DALLAS, TX.- The Dallas Museum of Art presents an exhibition exploring the expressive possibilities of contemporary screenprinting through the work of legendary New York City-based workshop Brand X Editions. X Marks the Spot: Contemporary Screenprinting at Brand X Editions features an eclectic array of larger-than-life works created by Brand X’s master screenprinters in collaboration with artists including KAWS, Rashid Johnson, Deborah Kass and more. Showcasing four decades of work created at Brand X—including several new prints produced in the past year—the exhibition sheds light on the creative process of screenprinting and reveals the wide range of technical and aesthetic innovations the studio has pioneered. X Marks the Spot is on view through November 8, 2026.
“Many people are familiar with screenprinting, but few truly understand the creative feats that underlie these works of art. There’s no better way to introduce audiences to this medium and its many possibilities than through the work of Brand X Editions, a printer and publisher that has had an outsized impact on the practice of contemporary screenprinting. The works on view in this exhibition illustrate Brand X’s special alchemy of artistic collaboration and technical mastery,” said exhibition co-curator Dr. Emily Friedman, The Allen and Kelli Questrom Assistant Curator of Prints and Drawings for the Dallas Museum of Art.
Brand X Editions has been a hub of collaboration and invention since its founding by master printer Robert Blanton in 1979. Guided by an experimental spirit and technical know-how, Brand X’s team of printers, chromists and specialists partner with artists to achieve a vast array of creative possibilities through the medium of screenprinting. These collaborations push artists to expand the boundaries of their practices and, in turn, challenge Brand X to reach new levels of technical innovation. X Marks the Spot explores this dynamic process through a presentation of over 70 works created with emerging and established artists, from Pop icons including Robert Indiana, Marisol and Alex Katz to contemporary visionaries such as Glenn Ligon, Adam Pendleton, Tschabalala Self and Daniel Arsham.
Organized thematically, X Marks the Spot explores a range of subject matter and effects that artists have pursued through their work with Brand X, spanning lush landscapes, bold portraits, illusionistic images and more. Throughout the exhibition, proofs, video and interpretive materials demystify the printmaking process, bringing viewers behind the scenes of the creation of these artworks. The exhibition also reveals the creative solutions that Brand X has devised to adapt to aesthetic challenges unique to each artist’s vision, such as combining screenprinting and collage to achieve Mickalene Thomas’ signature style of interlocking surfaces and textures and applying sand to wet ink to create a textured, gritty surface for prints by Donald Sultan as a parallel to the use of industrial materials in his paintings.
The DMA’s presentation of X Marks the Spot features two works created since the exhibition’s debut in Philadelphia last summer, including a new work by Loie Hollowell, one of Brand X’s newest artist collaborators. The exhibition has special resonance at the DMA, which in the 1940s hosted one of the earliest museum exhibitions to recognize screenprinting as an artistic, rather than purely commercial, medium. X Marks the Spot extends this legacy into the 21st century, celebrating the present—and future—of this versatile technique.
“The DMA has a long history of uplifting the ideas, experimentation and craft that shape contemporary art. X Marks the Spot shines a light on a facet of the contemporary art world that has been deeply influential in many artists’ practices, unveiling the surprising techniques and teamwork that bring screenprinted artworks to life,” said Brian Ferriso, The Eugene McDermott Director of the Dallas Museum of Art.
X Marks the Spot is organized by the Philadelphia Museum of Art and curated by Emily Friedman, The Allen and Kelli Questrom Assistant Curator of Prints and Drawings for the Dallas Museum of Art; Louis Marchesano, Marion Boulton “Kippy” Stroud Deputy Director of Curatorial Affairs and Conservation at the PMA; Laurel Garber, Park Family Associate Curator of Prints and Drawings at the PMA; and Em Dombrovskaya, the PMA’s Suzanne Andrée Curatorial Fellow.
X Marks the Spot is accompanied by a richly illustrated catalogue that tells the story of Brand X Editions and the many emerging and blue-chip artists who have worked in its studio. The publication includes an introduction to the history of “artistic” screenprinting in the United States; an interview with Blanton about Brand X from the time of its founding; and a revealing look into the technical magic performed by Brand X printers and chromists, illustrated with spectacular color reproductions of 144 prints. The catalogue is co-published by the Philadelphia Museum of Art and Yale University Press.
