Dance in California: 150 Years of Innovation September 1, 2011

The exhibition -- comprised of photographs from private as well as the museum's collections -- begins in the mid-nineteenth century when the raucous milieu of a young San Francisco became home to the boisterous theatrical personality of Lola Montez. At the fin de siecle, a fascination with Greek culture captivated the Bay Area and inspired Isadora Duncan to conceive the fledgling ideals of modern dance. Inspired by the utopian California land and seascapes, two Southern California based dancers, Ruth St. Denis and Martha Graham, expanded the nascent discipline of interpretive dance, giving shape and substance to a new American art form.