PHOENIX (September 15, 2026) – Phoenix Art Museum (PhxArt) announces the recipients of the 2026 Arizona Artist Awards. Alanna Airitam was named recipient of the 2026 Scult Family Artist Award and Memo Gutierrez and Nika Kaiser were named recipients of the 2026 Sally and Richard Lehmann Emerging Artist Awards (Lehmann Emerging Artist Awards.) Liza Stout is the winner of the Sette/Cohn Artist Award, established in 2024 to expand the Arizona Artist Awards program and deepen PhxArt’s support of local artists. As part of the awards, each artist receives a lifetime Membership to Phoenix Art Museum as well as funds to support their artistic practice. Airitam, Gutierrez, and Kaiser will also have the opportunity to exhibit their work in solo and group exhibitions at the Museum. Airitam will premiere work in January 2027, with Guitierrez and Kaiser exhibiting jointly in summer 2027.  

“We are thrilled to announce this year’s recipients of the Scult, Lehmann, and Sette/Cohn Artist Awards in recognition of their meaningful contributions to Arizona’s vibrant arts and culture landscape,” said Jeremy Mikolajczak, the Museum’s Sybil Harrington Director and CEO. “Each of these artists has developed a dynamic and thoughtful practice shaped by their lived experiences, communities and unique perspectives on identity, connection and the broader human condition. We are honored to support their work as part of our ongoing commitment to elevating the voices of Arizona-based artists and are deeply grateful to the Scult, Lehmann and Cohn families, Lisa Sette, and Artlink for their generosity and partnership in making these efforts possible.”

Scult Family Artist Award

Each year, Phoenix Art Museum recognizes a mid-career Arizona-based artist with the Scult Family Artist Award. Eligible candidates must have lived in Arizona for a minimum of four consecutive years and are nominated by a group of curators, museum directors and other arts professionals from across the state. Candidacy is evaluated based on their demonstration of artistic excellence, active creation and exhibition of new work and career-spanning evolution. Following a robust review process, a jury of curators, art scholars, artists and other experts and professionals in the field from across the country selects the recipient. The Scult Family Artist Award includes monetary support of $20,000 and an invitation to present a solo exhibition of new and past work at the Museum. The 2026 Scult Artist Award jury included Catharina Manchanda, Jon and Mary Shirley Curator of Modern and Contemporary Art at the Seattle Art Museum; Patricia Sannit, 2016 Scult Family Artist Award recipient; Keshia Turley, Assistant Curator at Scottsdale Museum of Contemporary Art; Christian Ramírez, Cohn Assistant Curator of Contemporary Art and Director of Engagement, Phoenix Art Museum; and Jeff Scult.

The 2026 Scult Family Artist Award recipient, Alanna Airitam, is a photographic artist based in Tucson, Arizona, whose work explores Black lived experience as a site of memory, imagination and possibility. Working across photography, installation, archival research and material experimentation, she considers how histories are constructed, how ideas of beauty, value and belonging take form, and how the ways we live, create and care for one another might reveal about the conditions necessary for human flourishing. Drawing from traditions of Black studio photography and Western portraiture, Airitam engages the archive as both a site of historical reckoning and a repository of knowledge, beauty, love, creativity and self-determination. Moving between history, lived experience and speculative possibility, her work asks how people create meaningful lives within and beyond the structures that seek to define them, and what other ways of being might become imaginable when flourishing is understood as fundamental to being fully alive. A self-taught artist, Airitam has exhibited nationally and internationally. Her work is held in numerous public and institutional collections, including the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, Phoenix Art Museum, New Orleans Museum of Art, Center for Creative Photography, Virginia Museum of Fine Arts and Tucson Museum of Art. Her commitment to creating spaces for artistic exchange and community extends beyond her studio practice as co-founder of the Southwest Black Artists Collective and co-founder and co-director of The Projects/SPACE, an artist-run space in Tucson, Arizona.

Lehmann Emerging Artist Awards

The Lehmann Emerging Artist Awards help foster the creative practices and careers of emerging Arizona-based artists. Candidates must have lived in Arizona for a minimum of one year and are invited to apply through an annual open call hosted by Artlink, a non-profit organization that has supported and amplified Arizona artists and community-based art events and initiatives for more than 30 years. Recipients receive $10,000 in monetary support and the opportunity to present a joint exhibition at the Museum with fellow Lehmann awardees. The 2026 Lehmann Emerging Artist Awards jury was assembled by Ramírez and included Ramírez; Catharina Manchanda, Jon and Mary Shirley Curator of Modern and Contemporary Art at the Seattle Art Museum; Patricia Sannit, 2016 Scult Family Artist Award recipient; Keshia Turley, Assistant Curator at Scottsdale Museum of Contemporary Art; and ​Sally Lehmann.

The Museum has named Memo Gutierrez and Nika Kaiser recipients of the 2026 Lehmann Emerging Artist Awards. Based in Phoenix, Gutierrez is a multimedia artist who works with sound, electronics, and sculpture. His practice examines the possibilities within discovering the intrinsic agency of found and raw materials through sonic and sculptural expression. Gutierrez was born in El Paso, Texas, where he lived until moving to Tempe to pursue his MFA at Arizona State University. His work has been shown both nationally and internationally. He has received various awards including the International Sculpture Center’s “Outstanding Student Achievement in Contemporary Sculpture.” His work has been shown at Museo de Arte de Ciudad Juárez, Axis Gallery, Belger Crane Yard Studios, Mesa Arts Center, Eric Fischl Gallery, Modified Arts Gallery, and the Tucson Museum of Art. His work is a part of the permanent collections of both the El Paso Museum of Art and the Rubin Center for Visual Arts.

Kaiser is a multi-disciplinary artist working with video, sound, photography, and installation. Her practice deploys a meeting of the imaginary and the real to explore ideas of deep time, interspecies connection, anti-capitalism, and future ecologies, and is informed by her upbringing in the Sonoran borderlands. Kaiser holds an MFA in Visual Art from the University of Oregon. Her work has been exhibited internationally, and she has been the recipient of numerous awards, including two Arts Foundation New Works Grants, two Night Bloom Grants, and a Pollock-Krasner Foundation Fellowship. Among many of her collaborative projects, she performs as one half of the experimental sound and video project Alluvium and she co-runs Precious Cargo, an experimental gallery space and book shop that focuses on DIY publishing projects. Kaiser teaches Experimental Practices in the Department of Film and Television at the University of Arizona.

Sette/Cohn Artist Award

Established in 2024, the Sette/Cohn Artist Award is a $5,000 prize awarded to an emerging Arizona artist selected from the Lehmann Emerging Artist Award application pool as part of a five-year initiative dedicated to supporting arts engagement and strengthening community partnerships. It is named in honor of Lisa Sette, who has supported and represented Arizona-based artists, both through her gallery and personally, for more than 40 years, and Lee and Mike Cohn, longtime Museum supporters who in 2023 provided the seed funding to launch the Phoenix Art Museum Education and Engagement Excellence Fund and have extended their generosity to support Arizona-based artists. The award’s recipient is selected by Olga Viso, Selig Family Chief Curator and Director of Curatorial Affairs, Phoenix Art Museum; Lee and Mike Cohn; and Lisa Sette.

The 2026 Sette/Cohn Artist Award recipient is Liza Stout. Stout’s artwork explores the connection between the body and caregiving tools, highlighting the unseen repetition of labor. Raised in a Colorado resort town sustained by hospitality and service, she grew up working in restaurants, where tending to the experiences of guests trained her in particular detailed attention: the folding of a napkin or the mopping of a floor. These were precise tasks that asked of the body the same focused repetition that making a sculpture does, sanding back and forth on wood or compressing clay between her fingers.

Stout builds tools and objects that reference the gestures that support, contain or tend to other bodies. Wood is central to her practice because of its tactile presence in daily life. As a natural material it absorbs repeated motion, wears unevenly and carries the evidence of hands over time. The making of each tool is itself a kind of labor, and that process feeds directly into performance, where the objects are activated and brought into dialogue with generational histories of caregiving. This creates a loop with no clear ending, one that mirrors how caregiving and service work actually operate: ongoing and always beginning again.

