Pictures of the human physique at Phoenix Art Museum

The Phoenix Art Museum (PhxArt) presents “Muscle Memory: Lens on the Body,” an exploration of the methods wherein photographers throughout historical past have represented and reckoned with the human physique and its related dimensionality, evolution, and politicization. Drawn primarily from the gathering of the Center for Creative Photography (CCP) on the University of Arizona in Tucson, together with choose works from the PhxArt Collection and people by Arizona-based modern artists, the exhibition showcases greater than 80 wide-ranging works that take care of the physique’s type, physicality, and limits.

“Muscle Memory: Lens on the Body” might be on view at PhxArt from January 24, 2026, by June 28, 2026.

“From sports imagery and self-portraiture to abstract compositions, this exhibition considers all aspects of the body in every stage of evolution,” Jeremy Mikolajczak, the Sybil Harrington Director and CEO of Phoenix Art Museum, stated. “We are excited to once again work with the Center for Creative Photography to present a captivating collection of photographic works, shown in conversation with new acquisitions to the Phoenix Art Museum Collection by contemporary voices.”

Spanning works captured from the nineteenth century by the current, “Muscle Memory” affords a compelling have a look at the dynamism of the human physique. The exhibition’s works are introduced throughout 4 thematic sections that supply various views on embodiment and the way our our bodies without delay empower and restrict us.

Surface Tension considers pores and skin as a floor and what’s doable to learn about an individual by them, together with how a topic’s outward look can exist in pressure with their interiority. Works on this part by artists equivalent to Diane Arbus and John Gutmann highlight people who’ve modified their outward look with tattoos, make-up, and different markings, exploring the human impulse to make use of the physique as a canvas for private expression.

Kinetic Beauty options the physique in movement, with a selected concentrate on sports activities imagery. It explores how our bodies work together and take form in athletic settings, notably people who require excessive ranges of bodily efficiency, endurance, and even contortion. Works on this part embody pictures of bodybuilders by Robert Mapplethorpe and Brian Weil and {a photograph} by Walter Iooss that includes Michael Jordan and Charles Barkley, in addition to summary research of bodily movement related to bodily coaching, energy, and aspiration.

Know Thyself highlights the work of photographers who’ve used the medium of images, typically within the type of serial self-portraiture, to grapple with problems with growing older, magnificence requirements, and self-image. Featured artists on this part embody John Coplans, Lauren Greenfield, Anne Noggle, and Rosalind Fox Solomon.

Enduring presents works by Nan Goldin, Ittetsu Morishita, Marcus Chormicle, and others depicting the physique as witness and at its bodily limits, whether or not attributable to bodily exertion, sickness, harm, and even demise and absence, prompting viewers to think about the ideas of endurance and survival.

“Works by living Arizona-based artists Claire A. Warden, Mehrdad Mirzaie, Marcus Chormicle, and Anh-Thuy Nguyen infuse the presentation with contemporary perspectives on the body’s legibility, how it holds memory, and how it becomes a site of negotiation between selves and others, both extending and departing from the concerns of the historical works in the exhibition,” Emilia Mickevicius, the Norton Family Assistant Curator of Photography at Phoenix Art Museum and the Center for Creative Photography, stated.

“Muscle Memory: Lens on the Body” is co-organized by Phoenix Art Museum and the Center for Creative Photography. The exhibition is curated by Emilia Mickevicius, PhD, the Norton Family Assistant Curator of Photography.

About Phoenix Art Museum

Since 1959, Phoenix Art Museum (PhxArt) has engaged thousands and thousands of tourists with the artwork of our area and world. Located in Phoenix’s Central Corridor, PhxArt creates areas of trade and belonging for all audiences by dynamic exhibitions, collections, and experiences with artwork.

Each 12 months, 300,000 company on common interact with critically acclaimed nationwide and worldwide exhibitions and the Museum’s assortment of greater than 21,000 works of American and Western American, Asian, European, Latin American, trendy, and modern artwork and trend design, together with vibrant images exhibitions made doable by the Museum’s landmark partnership with the Center for Creative Photography on the University of Arizona in Tucson.

 PhxArt additionally presents stay performances, excellent examples of world cinema, arts-education applications and workshops, a month-to-month live-music sequence, and extra for the neighborhood.

To study extra about Phoenix Art Museum, go to www.phxart.org, or name 602.257.1880.

About the Center for Creative Photography (CCP)

Celebrating 50 years in 2025, the Center for Creative Photography is the biggest establishment in North America dedicated to the analysis and exhibition of images. At the center of CCP’s holdings are greater than 300 archives of photographers, students, galleries, and organizations, complemented by an unparalleled assortment of some 120,000 tremendous prints.

In addition, CCP focuses on preserving and stewarding its holdings by a sturdy conservation program and digital imaging unit. The Center owns and manages copyrights for a choice of archive artists and helps licensing and picture file supply to publishers, authors, educators, and filmmakers worldwide.

As unit of Arizona Arts on the University of Arizona, the Center maintains a sturdy calendar of free exhibitions and applications for the general public, serves college students and school by curricular engagements, and awards a number of worldwide analysis fellowships yearly.