American Masters “Artists Flight” documentaries about groundbreaking visual artists Eva Hesse, Elizabeth Murray, Andrew Wyeth and Jean-Michel Basquiat are streaming now. Meet 12 more innovators in visual art in Art in the Twenty-First Century, premiering Friday, September 21 and 28 at 9 p.m. on PBS (check local listings): Creative Growth Art Center, Nathalie Djurberg & Hans Berg, Olafur Eliasson, David Goldblatt, Katy Grannan, Nicholas Hlobo, Hiwa K, Lynn Hershman Leeson, Zanele Muholi, Susan Philipsz, Robin Rhode, and Stephanie Syjuco.
Season 9 of Art in the Twenty-First Century charts art-making in three urban centers across three continents: Johannesburg (Sept 21 at 9 p.m.), Berlin (Sept 21 at 10 p.m.) and the San Francisco Bay Area (Sept 28 at 9 p.m.). The artists featured examine the complicated histories of colonization, war and migration, offer new perspectives on our interactions with technology and the environment, critique our conceptions of gender, sexuality and race, and ultimately inspire us to see our world in new ways.
From the dramatic fall of apartheid in South Africa, to the post-Cold War cultural and economic rebirth in Berlin and the technological boom in the Bay Area, the 12 artists and one non-profit art center highlighted respond to the forces that have shaped the places where they live and work, while pursuing their personal visions for a better future. As each artist draws inspiration from their surrounding communities, they also travel to museums and public spaces internationally to share their work, reminding us of the increasingly global nature of the world we live in.
Full episodes will be available on pbs.org/art21 and PBS apps following each episode’s broadcast premiere. Learn more at Art21.org.