Stout earned her MFA from Arizona State University and her BFA from Pratt Institute. She was a 2026 Windgate Fellow at the Museum for Art in Wood in Philadelphia. Her work has been shown at Tempe Center for the Arts, Terra Forma and the Arizona Biennial at the Tucson Museum of Art.

“I offer my heartfelt congratulations to Alanna, Memo, Nika, and Liza on being named this year’s Arizona Artist Awards recipients,” said Christian Ramírez, Cohn Assistant Curator of Contemporary Art and Director of Engagement at Phoenix Art Museum. “Each of these artists has developed a distinctive and multifaceted practice, and their work is a powerful reflection of the talent, creativity and strength of Arizona’s arts community. I look forward to working with Alanna, Memo, and Nika as we begin planning their exhibitions and finding meaningful ways to engage our community with their evocative work and unique perspectives. I am equally excited to see how Liza takes advantage of this award opportunity to continue growing and evolving as an artist.”

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.

For high-resolution photography or more information, contact the Museum’s Communications Office at samantha.andreacchi@phxart.org or press@phxart.org.

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, an art+music festival, and more for the community. To learn more about Phoenix Art Museum, visit phxart.org, or call 602.257.1880.

About Artlink Inc.

Artlink keeps the arts integral to our development by connecting artists, businesses, and the community. Founded as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization by artists in 1989, the Artlink name is a guiding principle for the organization, as it supports stakeholders of the arts and culture community, amplifying its collective strength. Visit artlinkphx.org to sign up for the Artlink newsletter, or connect socially on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

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PHOENIX, AZ—August 17, 2026—In September 2027, Phoenix Art Museum (PhxArt) and the Heard Museum will present Jamie Okuma: With These Hands, the first major mid-career retrospective of contemporary artist and fashion designer Jamie Okuma (Luiseño, Shoshone-Bannock, Wailaki, and Okinawan) and the inaugural exhibition co-presented by the two neighboring Phoenix-based institutions. Showcasing Okuma’s boundary-defying, interdisciplinary practice, the exhibition features more than 60 works from the late 1990s to the present, including objects from Okuma’s personal archive. Soft-sculptures, couture, ready-to-wear garments, and examples of beadwork demonstrate Okuma’s masterful approach to working across art and fashion design, yielding evocative pieces that are simultaneously grounded in tradition and contemporary sensibilities. A historic collaboration between the Heard and PhxArt, Jamie Okuma: With These Hands will be on view at both institutions simultaneously from September 24, 2027 through March 5, 2028.   

In a joint statement, from David M. Roche, the Heard Museum Dickey Family Director and CEO, and Jeremy Mikolajczak, the Sybil Harrington Director and CEO of Phoenix Art Museum: “We’re honored to present this landmark exhibition to the Phoenix community and beyond. Jamie Okuma: With These Hands marks a defining milestone in Jamie Okuma’s career, illuminating how her unique interdisciplinary practice has made an indelible impact in the realms of contemporary art, fashion, and Indigenous creative expression, while establishing a new framework for understanding her work within the contemporary visual arts and fashion history. This presentation further underscores the commitment our two institutions share to creating opportunities for Indigenous artists and to making Phoenix the premier destination to experience the breadth and diversity of Indigenous art and culture.” 

Jamie Okuma is an internationally acclaimed artist and fashion designer, known widely for her intricate beadwork, mixed-media sculpture, and couture works. As a child, Okuma created and began exhibiting beadwork made with antique seed beads, including dolls adorned in fully beaded regalia. Since then, her creative practice has vastly expanded, integrating traditional beading practices with the visual languages of horror film, punk subcultures, traditional powwow regalia designs, avant-garde couture fashion, and the natural landscapes of her California home to examine issues of identity and cultural belonging. 

Jamie Okuma: With These Hands situates Okuma’s work within broader cultural conversations around Indigenous authorship, identity, and culture, investigating the ways in which her practice fits within the context of other interdisciplinary artists of her generation—and what sets it apart. In addition to exploring Okuma’s practice within the framework of deep traditional connection, the survey sheds light on how she has achieved global success by reimagining and combining pop imagery, pictographic traditions, and historical patterns and iconography, effectively challenging preconceived notions of Indigenous art, design, and fashion.  

Presented across both the Heard and PhxArt, which are located less than three blocks apart in downtown Phoenix, objects in the exhibition are explored through a set of storylines, resisting the traditional thematic structures of surveys of this kind. As they move through the galleries at each venue, visitors will discover Okuma’s work within the context of family and homeland, beauty and protection, and power and defiance. Instead of standard gallery spaces with neutral walls, works will be showcased in immersive environments, inspired by geographies that have informed their creation. For example, a dress with silk-chiffon sleeves is placed in an expansive meadow scene in reference to the ecosystem’s waving grasses. Other environments present throughout the exhibition include the ocean, cityscapes, desert landscapes, and the forest, with each showcasing its own unique set of objects.  

“Jamie Okuma’s work acts as self-portraits and insists on Indigenous authorship as both a creative and a deeply personal act,” Roshii Montaño (Diné), Curator at the Heard Museum. “She challenges long-held assumptions about Native art and design while defining her practice entirely on her own terms. With These Hands foregrounds that self-determination and affirms a distinctly contemporary Native voice.”  

Exhibition Organization, Tour, and Catalog 

Jamie Okuma: With These Hands is co-organized by the Heard Museum and Phoenix Art Museum and co-curated by Roshii Montaño (Diné; Heard) and Helen Jean. It will be accompanied by an extensive catalog highlighting Okuma’s work, featuring contributions by Montaño; Gaylord Torrence, Curator Emeritus of Native American Art at the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art; and Elizabeth Way, Ph.D., Curator of Costume and Textiles at the Fashion Institute of Technology; along with an interview between the artist and fellow collaborator Keri Ataumbi and a special letter from Vogue senior fashion and style writer Christian Allaire. The catalog will be published in collaboration with Scala Arts & Heritage Publishers in September 2027. Following its premiere, the exhibition will travel to the Eiteljorg Museum of American Indians and Western Art in Indiana.   

About the Heard Museum 

Since its founding in 1929, the Heard Museum has grown to become nationally and internationally recognized for its world-class exhibitions, award-winning publications, unparalleled festivals, and innovative educational programs. Dedicated to connecting Indigenous creativity to the world, the Heard showcases the beauty and vitality of Indigenous creative expression by presenting the voice and vision of American Indian artists. A welcoming destination for children and families, the Heard offers engaging experiences that inspire curiosity and foster appreciation for American Indian art and culture. The Heard Museum is supported by the generosity of Heard Museum members and donors, the Arizona Commission on the Arts, and the City of Phoenix Office of Arts and Culture. 

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. 

About Jamie Okuma 

Jamie Okuma (b. 1977, Luiseño, Shoshone-Bannock) is a leading Indigenous artist and fashion designer. Okuma lives and works in La Jolla, California, where she is an enrolled member of the La Jolla band of Indians in Southern California. Okuma studied at the Institute of American Indian Arts in Santa Fe and has exhibited her art since childhood, winning seven Best in Show awards for her presentations at the Heard Museum Indian Fair and Market and the Santa Fe Indian Market. Okuma’s work is held in the permanent collections of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Minneapolis Institute of Art, Albuquerque Museum, Crocker Art Museum, Denver Art Museum, Hood Museum of Art, the Smithsonian’s National Museum of the American Indian (NMAI), The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, Peabody Essex Museum, Raclin Murphy Museum of Art, Schingoethe Center (Aurora University), Spencer Museum of Art, the Heard Museum, and Phoenix Art Museum, and has been exhibited internationally. Okuma recently became the first Native American inducted into the Council of Fashion Designers of America (CFDA) and is a 2025 CFDA Vogue Fashion Fund Finalist.  

For more information, please contact: 

The Heard Museum: 

Ivana Morales 

Senior Account Executive 

evolve pr and marketing 

Ivana@evolveprandmarketing.com 

973-864-4523 

Phoenix Art Museum: 

Sarah McNaughton / Lucia Santos 

Resnicow and Associates 

smcnaughton@resnicow.com / lsantos@resnicow.com  

212-671-5161 / 212-671-5181 

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The milestone event will commemorate six decades of supporting fashion and the arts in Arizona while bringing together community leaders, philanthropists, fashion enthusiasts and supporters of the Phoenix Art Museum. The Holiday Luncheon has long served as a celebration of creativity, culture and philanthropy, helping advance the Museum’s fashion initiatives and educational programming.

