LOS ANGELES, CA.- The Museum of Contemporary Art presents Good on Paper: Works from the Gene J. and Betye M. Burton Acquisitions Endowment from February 24–August 2, 2026 at MOCA Grand Avenue. The exhibition highlights the depth of MOCA’s works on paper collection while honoring the Burton family’s visionary support and enduring impact on the museum’s history. Good on Paper:

Works from the Gene J. and Betye M. Burton Acquisitions Endowment features works from 1956 to the present by Lee Bontecou, John Cage, Cynthia Hawkins, Kahlil Robert Irving, Christine Sun Kim, Barry Le Va, Lee Lozano, Ree Morton, Nancy Rubins, Atsuko Tanaka, Joey Terrill, and Hannah Wilke. The exhibition is organized by Anna Katz, Senior Curator, with Ariana Rizo, Curatorial Assistant, The Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles.

Acquired over more than three decades with the endowment’s funds, the works featured in this exhibition encompass pastels, collages, graphite drawings, prints, and watercolors dating from the 1950s to the present day. While works on paper were once understood primarily as preparations for work in other mediums, such as painting or sculpture, Good on Paper showcases an expansive array of material experiments and conceptual inventions in everything from spontaneous gestural expressions to meticulously rendered illustrations, low-quality photocopies, diagrammatic plans, and forms made with smoke from an open fire.

Good on Paper: Works from the Gene J. and Betye M. Burton Acquisitions Endowment not only provides insight into the centrality of drawing in contemporary art, it also pays tribute to the Burton family, who established the endowment in memory of Gene Burton (1919–89). In 2021, the name of the endowment was changed to include Betye Monell Burton (1923–2025), Gene’s wife and a beloved individual who, from MOCA’s very beginning, contributed extraordinary insight, energy, and support to virtually every aspect of the museum’s life.

The Gene J. and Betye M. Burton Acquisitions Endowment was founded in 1992 and is dedicated exclusively to the acquisition of works on paper for MOCA’s collection. This unique and enduring gift was rooted in the belief that works on paper can and should be seen as independent, ambitious works of art in their own right, and it has been integral to the development of the collection.

“Good on Paper demonstrates the pivotal role drawing plays in shaping contemporary art and honors the extraordinary legacy and generosity of Gene and Betye Burton,” said Ann Goldstein, Interim Maurice Marciano Director of MOCA. “As a longtime Trustee and Life Trustee Betye was a vital force and crucial leader in MOCA’s initial founding and early formation and in the decades that followed; her presence was felt not only in the works she helped bring into the collection, but in the spirit of stewardship and strategic leadership she brought to the institution.”

Anna Katz, Senior Curator, stated: “Over more than three decades, the Gene J. and Betye M. Burton Acquisitions Endowment has made it possible for MOCA to build a collection of works on paper that underscores the expanded field of drawing in the postwar period and the paramount place of works on paper in the contemporary artists’ studio practices. There can be no doubt that Gene and Betye Burton’s exemplary belief in the curatorial enterprise has positively and indelibly shaped the museum’s collection and history.”