Sep, 30, 2025
Media Alerts
Phoenix Art Museum launches monthly SOUNDCHECK music series + monthly Kids Day event; hosts First Friday and Fall Lenhardt Lecture
PHOENIX (September 29, 2025) – This October, Phoenix Art Museum (PhxArt) hosts a wide range of dynamic arts-education and engagement opportunities for visitors of all ages and interests. The Museum’s First Friday programming will be inspired by the Arizona Artist Awards exhibitions and feature the premiere of a large-scale art installation created by 170+ community participants. Then on October 8, artist Adam Pendleton and curator Adrienne Edwards appear in dialogue at the 2025 Fall Lenhardt Lecture. Mid-month, the Museum launches its monthly Kids Day event with Hispanic Heritage Month-themed programming, as well as a new live-music series—SOUNDCHECK—which kicks off with Phoenix-born, Nashville-based pop/rock duo 76th Street.Additional event details and ticket links are provided below.
FEATURED EVENTS
ARTIST TALK // Lenhardt Lecture: Adam Pendleton in conversation with Dr. Adrianne Edwards
October 8 | 6:30 – 8 pm
Free for Members | $5 for the general public
Presented in Whiteman Hall.
Join PhxArt for the fall 2025 Dawn and David Lenhardt Lecture featuring artist Adam Pendleton in conversation with Dr. Adrienne Edwards, the Engell Speyer Family Senior Curator and Associate Director of Curatorial Programs at the Whitney Museum of American Art. Pendleton is a central figure in contemporary American painting who has redefined the medium as it relates to process and abstraction. One of his paintings is now on view at PhxArt. Dr. Adrienne Edwards is the Engell Speyer Family Senior Curator and Associate Director of Curatorial Programs at the Whitney Museum of American Art, where she most recently curated Edges of Ailey (2024–25). Dr. Edwards is also a professor of practice at Arizona State University.
Tickets are available here.
The Lenhardt Lecture is made possible through the generosity of The Dawn and David Lenhardt Contemporary Art Initiative.
First Friday
Friday, October 3 | 5 – 8 pm
Free general admission | $5 special exhibition tickets
This First Friday, join PhxArt for the following featured programming, included with pay-what-you-wish admission:
- A BlakTinx Dance Festival pop-up performance from 7 – 7:45pm
- Live art demonstrations + art-making with Lehmann Emerging Artist Award recipient Omar Soto, inspired by their featured series Mediums of Hope
- The premiere of Arizona’s Scrollathon collaborative large-scale installation, created over one week by numerous community partners
- Opportunities to learn about + engage with community and cultural partners, including the Arizona Hispanic Chamber of Commerce
- In-gallery sketching with Aileen Martinez (@look.see.draw)
- Live DJ sets with resident DJ JME-LEE (@jmelee)
- Specialty drinks from ARTenders
- Docent-led spotlight tours @ 5:30 pm + 6:30 pm
Tickets are available here.
First Friday at PhxArt is made possible through the generosity of APS and Lexus, with additional support from Arizona Community Foundation.
Kids Day @ PhxArt
Saturday, October 11 |10 am – 2 pm
Free for Members | Included with general admission for the public
Every second Saturday of the month, join Phoenix Art Museum for Kids Day, with special family friendly programming from 10 am – 2 pm! In-gallery art-making activities, Storytime programming, and performances are designed to engage + connect visitors of all ages with the PhxArt Collection and special exhibitions.
For October’s Kids Day, programming will be inspired by Hispanic Heritage Month, featuring:
- Macrame craft-making inspired by Saskia Jorda’s Knots (2021) | 10 AM – 2 PM
- Storytime featuring the book Dreamers by Yuyi Morales | 10:30 AM – 11 AM
- Butterfly bookmark-making inspired by Carlos Amorales’ Black Cloud (2007) | 11 AM – 2 PM
- Stories from Home storytelling workshop + dance performances with Safos Dance Theatre, featuring an all-Mexican American cast of dancers | 11:30 AM – 1 PM
Tickets are available here.
Kids Day is made possible by the Angela and Leonard Singer Endowment for Performing Arts, The Discount Tire Endowment for Children’s Art Programs, and the William Randolph Hearst Endowed Fund for Education Programs.
SOUNDCHECK: 76th Street
Thursday, October 16 | Doors 5:30 pm | Show 6 – 7 pm
Presented in Whiteman Hall
Free for Members | Included with general admission for the public
SOUNDCHECK is a new live-music series offered every third Thursday of the month that brings popular local and regional acts to the Museum for raw, unmissable performances. SOUNDCHECK tickets include all-day access to the Museum, with the opportunity to pre-purchase discounted drink tickets prior to the event.
