The Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth will open to the public on July 1. It’s the fourth museum in Forth Worth’s Cultural District to reopen since mid-March, due to coronavirus health concerns.

Two exhibitions have been extended – Red Grooms’ Ruckus Rodeo and Mark Bradford: End Papers. The museum has implemented safety guidelines. It suspended in-person education programs and docent-led tours until further notice. Self-guided group tours will be limited. Visitors are required to wear masks or cloth face coverings.

Red Groom’s “Ruckus Rodeo.” Photo Courtesy: Longmont Museum

Janelle Montgomery, a curatorial assistant at The Modern, said the museum wants to extend the prior exhibits because opportunities to view these significant artworks were cut short. 

In 1976, The Modern presented the exhibition The Great American Rodeo, where Red Grooms and 10 other artists contributed to the rodeo-themed exhibition. Grooms spent a year observing Fort Worth’s rodeo and others for his work. The finished work consists of massive, three-dimensional figures that stand 14-feet-tall in The Modern.

Curatorial Assistant Janelle Montgomery leads a tour through Red Grooms’ “Ruckus Rodeo.”

“It’s like walking through, maybe not with the smell,” Montgomery said laughing. “It’s like walking through an active moment in the rodeo.”

Ruckus Rodeo has been on view in The Modern since January, the first time in 15 years. It was initially set to end on March 29, 15 days before The Modern closed its doors. The exhibit is now extended until August 16.

What else to expect?

Mark Bradford’s “Juice,” 2003. Photo Courtesy: Mark Bradford

To make up for lost time, the Mark Bradford: End Papers show will be extended until January 10. Bradford’s early work incorporated end papers, strips of paper found on the floor of his mother’s hair salon in South Los Angeles. The end papers are used to protect the hair from overheating when using curlers to create perms.

Bradford’s show was open for five days before the museum closed. The exhibition includes about 35 major End Paper works from past private and public collections.

Marina Adams’ “Cheops,” 2018. Photo Courtesy: Salon 94, New York

Got a tip? Email Mia Estrada at mestrada@kera.org. You can follow her on Twitter @miaaestrada.

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