aftermodernism is really about pluralism and openness, breaking down the hierarchies worthiness that have long-plagued the art world. The Neumann Family Collection is about foregrounding a love of art and artists rather than bragging about return on investment. Some of the work in the show makes you raise an eyebrow and wonder, “What the heck is this thing about and what is it doing here?” and the answer is, Hubert loves it, and that is enough. I want more people to realize that for art to be “valuable” you just have to value having it in your life.

Jeff Koons, Cape Codder Troll, 1986. Stainless steel. Courtesy of the Neumann Family Collection

NB: This exhibition marks the reopening of the newly renovated Arthur Ross Gallery. How does the revitalized space contribute to the exhibition’s impact?

GDS: This fall we resurfaced our walls and refinished our floors, for the first time in 40 years! The space is totally refreshed. We have even changed the type of white that we are using to paint the walls. But one of the most important things we did was to remove a drop down projection screen that dominated our rear wall making way to hang larger pieces and really take advantage of the space in new ways.

NB: As this is your curatorial debut as Faculty Director of the Arthur Ross Gallery, what has this experience meant to you personally and professionally?

GDS: It has been such a pleasure to work with our little team here at the gallery to realize a project with Penn Alumni. I see the University of Pennsylvania as a community that is constantly growing - my current students are also future alumni. And just as I love involving students in curatorial projects, it is also wonderful to work with alumni who are collectors and supporters of the arts. I hope to do a lot more of this over the coming years.

NB: If you could leave visitors with one key takeaway from After Modernism, what would it be?

GDS: You too can bring magic into your lives by supporting the work of artists whose work you love and whose vision you want to encourage. Art doesn’t have to be expensive, well-known, or appealing to anyone but yourself for it to have value. Go be a collector and share what you collect with others! WM