On October 16, SOUNDCHECK kicks off with 76th Street (@76thstreet), hosted by drag artist Benaddiction (@benaddictionn) in collaboration with thems. (@thems.phx), a queer-led non-profit organization based in Phoenix. Nashville-based pop/rock duo 76th Street is the creative force of life-long best friends Haley Gold and Spencer Bryant, known for their soul-stirring harmonies and raw, evocative songwriting rooted in self-discovery, fierce independence, and queer joy.
Tickets are available here.
SOUNDCHECK is made possible through the generosity of Presenting Sponsor Men’s Arts Council, with additional support from Desert Financial Credit Union and the Angela and Leonard Singer Endowment for the Performing Arts.
Toward Morning—Nyamathaam’im—‘Abíní
Thursday, October 23 | 6:30 – 7:30 pm
Presented in Cummings Great Hall Southl
Free for Members | Included with general admission for the public
Experience a suite of performances featuring music, poetry, and literary readings that showcase new works by the most important voices of our time. Hosted by Phoenix Art Museum, this event is the culmination of the two-day program (Oct. 22-23) Toward Morning—Nyamathaam’im—‘Abíní, organized by The Center for Imagination in the Borderlands at Arizona State University.
Participating artists include:
- Raven Chacon (Diné) – @ravenchcn
- Brandon Shimoda – @brandon_shimoda
- Natalie Diaz (Mojave/Akimel O’otham) – @ndinn
- Linda Tuhiwai Smith (Maori)
Tickets available soon at phxart.org.
OPENING SOON
Scrollathon at Phoenix Art Museum
Premiering October 3, 2025
Rooted in the belief that every human being has creative potential and that there is power in working in community, Scrollathon was founded in 2006 by artist-brothers Steven and William Ladd. Partnering with hundreds of stakeholders and institutions, Scrollathon has engaged more than 10,000 participants nationwide, resulting in large-scale collaborative installations of handmade scrolls.
In September 2025, the Ladds launched the Arizona chapter of Scrollathon at PhxArt, welcoming 171 participants from across the 48th state to create individual artworks expressing their personal stories. On Oct. 3 at First Friday, the Arizona Scrollathon masterwork, titled Core Values, will premiere alongside a portrait mural and signature plate bearing the names of all participants.
Contributing Community Groups
- Beatitudes Campus
- Cultural Creatives with Channel Powe
- Free Arts for Abused Children of Arizona
- Montessori Academy
- one-n-ten
- Opportunity Tree
- Phoenix Art Museum
- Phoenix College
- Phoenix Indian Center
For more information on Scrollathon at Phoenix Art Museum, click here.
Scrollathon at Phoenix Art Museum is organized by Phoenix Art Museum in partnership with Steven and William Ladd. Its presentation at Phoenix Art Museum is coordinated by Jessica Jacobson, Director of Education, and Christian Ramírez, Cohn Assistant Curator of Contemporary Art and Director of Engagement. It is made possible by Alice and Jim Bazlen, with additional support from the Angela and Leonard Singer Endowment for Performing Arts. Contemporary art exhibitions and projects are made possible in part by the Rob Walton, Jordan Rose, and Rose Law Group Fund for Contemporary Art. All exhibitions at Phoenix Art Museum are underwritten by the Phoenix Art Museum Exhibition Excellence Fund, founded by The Opatrny Family Foundation, with additional major support provided by Joan Cremin.
Splendors of East Asian Cloisonné
October 22, 2025 – September 6, 2026
One of the most important areas of distinction in PhxArt’s Asian art department is its collection of cloisonné vessels from China and Japan. This dazzling exhibition features spectacular and varied examples of enamel-decorated vessels from the Museum’s holdings, the majority of which were donated from the collections of Robert H. Clague and Waynor and Laurie Petrie-Rogers. This special installation also showcases the most recent gifts from the Rogers collection, on view at the Museum for the first time.
Splendors of East Asian Cloisonne is organized by Phoenix Art Museum and curated by Colin Pearson, Curator of Asian Art. All exhibitions at Phoenix Art Museum are underwritten by the Phoenix Art Museum Exhibition Excellence Fund, founded by The Opatrny Family Foundation, with additional major support provided by Joan Cremin.
ON VIEW NOW
Radical Clay: Contemporary Women Artists from Japan
Through August 9, 2026
Radical Clay: Contemporary Women Artists from Japan celebrates the originality and virtuosity of 36 women artists who have explored sculptural expression outside the traditional field of Japanese studio ceramics since the 1970s. The exhibition’s 40 avant-garde works are drawn from the Horvitz Collection, considered one of the leading collections of Japanese contemporary ceramics outside of Japan.
