Art of Illusion: Photography and Perceptual Play

Do photographs accurately convey visual truths? Or do they merely present illusions? The artists featured in this exhibition explore these ideas and challenge our understanding of the saying, “seeing is believing.” Using a range of technical and conceptual approaches, and working almost exclusively without darkroom manipulation or digital editing software, their works highlight the complex relationship between reality, visual perception, and camera vision. The majority of included works date from the early 1970s to the present.

Drawn from the museum’s renowned photography collection, Art of Illusion will feature approximately fifty works by twenty-five artists, including many recent acquisitions on view for the first time. Artists include: Thomas Barrow, Zeke Berman, Michael Bishop, Cortis & Sonderegger, Robert Cumming, Thomas Demand, John Divola, Liat Elbling, David Hockney, Graham Howe, Kenneth Josephson, Lilly McElroy, Jerry McMillan, Duane Michels, Arno Minkkinen, Abelardo Morell, Grant Mudford, Vik Muniz, John Pfahl, Marcia Resnick, Hiroshi Sugimoto, Michel Szulc-Krzyzanowski, Lew Thomas, Ruth Thorne-Thomsen, and Rodrigo Valenzuela.

Mon 10am – 5pm
Tue & Wed CLOSED
Thu 11am – 5pm (members: 10am – 5pm)
Fri 11am - 9pm (members: 10am - 9pm)
Sat & Sun 10am – 5pm

The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art
4525 Oak Street

Kansas City, MO