BMA Stories
BMA Stories is much more than what's on view, though we cover that too! BMA Stories explores the questions art raises, the conversations it sparks, and the stories that surround it.
Louis Fratino in Conversation with Virginia Anderson and Katy Rothkopf
The following text is excerpted from two interviews held on August 25 and 26, 2025, between the artist Louis Fratino and BMA curators Katy Rothkopf and Virginia Anderson. The exhibition Fratino and Matisse: To See This Light Again is on view at the BMA through September 6, 2026.
Amy Sherald’s American Sublime
On November 2, 2025, the Baltimore Museum of Art opened Amy Sherald: American Sublime. The acclaimed exhibition is the most comprehensive presentation of Sherald’s work to date, illuminating the arc of her career from 2007 to 2024 through approximately 40 paintings.
A Cautionary Tale, as Told by Emmanuel Massillon
I can recall many instances when museumgoers looked at Emmanuel Massillon’s “Mud Libation” (RIP Fredo Santana) with curiosity, admiration, and awe. This hip-hop-inspired sculpture commands attention: viewers are dwarfed by it. I overheard a visitor ask, “Is it coffee?” referring to the doubled Styrofoam cups perched on the dirt that Massillon had meticulously arranged.
Nylon Nature: Grenfell Rugs and Arctic Production
This hooked mat, featuring a polar bear floating on ice, was made by a woman living in a fishing village on the coast of Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada. Pre-made designs, along with kits of materials, were issued to women living in fishing communities across Newfoundland and Labrador. These women worked in their own homes, carefully hooking strands of silk or rayon through the burlap that served as the base for a rug. In turn, these vibrantly colored rugs were sent out to urban consumers in Canada, Britain, and New England.
What Is Legacy Made Of? Found Objects and Material Culture in the Sculptures of Valerie Maynard
Multidisciplinary artist, archivist, and culture worker MacKenzie River Foy served as Valerie J. Maynard Legacy Intern in 2023–24, in the inaugural cohort of the collaborative internship program created by the Valerie J. Maynard Foundation and the Baltimore Museum of Art.
Black Earth Rising
The splendor of the natural world is explored by some of today’s most celebrated artists of color and Native identity in Black Earth Rising, named by The New York Times and ESSENCE magazine as a must-see exhibition.