Often controversial, never boring, Frank Gaard is known for his cartoonish depictions of everyday life. This exhibition pulls out never-before-seen sketches and prints, alongside works from Mia’s collection. Absorbing elements of pop culture, drugs, religion, psychiatry, art history, and everything in-between, “Under the Influence” peels back the layers of Gaard’s early contributions to American art.

Born in 1944 in Chicago, Gaard earned a B.F.A. in 1967 from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, and an M.F.A. from the California College of Arts and Crafts in 1967. Gaard has received grants from the Pollock-Krasner Foundation, the Bush Foundation, and the McKnight Foundation. Exhibited internationally, his work is in the permanent collections of Mia, the Walker Art Center, the Art Institute of Chicago, and the Museum of Modern Art, New York, among others.