Strong, Bright, Useful & True: Recent Acquisitions and Contemporary Art from Baltimore

April 15 – Sept. 6, 2025

Featuring contemporary Baltimore artists shaping the national and global arts landscape, the exhibition illustrates the vibrancy of Baltimore’s contemporary art scene and showcases a broad spectrum of media, including painting, sculpture, time-based media, and photography.

Exhibition Catalog

Explore the artists and works featured in the exhibition.

Artist Perspectives

Hopkins alumna Se Jong Cho on the link between art and science

Video

The Baltimore-based artist, who began painting while pursuing a PhD in environmental engineering at Johns Hopkins, reflects on her works Mercury Lounge and Uranus Pool, which juxtapose planets with surreal “livingscapes,” and the value of integrating art and science.

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Brandon Donahue-Shipp on his work and new Frary Gallery exhibition

Video

The Baltimore-based artist talks about the making of Basketball Bloom (Spectrum), which transforms found, discarded, and traded objects into works of art that foster connections among communities.

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Baltimore-based artist Linling Lu on weaving color, culture, and music into her work

Q&A

Lu shares more about her work, Circle Dance, and her unique approach to color field painting.

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Jerrell Gibbs on exploring vulnerability through his work

Video

The Baltimore-based artist shares the inspiration behind his work, Can’t let ’em see me cry, which considers the societal expectations of Black men and boys.

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Erin Fostel on how art broadens our perspective

Video

Fostel reflects on Window Series, her body of charcoal works that explores human perspective through windows, which are at once a reflection of the world outside and a portal into the world within.

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How universities impact a community’s creative ecosystem

Article

Four artists who helped produce Strong, Bright, Useful & True discuss the role of universities in supporting their artistic communities and what it means to be an artist today.

Explore Virtually

Discover expert insights, context, and more curated content on Strong, Bright, Useful & True: Recent Acquisitions and Contemporary Art from Baltimore on Bloomberg Connects, the free arts and culture app.

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In the News

Exhibition in the press

The art world loves Baltimore artists. This free D.C. exhibit shows why.

“Strong, Bright, Useful & True,” on display for free through Sept. 6, is a treasure trove of works created by some of Baltimore’s finest artists, from Joyce J. Scott and Derrick Adams to Soledad Salamé and René Treviño.

Read the Review

The Baltimore Banner

Johns Hopkins exhibit elevates the artists of its city

“Strong, Bright, Useful & True: Recent Acquisitions and Contemporary Art From Baltimore” is on display at Johns Hopkins’s D.C. campus through Sept. 6.

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The Washington Post

Bloomberg Center’s Frary Gallery in DC features work of Baltimore artists

The Irene and Richard Frary Gallery—located in the Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg Center in Washington, DC—is featuring an exhibit that draws heavily on the shining talents of its neighbor to the north. WYPR talks about it with the gallery’s inaugural director, Caitlin Berry, and with Jerrell Gibbs, one of the featured artists.

Listen to the interview

WYPR

“Strong, Bright, Useful & True” Demonstrates the Variety of Baltimore’s Art Scene

Running through Sept. 6 at the Irene and Richard Frary Gallery, the exhibit holds up Baltimore as a fertile creative ground for both established and emerging artists.

Washington City Paper