Nicholas Party's Head at the Hirshhorn: A Vivid Echo of Modernism
Nicholas Party’s Head (2018–2022) stands like a surreal sentinel at the Hirshhorn Museum, where it forms part of the Revolutions: Art from the Hirshhorn Collection 1860–1960 exhibit. Though created well after the exhibit's chronological endpoint, Head was included as a contemporary “intellectual descendant” of the modernist movement. Bold, stylized, and gleaming with a pop-art polish, the sculpture features a towering red head with piercing green eyes, cobalt lips, and a glossed black coiffure. Set against a deep gray wall on a stark white pedestal, the piece exudes both simplicity and psychological intensity.
The Hirshhorn’s curators assembled Revolutions by combing through the museum's archives to identify artworks that capture the shift from traditional to modern art. While the exhibit is arranged roughly by decade, visitors experience it more like "wiggly streams of paint poured beside and atop each other." Party’s Head appears in this context as a visual jolt—a playful yet probing evolution of portraiture that nods to early 20th-century abstraction while anchoring viewers in contemporary materiality and color theory.
The artist’s signature use of large color blocks, dramatic shading, and cartoonish surrealism harmonizes perfectly with recurring themes of the show: abstract features, saturated hues, and experimental form. Though the exhibit predominantly showcases art from 1860–1960, Head cleverly bridges past and present. It’s weird, it’s wonderful, and it exemplifies the Hirshhorn’s mission to highlight “cream-of-the-crop” work from its collection while keeping the dialogue between generations of artists alive.
Revolutions: Art from the Hirshhorn Collection 1860–1960 runs through April 20, 2025. It’s a must-see for fans of art history, modernism, and contemporary commentary.
Nicholas Party's Head at the Hirshhorn: A Vivid Echo of Modernism
Nicholas Party’s Head (2018–2022) stands like a surreal sentinel at the Hirshhorn Museum, where it forms part of the Revolutions: Art from the Hirshhorn Collection 1860–1960 exhibit. Though created well after the exhibit's chronological endpoint, Head was included as a contemporary “intellectual descendant” of the modernist movement. Bold, stylized, and gleaming with a pop-art polish, the sculpture features a towering red head with piercing green eyes, cobalt lips, and a glossed black coiffure. Set against a deep gray wall on a stark white pedestal, the piece exudes both simplicity and psychological intensity.
The Hirshhorn’s curators assembled Revolutions by combing through the museum's archives to identify artworks that capture the shift from traditional to modern art. While the exhibit is arranged roughly by decade, visitors experience it more like "wiggly streams of paint poured beside and atop each other." Party’s Head appears in this context as a visual jolt—a playful yet probing evolution of portraiture that nods to early 20th-century abstraction while anchoring viewers in contemporary materiality and color theory.
The artist’s signature use of large color blocks, dramatic shading, and cartoonish surrealism harmonizes perfectly with recurring themes of the show: abstract features, saturated hues, and experimental form. Though the exhibit predominantly showcases art from 1860–1960, Head cleverly bridges past and present. It’s weird, it’s wonderful, and it exemplifies the Hirshhorn’s mission to highlight “cream-of-the-crop” work from its collection while keeping the dialogue between generations of artists alive.
Revolutions: Art from the Hirshhorn Collection 1860–1960 runs through April 20, 2025. It’s a must-see for fans of art history, modernism, and contemporary commentary.