Sea Change: Photographs from the Collection

This permanent collection exhibition explores how photography registers change, bearing witness to cultural, political, and environmental shifts across time. Presented as a suite of eight transhistorical thematic and monographic galleries, Sea Change approaches the topic of change from various angles. Placing historical and contemporary work in conversation, the exhibition offers a survey of the history of photography that spotlights recent museum acquisitions and work by underrecognized artists.

Sea Change features works by more than fifty artists, including Takashi Arai, Jonathan Calm, Tina Barney, Guanyu Xu, and Zoe Strauss, as well as solo presentations of work by Ilse Bing and beloved Bay Area photographer Reagan Louie. Cumulatively, the show not only foregrounds how artists have used photography to examine moments of transformation, but also reflects the ongoing evolution of the museum’s collection.

Header: Zoe Strauss, Untitled, from the series Sea Change, 2010; collection SFMOMA, gift of Sandra S. Phillips; © Zoe Strauss; photo: Don Ross