Radical Clay: Contemporary Women Artists from Japan is organized by the Art Institute of Chicago and is curated by Janice Katz, Roger L. Weston Associate Curator of Japanese Art, the Art Institute of Chicago. Its presentation at Phoenix Art Museum is coordinated by Colin Pearson, Curator of Asian Art. The presentation at Phoenix Art Museum is made possible by the E. Rhodes and Leona B. Carpenter Foundation and Katharine and Nicholas J. Feduska, M.D. All exhibitions at Phoenix Art Museum are underwritten by the Phoenix Art Museum Exhibition Excellence Fund, founded by The Opatrny Family Foundation with additional major support provided by Joan Cremin.
Flowers of the Punjab: Textiles of India and Beyond
Through August 9, 2026
Discover traditional textiles from the Punjab region of northwestern India, the birthplace of
Sikhism. At the heart of the display is the phulkari, a richly embroidered garment created by a girl’s female family members starting from her birth and completed by her marriage.
Flowers of the Punjab: Textiles of India and Beyond is organized by Phoenix Art Museum and curated by Colin Pearson, Curator of Asian Art. It is made possible through the generosity of The Sikh Heritage Fund. All exhibitions at Phoenix Art Museum are underwritten by the Phoenix Art Museum Exhibition Excellence Fund, founded by The Opatrny Family Foundation, with additional major support provided by Joan Cremin.
Florentine Baroque: The Haukohl Collection
Through July 26, 2026
The first exhibition of its kind in Arizona, Florentine Baroque: The Haukohl Collection presents more than 30 examples of painting and sculpture drawn from the most important Florentine Baroque art collection outside of Italy, assembled over more than 40 years by Houston-based art collector and co-founder of the Medici Archive Project Sir Mark Fehrs Haukohl. Featured artworks by local Florentine artists and artists living across Europe reflect Florence’s flourishing art industry, as well as the cultural and intellectual legacy of the Medici Grand Dukes on the Renaissance and Baroque movements.
Florentine Baroque: The Haukohl Collection is organized by Sir Mark Fehrs Haukohl with the generous support of the Haukohl Philanthropies. Its presentation at Phoenix Art Museum is coordinated by Rachel Sadvary Zebro, Associate Curator of Collections. Florentine Baroque: The Haukohl Collection is made possible by FOCUS on European Art. Additional support is provided by Joanna and Mick Levin. All exhibitions at Phoenix Art Museum are underwritten by the Phoenix Art Museum Exhibition Excellence Fund, founded by The Opatrny Family Foundation with additional major support provided by Joan Cremin.
Funny Business: Photography and Humor
Through January 4, 2026
Through 70 photographs drawn primarily from the collection of the Center for Creative Photography (CCP) at the University of Arizona in Tucson, Funny Business: Photography and Humor offers a compelling view into the ways artists have utilized visual humor not only to provoke laughter and delight but also as a means of resistance
Funny Business: Photography and Humor is co-organized by Phoenix Art Museum and the Center for Creative Photography. The exhibition is curated by Emilia Mickevicius, PhD, the Norton Family Assistant Curator of Photography. All exhibitions at Phoenix Art Museum are underwritten by the Phoenix Art Museum Exhibition Excellence Fund, founded by The Opatrny Family Foundation with additional major support provided by Joan Cremin.
2024 Arizona Artist Awards
Through January 25, 2026
Safwat Saleem: The Unrequited Love Institute and the 2024 Lehmann Emerging Artist Awards Exhibition feature works by Arizona-based contemporary artists. The 2024 Arlene and Morton Scult Artist Awardee Safwat Saleem showcases his latest works in an installation that centers on immigrant narratives and the cultural loss that results from assimilation. In the 2024 Lehmann Emerging Artist Awards Exhibition, emerging artists Elizabeth Z. Pineda and Omar Soto explores issues surrounding immigration, identity, queer joy, and escapism.
The Arizona Artist Awards are made possible by the Scult Family; Sally and Richard Lehmann; and the Cohn Fund for Arts and Culture, a founding gift of the Phoenix Art Museum Education and Engagement Excellence Fund. Safwat Saleem: The Unrequited Love Institute and 2024 Lehmann Emerging Artist Awards are organized by Phoenix Art Museum and curated by Christian Ramírez, the Cohn Assistant Curator of Contemporary Art and Director of Engagement. The exhibitions are made possible by the Cohn Fund for Arts and Culture, a founding gift of the Phoenix Art Museum Education and Engagement Excellence Fund. Additional support provided by the Rob Walton, Jordan Rose, and Rose Law Group Fund for Contemporary Art. All exhibitions at Phoenix Art Museum are underwritten by the Phoenix Art Museum Exhibition Excellence Fund, founded by the Opatrny Family Foundation, with additional major support provided by Joan Cremin.useum Exhibition Excellence Fund, founded by The Opatrny Family Foundation with additional major support provided by Joan Cremin.
