ATLANTA, GA.- For its centennial anniversary year, the High Museum of Art will present a rotating schedule of exhibitions, including a widely acclaimed touring Martin Puryear survey, an exploration of rare Jean-Michel Basquiat works, a behind-the-scenes look at the High’s artwork conservation, and a sweeping presentation of civil rights photographs by Doris Derby. Below is a list of upcoming exhibitions as of Aug. 13, 2026.

Upcoming Exhibitions
“I SPY! Walter Wick’s Hidden Wonders”
Aug. 28, 2026-Jan. 3, 2027

Renowned worldwide for his iconic “I SPY!” and “Can You See What I See?” children’s book series, Walter Wick (American, born 1953) is one of the nation’s most famous photographic illustrators. Over his decades-long career, Wick’s award-winning books have captivated readers across cultures and generations, combining art, craft and technology to inspire discovery and wonder. Through his lens, everyday objects become portals to imagined landscapes and intricate, impossible worlds, inviting viewers of all ages to explore. This fall, the High will present the largest survey of Wick’s work to date that will celebrate his unique approach to storytelling through beloved images, rarely seen works and three-dimensional models. The exhibition will delve into themes that have long fascinated Wick, including miniature worlds, optical illusions, search-and-find games, puzzle challenges and the wonders of science. “I SPY! Walter Wick’s Hidden Wonders” is the latest in the High’s popular exhibition series celebrating the art and authors of children’s books. This exhibition is organized by the New Britain Museum of American Art.

“Martin Puryear: Nexus”
Sept. 25, 2026-Jan. 17, 2027

Since the 1970s, Martin Puryear (American, born 1941) has captivated the public with beautiful and thought-provoking works inspired by global culture, social history and the natural world. This fall, the High will be the exclusive Southeast venue and the final stop for the most comprehensive presentation of his career in more than two decades. This critically acclaimed exhibition features more than 70 works in a rich variety of materials and media, from sculptures in wood, glass, marble and cast bronze to rarely shown drawings and prints. “Nexus” follows Puryear’s explorations of form, material and process since the 1960s, ranging from drawings made in Sierra Leone during the artist’s service in the Peace Corps to sculptures featured in “Liberty/Libert�,” Puryear’s celebrated U.S. Pavilion exhibition at the 2019 Venice Biennale. The exhibition presents a fresh perspective on Puryear’s influential work, illuminating his interest in and involvement with material culture, natural history, craft traditions and African American history. It also powerfully reveals the expressive and interpretive potential of his work, which commands attention and reflection through masterful craft, enigmatic form and quiet poetic beauty. This exhibition is co-organized by The Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, and the Cleveland Museum of Art.

“Photography as a Way of Life: Minor White, Aaron Siskind, and Harry Callahan”
Oct. 9, 2026-Feb. 7, 2027

The High will be the exclusive Southeast venue for this touring exhibition that examines the overlapping careers of Minor White, Aaron Siskind and Harry Callahan, profoundly influential photographers, teachers and thinkers who redefined photography in the mid-20th century. Amid photography’s increasing recognition as an art form in the 1950s and 60s, these three artists carved out a new role and status for the medium, building a devoted audience for their work and shaping the aspirations of the era. Though they were from distinct backgrounds and visual traditions, they came together around their interests in abstraction and deeply personal expression and a shared belief that photography could sustain a life’s work. Drawing from the rich holdings of the Princeton University Art Museum and its Minor White Archive, the exhibition features iconic and previously unpublished color and black-and-white prints, rarely seen slides, and an array of published and archival materials. The exhibition also traces the artists’ expansive networks through work by both their students and contemporaries, such as Emmet Gowin, Roy DeCarava and Ming Smith, among others.

“Future Work: Preserving the Legacy of Art”
Feb. 12-June 6, 2027

Museums work to preserve the past for the present and the future. This exhibition presents a selection of case studies from across the High’s collections, showing recent efforts between conservation scientists and other museum professionals that have revealed new information about these works, their materials and ways to conserve them for future generations. From delicate works on paper and light-sensitive photographs to bronze sculpture, each object carries inherent challenges to preservation that museum staff must consider, including the best environments for their presentation and storage as well as regular evaluation and treatment. In this behind-the-scenes look at the work of art conservators, curators and collections staff, visitors will be able to explore the questions asked, the techniques used and the exciting stories behind rarely seen objects and some of the museum’s most iconic works of art, including Mary Cassatt’s pastel “Sketch of a Mother Looking Down at Thomas” (ca. 1893) and Il Guercino’s “Christ and the Samaritan Woman” (ca. 1650).

“Basquiat, the Blue Ribbon Paintings, and the Art of Reproduction”
Feb. 19-May 16, 2027

Conventional narratives around Jean-Michel Basquiat (American, 1960-1988) tend to emphasize his meteoric rise as a self-taught prodigy, often placing him outside the art historical canon rather than in dialogue with postmodern ideas and artistic networks. In contrast, this exhibition reframes Basquiat’s legacy by emphasizing his deep engagement with ideas around appropriation, identity and reproduction. With more than 50 works, this presentation brings to light his rarely studied engagement with printmaking as both central to his practice and a site of innovation and collaboration. It also highlights his relationship to generations of artists from Leonardo da Vinci to Robert Rauschenberg and his connections with pioneering Black printmakers such as Bob Blackburn, revealing and celebrating a lineage of Black experimentation and intergenerational exchange in reproductive media.

“Doris Derby: A Civil Rights Journey”
March 19-Aug. 1, 2027

A key figure of the Civil Rights Movement during the 1960s, Doris Derby (American, 1939-2022) was a photographer, activist, organizer and educator whose photographs are distinct within the visual record of the movement. Unlike the dramatic images of protests and police brutality that galvanized many Americans in support of racial justice, including Derby, her photographs document the grassroots efforts to improve the lives of Southern Black Americans. At age 23, Derby moved to Mississippi to work within the movement; between 1963 and 1972, she quietly and insightfully photographed cooperatives, crafting and quilting guilds, healthcare programs and adult literacy classes, emphasizing rarely seen aspects of the movement that did not make headlines and giving prominence to the unsung but vital role of women in activism of the era. While many photojournalists documenting the movement were outside observers, often White men from the North, Derby was a true insider: She photographed with deep familiarity the many programs and organizations she founded while working daily within various communities in the South. This exhibition will feature more than 75 of her photographs, as well as archival materials, highlighting her unparalleled archive of the Civil Rights Movement expressing determination, struggle and connection.