As chairs, Love and Robertson will help guide planning and fundraising efforts for the 2026 event, which will take place on Monday, Dec. 7 at the Arizona Biltmore.

“What an honor and pleasure it is to serve as the Holiday Luncheon Co-Chair for this special year as we celebrate ACI’s 60th Anniversary. I can attest to the impact ACI has in supporting Phoenix Art Museum’s fashion initiatives through my previous service on the ACI Board and as the 2018 Holiday Luncheon Chair. I look forward to honoring this milestone year while helping bring our community together in support of fashion, art and philanthropy,” said Lynne Love, Co-Chair of the Arizona Costume Institute’s 2026 Holiday Luncheon.

“I am honored to serve as co-chair of the Arizona Costume Institute’s 2026 Holiday Luncheon and support an organization that has championed fashion and the arts for six decades. The opportunity to bring together community leaders, philanthropists and supporters in celebration of ACI’s 60th anniversary is incredibly meaningful, and I look forward to helping create a memorable event that advances the important work of Phoenix Art Museum,” said Andrea Robertson, co-chair of the Arizona Costume Institute’s 2026 Holiday Luncheon.

Joining Love and Robertson in supporting the 2026 Holiday Luncheon are Ambassadors Carolyn Jackson and Matthew Boland. Additional leadership roles and event participants will be announced in the coming months.

About the Chairs

Lynne Love is a respected philanthropist, community leader and longtime supporter of Arizona’s arts and cultural community. A dedicated volunteer and advocate for charitable causes throughout the Valley, she has held numerous leadership roles, including Phoenix Heart Ball Chair, Arizona Women’s Board President, Authors Luncheon Chair benefiting kidney health initiatives in Arizona and Phoenix Theatre Gala Co-Chair.

A longtime supporter of the Arizona Costume Institute, Love served on the ACI Board of Directors for five years and previously chaired the organization’s 2018 Holiday Luncheon featuring renowned London milliner Stephen Jones. She has also served on the Xavier College Preparatory Board of Trustees, chaired Key to the Cure benefiting the American Cancer Society and supported organizations including Phoenix Art Museum’s pARTy, Runway to Research and Honor Ball.

Love’s contributions have earned her numerous honors, including recognition as a Heart Ball Sweetheart, recipient of the Phoenix Theatre Women Who Care Award and a Trends Charitable Fund Fashionality honoree. She is passionate about mentoring emerging philanthropic leaders and supporting organizations that strengthen Arizona’s arts and nonprofit communities.

Andrea Robertson is a philanthropist, entrepreneur and community advocate dedicated to creating opportunities and resources for individuals with disabilities and their families. She is the founder of Lexie’s Voice Foundation and Lexie’s Ranch, Arizona-based nonprofit organizations inspired by her daughter, Lexie, that provide inclusive programming, advocacy and support services for individuals with special needs.

Under Robertson’s leadership, the organizations have grown into impactful community resources that foster inclusion, connection and empowerment for families across Arizona. Beyond her nonprofit work, she is an active supporter of numerous charitable and community initiatives throughout the Valley and is passionate about bringing people together to create meaningful change. Her dedication to service and philanthropy has made her a respected leader within Arizona’s nonprofit community.

Event Details

The 2026 Holiday Luncheon will take place on Monday, Dec. 7 from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Arizona Biltmore.

Additional information on this year’s guest speaker, ticketing and table sponsorships, and other exciting programming details will be available later this summer.

2026 ACI Holiday Luncheon Leadership:

Chairs

Lynne Love

Andrea Roberston

Luncheon Ambassadors

Carolyn Jackson

Matthew Boland

Committee

Tanya Badyal
Sandy Becker
Ronna Beeson
Lisa Bell
Charlene Berge
Juliet Burgess
Linda Cohen
Meredith Cohen
Jenna Condas
Lee Courtney
Oscar De las salas
Nissa Dell
Shawnee Doherty
Carol Dries
Rebecca Fowler
Jay Franke
Elizabeth Garrett
Natalie Gaylord
Lisa Geyser
Laurie Goldstein
Suzi Hilton
Justine Hurry
Kimberly Jacobsen
Donna Johnson
Kelly Kolicko
Jill Krigsten
Joseph Leeds
Brooke Levy
Barbara Lytle
Ina Manaster
Philip Manghisi
Beth McRae
Jennifer Moser
Diane O’Malley
Joanne Osborne
Lory Parsons
Donna Pettigrew Hicks
Dawna Pitts
Sally Pope
Lisa Portigal
Helene Presutti
Sherri Quinn
Bea Rocklin
Chrissy Sayare
Jennifer Schuitemaker
Lisa Shapiro
Nancy Singer
Joy Sprink
Catherine Tuton
Vicki Vaughn
Teana Wagner
Pat Watts
Eileen Yeung

For more information: special.events@phxart.org or 602.307.2082.  If you are interested in setting up an interview with the chairs, please reach out to natalie@mcraeagency.com.

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PHOENIX (June 25, 2026) – On July 29, 2026, Phoenix Art Museum premieres the 2025 Arizona Artist Awards exhibitions, featuring works by 2025 Scult Family Artist Award recipient Alice Leora Briggs in a solo exhibition and works by 2025 Sally and Richard Lehmann Emerging Artists Awards recipients Chris Ignacio and Jan Talmadge Davids in a group exhibition. In NOW WHAT?, Briggs reflects on human mortality and the passage of time through an intimate display anchored by her signature sgraffito. In adjacent galleries, Ignacio premieres a new series, Everything is Ourselves, that draws from puppetry and performance traditions to consider how animated objects function as extensions of identity, while Talmadge Davids showcases work from her series repair(ian) that examines the relationship between physical landscape and emotional identity and geographies. The exhibitions are on view through January 24, 2027. Opening-day events include a public lecture at 6:30 pm by Briggs, who will discuss her process and works featured in the exhibition. Tickets to Briggs’ lecture are free for Members and $5 for the general public and can be reserved here (advance registration is recommended).

“In alignment with our mission to serve our local community and champion Arizona-based artists through our annual Artist Awards program, we are honored to present the work of Alice Leora Briggs, Chris Ignacio, and Jan Talmadge Davids this year,” said Jeremy Mikolajczak, the Sybil Harrington Director and CEO at Phoenix Art Museum. “This cohort brings a wide range of artistic practices that yield engaging, evocative, and intimate reflections on difficult realities that face humanity, from mortality and shifting identities to personal and collective connections to place.”

Based in Tucson, Arizona, Alice Leora Briggs investigates human frailties and mortality through mediums spanning drawings, woodcuts, letterpress broadsides, site-specific installations, and books. Approaching her work with curiosity, compassion, and fearlessness, Briggs does not view mortality as an endpoint but rather an opportunity to consider the possibilities and changes that arise as one’s life progresses. In NOW WHAT?, visitors explore the artist’s works on paper, site-specific installation, and sgraffito compositions, which Briggs creates by coating panels with clay and acrylic medium, airbrushing the surface with black Indian ink, and then using drawing tools such as X-Acto knives, fiberglass pencils, and steel wool to cut into the surface. Visitors also encounter the words of Briggs’ 104-year-old mother on the walls and embedded into the artwork itself, prompting deeper contemplations on time, memory, and the fragility of life.

A Filipino American puppeteer, producer, educator, and interdisciplinary artist based in Phoenix, Arizona, Chris Ignacio debuts his new series, Everything is Ourselves, which features mixed-media installation and video works that explore the tradition of animating objects—from prehistoric figures carved from clay and stone to digital avatars—and how this practice reveals the human impulse to construct meaning, try on and create identities, and attain cosmological understanding.

