By Chris Jennewein
Times of San Diego
LA JOLLA, California — A new exhibition at the Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego honors the late San Diego collector Matthew C. Strauss, who assembled one of the world’s leading private collections of modern art.
“An Artful Life: A Tribute to Matthew C. Strauss” opened to the public on Thursday with 22 works on display in the gallery named for Strauss and his wife Iris.
“This show celebrates the collecting acumen and the philanthropic leadership of a dynamic San Diegan who made his mark on the global art world while supporting his own local community,” said the museum’s Director and CEO Kathryn Kanjo, who personally curated the exhibition.
Works on display stretch from the 1970s to the current decade, including paintings and sculpture by Jennifer Bartlett, Cecily Brown, Damien Hirst, Alex Katz, Beatriz Milhazes, Takashi Murakami, Robert Rauschenberg, Julian Schnabel, and Mickalene Thomas, among other artists.
“My dad always wanted to see works from his collection in the Strauss galleries. It’s a tribute to my dad and a way to honor my parents,” said his son, Steve Strauss, who is currently chair of the museum’s board.
Strauss spoke at an opening reception, recalling that beginning in the mid 1980s, his parents worked as a team, ultimately collecting over 300 works, many of which have been donated to a new museum at UC San Diego.
“Dad’s objective was to collect the best examples of contemporary art from the best artists of our time,” Strauss said.
Kanjo said the works she chose for the exhibition “shine a light on the development of the current moment” in art.
“When they began collecting, Matt and Iris determined that they would focus on the art of their lifetimes. They were not going to look back,” she said.
Also opening this week is “Land and Sea: Selections from the Collection,” which pays tribute to the museum’s coastal site, which is layered with history and known for its fragile beauty.
The museum in La Jolla is open Thursday through Saturday from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. and on Sunday from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.
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Chris Jennewein is publisher and editor of Times of San Diego, with which San Diego Jewish World trades articles under the auspices of the San Diego Online News Association.