Carrie Mae Weems is a socially motivated artist whose works invite contemplation of race, gender, and class. Increasingly, she has broadened her view to include global struggles for equality and justice. Comprehensive in scope, this retrospective primarily features photographs, including the groundbreaking Kitchen Table Series (1990), but also presents written texts, audio recordings, and videos. The exhibition traces the evolution of Weems’s career over the last 30 years, from her early documentary and autobiographical photographic series to the more conceptual and philosophically complex works that have placed her at the forefront of contemporary art. Although Weems employs a variety of means to address an array of issues, all of her work displays an overarching commitment to better understanding the present by closely examining history and identity. It also contains a desire for universality: while African Americans are typically her primary subjects, Weems wants “people of color to stand for the human multitudes” and for her art to resonate with all audiences.

*image (left)
Carrie Mae Weems,
Untitled (Man and Mirror) from Kitchen Table Series, 1990.
Gelatin silver print, 27 ¼ x 27 ¼ in.
Collection of Eric and Liz Lefkofsky, 115-128.2010,
promised gift to The Art Institute of Chicago
© Carrie Mae Weems.
Photography © The Art Institute of Chicago