Born in Tucson, Jan Talmadge Davids works in clay and mixed media to reinterpret the landscapes of her childhood and articulate ideas of place-making. At PhxArt, she expands on her series, repair(ian), through video and porcelain works based on her observations of flora, wild clay, and the natural landscape, which stand as elegies to honor the landscapes that shape our identities and inform our sense of belonging. Her works are imbued with lamentation and hope, fragility and strength, mirroring the geographies affected by climate crisis and agricultural abuse that have inspired the artist’s work.

“It has been a pleasure to work with Alice, Chris, and Jan over this last year,” said Christian Ramírez, Cohn Assistant Curator of Contemporary Art and Director of Engagement. “These artist have built multifaceted practices with a detailed eye towards craftsmanship. Their work stands as a testament to the strength of the artistic community here in Arizona.”

If you would like high-resolution photography related to the exhibitions, or if you would like to interview any of the Scult and Lehmann Award recipients, contact the Communications Office at kaylee.weyrauch@phxart.org or press@phxart.org.

About the Exhibition

The Arizona Artist Awards are made possible by the Scult Family Artist Award; 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. 

NOW WHAT? and the 2025 Lehmann Emerging Artist Awards exhibitions are organized by Phoenix Art Museum and curated by Christian Ramírez, the Cohn Assistant Curator of Contemporary Art and Director of Engagement. Their Phoenix premiere is made possible by the Cohn Fund for Arts and Culture, a founding gift of the Phoenix Art Museum Education and Engagement Excellence.

Additional support is 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. 

Admission is free for Museum Members and youth aged 5 and younger. Entrance into the exhibition is included in general admission for the public. Visitors may also enjoy reduced admission to the exhibition during voluntary-donation times on Wednesdays from 3 – 8 pm, made possible by SRP and City of Phoenix, with additional support from Arizona Community Foundation, and First Fridays from 5 – 8 pm, made possible by APS with additional support from Arizona Community Foundation. For a full breakdown of general admission prices and hours, see phxart.org/visit/.

About the Scult Family Artist Award

Each year, Phoenix Art Museum recognizes a mid-career Arizona-based artist with the Scult Family Artist Award. Eligible candidates must have resided in Arizona for a minimum of four consecutive years and are nominated by a group of curators, museum directors, and other arts professionals from across the state. Their candidacy is evaluated based on their demonstration of artistic excellence, active creation and exhibition of new work, and career-spanning evolution. Following a robust review process, a jury of curators, art scholars, artists, and other experts and professionals in the field from across the country selects the recipient. The Scult Family Artist Award includes monetary support of $20,000 and an invitation to present a solo exhibition of new and past work at the Museum. The 2025 Scult Artist Award jury included Lana Meador, Associate Curator of Modern and Contemporary Art, San Antonio Museum of Art; Olivia Miller, Executive Director, Jordan Schnitzer Museum of Art at the University of Oregon; Ann Morton, 2019 Scult Family Artist Award recipient; Christian Ramírez, Cohn Assistant Curator of Contemporary Art and Director of Engagement, Phoenix Art Museum; and Jeff Scult.

About the Lehmann Emerging Artist Awards

The Lehmann Emerging Artist Awards foster the creative practices and careers of emerging Arizona-based artists. Candidates must have resided in Arizona for a minimum of one year and are invited to apply through an annual open call hosted by Artlink, a non-profit organization that has supported and amplified Arizona artists and community-based art events and initiatives for more than 30 years. Recipients receive $10,000 in monetary support and the opportunity to present a joint exhibition at the Museum with fellow Lehmann awardees. The 2025 Lehmann Emerging Artist Awards jury was also assembled by Ramírez and included Ramírez; Lana Meador, Associate Curator of Modern and Contemporary Art, San Antonio Museum of Art; Olivia Miller, Executive Director, Jordan Schnitzer Museum of Art at the University of Oregon; Ann Morton, 2019 Scult Family Artist Award recipient; and Sally Lehmann.

About Phoenix Art Museum

Since 1959, Phoenix Art Museum (PhxArt) has engaged millions of visitors with the art and fashion 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 art experiences. Each year, more than 250,000 guests engage with critically acclaimed national and international exhibitions, as well as 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. The Museum also presents vibrant photography exhibitions made possible through the Museum’s landmark partnership with the Center for Creative Photography at the University of Arizona in Tucson and is home to The Gene and Cathy Lemon Art Research Library, The Thorne Miniature Rooms, The Ullman Center for the Art of Philip C. Curtis, and Arizona Costume Institute (ACI). For the community, PhxArt hosts lectures, live performances, outstanding examples of global cinema, arts-education workshops, family-focused programs, and more. To learn more about Phoenix Art Museum, visit phxart.org, or call 602.257.1880. 

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_{^{Cara Romero, Coyote Appears at Muhaḍagĭ Doʼag (Greasy Mountain), 2026, archival pigment print. © Cara Romero. Image courtesy of the artist.}}

PHOENIX, AZ (June 3, 2026) – During First Friday on June 5, 2026, Phoenix Art Museum (PhxArt) will premiere Coyote Appears at Muhaḍagĭ Doʼag (Greasy Mountain), a new commission by contemporary photographer Cara Romero, whose first major museum exhibition, Cara Romero: Panûpünüwügai (Living Light), is currently on view at PhxArt through June 28, 2026. The artist’s first triptych, the large-scale photograph was created at South Mountain Park and Preserve in Phoenix and depicts Dre Noline who is both San Carlos Apache and Salt River Pima-Maricopa reclining within the landscape and embodying the human connection to Coyote and all animals.

“We are honored to welcome Coyote Appears at Muhaḍagĭ Doʼag (Greasy Mountain) by Cara Romero into the permanent collection of Phoenix Art Museum,” said Jeremy Mikolajczak, the Museum’s Sybil Harrington Director and CEO. “Cara is one of the most important voices in contemporary photography today, with deep ties to the Desert Southwest, and this work marks a powerful return to black-and-white film after nearly two decades of working digitally. The piece is both visually striking and deeply thoughtful in its reflection on humanity’s relationship to the land, centering Indigenous materials, perspectives, and practices in a way that feels urgent and timeless. We invite our community to join us for June First Friday as we celebrate the unveiling of this extraordinary work.”

Grounded in regional, collaborative storytelling with Native peoples, Coyote Appears at Muhaḍagĭ Doʼag (Greasy Mountain) is emblematic of Romero’s practice in touching on universal themes of women’s empowerment, environmental stewardship, and the role of landscape in shaping identity. The image’s model connects us to Coyote, who exists as both herself and a conduit for the Coyote spirit. She wears a shell necklace, a Pima cotton dress, and Pima sandals, markers of her ancestral connection to this landscape and peoples of Phoenix. Romero made the Coyote mask and collaborated with fiber artist Leah Mata-Fragua to create the model’s necklace. The sandals are the model’s personal shoes, an intimate detail demonstrating the way Romero invites her sitters to take part in the creative process alongside her.

“This photograph honors the desert landscape and Indigenous Mythos that emerges from it,” said Romero, whose homelands are on the Chemehuevi Valley Indian Reservation. “It considers flora and fauna as sentient beings and how they can teach us about being in relationship—how all living things are interconnected. The image is a gentle offering and reminder of our shared connection to our landscape.”

Coyote Appears at Muhaḍagĭ Doʼag (Greasy Mountain) is currently on view on the first floor of the Museum’s Katz Wing for Modern Art, placing Romero’s work in conversation with other contemporary artists creating large-scale works rooted in place. Organized by the Hood Museum, Dartmouth, the artist’s exhibition Cara Romero: Panûpünüwügai (Living Light), is showcased on the second floor of the Katz Wing for Modern Art, providing a focused view into the artist’s practice. Featuring 60 iconic large-scale photographs spanning a decade, the exhibition illuminates the way Romero blends fine art and editorial styles to challenge dominant narratives of Indigenous decline and erasure and to disrupt preconceived notions about what it means to be a Native American.

High-resolution photography of the new commission can be found here. For additional inquiries, contact the Communications Office of Phoenix Art Museum kaylee.weyrauch@phxart.org or press@phxart.org.  

