
The first institutional survey of the late Noah Davis (1983–2015) charts the breadth and depth of the American artist’s relentless output. Assembling over 50 works made between 2007 and 2015, the exhibition is organized in a manner that reflects the diverse interests informing Davis’s practice including current affairs, everyday life, family histories, ancient Egyptian cosmologies, the racism of American media, art history, and architecture. Inspired by vernacular sources—from flea market photographs to personal archives—Davis’s fluid painting style questioned complex histories of representation and image-making. Although the body of paintings he produced over a brief creative life was largely figurative, Davis employed unorthodox techniques and rich color palettes to create scenes that feel simultaneously realistic and dreamlike, joyful and melancholic, capturing the contradictory sensations of lived experience.
The exhibition is organized by the Barbican, London and initiated with DAS MINSK, Potsdam. The exhibition is curated by Eleanor Nairne, The Keith L. and Katherine Sachs Curator for Modern and Contemporary Art and Head of Department at the Philadelphia Museum of Art and former Barbican senior curator, and Wells Fray-Smith, curator, Barbican. The presentation at the Hammer is organized by Aram Moshayedi, independent curator and former Robert Soros Senior Curator, with Ikechúkwú Onyewuenyi, former curatorial associate, and Nyah Ginwright, curatorial assistant.
Lead support for the Hammer’s presentation of Noah Davis is provided by Andy Song. Generous support is provided by Susan Bay Nimoy and Leonard Nimoy. Additional support is provided by the Eileen Harris Norton Foundation, The Neidich Family, Steve Zimmerman and Lianne Barnes, and Laura Maslon.
Noah Davis’ poignant figurative paintings can be roughly categorised into two sets: depictions of ordinary African American lives and surreal scenarios that skilfully incorporate modes of abstraction with a touch of melancholy. He is also known as a curator.


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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