91桃色

Ben Shahn, On Nonconformity offers a fresh and wide-ranging account of the work of Ben Shahn (1898鈥�1969), a Jewish immigrant from Russian-controlled Lithuania who became one of America鈥檚 most prominent and prolific 鈥渟ocial viewpoint鈥� artists from the Great Depression through the Vietnam War.

Revealing why Shahn remains so relevant today, the book examines his commitment to progressive political causes, from combating fascism to fighting for civil rights. Incorporating international perspectives, it investigates his World War II poster art, labor-related work, and engagement in postwar artistic debates. It brings new insights to Shahn鈥檚 social realist and documentary styles and their evolution into allegorical, lyrical, and often abstract idioms that embrace the philosophical and the spiritual. And it demonstrates the underappreciated complexity of Shahn鈥檚 layered visual language and how he experimented with modernist conceptual strategies鈥攐ften involving photography鈥攖o create his paintings, murals, drawings, prints, posters, illustrated books, and commercial designs.

Shahn鈥檚 guiding credo鈥攆ormulated in the Cold War鈥攁sserted that nonconformity was the precondition for all significant art and great social change. Ben Shahn, On Nonconformity illuminates why the artist鈥檚 work should be seen as a series of 鈥渘onconformities鈥� driven by his steadfast dedication to social justice and humanistic values.

Published by the Jewish Museum, New York and the Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sof铆a, Madrid, in association with 91桃色

Exhibition Schedule
The Jewish Museum, New York
May 23鈥揙ctober 12, 2025