About Cara Romero

Cara Romero, b. 1977, Inglewood, Calif. (American / Chemehuevi), is an artist known for dramatic fine art photography that examines Indigenous life in contemporary contexts. An enrolled citizen of the Chemehuevi Indian Tribe, Romero was raised between contrasting settings: the rural Chemehuevi reservation in Mojave Desert, California, and the urban sprawl of Houston, Texas. Informed by her identity, Romero’s visceral approach to representing Indigenous and non-Indigenous cultural memory, collective history, and lived experiences results in a blending of fine art and editorial styles. Maintaining a studio in Santa Fe, New Mexico, Romero regularly participates in Native American art fairs and panel discussions and was featured on PBS’s Craft in America in 2019. Her award-winning work is included in numerous public and private collections, domestically and internationally, including the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Museum of Modern Art, Whitney Museum of American Art, Guggenheim Museum, Amon Carter Museum, Peabody Essex Museum, and Forge Project Collections, among others. Romero travels between Santa Fe and the Chemehuevi Valley Indian Reservation, where she maintains close ties to her tribal community and ancestral homelands.

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.

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PHOENIX (June 2, 2026) – Phoenix Art Museum announces the addition of 185 works by Indigenous artists to its collection. The gift from The William P. Healey Collection of Native American Art marks the single largest gift of Native art to the Museum in its 65+ year history and strengthens the Museum’s Art of the Americas Collection by providing a major infusion of modern and contemporary works by 99 artists representing 44 tribal nations. The acquisition furthers the Museum’s efforts to expand its Art of the Americas holdings and better represent the complex and layered histories of the Americas in its galleries. Drawing from this significant gift, the Museum will premiere The Way We Came: A Century of Indigenous Art from The William P. Healey Collection at Phoenix Art Museum, an examination of modernity in Native American art and the numerous ways Indigenous artists from the 20th century through today have sustained, adapted, and reimagined cultural knowledge. Featuring more than 70 of the gifted works, The Way We Came will be on view from August 26, 2026, through July 11, 2027.

“We are deeply grateful to William Healey for this transformational gift to the Phoenix Art Museum Collection,” said Jeremy Mikolajczak, the Museum’s Sybil Harrington Director and CEO. “These works address a critical gap in our holdings and represent a significant step forward in our commitment to telling a more expansive story of the Americas, one that not only recognizes the profound impact of Native artists in the Southwest, but also honors their enduring influence across North America and their essential role in shaping modern and contemporary art.”

PhxArt’s Art of the Americas Collection spans the 16th century to the present, with strengths in historical art of the American West, pre-modern American art, and Viceregal Latin American Art. With acquired works from the Healey Collection, including paintings, drawings, photographs, and sculptures spanning the 20th century to present, the Museum broadens its holdings to bring in vital perspectives by modern and contemporary Indigenous artists, who explore a wide range of cultural traditions and stories and demonstrate myriad forms of artistic expression. Of note, the collection offers the rare opportunity to highlight the continuity of artistic tradition across generations of families; parent-child artists represented in the gift include Fred and Michael Kabotie, Allan Houser and Bob Haozous,
Tony Abeyta, Celebration from the Underworld, 1998-1999. Oil on canvas. William P. Healey Collection of Native American Art at Phoenix Art Museum, Gift of William P. Healey. Photo: Davin Lavikka
and Narciso and Tony Abeyta. Additionally, 22 of the 99 artists represented in the collection are women, advancing deeper recognition of women artists. Placed in conversation with the Museum’s existing Art of the Americas holdings, these works will offer critical counterpoints to established art historical frameworks and enrich dialogues across collecting areas.

Featured artists in the Healey gift to the PhxArt Museum Collection include:
•Jaune-Quick-to-See Smith (Confederated Salish and Kootenai)
•Narciso Abeyta (Navajo)
•Tony Abeyta (Navajo)
•Cara Romero (Chemehuevi)
•Harry Fonseca (Miwok, Nisenan)
•Fritz Scholder (Luiseño)
•Pablita Velarde (Tse Tsan, Santa Clara Pueblo)
•Tonita Peña (Quah Ah, San Ildefonso Pueblo)
•Stephen Mopope (Kiowa)
•Oscar Howe (Dakota Sioux)
•Acee Blue Eagle (Muscogee Creek)
•Allan Houser (Apache)
•Harrison Begay (Navajo)
•Fred Kabotie (Hopi)
•T. C. Cannon (Kiowa, Caddo)
•Kay WalkingStick (Cherokee)
•Emmi Whitehorse (Navajo)
•Michael Chiago (Tho-Hono, Tohono O’odham, Pima-Maricopa)

Stemming from this major acquisition, PhxArt will premiere in August 2026 The Way We Came: A Century of Indigenous Art (The William P. Healey Collection at Phoenix Art Museum), an exhibition that brings more than 100 works from the Healey Collection to Arizona audiences. Curated by Dr. JoAnna Reyes, the Museum’s adjunct curator of Art of the Americas, and second generation Native artist Tony Abeyta (Navajo), with whom Healey shaped this collection, the exhibition will center on the concept of “survivance,” a term coined by Anishinaabe scholar Gerald Vizenor that combines “survival” and “resistance” to describe how Indigenous peoples move beyond mere survival toward an active, creative sense of presence that carries knowledge forward. Exhibition themes include the power of storytelling, the evolution of abstraction and modernism, the role and importance of place and landscape, and the ways cultural knowledge and visual languages have been transmitted through familial lines of artists, artists’ collectives, and art education and training, including the complex legacies of Native boarding schools.

“I am deeply honored to help steward this remarkable collection of Native art and am committed to caring for it with integrity and respect,” said Reyes. “I am especially excited by the opportunity to place these works within a fuller, more connected story of the Americas—one that embraces and highlights the richness, diversity, and continuity of Indigenous artistic traditions across time and place.”

An avid, lifelong collector with a deep interest in Western art and ephemera, William P. Healey developed the Healey Collection over decades in close consultation with Tony Abeyta, a partnership that helped ensure that cultural insight and authenticity guided the acquisition process. Healey prioritized purchasing works directly from artists and their estates and fostered personal relationships with reputable gallerists, including James Trotta-Bono, who served as a close advisor. Healey has demonstrated a sustained commitment to the arts through his philanthropy, including his long tenure as a member of the Charlie Russell Riders and Foundation, his service on the Board of Directors at the C.M. Russell Museum, his prior service as a board member of the Gilcrease Museum in Oklahoma, and his donation of 100 artworks by Indigenous artist to the St. Louis Art Museum in 2024. The Healey gift to PhxArt prioritizes both historical depth and contemporary voices, tracing evolving artistic expressions while honoring tradition.

“The enthusiasm and dedication to excellence I have experienced from the team at Phoenix Art Museum has been extraordinary,” said Healey. “The Museum has deep personal meaning for me over many years, making it especially significant to see the collection find its permanent home here. At a moment when the American art canon is being reshaped and expanded, I believe it is paramount that Native American artists are recognized as essential to that story. Phoenix Art Museum has made a major commitment to using this collection to help achieve that end.”

“I am honored to bear witness to how Bill Healey assembled this important collection,” said Abeyta. “It began with a vision to tell the story from the perspective of Native American artists. Too often, the Western Indigenous narrative has been sidelined or viewed through a romanticized lens. Bill sought to add an authentic testament to this American narrative. The acquisition of this collection by Phoenix Art Museum fulfills that vision by sharing it with the world. The gift of these artworks stands as a testament to his vision to clarify the achievements of Native American artists of the 20th and 21st centuries. Each painting, no matter which tribe or time period, is connected through cultural practice, innovation, and a shared quest for individualism.”

In addition to the exhibition, the Museum will highlight the Healey gift through a future publication slated for Spring 2028, which will be published in partnership with Scala Arts Publishers Inc. Essays will explore themes of resistance and cultural survival from the 1900s–1930s, the history of Native artists moving within the Abstract Expressionist/Modernist movements of the 1930s–1950s, the postwar era and emergent expressions of aesthetic and political self-determination from the 1950s–1980s, and future directions of Indigenous art. Contributors include Dr. Leah Shenandoah (Wolf Clan Member of the Onyo’ta:aká: – Oneida Nation of the Haudenosaunee Confederacy); Dr. Ashley Holland (Cherokee [EBCI]); Dr. Anya Montiel (Tohono O’odham); and Dr. Chelsea Herr (Choctaw).
For images or more information about this latest acquisition and upcoming exhibition, contact the Communications Office of Phoenix Art Museum at samantha.andreacchi@phxart.org or press@phxart.org

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.

