Modernism Inc.

Modernism Inc. Founded in 1979, Modernism has since presented over 500 exhibitions of modern and contemporary art.

About MODERNISM

Founded in 1979, Modernism has since presented more than 450 exhibitions of modern and contemporary art, in media ranging from painting to photography, sculpture to performance and video art, by an international roster of artists. Throughout its 40 years, owner Martin Muller has striven to keep the gallery's challenging, museum quality program at the forefront of the art world. Ea

rly landmarks included being the first gallery to show Andy Warhol in the Bay Area (1982), and holding the first exhibition on the West Coast (in a gallery or museum) of the Russian Avant-Garde 1910-1930 (1980, 17 more retrospectives have since been mounted). In the 1990s Modernism highlighted its strong abstract program with the exhibition of "Four Abstract Classicists" (1993), a recreation of the show presented by the Los Angeles County Museum of Art in 1959, while at the same time introducing America to the confrontational, and ofttimes disturbing, conceptual works of Austrian born artist Gottfried Helnwein (1992). This year Modernism will celebrate its 40th anniversary, and with it many more firsts of recent years, including the first major exhibition of the works of Le Corbusier on the West Coast(2003), and in 2006, the first major retrospective in the U.S. of the paintings, drawing, collages, and photographs of Erwin Blumenfeld. In addition to the milestones above, Modernism prides itself on the scope of its program:

Historical exhibitions encompass areas including Dada, Cubism, Surrealism, Vorticism, German Expressionism, and foremost, the Russian Avant-Garde 1910-1930. The contemporary program features rotating shows, six to seven weeks in duration, of the nearly 50 gallery artists—including various representational and abstract modes, sociopolitical, and conceptual works—presented at both Modernism and Modernism West, as well as at art fairs in the United States and Europe. Modernism publishes numerous books, monographs, catalogs, and fine art editions. Modernism is a member of the prestigious Art Dealers Association of America and the San Francisco Art Dealer's Association. Staff

Martin Muller, President

Danielle Beaulieu, Director

David Pen*ston, Registrar

Harlee Mollenkopf, Gallery Assistant

Lexi Paulson, Gallery Assistant

Allyson Beaulieu, Gallery Assistant

Thank you to all who joined us for the opening of Ward Schumaker’s retrospective. We were delighted to see so many gathe...
05/29/2026

Thank you to all who joined us for the opening of Ward Schumaker’s retrospective. We were delighted to see so many gathered around work that remains as fresh and compelling as ever.

“Ward SCHUMAKER: Paintings 2007-2026” is on view now through June 27, 2026.

View the exhibition at the link on our bio.

ON VIEW NOW - “Michael BRENNAN: Left of Eden,” at Modernism West / Foreign Cinema through July 25, 2026 “Left of Eden” i...
05/27/2026

ON VIEW NOW - “Michael BRENNAN: Left of Eden,” at Modernism West / Foreign Cinema through July 25, 2026

“Left of Eden” is Brennan’s response to the present moment. He asserts, “I believe that within all of us lies a certain responsibility to stay conscious of the events of our time. These paintings are a reaction to those events; all with a dose of irreverence imbued with humor. The complexities of our collective humanity, thoughts stirred by our current political, cultural or social standing all play a role.”

View the exhibition and read more at the link in our bio.

Artwork: Michael BRENNAN, “Candle in the Wind,” 2025, oil on canvas

Moments from the “Michael BRENNAN: Left of Eden” opening reception.“Left of Eden” is view now through July 25 at Moderni...
05/22/2026

Moments from the “Michael BRENNAN: Left of Eden” opening reception.

“Left of Eden” is view now through July 25 at Modernism West / Foreign Cinema.

In his newest body of work, Michael Brennan continues to mine the vast terrain of art history while folding in the visual language of contemporary culture. His meticulous yet irreverent compositions blur distinctions between high and low, sacred and profane, canonical and comical. The work engages questions of gender, identity, and the shifting definitions of masculinity and femininity—concerns Brennan traces from contemporary culture back to their mythic origins in the Garden of Eden.

View the exhibition and read more at the link in our bio.

OPENING TONIGHT – “Ward SCHUMAKER: Paintings 2007-2026”Join us for the reception for the artist, tonight, Thursday, May ...
05/14/2026

OPENING TONIGHT – “Ward SCHUMAKER: Paintings 2007-2026”

Join us for the reception for the artist, tonight, Thursday, May 14, from 6-8pm at 724 Ellis Street in San Francisco.

The survey brings together important paintings from the past twenty years that demonstrate Schumaker’s sustained commitment to iterative explorations in mark making and the integration of gestural abstraction with language and numbers. The exhibition also includes a selection of original books hand-painted by the artist, providing further insight into Schumaker’s expansive practice.

View the exhibition at the link on our bio.

