
Christina Ramberg (American, 1946–1995) is best known for her stylized paintings of fragmented female bodies. In her work, she develops a visual vocabulary of fetish objects from hands, torsos, shoes, and locks of hair. Over time these images become increasingly abstract, eventually reduced to a set of simple geometries. The first comprehensive retrospective devoted to Ramberg in almost 30 years, the exhibition presents approximately 100 works including paintings, quilts, and archival ephemera.
Christina Ramberg: A Retrospective is organized by the Art Institute of Chicago. The exhibition is curated by Thea Liberty Nichols, associate research curator, and Mark Pascale, Janet and Craig Duchossois Curator, The presentation at the Hammer is organized by Paulina Pobocha, Robert Soros Senior Curator, with Ashton Cooper, curatorial assistant.














Artist Christina Ramberg is best known for her acrylic on Masonite (or board) paintings featuring stylized fragments of the female figure. In Loose Beauty, Ramberg contrasts intricately detailed intimates with the tightly cropped forms of silhouetted anatomy. Throughout her lifetime, the artist’s output was driven by her manipulation of external, patterned surfaces—such as satin and lace—and the internal structures they were draped over, stretched across, or bulging out of.

The Hammer Museum at UCLA is an art museum and cultural center in Westwood, Los Angeles, known for an artist-centred and progressive programme of exhibitions and public events. Founded in 1990 by Dr Armand Hammer to house his collection of Old Master and modern works, the museum now connects these historical holdings with a dynamic contemporary programme and research-driven initiatives. Located on Wilshire Boulevard near the UCLA campus, the Hammer forms part of the university’s School of the Arts and Architecture and serves both local communities and an international art public.

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