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PHOENIX (April 22, 2026) – This summer, Phoenix Art Museum (PhxArt) will present the acclaimed art installation The Instrument of Troubled Dreams by Janet Cardiff & George Bures Miller to Arizona audiences for the first time. Internationally recognized Canadian artists Janet Cardiff and George Bures Miller are known for their immersive multimedia sound installations and audio and video walking tours that invite visitor engagement and sensory engagement. Created in 2019, The Instrument of Troubled Dreams is an interactive, room-sized audio installation featuring a replica of a modified 1960s Mellotron MK II keyboard, 23 speakers, and chairs. Museum visitors are invited to sit and play the instrument, experiencing a range of music, vocal tracks, and background sounds. The Instrument of Troubled Dreams will be on view in the Marshall Gallery at PhxArt from June 13, 2026 through May 2028.

“The Instrument of Troubled Dreams reflects the Museum’s ongoing commitment to bringing more immersive, experiential art into our galleries,” said Jeremy Mikolajczak, the Sybil Harrington Director and CEO of Phoenix Art Museum. “This installation by the internationally recognized artists known for their immersive multimedia sound installations and audio/video walks is a rare opportunity for our community to experience how their work harnesses sound to forge connection, spark memory, and create powerful, story-driven moments grounded in both personal and collective experience.”

Born in small rural towns in Canada, Janet Cardiff (b. 1957) and George Bures Miller (b. 1960) have collaborated for more than 35 years. Working with sound and new media technologies—including film, robotics, and advanced audio-recording techniques—they create immersive, interactive installations that explore memory, narrative, space, and time. Their video installation The Berlin Files (2003) was featured in the Museum’s 2006 exhibition Constructing New Berlin, the first major survey of contemporary art produced in post-Wall Berlin. The Instrument of Troubled Dreams marks the second presentation of their work at Phoenix Art Museum and the Arizona premiere of this particular installation.

To engage with the work, Museum visitors are invited to sit at a replica of a modified 1960s Mellotron keyboard and become active participants in The Instrument of Troubled Dreams. While the original Mellotron was used to compose music using prerecorded tape banks, this instrument has been transformed into a storytelling device. Each of the 72 keys has been programmed to play back a different sound effect, vocal track, or musical part so participants can compose their own film-like soundtrack. These sounds and narratives are played back in full spherical surround sound over 23 speakers encircling the listener/performer in a dystopian story of their own making.

“Cardiff & Miller transform sound into a storytelling medium,” said Christian Ramírez, the Museum’s Cohn Assistant Curator of Contemporary Art and Director of Engagement. “As visitors activate the installation, layers of music, voices, and environmental sounds unfold in real time, creating cinematic audio landscapes that shift with every choice. The work invites audiences to step inside a constantly evolving narrative shaped by listening, memory, and participation.”

Janet Cardiff & George Bures Miller’s The Instrument of Troubled Dreams is on loan to PhxArt from the collection of Diane and Bruce Halle, longtime supporters of contemporary art and lenders of Carlos Amorales’ Black Cloud, also on view in the Museum’s Greenbaum Lobby and John Morrell Promenade.

About the Installation

Janet Cardiff & George Bures Miller’s The Instrument of Troubled Dreams is on loan from the Diane and Bruce Halle Collection.

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.

Admission is free for Museum Members and youth aged 5 and younger. Entrance into the exhibition is included in general admission for the public. Visitors may also enjoy reduced admission to the exhibition during voluntary-donation times on Wednesdays from 3 – 8 pm, made possible by SRP and City of Phoenix, with additional support by Arizona Community Foundation. For a full breakdown of general admission prices and hours, see phxart.org/visit/.

High-resolution photography can be downloaded here. To request interviews, contact the Communications Office of Phoenix Art Museum at press@phxart.org or kaylee.weyrauch@phxart.org.

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.

About Janet Cardiff and George Bures Miller

Canadian artists Janet Cardiff and George Bures Miller live and work in British Columbia. They are internationally recognized for their immersive multimedia sound installations and their audio and video walks. Their work has been shown at the Museum of Contemporary Art in Monterrey, Mexico (2019); Oude Kerk, Amsterdam (2018); the 21st Century Museum of Contemporary Art, Kanazawa, Japan (2017); the Fondation Louis Vuitton, Paris (2017); ARoS Aarhus Art Museum, Denmark (2015); the Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía, Madrid (2015); the Menil Collection, Houston (2015); the 19th Biennale of Sydney (2014); the Cloisters, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York (2013); and Documenta 13, Kassel, Germany (2012). In 2011, they received Germany’s Käthe Kollwitz Prize. In 2001, they represented Canada at the 49th Venice Biennale, where they received the Premio Speciale and the Benesse Prize.

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PHOENIX (March 31, 2026) – On April 15, 2026, Phoenix Art Museum (PhxArt) will present its newest fashion exhibition Colorwear: A Kaleidoscope of Fashion. The exhibition commemorates the 60th anniversary of Phoenix Art Museum’s fashion collection by presenting a chromatic celebration of colorful ensembles and whimsical accessories. Arranged across a runway of vibrant hues, this exhibition reveals how North American and European designers including Hubert de Givenchy, Olivier Lapidus, Tina Leser, and Giorgio di Sant’Angelo have used color as a source of inspiration. In addition to luscious gowns and sparkling dresses, the exhibition features some of the smallest and most extraordinary objects in the Museum’s fashion holdings, such as Judith Leiber pillboxes encased in multihued crystals, psychedelic scarves, and shoes that evoke the golden tones of an Egyptian burial or the bold explosion of graffiti paint. From couture to ready-to-wear, Colorwear immerses you in the power of color as storytelling, mood, and creative expression. Colorwear: A Kaleidoscope of Fashion will be on view at PhxArt from April 15, 2026 through August 15, 2027 in the Kelly Ellman Fashion Galleries.

This riotous celebration of color continues throughout the year with rotating ensembles, the unveiling of a colorful new commission, and an upcoming catalogue that features contributions from fashion historians and Dressed: The History of Fashion podcast hosts April Calahan and Cassidy Zachary.

“Colorwear: A Kaleidoscope of Fashion offers a special glimpse into the extraordinary accessories and ensembles that have shaped Phoenix Art Museum’s fashion collection for six decades,” said Jeremy Mikolajczak, the Sybil Harrington Director and CEO of Phoenix Art Museum. “By bringing together objects that range from the smallest to the most extravagant, the exhibition immerses visitors in the expressive power of color as a form of storytelling. Colorwear not only celebrates the Museum’s history but also animates it through rotating installations, a new commission, dynamic public programs, and a forthcoming publication that explores fashion at PhxArt through the lens of color.”

The Museum began collecting fashion in 1966, when the Arizona Costume Institute was founded to support the acquisition and preservation of garments and accessories of historical and aesthetic significance. Today, the PhxArt fashion collection houses more than 9,000 objects spanning the 18th century through the present and is home to four special archives, including Paper Dress, the Geoffrey Beene Archive, the Emphatics Archive, and the Ann Bonfoey Taylor Archive. Alongside the kaleidoscopic array of Colorwear, visitors can also discover objects that tell the history of fashion at PhxArt, from historic accessories to rare and avant-garde examples from the archival collections, and new acquisitions by contemporary designers such as The Son of Picasso, a Native American artist of Kiowa, Taos Pueblo, Diné (Navajo), and Delaware descent.

Colorwear: A Kaleidoscope of Fashion will be accompanied by a compelling series of public programs and lectures by nationally celebrated fashion professionals, as well as the fall release of the Museum’s first fashion-focused collection book of the same name, Colorwear: A Kaleidoscope of Fashion, published by Scala Arts Publishers, Inc.

