Barbara Takenaga’s ‘Awestruck’
At Kemper Museum of Contemporary Art, 40 paintings invite viewers into an exhibition where scale, pattern, and perception are explored and celebrated.
Through April 11, 2027, the Kemper Museum of Contemporary Art in Kansas City is showcasing Barbara Takenaga: Awestruck, the artist's first comprehensive survey in nearly a decade. The exhibition brings together 40 works spanning Takenaga's career since the early 2000s, showcasing her various approaches to abstraction. Organized by Jessica May, Ph.D., Executive Director, and Tae Edell, Independent Curator, the show delves into Takenaga's intricate compositions through four thematic sections: a focus on process, a masterful play of scale, an embrace of illusion, and reverent references to art history.
These strategies work to challenge viewers' expectations, sparking imagination and curiosity. Takenaga's paintings often appear abstract but contain implied narratives, such as natural phenomena, imagined landscapes, microscopic or cosmic views - from cross sections of minerals to aerial maps of land or Big Bang explosions. The labor-intensive process aims to balance chance elements with structure and order.
Featuring works from institutional and private collections nationwide, the exhibition includes paintings up to her most recent, highlighting her ongoing exploration of abstraction across increasingly expansive canvases.
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