Skirball Cultural Center

  This exhibition is the first museum survey of the work of Maira Kalman (b. 1949 Tel Aviv), an illustrator, author, and designer known for her whimsical yet probing imagery. Her work ranges from designs for the legendary firm M&Co to covers and drawings for The New Yorker, more than a dozen books for children and adults, an illustrated blog for The New York Times ("And the Pursuit of Happiness"), and collaborations with leading designers like Isaac Mizrahi. Featuring a selection of original works on paper that span thirty years of illustration, the exhibition also has showcases less widely seen works in photographs, embroidery, textiles, and performance. To provide context for this wide array of work, Kalman has created a special installation, furnishing the gallery with chairs, ladders, and "many tables of many things" drawn from her own collections. Kalman uses her writing and drawing to render her singular vision of the world from a deeply personal viewpoint, illuminating contemporary life with a profound sense of joy, spontaneity, and humor. The exhibition was organized by the Institute of Contemporary Art, Philadelphia and is on view at the Contemporary Jewish Museum, San Francisco (through October 24). Following its presentation at the Skirball, the exhibition travels to The Jewish Museum, New York. The Los Angeles presentation of Maira Kalman: Various Illuminations (of a Crazy World) has been made possible by the generous support of The Philip and Muriel Berman Foundation, Carylon Foundation, the Southern California Council of the National Museum of Women in the Arts. MEDIA SPONSORS:      Maira Kalman: Various Illuminations (of a Crazy World) is organized by the Institute of Contemporary Art, University of Pennsylvania. The exhibition is curated by Ingrid Schaffner, ICA Senior Curator. ICA gratefully acknowledges Leonard and Louise Riggio and The Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts, Inc. for their generous support of this exhibition, and Barbara B. & Theodore R. Aronson for their sponsorship of the catalogue. Additional support has been provided by Mari & Peter Shaw; Carol T. & John G. Finley; BZ & Michael Schwartz; Erica & Eric Schwartz; Anthropologie, Inc.; Barbara & Richard S. Lane Fund; Howard A. Silverstein & Patricia B. Silverstein Exhibition Endowment Fund; Joan & Hyman Sall; The Horace W. Goldsmith Foundation; Commonwealth Pennsylvania Council on the Arts; The Dietrich Foundation, Inc.; The Chodorow Exhibition Initiative Fund for supporting the tour; and in-kind support from the Julie Saul Gallery.