The Broad Is Buying

Ed Ruscha, Honey… I Twisted Through…, 1984. The Broad, accessioned Jan. 2023

2023 has been a banner year for acquisitions at the Broad. Since January the institution has bought major works by Ed Ruscha, Henry Taylor, Elliott Hundley, Kehinde Wiley, Patrick Martinez, and Njideka Akunyili Crosby. Many new purchases are included in the permanent collection show "Desire, Knowledge, and Hope (with Smog)," and others have been installed in the top floor galleries.

Henry Taylor, untitled, 2020. Accessioned Jan. 2023

Elliott Hundley, Changeling, 2020. Accessioned Mar. 2023

Kehinde Wiley, Portrait of Malak Lunsford II, 2023. Accessioned May 2023

Njideka Akunyili Crosby, "The Beautyful Ones" Series #11, 2023. Accessioned July 2023

In 2011 Eli Broad said he planned a $200 million endowment for his Grand Avenue museum. That was expected to generate $12 million a year in income, which was said to be enough to cover operating expenses. It would not cover the sort of big-ticket art Broad was buying (such as a $19 million Warhol). 

The Broad vowed to continue collecting after its founder's 2021 death. There has been no announcement of how much income they can devote to that goal, nor of their acquisition priorities. I have previously remarked several notable post-Eli purchases of African American artists—David Hammons, Mikalene Thomas, and Hank Willis Thomas.

Sayre Gomez, The Whole Wide World is a Haunted House, 2022. Acrylic on canvas. Accessioned Mar. 2022

The pace of buying seems to have picked up. In 2022 the institution added two works by Sayre Gomez, mid-career painter of dystopian city views, plus pieces by longtime Broad favorites Takashi Murakami and Barbara Kruger.

Takashi Murakami, CLONE X × TAKASHI MURAKAMI #17495 Astronaut, 2022. Acrylic on canvas. Accessioned July 2022

Barbara Kruger, Untitled (I shop therefore I am), 1987-2019. Single-channel video. Accessioned Aug. 2022

Joe Ray, Daisy Lee, 2023. Accessioned June 2023

This calendar year's acquisitions would be notable at almost any museum. The Broad managed to add a Ruscha and a Taylor despite the presumed price inflation of blockbuster New York/L.A. retrospectives. Wiley and Crosby have been museum favorites too. In Eli's time, he was often criticized for following the market buzz. Some of the new additions show receptivity to artists who haven't always gotten their due from museums or the market. One is Joe Ray, whose painting Daisy Lee is featured opposite the Ruscha at the entrance to "Desire, Knowledge, and Hope (with Smog)." In the Venn diagram of L.A. art, Ray is in the intersection of Light and Space and Studio Z, the pioneering African American collective. The Broad painting is one of a group of cosmic abstractions honoring women important in the artist's life. 

Patrick Martinez, Weeping Warrior,  2022. Accessioned May 2023

The Broad has generally collected in depth. This year they've bought five works by Patrick Martinez, including the large mixed-media piece Weeping Warrior. 

It seems that the Broad is placing greater emphasis on L.A. artists; continues to build holdings by artists of color; and is more open to under-recognized artists. It also appears that, for this year at least, they're deploying more spending power than they've done since Eli's death. 

Amani Lewis, When All Is Lost, Who Do You Run To?, 2022. Accessioned Jan. 2023

Patrick Martinez, They Tried to Bury Us… (Dinos Christianopoulos), 2022. Accessioned Feb. 2023