Current Exhibitions
Installation view, re: collections, Six Decades at the Rose Art Museum, Rose Art Museum, Brandeis University, June 25, 2021–June 16, 2024. Photo by Mel Taing.
Since 1961, the Rose Art Museum has been at the forefront of modern and contemporary art, showcasing groundbreaking thematic exhibitions, surveys of leading artists, and innovative new commissions. As a champion of emerging talent, the Rose has also served as a launchpad for rising stars, offering many their first solo museum shows.
We invite you to explore the vibrant world of contemporary art at the Rose and discover something new!
Fred Wilson: Reflections
August 20, 2025 - January 4, 2026
"Fred Wilson: Reflections" is a profound examination of cultural narratives and historical erasures, featuring his signature black-and-white Murano glassworks, flag-inspired paintings, and the debut of the artist's immersive installation "Black Now!"—challenging perceptions of identity, memory, and the shifting cultural attitudes that shape our understanding of the past.
Fred Wilson, Act V. Scene II - Exeunt Omnes, 2014. Murano glass and wood. 87" x 10' 8" x 8-3/8" (221 cm x 325.1 cm x 21.3 cm) Edition 2 of 6, Edition of 6 + 2 APs. © Fred Wilson. Courtesy of artist and Pace Gallery.
Fabricated Imaginaries: Crafting Art
August 20, 2025 - May 31, 2026
"Fabricated Imaginaries" explores artists who occupy a liminal space profoundly shaped by craft traditions, sewing, weaving, and fashion. The exhibition highlights how unconventional techniques and materials inform contemporary art, creating new meanings and connections.
El Anatsui, Avocado Coconut Egg (ACE), 2016 [DETAIL]. Aluminum (liquor bottle caps) and copper wire. Green Family Art Foundation; Courtesy Adam Green Art Advisory © El Anatsui. Image courtesy the Green Family Foundation. Photo by Evan Sheldon.
Danielle Mckinney: Tell Me More
August 20, 2025 - January 4, 2026
"Danielle Mckinney: Tell Me More," the artist’s solo American museum debut, celebrates Mckinney’s introspective portraits of Black womanhood, illuminating resilience, beauty, and autonomy. Mckinney’s portraits offer a bold and transformative vision of leisure, pleasure, and the rhythmic rituals of the everyday, viewed through a unique female gaze.
Danielle Mckinney, Tell Me More, 2023 [DETAIL]. Oil on linen. Courtesy of the artist, Marianne Boesky Gallery, New York and Aspen, and Galerie Max Hetzler, Berlin | Paris | London | Marfa. © Danielle Mckinney. Photo credit: Pierre Le Hors.
Mark Dion: The Undisciplined Collector
Permanent Installation
Wood paneled and furnished with the trappings of a 1961 collector's den, "The Undisciplined Collector" evokes the year of the Rose Art Museum's founding and serves as an introduction to the rich history of collecting at Brandeis University.
Mark Dion, The Undisciplined Collector, 2015. Rose Art Museum Special Fund, 2015.6. Charles Mayer Photography.
Chris Burden: Light of Reason
Permanent installation
An integral part of the image of the Rose Art Museum, the antique Victorian lampposts and concrete benches of Chris Burden's sculpture "Light of Reason" serves as an inviting gateway to the museum and a dynamic outdoor space for the Brandeis community.
Chris Burden, Light of Reason, 2014. 24 restored cast-iron street lamps. Rose Art Museum Acquisition Fund, Gift of Monroe and Edith Geller and Russian Sale Gift, 2014.3. © Chris Burden. Charles Mayer Photography.