The KIA is excited to announce six new exhibitions through the end of 2026 celebrating America, Imagination, and Art for Everyone.
2025 West Michigan Area Show.
2026 West Michigan Area Show
May 29, 2026 – September 27, 2026
This crowd-pleasing annual juried exhibition featuring artists of West Michigan was carefully curated from more than 300 submitted entries, ranging from paintings, prints, and photos to mosaics, ceramics, jewelry, sculpture, and mixed-media works.
Sponsored by CWS Financial Advisors, and David Isaacson, in memory of his wife, Helen Sheridan.
Flo Ngala, Hot Girl Summer, 2020, color digital print. Collection of the Kalamazoo Institute of Arts; Elisabeth Claire Lahti Fund, 2020.41.
For the People, By the People: America at 250
June 27, 2026 — October 4, 2026
For the People, By the People: America at 250 looks to the nation’s impending 250th anniversary as an opportunity to reflect on America’s enduring ties to liberty, justice, and identity. Drawing inspiration from the democratic ideals expressed in the U.S. Declaration of Independence and the national anthem, “The Star-Spangled Banner,” this exhibition considers how the promise of freedom has been represented, questioned, and reevaluated across generations.
Sponsored by Efroymson Family Fund, National Endowment for the Humanities, and Talsma Furniture.
Roger Shimomura, American Infamy #6, 2015; acrylic paint on canvas. Courtesy of Greg Kucera Gallery.
Resilience—A Sansei Sense of Legacy
August 8, 2026 — November 1, 2026
Told from the point of view of Sansei (third generation) Japanese Americans, Resilience reflects on the effect of the forced internment of Japanese Americans as it resonated from generation to generation. Each in their own way, the artists in this exhibition express moments of deeply felt pain and reluctant acceptance, emotions which were often withheld by their elders.
Resilience—A Sansei Sense of Legacy is a program of Exhibits USA and National Endowment for the Arts. Presentation in Kalamazoo is sponsored by the Joy Light East Asian Art Acquisition and Exhibition Fund.
Alva Dorn, Me-ow, 1960, gelatin silver print. Collection of the Kalamazoo Institute of Arts; Gift of A. L. Dorn, 1962/3.502.
Among the Beasts: Wild, Tamed & Imagined
October 31, 2026 — January 31, 2027
Explore the many roles animals have played in artistic expression for millennia. Through diverse media, artists depict animals as subjects of labor and companionship, symbols of the natural world, and figures of imagination that blur the boundaries between reality and myth. Organized into three thematic sections—domesticated, wild, and fantastical—Among the Beasts traces how cultural values, environmental perspectives, and storytelling traditions shape these representations.
(L): Alexander McQueen, Rainbow moth print dress La Dame Bleue, Spring/Summer 2008. Photo by Barrett Barrera Projects. Courtesy of Barrett Barrera Projects. (R): Hung Liu, Lady Lotus, 2016, mixed media on panel. Collection of the Kalamazoo Institute of Arts; Joy Light East Asian Art Acquisition and Exhibition Fund, 2017.38
Statement Pieces: Fashioning the Self & Society
November 7, 2026 — February 7, 2027
Bringing together selections from the KIA’s collection spanning nearly 200 years, and contemporary fashion objects from the Barrett Barrera Projects collection, Statement Pieces: Fashioning the Self & Society explores how self-presentation and expression have been presented, shaped, and reimagined. From Alexander McQueen to James Van Der Zee, groupings of representational and abstract artworks, displayed alongside runway fashions, invite viewers to consider the dynamic between one’s exterior appearance and inner life—between what is seen and what is self-defined.
Organized in conjunction with Barrett Barrera Projects.
Photo of the Joy Light Gallery from our current From Cobalt to Indigo exhibition.
Chanoyu: Modern Tea Ceramics from the Horvitz Collection
November 21, 2026 — February 14, 2027
Drawn from the distinguished collection of Jeffrey and Carol Horvitz, Chanoyu (pronounced chan-o-you) presents a focused selection of contemporary and modern Japanese tea bowls and water jars that honor and reinvent the traditions of the tea ceremony. Through subtle variations in form, glaze, and texture, these works reveal the enduring influence of chanoyu while embracing the individuality of postwar ceramics studio practices.
Sponsored by the Joy Light East Asian Art Acquisition and Exhibition Fund. Check back in the coming months for exhibition imagery and full description.
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