CLOSING SOON
Philip C. Curtis and the Landscapes of Arizona
Through October 12, 2025
Discover the surreal landscapes of Philip C. Curtis, who came to Arizona in 1937 to establish the Phoenix Federal Art Center, the first iteration of Phoenix Art Museum. Curtis saw the desert through a lens of magic realism, a departure from the approach of artists such as Maxfield Parrish, Eugene Berman, and other artists who preferred to depict the state’s desert landscapes through more representational modes.
Philip C. Curtis and the Landscapes of Arizona is organized by Phoenix Art Museum. It is made possible through the generosity of the Henry Luce Foundation, The Virginia M. Ullman Foundation, and the Philip C. Curtis Charitable Trust, with additional support from the Museum’s Circles of Support and Museum Members.
GALLERY RENOVATIONS // Art of the Americas + Europe Galleries
The Art of the Americas + Europe galleries and the Thorne Miniature Rooms are currently closed for renovation and conservation work. The refreshed spaces and installations will open again to the public on November 26, 2025, featuring visitor favorites and recent acquisitions to the Museum’s American, Western American, Latin American, and European art collections.
For a full list of exhibitions on view now at Phoenix Art Museum, visit phxart.org/art/exhibitions/.
OTHER AUGUST EVENTS
LEARN // Lemon Library Book Club: The Devil’s Highway
Wednesday, October 1 | 6:30 pm
Location: The Amphitheater inside the Museum
Free event. Please reserve your ticket and check in at the Guest Services Desk.
For more information, click here.
Thursday, October 2 | 10:30 am
Free for Members | Included in general admission for the general public
Advance registration recommended.
For more information, click here.
Storytime is made possible by the Angela and Leonard Singer Endowment for Performing Arts, The Discount Tire Endowment for Children’s Art Programs, the William Randolph Hearst Endowed Fund for Education Programs, and First Things First.
LEARN // Object of the Month: Repellent Fence, Postcommodity
October 2, 4, 16, 23, 30 | 11:30 am
Free for Members | Included with general admission for the general public
For more information, click here.
October 4, 11, 18, 25 | 11 am – 3 pm
Free for Members | Included with general admission for the general public
For more information, click here.
Create Playdate is made possible by First Things First, The Discount Tire Endowment for Children’s Art Programs, and the William Randolph Hearst Endowed Fund for Education Programs.
FILM // MANHATTAN SHORT Film Festival 2025
Sunday, October 5 | 1 – 4 pm
$10 for Members | $15 for non-Members
Presented in Whiteman Hall. Limited capacity.
Tickets are available for reservation here.
Films at PhxArt is made possible by Fit Via Vi Films.
Wednesday, October 15 | 6 pm
Free for Members | $8 for non-Members
Presented in Whiteman Hall. Limited capacity. Tickets are available for reservation here.
Films at PhxArt is made possible by Fit Via Vi Film
OTHER AUGUST EVENTS
Every Wednesday | 3 – 8 pm
Voluntary-donation general admission
$10 off Memberships when purchased on-site
SPECIAL-EXHIBITION TICKET fees apply for the general public | FREE for Museum Members
Pay-What-You-Wish Wednesdays are made possible by SRP and City of Phoenix, with additional support by Arizona Community Foundation.
Military Discount
Active-duty U.S. military personnel and veterans enjoy $5 off general admission tickets to Phoenix Art Museum. A valid ID is required for on-site redemption.
About Phoenix Art Museum
Since 1959, Phoenix Art Museum (PhxArt) has engaged millions of visitors with the art of our region and world. Located in Phoenix’s Central Corridor, PhxArt creates spaces of exchange and belonging for all audiences through dynamic exhibitions, collections, and experiences with art. Each year, 300,000 guests on average engage with critically acclaimed national and international exhibitions and the Museum’s collection of more than 21,000 works of American and Western American, Asian, European, Latin American, modern, and contemporary art and fashion design, along with vibrant photography exhibitions made possible through the Museum’s landmark partnership with the Center for Creative Photography at the University of Arizona in Tucson. PhxArt also presents live performances, outstanding examples of global cinema, arts-education programs and workshops, a monthly live-music series, and more for the community. To learn more about Phoenix Art Museum, visit phxart.org, or call 602.257.1880.