Hard Art, a free New York show, traces Black abstract painting since 1969

You can walk into MoMA PS1 in Queens, New York, from 5 November and see Black abstract painting for free. The show, called Hard Art, runs until 15 March 2027. It looks at abstract painting by Black artists in the United States from 1969 to today.

Peter Bradley's Circle of Fifths is an acrylic on canvas from 1973. The museum shows it among the works for the show. The press page credits it to the artist and Karma, New York and Los Angeles.

Connie Butler, the museum's director, organised the show with curatorial associate Sheldon Gooch. Their list of artists includes Frank Bowling, Sam Gilliam, Howardena Pindell and Glenn Ligon. Torkwase Dyson, Julie Mehretu and Senga Nengudi appear on it too. The list also names Mark Bradford, David Hammons, Lorraine O'Grady and Jack Whitten. Martin Puryear and Adam Pendleton are on it as well. Hannah Black, Aria Dean and Rodney McMillian are on the list too. In all, the release names 44 artists. Alexander Gray Associates counts more than forty artists in all.

The context

The title comes from Bradley's description of The DeLuxe Show, the museum's page says. That show used abstraction's apparent opacity and complexity to encourage deeper engagement with art.

Hard Art pairs paintings by artists who rose in the 1970s with newer work. The newer work is in sculpture, video, sound and painting. It follows three generations of artists, the gallery adds. The release argues that abstraction still shapes the political imagination today.

Other works shown include Mildred Thompson's Magnetic Fields (1991), an oil triptych. James Little's Challenge of the Will (1979) is shown too. A fully illustrated book will go with the show. Melvin Edwards is among the artists in the show.

What you can do

Entry is free for all. The address is 22-25 Jackson Avenue. A talk on 7 November, from 3:30 to 5 in the afternoon, will revisit PS1's 1980 show Afro-American Abstraction. The page gives no full weekly hours, so check them before you go.

Our view

We think a free show with a talk makes an easy first visit to this history.

I plan to come for the colours and stay for the wall labels.

Would you visit?