NEW EXHIBITIONS

Reveal Sense Of Wonder And Global Reach

The Museum opened its first major exhibition since 2018 with Western Edge: The Roots and Reverberations of Los Angeles Country-Rock, presented by City National Bank, a sweeping and in-depth examination of the deeply collaborative country-rock communities in Southern California in the 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s that grew from modest beginnings to produce enormously popular music that influenced generations. To accompany the exhibition, the Museum published a richly illustrated, multi-author book, which is distributed under a new partnership with the University of Illinois Press.

Exhibitions on contemporary country music artists delved into the careers of Chris Stapleton with Since 1978, presented by Ram Trucks, and the duo Florida Georgia Line with Mix It Up Strong. Since 1978 followed Stapleton from his initial success as a Nashville songwriter to lead vocalist with a top bluegrass band, the SteelDrivers, to his emergence as a widely acclaimed country music star with success across genres. Mix It Up Strong traced Tyler Hubbard and Brian Kelley’s roots in contemporary Christian music and on through the development of their groundbreaking contemporary style drawing on hip-hop, pop, and country to create some of the most popular country songs in recent history.

Other exhibitions that opened in 2022 included the colorful western wear of Los Angeles tailor Nudie Cohn in Nudie’s Rodeo Tailors: Wear It Loud and the work of celebrity photographer Raeanne Rubenstein. The annual exhibition American Currents: State of the Music surveyed the important artists and stories of 2021.