Curating Modern Life: Frank OHara, the Mid-Century Museum, and the Art of the Cold War

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This is the first book to closely examine the curatorial work that the celebrated poet Frank OHara (1926-1966) undertook for the Museum of Modern Art in New York, from 1950 to his death. It traces OHaras distinguished curatorial career at home and abroad, situating his work for MoMAs International Program, as well as the Jewish Museum in New York, within the Cold War politics of the day. Upon his premature death, the New York Times obituary ran with the headline: Frank OHara, 40, Museum Curator / Exhibitions Aide at Modern Art Dies Also a Poet. However, in the half a century since, his fascinating career as a curator, where he oversaw exhibitions of the likes of Helen Frankenthaler, Jackson Pollock, Mark Tobey and Seymour Lipton, among others, has been eclipsed by the critical attention given over to his poetry. Drawing on a broad range of unpublished archival material, Curating Modern Life reveals the impact OHaras curatorial work had both on the reception of American modern art abroad and on the curatorial profession itself. Through close examination of OHaras curatorial practice and career, the book illuminates the organization and reception of modern art exhibitions during the 1950s/1960s Cold War period more broadly, and also considers the ways in which OHaras style of thinking and writing about art were prescient in terms of the methodologies championed today. Bringing together readings of OHaras poems and letters with a selection of illustrations, Curating Modern Life argues for OHaras sense of exuberant continuity between life as a writer and a curator, an American and a cosmopolitan revealing that he was so much more besides the quintessential New York poet. It is perfect reading for anyone interested in American art in the mid-20th century, curatorial and museum studies, or simply this lesser-known but fascinating aspect of the legendary poets career.

Author Bio

Matthew James Holman is Lecturer in English and Fine Arts at The University of Hertfordshire, UK. He has held research fellowships at The Courtauld, UK, Yale University, USA, the Smithsonian, USA, and the John F. Kennedy Institute for North American Studies in Berlin, Germany.