Jason Moran

Sept 20, 2019–Jan 5, 2020

5 men in hats in a circle, facing away from each other and playing 5 different pianos
5 men in hats in a circle, facing away from each other and playing 5 different pianos

Lorna Simpson, still from Chess, 2013. 3-channel HD video, black and white, sound, looped; 10:19 min. Edition of 3, with 1 AP. © Lorna Simpson. Courtesy the artist and Hauser & Wirth

The boundary-bursting artist Jason Moran (b. 1975) grounds his practice in the composition of jazz, bridging the visual and performing arts through spellbinding stagecraft. Heralded as one of the country’s leading jazz innovators, Moran transmutes his personal experience of the world into dynamic musical compositions that challenge the formal conventions of the medium. His experimental approach to art-making embraces the intersection of objects and sound, pushing beyond the traditional in ways that are inherently theatrical. 

This exhibition—the artist’s first solo museum show—presents the range of work Moran has explored, from his own sculptures and drawings to collaborations with visual artists to performances. Among the many artists with whom Moran has collaborated are Joan Jonas, Kara Walker, Lorna Simpson, Glenn Ligon, Stan Douglas, Carrie Mae Weems, Adam Pendleton, Theaster Gates, Julie Mehretu, Ryan Trecartin, and Lizzie Fitch. Originating in Minneapolis at the Walker Art Center in the spring of 2018, the show has traveled to the ICA Boston and the Wexner Center before its final stop at the Whitney. This grand finale in Moran's hometown of New York City will feature many performances by renowned jazz musicians and new live adaptations of works made with his most significant artistic collaborators.

Jason Moran is organized by the Walker Art Center, and curated by Adrienne Edwards with Danielle A. Jackson. The Whitney’s presentation is overseen by Adrienne Edwards, the Engell Speyer Family Curator and Curator of Performance, with Clémence White, senior curatorial assistant.

View performance series.

The exhibition is made possible with the generous support of the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation. Piano by Steinway & Sons.

In New York, the exhibition is sponsored by

Generous support for Jason Moran is provided by Erin and Peter Friedland, The Philip and Janice Levin Foundation, and public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council.

Significant support is provided by Chip and Burwell Schorr, Norman and Melissa Selby, and the Joyce and George Wein Foundation.

Additional support is provided by Lisa and Dick Cashin.

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STAGED: Savoy Ballroom 1

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With a curved wall stretching up to form a low overhang, STAGED: Savoy Ballroom 1 is loosely based on Harlem’s Savoy Ballroom, a block-long venue located on Lenox Avenue between 140th and 141st Streets, where big band jazz and swing ruled from the mid-1920s to the late 1950s. Club-goers there encountered the most prominent bandleaders, Lindy Hoppers, and jazz singers of the day, including Duke Ellington, Ella Fitzgerald, and Chick Webb. The pristine veneer of Moran’s sculpture, lined with Dutch wax print fabric, is seductive but impenetrable. This creates a tension that is further heightened by the repetitive droning sounds and enunciations of the recorded Black work songs—in particular, the sampled field recordings of Louisiana State Penitentiary (Angola) prison workers.

STAGED: Savoy Ballroom 1, 2015

A stage with golden lighting and patterned wallpaper.
A stage with golden lighting and patterned wallpaper.

Jason Moran, STAGED: Savoy Ballroom 1, 2015. Wood, paint, aluminum panels, fabric, carpet, lights, audio equipment, speakers, electrical cables, and sound, 120 × 216 × 120 in. (304.8 × 548.6 × 304.8 cm). © Jason Moran. Courtesy the artist and Luhring Augustine, New York. Photograph by Farzad Owrang

  • The Savoy Ballroom, Lenox Avenue and West 140th Street, Harlem, ca. 1950s.
    The Savoy Ballroom, Lenox Avenue and West 140th Street, Harlem, ca. 1950s.

    The Savoy Ballroom, Lenox Avenue and West 140th Street, Harlem, ca. 1950s. Photographs and Prints Division, Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, The New York Public Library. Photographs by Austin Hansen used by permission of the Estate of Austin Hansen

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Audio guides

Lorna Simpson, still from Chess, 2013. Three-channel video, black-and-white, sound; 10:19 min. (looped) Edition of 3, with 1 AP. Courtesy the artist and Hauser & Wirth. © Lorna Simpson

Find sound descriptions and transcripts of works with sound in this exhibition.

View guide

Explore works from this exhibition
in the Whitney's collection

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In the News

“There’s a sense of movement and evocative purpose to everything [Jason Moran] does.” —Observer

“Jason Moran’s Jazz Journey at the Whitney Upends Space and Time” —The New York Times

On the Hour

A 30-second online art project:
Maya Man, A Realistic Day In My Life Living In New York City

Learn more about this project

Learn more at whitney.org/artport

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