SAN DIEGO, CA.- The Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego presents Ed Ruscha Then & Now: Paintings from the 1960s and 2000s at its La Jolla location from January 30, 2016 through April 24, 2016. An innovator of West-Coast Pop and Conceptual Art, Ed Ruscha’s work defies and exceeds both categories, drawing upon popular media, commercial culture, and the landscape of Los Angeles. This tailored exhibition considers the artist’s use of recurring words, images, and themes across the decades.

Ed Ruscha first gained attention in the 1960s for works that combine text and image with a deadpan take on American vernacular culture. Anchored by MCASD’s 1962 canvas Ace, this exhibition will highlight select works from the 1960s alongside more recent canvases. The exhibition’s title, Then & Now, reworks the name of Ruscha’s recent artist book, which recreates photographs from his pivotal 1966 book, Every Building on The Sunset Strip. This exhibition, like the book, highlights Ruscha’s consistent attention to certain subjects and issues, rendering them in new ways and revealing their changes over time. The presentation builds upon MCASD’s long-standing relationship with Ruscha: the Museum’s collection holds 30 works by the artist, including the outdoor mural Brave Men of La Jolla (1995-1996).

This exhibition will be accompanied by an illustrated publication with an introduction by exhibition curator and Deputy Director, Art and Programs, Kathryn Kanjo. The publication will include a selection of the 2003 essay by the late Richard Marshall, a bold and beloved art historian, who initially conceived the exhibition in collaboration with MCASD. Throughout his career, Marshall worked extensively with Ruscha, authoring two books on the Los Angeles artist.

Ed Ruscha Then & Now: Paintings from the 1960s and 2000sis organized by the Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego.