Magnetic Fields Audio Guide
Listen to the Magnetic Fields audio guide to learn more about the exhibition and selected works.
Enrich your experience of Magnetic Fields: Expanding American Abstraction, 1960s to Today by hearing from the artists themselves.
download transcripts of the audio guide

Curator’s Introduction
NMWA associate curator Ginny Treanor introduces the exhibition.
Mildred Thompson, Magnetic Fields, 1991; Oil on canvas

Candida Alvarez
black cherry pit, 2009; Acrylic on canvas
Born 1955 in Brooklyn, New York; lives in Chicago

Candida Alvarez
best friends forever, 2009; Flashe on canvas
Born 1955 in Brooklyn, New York; lives in Chicago

Lilian Thomas Burwell
Winged Autumn, 2007; Oil on canvas over wood and Plexiglas
Born in Washington, D.C.; lives in Highland, Maryland

Nanette Carter
Cantilevered #14, from the series “Cantilevered,” 2014; Oil on Mylar
Born in Columbus, Ohio; lives in New York, New York

Nanette Carter
Illumination #1, from the series “Illumination,” 1985; Oil pastel on red museum board
Born in Columbus, Ohio; lives in New York, New York

Deborah Dancy
Winter Into Spring 4, and Winter into Spring 2, 2015; Charcoal, gesso, and acrylic on paper
Born in Bessemer, Alabama; lives in Storrs, Connecticut

Maren Hassinger
Wrenching News, 2008; Shredded, twisted, and wrapped New York Times newspapers
Born in Los Angeles; lives in New York, New York

Evangeline “EJ” Montgomery
Sunset, 1997, and Sea Grass, 1998; Offset lithographs
Born in New York, New York; lives in Washington, D.C.

Mary Lovelace O’Neal
Racism is Like Rain, Either it’s Raining or it’s Gathering Somewhere, 1993; Acrylic on canvas
Born in Jackson, Mississippi; lives in Oakland, California

Mary Lovelace O’Neal
“Little Brown Girl with your Hair in a Curl”/Daddy #5, 1973, and “...And a Twinkle in Your Eye”/Daddy #6, 1973; Charcoal and pastel on paper
Born in Jackson, Mississippi; lives in Oakland, California

Howardena Pindell
Autobiography: Japan (Shisen-dō, Kyoto), 1982; Mixed media on canvas
Born in Philadelphia; lives in New York, New York

Howardena Pindell
Untitled, 1972–73; Acrylic on canvas
Born in Philadelphia; lives in New York

Shinique Smith
Bale Variant No. 0017, 2009; Clothing, fabric, ink, twine, ribbon, and wood; and Whirlwind Dancer, 2014–17; Collage on canvas over wood panel
Born in Baltimore; lives in New York

Sylvia Snowden
June 12, 1992; Acrylic on canvas
Born in Raleigh, NC; lives in Washington, D.C.