The New Mexico Museum of Art has announced its upcoming exhibition titled "To Make, Unmake, and Make Again," featuring the work of artist Rick Dillingham. The exhibition will be held at the New Wing of the Plaza building from October 6, 2023, to June 16, 2024. This exhibition will showcase Dillingham's strong connection to the Pueblo potter community, displaying Indigenous works alongside his own pieces inspired by Pueblo techniques.
According to a press release, the exhibition will trace Dillingham's artistic evolution, highlighting his transition from Pueblo-influenced works to more formal creations such as gas cans and spheres. It will mark a mid-career shift for the artist. The New Mexico Museum of Art is collaborating closely with Dillingham's collectors, community members, and institutions across New Mexico and the western United States to make this exhibition a reality.
The exhibition will feature the largest concentration of Dillingham's works from across his artistic career, including several pieces and archival materials that have not been seen in public since his death in 1994. Additionally, it will showcase Dillingham's later works related to AIDS, characterized by black pots with silver leaf elements. His connection to the Southwest ceramics tradition, shaped by his pottery restoration work at the University of New Mexico's Maxwell Museum Anthropology Lab and his own experimentation, is evident in these pieces.
Katie Doyle, assistant curator at the New Mexico Museum of Art, expressed excitement about the exhibition, stating, "We are excited to bring Mr. Dillingham home through this exhibition and to have the opportunity to showcase the relevance of his work in the context of ever-expanding fields of ceramics and Indigenous reclamation." The exhibition promises to be an ambitious undertaking, allowing visitors to explore the breadth and depth of Rick Dillingham's artistic journey.