In her large-scale photographs—each measuring six by eight feet—Laura McPhee says "you feel the past and the present in one place." The exhibition's theme is a look at the landscape and culture of the American West with a special focus on the Sawtooth Valley in central Idaho, a desolate part of the United States. Along with capturing the area's beauty and its permanent and migrant residents, McPhee's images raise issues about the impact of humans on the land and the tensions among ranchers, hunters, environmentalists, and recreationists. Her lush images—made with a large-format camera and printed using traditional photographic methods—envelope and engage viewers in their sheer scale and warmth.

McPhee, a graduate of Princeton and Rhode Island School of Design, is a professor at the Massachusetts College of Art and Design. Her works can be found in museums and collections throughout the United States, including The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York; J. Paul Getty Center Museum, Los Angeles; San Francisco Museum of Modern Art; and Museum of Fine Arts, Houston; among others.

Support for this exhibition was provided by Alturas Foundation, a family foundation dedicated to the visual arts and American culture. Laura McPhee created River of No Return in the Sawtooth Valley of Idaho during 2003–2006 as the initial Alturas Foundation artist-in-residence.

Matt Visiting Shepherd’s Camp near Lost Creek, Custer County, Idaho, 2003; chromogenic print, 94 x 72 inches; Collection of Alturas Foundation and courtesy of Carroll and Sons, Boston, ©Laura McPhee

The visual arts and the written word intersect in this exhibition of works of art by Ken Aptekar, Romare Bearden, Christo and Jeanne-Claude, Stuart Davis, Lesley Dill, Janet Fish, Red Grooms, Norberto Rodriguez, and Edward Ruscha.

Ken Aptekar, I'm in Madrid, 1999; oil on wood, sandblasted glass, bolts, four panels, 60 x 60 inches (overall); Collection of the Kemper Museum of Contemporary Art, Bebe and Crosby Kemper Collection, Gift of the William T. Kemper Charitable Trust, UMB Bank, n.a., Trustee, 1999.10a–d

This exhibition explores the theme of adolescence with its myriad dimensions, including the desire for growth and change coupled with a lack of autonomy; a budding understanding of the world's capricious nature coupled with a profound vulnerability. The works in this exhibition, selected from the Kemper Museum's permanent collection, capture this tension and compel the viewer to consider the physical and temporal characteristics of adolescence. Works by Lalla Essaydi, Chuck Forsman, Henriette Wyeth, and Stephen Scott Young are among the artists featured.

This exhibition was curated by Erin McNeil, a graduate student at Savannah College of Art and Design and former curatorial intern at the Kemper Museum.

Chuck Forsman, Point of View, 2007; oil on Masonite, 45 x 41 inches; Collection of the Kemper Museum of Contemporary Art, Bebe and Crosby Kemper Collection, Gift of the R. C. Kemper Charitable Trust and Foundation, 2008.19

The term “icon” originated in relation to painted wooden panels found in Greek Orthodox places of worship. It has since come to suggest any image that is a “stand-in” for the celebrity, cultural importance, place marker, or notoriety of what is pictured—an emblem. Artworks by David Bates, Manolo Valdés, and Andy Warhol, among others are featured in the exhibition, culled from the Kemper Museum’s permanent collection.

Roger Shimomura, Untitled, 1984; acrylic on canvas, 60 1/2 x 72 1/4 inches; Collection of the Kemper Museum of Contemporary Art, Bebe and Crosby Kemper Collection, Museum purchase made possible by a gift fro the Enid and Crosby Kemper and William T. Kemper Acquisition Fund, 2000.13

This exhibition at Kemper at the Crossroads profiles several new works to the Museum's collection along with a series of artist conversations. Be Inspired! brings visitors in touch with art and artists from around the world. The exhibition, featuring works of art by Nicole Awai, Angela Dufresne, Bo Joseph, Matt Rich, Jim Sajovic, and Stacey Steers, is open noon–10:00 p.m. First Fridays (except in January and February).

Nicole Awai, Go Go Gone, 2011; acrylic, polyurethane resin, nail polish, graphite, cotton linters fiber, wire form, wood, construction foam, 72 x 60 x 48 inches; Collection of the Kemper Museum of Contemporary Art, Gift of the Vilcek Foundation, 2012.8.2a–w