Modern

The Modern art collection includes paintings, sculptures and drawings representing Cubism, Expressionism, Fauvism, Dada, Surrealism, Bauhaus and Abstract Expressionism.

Building the Collection

Thanks to the passionate support of a group of Kansas Citians who called themselves the Friends of Art, works by Ernst Barlach, Max Beckmann, Joseph Cornell, Juan Gris, Ernst Ludwig Kirchner, Paul Klee, Jacques Lipchitz, Roberto Matta Echaurren, Joan Miró, Ben Nicholson, Emil Nolde, Pablo Picasso, Jackson Pollock, Yves Tanguy and others entered the collection. Additional gifts came from individuals, including 10 outstanding works from playwright and native Kansan, William Inge. Among these were Abstract Expressionist paintings by Willem de Kooning, Philip Guston, Grace Hartigan and Robert Motherwell.

Growing the Collection

Recently, two Foundations have made additional transformative gifts to the modern collection. Through the Hall Family Foundation’s Modern Sculpture Initiative, 86 modern and contemporary sculptures entered the collection. Among them are magnificent modern works by Constantin Brancusi, Alexander Calder, Alberto Giacometti and Henry Moore. The William T. Kemper Foundation—Commerce Bank, Trustee has been similarly generous in support of modern acquisitions, among them iconic works by Marcel Duchamp, Adolph Gottlieb and Man Ray.

Emil Nolde, German (1867-1956). Masks, 1911.
Emil Nolde, German (1867-1956). Masks, 1911.
Oil on canvas, 28 3/4 x 30 1/2 inches. Gift of the Friends of Art, 54-90.
Juan Gris, Spanish (1887-1927). Coffee Grinder and Glass, 1915.
Juan Gris, Spanish (1887-1927). Coffee Grinder and Glass, 1915.
Oil on paperboard, 15 1/8 x 11 1/2 inches. Gift of Earle Grant in memory of Gerald T. Parker, 71-22.
Marcel Duchamp, American (1887-1968). Box in a Valise, 1963.
Marcel Duchamp, American (1887-1968). Box in a Valise, 1963.
Wood, cardboard, paper, and plastic, 16 x 15 x 4 inches. Purchase: acquired through the generosity of the William T. Kemper Foundation—Commerce Bank, Trustee, 2001.27.A-O. This work is copyrighted. Contact Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York.
Willem de Kooning, American (b. The Netherlands, 1904-1997). Woman IV, 1952-1953.
Willem de Kooning, American (b. The Netherlands, 1904-1997). Woman IV, 1952-1953.
Oil, enamel, and charcoal on canvas, 59 x 46 1/4 inches. Gift of William Inge, 56-128. This work is copyrighted. Contact Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York. Gallery L2.
Constantin Brancusi, French (1876-1957). Portrait of Nancy Cunard (also called Sophisticated Young Lady), 1925-1927.
Constantin Brancusi, French (1876-1957). Portrait of Nancy Cunard (also called Sophisticated Young Lady), 1925-1927.
Walnut on marble base, 24 3/4 x 12 1/2 x 4 3/8 inches. Gift of the Hall Family Foundation, acquired from the Patsy and Raymond Nasher Collection, F99-33/3. This work is copyrighted. Contact Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York.
Wassily Kandinsky, Russian (1866-1944). Rose with Gray, 1924.
Wassily Kandinsky, Russian (1866-1944). Rose with Gray, 1924.
Oil on pulpboard, 23 9/16 x 19 1/8 inches. Gift of the Friends of Art, F62-9. This work is copyrighted. Contact Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York.
Alberto Giacometti, Swiss (1901-1966). The Chariot, 1950.
Alberto Giacometti, Swiss (1901-1966). The Chariot, 1950.
Painted bronze, 4 feet 8 1/4 inches x 24 1/4 inches x 27 inches. Gift of the Hall Family Foundation, acquired from the Patsy and Raymond Nasher Collection, F99-33/7. This work is copyrighted. Contact Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York.
William Baziotes, American (1912-1963). Crescent, 1959.
William Baziotes, American (1912-1963). Crescent, 1959.
Oil on canvas, 5 feet 1/4 inches x 6 feet 3/8 inches. Purchase: William Rockhill Nelson Trust through the exchange of a gift of the Friends of Art, 90-10. This work is copyrighted. Consult copyright information for permission to reproduce.
Richard Diebenkorn, American (1922-1993). Interior with a Book, 1959.
Richard Diebenkorn, American (1922-1993). Interior with a Book, 1959.
Oil on canvas, 5 feet 10 inches x 5 feet 4 inches. Gift of the Friends of Art, F63-15. © Richard Diebenkorn Foundation.
Jackson Pollock, American (1912-1956). No. 6, 1952, 1952.
Jackson Pollock, American (1912-1956). No. 6, 1952, 1952.
Oil and enamel on canvas, 4 feet 7 7/8 inches x 47 inches. Gift of the Friends of Art, F68-18. This work is copyrighted. Contact Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York.
Adolph Gottlieb, American (1903-1974). Pink and Indian Red, 1946.
Adolph Gottlieb, American (1903-1974). Pink and Indian Red, 1946.
Oil on canvas, 27 3/4 x 35 7/8 inches. Purchase: acquired through the generosity of the William T. Kemper Foundation—Commerce Bank, Trustee, 2004-038. Art © Adolph and Esther Gottlieb Foundation/Licensed by VAGA, New York, NY.
Alexander Calder, American (1898-1976). Untitled, 1936.
Alexander Calder, American (1898-1976). Untitled, 1936.
Painted metal, wood and wire, 4 feet 1 inches x 36 inches x 16 inches. Gift of the Hall Family Foundation, F99-33-4. This work is copyrighted. Contact Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York.