“Colorful clothing sparks emotion—both when we wear it and when we see it. It can uplift our mood and encourage boldness or inspire a more contemplative or nostalgic state. Some designers have even become known for their signature colors, such as Schiaparelli’s Shocking Pink, Dior’s Gray, and Chanel’s Black. In fact, color is one of the first elements we describe when discussing an ensemble,” said Helen Jean, the Jacquie Dorrance Curator of Fashion. “Colorwear: A Kaleidoscope of Fashion draws inspiration from this powerful aspect of design, bringing together works that show how master designers have explored color over time. Through garments and accessories, the exhibition highlights individuality, self-expression, and visual storytelling through the splendor of color.”

High-resolution photography for Colorwear: A Kaleidoscope of Fashion can be downloaded here. To request interviews, contact the Communications Office of Phoenix Art Museum at press@phxart.org  or kaylee.weyrauch@phxart.org.

About the Exhibition

Colorwear: A Kaleidoscope of Fashion is organized by Phoenix Art Museum and curated by Helen Jean, the Jacquie Dorrance Curator of Fashion and Summer Rye, Fashion Curatorial Assistant & ACI Liaison. The exhibition is made possible through the generosity of Jacquie and Bennett Dorrance and Arizona Costume Institute.

All fashion exhibitions at Phoenix Art Museum are underwritten by The Kelly Ellman Fashion Endowment Fund and The Thomas Carlton Rogers II Fashion Exhibition 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.

Admission is free for Museum Members and youth aged 5 and younger. Entrance into the exhibition is included in general admission for the public. Visitors may also enjoy reduced admission to the exhibition during voluntary-donation times on Wednesdays from 3 – 8 pm, made possible by SRP and City of Phoenix, with additional support by Arizona Community Foundation. For a full breakdown of general admission prices and hours, see phxart.org/visit/.

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, an art+music festival, and more for the community. To learn more about Phoenix Art Museum, visit phxart.org, or call 602.257.1880.

About the Phoenix Art Museum Fashion Collection

Phoenix Art Museum is one of few institutions in the United States that continually collects, preserves, and exhibits works of fashion, placing the southwestern institution in the company of other leading fashion museums. The Museum began collecting fashion in 1966, when Arizona Costume Institute was founded to support the acquisition and preservation of garments and accessories of historical and aesthetic significance. Today, the PhxArt fashion collection houses more than 9,000 objects of women’s, men’s, and children’s dress spanning the 18th century through the present. It is also home to three special archives, including the Geoffrey Beene Archive of more than 300 garments by the late designer gifted by Patsy Tarr; the Emphatics Archive, featuring avant-garde fashions by Alexander McQueen, Issey Miyake, Thierry Mugler, and others; and the Ann Bonfoey Taylor Archive, featuring the extraordinary custom-couture wardrobe of the American-socialite and tastemaker.

About Arizona Costume Institute

Arizona Costume Institute was founded in 1966 to support the fashion-design department of Phoenix Art Museum through the acquisition and preservation of garments and accessories of historical and aesthetic significance and through events and fundraising efforts that support and deepen awareness of the Museum’s fashion exhibitions and education programs. ACI’s support of this collection area depends on the enthusiasm of dedicated volunteers. The ACI Board of Managers 2025-2027 president is Donna Johnson. To learn more about Arizona Costume Institute, visit arizonacostumeinstitute.org.

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PHOENIX (March 9, 2026) –Phoenix Art Museum announces the acquisition of Reflection Between Flashes (2023) by Vietnam-based artist Tuan Andrew Nguyen. The work is the latest purchased by the Museum with funds from Men’s Arts Council and the first by Nguyen acquired into the Museum’s collection of more than 21,000 objects. Nguyen, whose work was recently presented in a solo exhibition at James Cohan in New York City, is internationally renowned for his video and sculpture that examine colonial histories and supernaturalism by tapping into inherited stories and counter-memory. His work Reflection Between Flashes is inspired by the kinetic works of Alexander Calder but is cast from salvaged, unexploded munitions recovered in Central Vietnam. The mobile, which expands representation of contemporary Southeast Asian artists in the Museum’s collection, will be on view at the Museum beginning April 25.

“The kinetic work of Tuan Andrew Nguyen is an extraordinary addition to the PhxArt Collection,” said Jeremy Mikolajczak, the Museum’s Sybil Harrington Director and CEO. “Nguyen’s work regularly unearths stories of resilience, community, and regeneration, reminding us all of memories that objects and materials can hold and how artists transform them to be seen and experienced in new ways. We are deeply grateful to Men’s Arts Council for supporting the acquisition of this work, and we look forward to sharing it with our visitors.”

Born in Saigon and now based in Ho Chi Minh City, Nguyen and his family emigrated in 1979 as refugees to the United States. In 1999, he graduated from the fine-arts program at University of California, Irvine, and in 2004 earned his Master of Fine Arts from the California Institute of the Arts. Nguyen is a co-founder and former board member of Sàn Art and was a founding member of The Propeller Group whose work was exhibited at PhxArt in 2017.

Nguyen’s most recent sculptures are made from unexploded ordnance (UXO) recovered in the Quang Trị region of central Vietnam, the site of the largest aerial bombardment in history. Reflection Between Flashes features 12 plate bells, seven of which are cast from salvaged artillery shell brass, while the remaining five are stainless steel incorporating salvaged bomb metal. The elegant form of the monumental hanging mobile stands in stark contrast to the brutal origins of the materials used to create it. This work moves with the flow of air and vibrations of sound in the gallery space, creating a naturally shifting play of abstract spatial relationships that suggest a state of perpetual change. Nguyen worked with a sound healer to tune the work to a series of pitches centered around 432 Hz, a frequency associated with healing energies and the vibration of the cosmos.

“Much of Nguyen’s recent work focuses on creating harmony where there has been destruction and loss.” said Colin Pearson, the Museum’s curator of Asian art. “Reflections Between Flashes continues this thread and embodies his concept of ‘material reincarnation’ in a mobile that produces visual and musical harmony from the detritus of the war in Vietnam. Guests will witness the sculpture slowly shift and rotate, activated by the invisible movement of air, while contemplating the delicate balance that suspends each piece. Nguyen’s use of melted bomb and artillery shells draws our attention to the frightening origin of the metal, and to the salvage workers in northern Vietnam who still perform the dangerous work of harvesting unexploded ordnance five decades after the end of the war. My hope is that people will both appreciate the beauty of Reflections Between Flashes and reflect on the long aftereffects that warfare has on the people and places involved.”

Nguyen was recently announced as a 2025 recipient of the MacArthur Foundation’s “Genius Grant”, and he was chosen for a prestigious High Line Plinth commission for a monumental sculpture in New York City’s High Line park. Nguyen has had major solo presentations at the New Museum, New York; Fondació Joan Miró, Barcelona; Zeitz MOCAA, Cape Town, South Africa; and the Smithsonian American Art Museum, Washington DC. His work is in the permanent collections of several distinguished national and international museums, including the Art Institute of Chicago; Brooklyn Museum; Carré d’Art – Musée d’art contemporain de Nîmes, France; Dallas Museum of Art; Museum of Fine Arts, Houston; Museum of Modern Art, New York; Guggenheim Museum, New York; Taguchi Art Collection, Japan; The Whitney Museum of American Art, New York; and now, Phoenix Art Museum.

“We are incredibly proud to support the acquisition of Tuan Andrew Nguyen’s powerful sculpture for the Phoenix Art Museum collection,” said Sentari Minor, president, Men’s Arts Council. “This work speaks to transformation, resilience, and the enduring human capacity to create beauty from the remnants of conflict. By bringing Nguyen’s voice into the Museum’s Asian art holdings, we are expanding not only representation but also the depth and complexity of the stories told within the galleries. It’s important for our community to encounter contemporary works that challenge, reflect, and inspire—and this sculpture does exactly that.”

For more information about this latest acquisition, contact the Communications Office of Phoenix Art Museum at kaylee.weyrauch@phxart.org or press@phxart.org

About Phoenix Art Museum

Since 1959, Phoenix Art Museum (PhxArt) has engaged millions of visitors with the art and fashion 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 art experiences. Each year, more than 250,000 guests engage with critically acclaimed national and international exhibitions, as well as 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. The Museum also presents vibrant photography exhibitions made possible through the Museum’s landmark partnership with the Center for Creative Photography at the University of Arizona in Tucson and is home to The Gene and Cathy Lemon Art Research Library, The Thorne Miniature Rooms, The Ullman Center for the Art of Philip C. Curtis, and Arizona Costume Institute (ACI). For the community, PhxArt hosts lectures, live performances, outstanding examples of global cinema, arts-education workshops, family-focused programs, and more. To learn more about Phoenix Art Museum, visit phxart.org, or call 602.257.1880. 

