Annual Semans Lecture

The Nasher Museum welcomes Matthew Gale, Curator (Modern Art) and Head of Displays at Tate Modern in London. An art historian, he studied at Edinburgh University and College of Art and has a Ph.D. from the Courtauld Institute. He will deliver the Annual Semans Lecture on Joan Miró. His specialty is classic modernism, and his publications include 'Dada and Surrealism' (1997); 'Francis Bacon: Working on Paper' (1999) and 'Barbara Hepworth: Works in the Tate Gallery Collection and the Barbara Hepworth Museum St Ives' (with Chris Stephens, 1999). As well as heading the team in charge of displaying the collection at Tate Modern, he was the Tate curator on 'Futurism' (2009) and 'Arshile Gorky' (2010). He has organized a number of major exhibitions including 'Giorgio Morandi' (with Donna De Salvo, 2001); 'Constantin Brancusi: The Essence of Things' (with Carmen Gimenez, 2004), 'Beyond Painting: Burri, Fontana, Manzoni' (2005), 'Dalí & Film' (2007), 'Francis Bacon' (at Tate Britain with Chris Stephens 2008), 'Joan Miró: The Ladder of Escape' (with Marko Daniel, 2011). His most recent project was 'Paul Klee: Making Visible' (2013-4) at Tate Modern. The Annual Semans Lecture was established in 1996 in honor of the late Dr. James H. Semans and Mary D.B.T. Semans. Past speakers include scholar Henry Petroski, architect Rafael Viñoly, artists Art Spiegelman and Fred Wilson, curator Massumeh Farhad and museum directors Thelma Golden and Thomas Krens.