Uman's Radical Color Explored in Major CCS Bard Survey

The Hessel Museum of Art at CCS Bard will host 'Uman: In Between', the most comprehensive survey of Somali-born painter Uman's work to date, from June 27 to November 29, 2026. Curated by Lauren Cornell, the exhibition features over 100 works spanning two decades, including paintings, collages, drawings, and newly commissioned murals. It moves beyond biographical readings to foreground Uman's formal language, where abstraction, figuration, and pattern coexist. Drawing on memories of East Africa, Arabic calligraphy, dreams, and nature, Uman uses found fabrics, unconventional materials, and even her fingers to create richly layered, tactile compositions. The exhibition reveals an artist continually reinventing image-making.