NEWPORT BEACH, CA.- The Orange County Museum of Art unveiled a new installation of artworks from its permanent collection on October 7, 2017. The installation showcases approximately 100 artworks of varying genres and media created over the past 60 years. The selection includes important works by internationally renowned artists Josef Albers, Chris Burden, Bruce Conner, Richard Diebenkorn, Mary Heilmann, John McCracken, Catherine Opie, Ed Ruscha, Betye Saar, and Mary Weatherford, among many others. The presentation—on view through December 31, 2017—is accompanied by engaging public programs that include opportunities to hear represented artists and independent film screenings that address the art world today, as well as OCMA’s docent-guided exhibition tours on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday.

The Orange County Museum of Art has championed innovative artists through exhibitions that were both ambitious and bold undertakings. Throughout its history, the museum has showcased emerging talent with first solo museum exhibitions for Vija Celmins (1980) and Chris Burden (1984); early exhibitions for artists that included Richard Diebenkorn (1965), Lari Pittman (1983), Charles Ray (1990), and Bill Viola (1997); as well as launcing the California Biennial in 1984 as a means to present exciting new artists working in California. Additionally, OCMA leadership has given wider recognition to mid- and late- career artists who have not received the awareness their practices warrant—such as major exhibitions for Mary Heilmann (2008) and Jack Goldstein (2012)—both projects travelling to institutions throughout the United States. These exhibitions and many more were accompanied with OCMA publshed, scholarly publications.. This foresight, risk-taking, and support for artists continues today and is the defining element of what OCMA is and what it offers.

From the 1960s through the early years of the current decade, the museum focused its exhibitions and collections on modern and contemporary art in California. With the launch of OCMA’s Pacific Initiative in 2013, the museum expanded its commitment to the whole of the Pacific basin with many exhibitions and public programs presented to provide visibility of the freshest voices from the Pacific Rim. Specifically, the California Biennial program (launched in was transitioned into the California-Pacific Triennial (2013) and the new Pacific Project gallery was dedicated to contemporary video from the greater region. These projects have contributed to international acquisitions in the museum’s collecting goals, some of which are represented in the exhibition.

With the limited space of the current museum’s galleries, the public has been unable to enjoy the museum’s collection on a permanent basis. Pivotal: Highlights from the Collection offers audiences a long overdue opportunity to revisit favorites from the collection as well as new works that have not been on public view until now. The selection also provides an opportunity for visitors to consider the history of the museum through its collection, while offering a glimpse in how the collection has evolved and how the museum has played a formative role in the careers of many of the artists whose work is included.