The San Francisco Museum of Modern Art (SFMOMA) announces Ruth Asawa: Retrospective, the first major national and international museum retrospective of the groundbreaking work of Ruth Asawa (1926–2013).
Premiering at SFMOMA from April 5 through September 2, 2025, this first posthumous retrospective will feature the entire spectrum of the artist’s awe-inspiring practice. Sculpture, drawings, prints, paintings, design objects and archival material from U.S.-based public and private collections will offer an in-depth look at her expansive output and its inspirations, exploring the ways her longtime San Francisco home and garden served as the epicenter of her creative universe, and highlighting the ethos of collaboration and inclusivity that informedher numerous public sculpture commissions and unwavering dedication to arts advocacy.
“Ruth Asawa: Retrospective is deeply aligned with SFMOMA’s vision to be both local and global—presenting Bay Area artists with profound significance that also have the potential to be highly impactful and relevant on an international scale,” said Christopher Bedford, Helen and Charles Schwab Director of SFMOMA. “This exhibition provides an opportunity to celebrate the legendary Ruth Asawa, who was both a widely acclaimed artist and a hometown inspiration whose impact can be very much felt today.”
Ruth Asawa: Retrospective will feature more than 300 works spanning six decades of the artist’s career, engaging in the full range of materials and techniques that Asawa employed. Her signature looped-wire sculptures will share gallery space with lesser-known works in other mediums that supply valuable insight into the interconnectedness and relentlessly experimental nature of her artistic vision.
In addition to Asawa’s own work, the exhibition will include a select number of works by peers and mentors with whom Asawa engaged in creative dialogue including Josef Albers, Imogen Cunningham, Buckminster Fuller, Ray Johnson, Hazel Larsen Archer, Merry Renk and Marguerite Wildenhain.