Tracing Bruce Nauman’s enigmatic career across MoMA and MoMA PS1.
Bruce Nauman: Disappearing Acts

Art direction, exhibition design

Client: The Museum of Modern Art

2017–2018

Disappearing Acts traces what Nauman has called “withdrawal as an art form”—both literal and figurative incidents of removal, deflection, and concealment. Bodies are fragmented, centers are left empty, voices emanate from hidden speakers, and the artist sculpts himself in absentia, appearing only as negative space. The retrospective charts these forms of omission and loss across media and throughout the decades, following Nauman as he circles back to earlier concerns with new urgency. 

For the exhibition identity, we designed a very restrained system, where white space emphasized architectural elements.

Organized by Kathy Halbreich with Magnus Schaefer and Taylor Walsh; Creative Direction: Rob Giampietro; Art Direction and Design: Damien Saatdjian; Design: Olya Domoradova; Production: Claire Corey, Tom Black; Photographs: Damien Saatdjian, Martin Seck; Typeface: Helvetica Neue.