Betye Saar, known for her assemblages confronting histories of racism, has announced a new initiative to safeguard her legacy. The 99-year-old artist, in partnership with her longtime gallery Roberts Projects, has launched the Betye Saar Legacy Group, which will serve as a scholarly committee dedicated to stewarding her contributions to contemporary art history.
Saar is closely associated with the Black Arts Movement of the 1970s, and her work frequently challenges racial and gender stereotypes. She began creating assemblages after seeing a 1967 exhibition of Joseph Cornell’s work at the Pasadena Art Museum. For just under six decades, she has created these dense sculptural works built from found objects, family heirlooms, and cultural artifacts, among other materials.
The Betye Saar Legacy Group comprises nine international curators, each with longstanding connections to Saar’s work. Members include Esther Adler and incoming Christophe Cherix of the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA); Carol S. Eliel of LACMA; Carlo Barbatti of Fondazione Prada in Milan; Diana Seave Greenwald of Boston’s Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum; Elvira Dyangani Ose of the Museu d’Art Contemporani de Barcelona; Stephanie Seidel of ICA Miami; and independent curators Zoé Whitley and Mark Godfrey. Cherix is slated to become MoMA’s director in September 2025.
“Over the years, I have worked with all of the members, and they each have gathered a unique bit of know-how, a particular insight, about my creative process,” said Sarr in a statement. “I look forward to future projects with this special group of individuals that I consider not just colleagues but also my friends.”
The group will work closely with the artist, her studio, and Roberts Projects to provide insight into her assemblage practice and long career. It will support curatorial scholarship and oversee efforts to interpret and expand access to Saar’s archive. The group will also work closely with Saar’s daughter—Tracye, Alison, and Lezley—to compile photographs, various documents, and personal journals. Roberts Projects is also leading the creation of a catalogue raisonné of Saar’s work, a project that began in 2016. DelMonico Books will publish a biography on Saar, authored by Whitley, in 2027.
Digitization of Saar’s archive began after the 2016 exhibition “Betye Saar: Uneasy Dancer” at Fondazione Prada, which laid the foundation for the curatorial committee’s formation. The archive has also supported major exhibitions, including “Soul of a Nation” at Tate Modern in 2017; “Betye Saar: Call and Response” at LACMA in 2019; “The Legends of Black Girl’s Window” at MoMA in 2019; Serious Moonlight at ICA Miami in 2021; and “Heart of a Wanderer” at the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum in 2023.
Saar—a medalist of the 2025 Art Basel awards—will be debuting new work in Miami this year as part of the fair.. Julie Roberts, co-founder of Roberts Projects, told ArtNews: “She just wants to spend her time making art, gardening, and being with her family.”
