New acquisitions at San Francisco Museum of Modern Art

The San Francisco Museum of Modern Art (SFMOMA) announced 11 new acquisitions by 10 artists: Rebecca Belmore, Forrest Bess, Frank Bowling, Leonora Carrington, Lygia Clark, Norman Lewis, Barry McGee, Kay Sage, Alma Thomas and Mickalene Thomas. Acquisition of these works was funded by the deaccession and sale of Mark Rothko's Untitled (1960) earlier this spring. These acquisitions are part of an ongoing program funded by the sale of this painting with the goals of broadly diversifying the collection, enhancing modern and contemporary holdings and addressing historical gaps. The proceeds from this sale also will be used to create a new endowment fund for future acquisitions. "This is just the beginning of what we will be able to accomplish with this fund, which allows us to broaden the scope of the stories we are able to tell in our galleries," said Neal Benezra, Helen and Charles Schwab Director of SFMOMA. The new acquisitions span six decades and several genres, and in most cases, are SFMOMA's first works by the respective artists. These works will be presented alongside existing collection works throughout the museum beginning in late August 2019. The acquisition effort was led by Gary Garrels, Elise S. Haas Senior Curator of Painting and Sculpture, and Janet Bishop, Thomas Weisel Family Chief Curator and Curator of Painting and Sculpture.