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In the Tower: Mel Bochner

November 6, 2011 – April 29, 2012
East Building, Tower Gallery

Mel Bochner, Amazing!, 2011, oil and acrylic on canvas, two panels. Courtesy Peter Freeman

This exhibition is no longer on view at the National Gallery.

Overview: 43 thesaurus-inspired paintings and drawings spanning the career of American artist Mel Bochner were on view in this exhibition. The works were selected from the collection of the National Gallery of Art. Included were the paintings Money, Die, Useless, Obscene, and Sputter; a new monochromatic painting, Blah, Blah, Blah; and four diptychs that were being shown for the first time. This was one of a series of exhibitions in the Tower Gallery focusing on developments in art since the mid-20th century.

Exhibition curator James Meyer presented the lecture "Introduction to the Exhibition—In the Tower: Mel Bochner" on November 6 and participated in a discussion with Bochner in the Conversations with Artists series on November 9.

Organization: The exhibition was organized by the National Gallery of Art. James Meyer, associate curator of modern and contemporary art, was curator.

Sponsor: The exhibition was made possible through the support of Suzanne F. Cohen and The Kraus Family Foundation. Additional support was provided by Judith Racht and Irving Stenn Jr., The Exhibition Circle of the National Gallery of Art, and The Tower Project.

Attendance: 59,582 (176 days)

Conversations with Artists: Mel Bochner
Audio, Released: November 22, 2011, (72:43 minutes)
Introduction to the Exhibition-In the Tower: Mel Bochner
Audio, Released: November 22, 2011, (60:28 minutes)
Press Event: In the Tower: Mel Bochner
Audio, Released: November 1, 2011, (59:03 minutes)
Diamonstein-Spielvogel Lecture Series: Theory of Boundaries: A Conversation with Mel Bochner
Audio, Released: July 20, 2010, (70:33 minutes)
Mel Bochner Installation: Theory of Boundaries (1969-1970)
Video, Released: August 3, 2007, (2:01 minutes)