Within each of his paintings, Piet Mondrian sought to achieve a quality he called “dynamic equilibrium.” Through his arr...
05/14/2026

Within each of his paintings, Piet Mondrian sought to achieve a quality he called “dynamic equilibrium.” Through his arrangement of multiple panels, Heywood takes dynamic equilibrium beyond the confines of the picture plane to include the space occupied by the viewer. Ultimately the dynamic equilibrium is kinesthetic, experienced in the spectator’s own body.

Bookshelf Highlights: Books play an integral part of our daily life and work at Modernism. We are pleased to share with ...
05/14/2026

Bookshelf Highlights: Books play an integral part of our daily life and work at Modernism. We are pleased to share with you some of our treasured volumes.

Today we present “Dlia Golosa” (For the Voice), the landmark 1923 collaboration between Russian poet Vladimir Mayakovsky and Russian avant-garde artist El Lissitzky. Designed as a portable anthology of Mayakovsky’s poems intended for public recitation, the book is celebrated as one of the defining achievements of avant-garde graphic design and Constructivist publishing. Lissitzky conceived the volume as both a literary and visual object, integrating bold geometric typography, dynamic compositions, and an innovative system of thumb-index tabs that allowed readers to quickly locate individual poems. “Dlia Golosa” reflects the spirit of the early Soviet avant-garde and Lissitzky’s belief that design could function as powerful communicative force.

As we reminisce on an exceptional artistic journey with James Hayward [1943-2026] with admiration and love, we share thi...
05/09/2026

As we reminisce on an exceptional artistic journey with James Hayward [1943-2026] with admiration and love, we share this 1995 photograph of him with Martin Muller, found in our archive.

OPENING NEXT WEEK – “Ward SCHUMAKER: Paintings 2007-2026”Join us for the reception for the artist, Wednesday, May 14, fr...
05/07/2026

OPENING NEXT WEEK – “Ward SCHUMAKER: Paintings 2007-2026”

Join us for the reception for the artist, Wednesday, May 14, from 6-8pm at 724 Ellis Street in San Francisco.

Modernism is pleased to present its first exhibition of San Francisco painter Ward Schumaker. The survey brings together important paintings from the past twenty years that demonstrate Schumaker’s sustained commitment to iterative explorations in mark making and the integration of gestural abstraction with language and numbers. The exhibition also includes a selection of original books hand-painted by the artist, providing further insight into Schumaker’s expansive practice.

In 2013, Critic Kenneth Baker, writing in the San Francisco Chronicle about Schumaker’s work observed: “Seldom will you encounter contemporary art in any medium of such relaxed fearless confidence…. Very rarely does a critic encounter new work that immediately rewards a lifetime of learning to look.”
Schumaker indeed achieves this and viewing his work becomes a continuous act of discovery.

Schumaker indeed achieves this and viewing his work becomes a continuous act of discovery.

View the exhibition at the link on our bio.

Artwork: Ward SCHUMAKER, “Russian Consonants” (detail), 2020-2021, acrylic on canvas

A beautiful example of one of many stage designs created by Russian avant-garde artist Alexandra Exter [1882-1949]. This...
05/05/2026

A beautiful example of one of many stage designs created by Russian avant-garde artist Alexandra Exter [1882-1949]. This work portrays her design for the second Act of Shakespear’s “Othello,” directed by Alexander Tairov [1885-1950].

Artwork: Alexandra EXTER [1882-1949], “Othello, Acte second)” from the portfolio “Alexandra Exter: Décors de théâtre,” 1927, published 1930, gouache au pochoir, suite of 15

“Mel Ramos: Iconography of American Beauty” opens this Sunday, May 3 at Palazzo the Bragadin Carabba in Venice.A opening...
05/02/2026

“Mel Ramos: Iconography of American Beauty” opens this Sunday, May 3 at Palazzo the Bragadin Carabba in Venice.
A opening reception will take place from 5-7pm.

Presented by Ronald Harrar, in collaboration with the Estate of Mel Ramos and curated by Elisa Carollo, the retrospective brings together a comprehensive survey spanning nearly six decades of Ramos’s work—from early paintings to his iconic compositions merging classical figuration with the visual language of American advertising and consumer culture. At a moment when image culture defines our global consciousness, this exhibition reexamines Ramos’s legacy and his enduring impact on contemporary art.

Modernism has loaned a number of masterpieces for the exhibition, including “Phantom Lady” (1963), “I Get a Thrill When I See Bill” (1977), “The Transfirguration of Galatea” (2000) and several others. An exhibition catalogue co-produced by Modernism is forthcoming.

Artwork: Mel RAMOS, “Phantom Lady,” 2963, oil on canvas

Address

724 Ellis Street
San Francisco, CA
94109

Opening Hours

Tuesday 10am - 5:30pm
Wednesday 10am - 5:30pm
Thursday 10am - 5:30pm
Friday 10am - 5:30pm
Saturday 10am - 5:30pm

Telephone

+14155410461

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