The Hammer Museum in Westwood is celebrating a long-overlooked master of abstraction. Mavis Pusey: Mobile Images, the first major museum survey dedicated to the work and life of Jamaican-born artist Mavis Pusey (1928–2019), opens to the public on October 11, 2026, and runs through February 28, 2027.
The exhibition gathers more than 60 artworks from Pusey’s remarkable fifty-year career: vibrant geometric abstractions, rich paintings, etchings, silkscreens and works on paper that reveal her deep engagement with fashion, printmaking and the pulse of the cities where she lived — New York, London and Paris. Despite an international career, Pusey’s work remained largely unseen by the public, making this survey a joyful rediscovery.
A highlight is her celebrated “Broken Construction” series (1960s–1990s), in which images of destruction and renewal become powerful metaphors for social change. Photographs, personal notes and archival materials accompany the artworks, offering an intimate window into her creative world.
Co-organized by the Institute of Contemporary Art at the University of Pennsylvania and the Studio Museum in Harlem, the Los Angeles presentation is curated by Jessi DiTillio. Best of all: admission to the Hammer Museum is always free, at 10899 Wilshire Blvd in Westwood, open Tuesday through Sunday.
Photo: Hammer Museum
