The Broad presents two upcoming special exhibitions, “Takashi Murakami: Stepping on the Tail of a Rainbow,” and “This Is Not America’s Flag,” both running from May 21, 2022 to September 25, 2022. Remember to check with the gallery for up-to-date covid protocols and guidelines – (proof of vaccination and masks MAY be required).

For Takashi Murakami, the explosive interest in the metaverse and in virtual and augmented realities (AR) constitutes a societal and cultural sea change. As part of The Broad’s special exhibition with the artist, and in partnership with Meta’s Spark AR, Instagram, and BUCK, Murakami uses AR experiences to extend the expression of his paintings’ and sculptures’ complex concern with trauma and disaster. Inside and outside of The Broad, these emergent realities and technologies populate the East West Bank Plaza at The Broad, the museum lobby, and one of the exhibition galleries, existing on top of and in relation to the physical world. Through the Instagram app, Murakami characters step out of their physical forms and into a ghostly digital existence, harbingers of what is yet to come for Murakami’s work and thinking. In addition to museum visitors, the public will be able to experience the AR feature on the East West Bank Plaza at The Broad.

Titled after Alfredo Jaar’s iconic 1987 work, “A Logo for America,” the exhibition “This Is Not America’s Flag” will provide a critical discourse on the US flag’s meaning, the complexity and contradictions of contemporary national identity, and artists as active citizens. The exhibition presents works from over twenty artists including Laura Aguilar, Nicole Eisenman, Genevieve Gaignard, Jeffrey Gibson, David Hammons, Jaar, Jasper Johns, John Outterbridge, Betye Saar, Fritz Scholder, and Hank Willis Thomas.

“This Is Not America’s Flag” includes a gallery devoted to works that drain the iconic red, white, and blue banner of its colors to investigate concepts as broad as identity, white supremacy, and manifest destiny. Many works in the exhibition manipulate the symbol—changing its shape, features, or colors, or even removing the flag entirely—to shift its meaning and pose critical questions. Several works throughout the exhibition feature portraiture as a mode of examining the complexity and contradictions of national identity.

The are additional events talking place in conjunction with each exhibition – be sure to visit the website for more info.

Image credit (L to R): © Takashi Murakami / Kaikai Kiki Co., Ltd. All rights reserved; Genevieve Gaignard, Extra Value (After Venus), 2016. Chromogenic print. Uri McMillan. © Genevieve Gaignard

The Broad will reopen on Thursday evenings throughout the run of the exhibition and will offer free admission to the ticketed exhibitions on Thursdays from 5-8 p.m., beginning June 2. Admission to the ticketed exhibitions will also be free on Sunday, June 19 and Tuesday, July 5 in honor of the Juneteenth and Independence Day holidays.

•Tickets to view both exhibitions are $18 adults, $12 for students (18+ with valid student ID), and free for children 17 and under.

•Free tickets will be released on the last Wednesday of the month at 10 a.m. PT for the month following on The Broad’s website at thebroad.org/events. For example, tickets for free Thursday evenings in June and for June 19 will be released on May 25 at 10 a.m. PT.

•Families attending The Broad’s Family Weekend Workshops in July and September will also receive complimentary access to the exhibitions, Takashi Murakami: Stepping on the Tail of a Rainbow and This Is Not America’s Flag, and participate in art-making workshops inspired by the works on view in the exhibition.

On view: May 21, 2022 – September 25, 2022

What: “Takashi Murakami: Stepping on the Tail of a Rainbow,” “This Is Not America’s Flag”
Where: The Broad, 221 S. Grand Ave., LA 90012
When: May 21 to September 25, 2022 (timed visits – see website to rsvp)
Website: https://www.thebroad.org