This exhibition explores the role of photography and media (television, video, and digital technology) in transforming sports from a casual leisure activity into a spectacle of mass participation.

Media imagery has moved sports into the public sphere. Since the 1960s, the marriage of major college and professional sports (especially basketball, baseball, football, and soccer) with television and expanding media platforms has radically altered the nature of sports, athletes’ cultural standing and fans’ participation. Charismatic professional athletes such as Joe DiMaggio, Joe Namath, and Muhammad Ali became international pop icons, and television audiences watching sports expanded into the millions.

The creation of compelling, artistic images by photographers and filmmakers was key to this transformation. Looking closely at the formal construction of images and their art historical lineage, the exhibition will examine how certain photographs and media works have a cultural and political impact that transcend the specifics of a sporting event.

“The Sports Show” features photographs from the MIA’s collection and other cultural institutions together with mass media photographs, television clips, movies, installations, and videos. These are powerful artistic images and objects in their own right; at the same time, they communicate a broader social, political and cultural significance through the mass spectacle that we know as sports.

Tickets for “The Sports Show” are $8 (free for members). Reserve your tickets in advance at artsmia.org, at the door, or by calling (612) 870-3000, or toll-free (888) 642-2787. Tickets may sell out a peak times and on weekends.

This exhibition is organized by the Minneapolis Institute of Art.
Generous support is provided by Dorsey & Whitney LLP.
Support of educational programs & outreach activities provided by the Pohlad Family Foundation.
Media Partner: Star Tribune.