Cranbrook Art Museum

Cranbrook Art Museum presents exhibitions of contemporary art, architecture, crafts, and design featuring work of regional, national, and international artists. The Museum presents an ambitious program of public lectures and educational programs designed to increase awareness of modern and contemporary art. Cranbrook Art Museum is fully accredited by the American Alliance of Museums and its collection includes Saarinen House, the fully restored home and studio of Eliel and Loja Saarinen, which is open for public tours from May through October. Access to Saarinen House is available through a staff-guided public tour at an additional cost outside of Smithsonian Museum Day! Please call 248-645-3320 to make a reservation.

Exhibits

Tunde Olaniran: Made A Universe
With the narrative arc of a hero’s journey, this contemporary horror film takes its inspiration from archetypes like those found in storylines from The New Mutants, an X-Men spin-off comic book series. Within this premise, the character’s often perceived weakness translates into their unique superpower. The film examines what it means to unlock your power in the face of fear and repression, and how one must unify various fragments of their psyche to connect with the world and themselves on a deeper level.
The series, shot on location throughout Detroit, is co-written, directed, and scored by Olaniran and Paige Wood, and features collaborations across artistic mediums with several multidisciplinary, award-winning artists, including Yo-Yo Ma, Ellen Rutt, Natasha Beste, Lisa Waud, Amy Fisher-Price, Emma Davis, Skyylar Taylor, Talicia Campbell, Matthew Osmon, Terra Lockhart, Rachelle Baker, and Katy Dresner.
Tyrrell Winston: A Tiger's Stripes
Every tiger has its own pattern of stripes. For artist Tyrrell Winston, the concept of a tiger’s stripes translates to the unique identity, pride, and legacy many feel about their favorite sports team. Best known for his gridded assemblages of found basketballs, Winston’s work is rooted in themes of memory, nostalgia, found objects, and sports culture. His particular focus on sports is, in part, because it is a collective act that society undertakes together.
Cranbrook Art Museum is hosting Winston’s first solo museum presentation. A Detroit-based artist, Winston collected weathered and torn basketball nets from around the city for his series, Network. He replaced old nets with new ones and transformed the worn nets into new dynamic textile works. He has created a new series of Protection Paintings, which juxtapose lacquered panels of metallic automotive paint and found discarded tarps (often used to protect cars from the elements), and a new Michigan-based series of Punishment Paintings, which replicate the autograph signatures of famous athletes over and over again.
Whatever Gets You Through the Night: Selections from the Mott-Warsh Collection
This exhibition is an extension of a similarly titled show on view through August 20, 2022 at MW Gallery in downtown Flint. This selection of artwork shares themes with Tunde Olaniran’s newly-commissioned film and installation Made A Universe, which is concurrently on view at the museum.
The exhibition investigates how societal challenges, such as systemic disenfranchisement, racism, xenophobia, and isolation, can become pressing personal struggles about our health, wellness, economic stability, and more. Amid these personal and shared trials, myriad questions arise: How do we cope? Where do we go to seek relief? Who or what makes us feel better? How do we heal?
At Cranbrook Art Museum, the exhibition includes work by artists Maria Magdalena Campos-Pons, Nick Cave, Titus Kaphar, Glenn Ligon, Pope.L, Carrie Mae Weems, Kehinde Wiley, and others.

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