About Tuan Andrew Nguyen

Tuan Andrew Nguyen (b. 1976, Saigon, Vietnam) creates work that explores the power of storytelling through video and sculpture. His projects are based on extensive research and community engagement, tapping into inherited histories and counter-memory. Nguyen extracts and re-works dominant, oftentimes colonial histories and supernaturalisms into imaginative vignettes. Fact and fiction are interwoven in his poetic narratives that span time and place.

Now based in Ho Chi Minh City, Nguyen has had major solo presentations at the New Museum, New York, NY (2023); Fondació Joan Miró, Barcelona, Spain (2024); Zeitz MOCAA, Cape Town, South Africa (2024) and the Smithsonian American Art Museum, Washington DC (2024). His videos and films have been included in major international festivals, biennials, and exhibitions including Prospect.6, New Orleans, LA (2024); the 12th Berlin Biennale, Berlin, Germany (2022); Manifesta 14, Prishtina, Kosovo (2022); Aichi Triennale, Aichi Prefecture, Japan (2022); Biennale de Dakar, Dakar, Senegal (2022); Asian Art Biennial, National Taiwan Museum of Fine Arts, Tapei, Taiwan (2021); Manifesta 13, Marseille, France (2020); Sharjah Architecture Triennial, Sharjah, UAE (2019); SOFT POWER, SFMoMA, San Francisco, CA (2019); the 2019 Sharjah Biennial, Sharjah, UAE (2019); 2017 Whitney Biennial, New York, NY (2017); the 55th International Short Film Festival, Oberhausen, Germany (2009); 8th NHK Asian Film Festival, Tokyo, Japan (2007); 18th Singapore International Film Festival (2005) and 4th Bangkok Experimental Film Festival, Bangkok, Thailand (2005). Nguyen has received numerous awards, including the 2023 Joan Miró Prize.

His work is included in the permanent collections of institutions including the Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago, IL; Brooklyn Museum, Brooklyn, NY; Carré d’Art – Musée d’art contemporain de Nîmes, France; Centre national des arts plastiques (CNAP), Paris, France; Dallas Museum of Art, Dallas, TX; Des Moines Art Center, Des Moines, IA; Guggenheim Abu Dhabi, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates; Honolulu Museum of Art, Honolulu, HI; Kadist Art Foundation, San Francisco, CA; Mildred Lane Kemper Art Museum, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO; Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, TX; Museum MACAN, Jakarta, Indonesia; Museum of Modern Art, New York, NY; Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, Kansas City, MO; Nevada Museum of Art, Reno, NV; Philadelphia Museum of Art, Philadelphia, PA; Princeton University Art Museum, Princeton, NJ; Queensland Art Gallery | Gallery of Modern Art (QAGOMA), Brisbane, Australia; Singapore Art Museum, Singapore; San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, San Francisco, CA; Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York, NY; Taguchi Art Collection, Japan; The Whitney Museum of American Art, New York, NY, and the Worcester Art Museum, Worcester, MA.

About Men’s Arts Council

The Men’s Arts Council (MAC) of Phoenix Art Museum, founded in 1967, is a 501(c)3, non-profit organization that supports the Museum’s programs and activities through its unique events such as the Copperstate 1000 and the Copperstate Overland, a vintage off-road rally. The Men’s Arts Council’s efforts enable the organization to make annual contributions to Phoenix Art Museum’s operating budget and financially sponsor exhibitions. For more information, visit https://mensartscouncil.com/.

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PHOENIX (January 29, 2026) –On Thursday, March 12, 2026, Phoenix Art Museum (PhxArt) presents the return of Women Powered. The beloved program, which offers guests the opportunity to network amongst peers and hear from dynamic women leaders, brings global fashion designer, entrepreneur, and women’s empowerment advocate Rebecca Minkoff, live to the Museum. To celebrate the 60^th anniversary of PhxArt’s fashion program, the Museum will host a special edition of Women Powered, featuring an inspiring conversation with the nationally renowned New York-based designer led by Valley entrepreneur and fashion icon Chrissy Sayare. Minkoff will share stories of her own success, building bold ideas, navigating business, and living at the intersection of entrepreneurship and creativity. This event is welcome to all ages and industries.

At 5 pm, the Museum will host a cocktail reception with a cash bar in the Dorrance Sculpture Garden. Then at 6:30 pm, attendees will enjoy a fireside chat with Minkoff and Sayare in Whiteman Hall.

Make the evening even more memorable by adding a signed copy of Minkoff’s newest book Fearless: The New Rules of Unlocking Creativity, Courage, and Success to your reservation. The personally autographed special edition is available in limited quantities and is a meaningful takeaway from an inspiring night.

Elevate your evening with an exclusive, intimate dinner honoring the nationally renowned designer directly following the program. Enjoy a luxury dining experience with a hosted bar and receive a signed copy of Minkoff’s recent book Fearless: The New Rules of Unlocking Creativity, Courage, and Success. This special experience offers a rare opportunity to engage more personally with our guest of honor and deepen your connection to the ideas shared on stage while making a meaningful impact. Dinner tickets are $500 each. Seating is limited. Advance purchase required for dinner by March 4.

Tickets to Women Powered are $45 for the general public, $25 for PhxArt Members, $15 for college students with an active ID. Optional ticket to include a singed copy of Fearless: The New Rules for Unlocking Creativity, Courage, and Success also available at $45 for Members, $65 for non-Members. Dinner tickets are $500 each. Seating is limited. Advance purchase required for dinner by March 4. Tickets are available here.

Rebecca Minkoff’s journey began with a fearless leap—moving to New York City at just 18 to chase a dream in fashion. With no roadmap and few resources, she turned a love for design into a global brand synonymous with accessible luxury. But what truly sets Rebecca apart isn’t just her success as a designer. It’s her unwavering commitment to lifting others as she climbs. In 2018, she launched the Female Founder Collective, a powerful network of women-led businesses committed to advancing financial equity and opportunity for women at every level. Through her Superwomen podcast and candid speaking engagements, she shares the unfiltered side of entrepreneurship and life like navigating setbacks, battling fear, and balancing life with ambition. Her talks leave audiences energized and inspired, reminding them that fear is not a weakness but a compass to guide them through the impossible.

For more information about this event, contact the Communications Office of Phoenix Art Museum at press@phxart.org.

About the Fashion Collection at Phoenix Art Museum

The Fashion Collection at Phoenix Art Museum strives to tell an accurate history of fashion and is actively pursuing works that represent a broader and more inclusive glossary of designers. Comprising nearly half of the Museum’s permanent holdings, the collection houses nearly 9,000 examples of fashionable dress and accessories from five centuries of style. With everything from a pair of 17th-century sueded-leather gloves to 21st-century couture runway looks, the collection explores the art of dressing and seeks out the rarest examples of these dress traditions. Celebrated for its quality and comprehensiveness, the collection boasts strengths in 19th-century womenswear as well as works by 20th-century designers, with significant examples from major representatives of European and North American fashion history. Special archives within the collection include the Ann Bonfoey Taylor wardrobe of more than 200 examples by mid-century couture designers, The Emphatics Archive of more than 400 works from avant-garde designers, and the Geoffrey Beene Archive, with more than 300 evening gowns and custom designs.

About Arizona Costume Institute

Arizona Costume Institute was founded in 1966 to support the fashion-design department of Phoenix Art Museum through the acquisition and preservation of garments and accessories of historical and aesthetic significance and through events and fundraising efforts that support and deepen awareness of the Museum’s fashion exhibitions and education programs. ACI’s support of this collection area depends on the enthusiasm of dedicated volunteers. The ACI Board of Managers 2023-2025 president is Joy Sprink. To learn more about Arizona Costume Institute, visit arizonacostumeinstitute.org.

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.

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