Martin Puryear

A comprehensive look at the career of an important American artist, highlighting the global histories, traditions and techniques of production that shaped his work

Over the last five decades, Martin Puryear (b. 1941) has pioneered an influential sculptural language that integrates wide-ranging aesthetic traditions and techniques of production with roots around the world. Through his innovative use of form, materials, and process, Puryear’s work exemplifies the expressive potential for abstraction in our time. This book highlights the global histories that have shaped Puryear’s practice, offering a fresh and timely perspective on his art. It emphasizes the unique ways that the artist combines the diverse histories of making that he has encountered throughout his travels, observations, research, and study.

A range of eminent thinkers and makers, including Thelma Golden (b. 1965), Maya Lin (b. 1959), Billie Tsien (b. 1949), and Kerry James Marshall (b. 1955)--some of whom are longtime interlocutors of Puryear--provide a nuanced and multifaceted look at the significance and context of Puryear’s work. These perspectives complement in-depth essays by a new generation of scholars and responses to Puryear’s work by artists at earlier stages in their careers. The book’s dramatic, oversize design and plentiful images allow the reader to clearly see the intricacies of the artist’s celebrated work.

Distributed for the Cleveland Museum of Art

Exhibition Schedule:

Museum of Fine Arts, Boston

(September 27, 2025-February 8, 2026)

Cleveland Museum of Art

(April 12-August 9, 2026)

High Museum of Art

(September 25, 2026-January 17, 2027)

Emily Liebert is the Lauren Rich Fine Curator of Contemporary Art at the Cleveland Museum of Art.