Jim Shaw's 'Entertaining Doubts' Opens at MASS MoCA

Amy Krzanik reports from North Adams. Wigs, a lamp in the shape of a nose, glowing sculpture under black lights, Dan Quayle (remember him?), Superman’s head on the body of a chicken — all of these items and more are featured in MASS MoCA’s newest exhibition, Jim Shaw: Entertaining Doubts. On Saturday, March 28, the Museum held an opening reception for the artist, who was celebrating his largest U.S. exhibition to date, one that includes a new work made especially for the show. The large-scale banner work, Not Since Superman Died, features the superhero as a mere mortal, possibly unable to escape calamity. The event doubled as a belated reception for Bibliothecaphilia, which opened at the Museum this past January. Shown above, the show's curator, Denise Markonish, with the artist.

Larry Rosenthal with Lisa Rosenthal and Pamela Rosenthal; Henry and Solé, who is featured in Clayton Cubitt’s Hysterical Literature in the Museum's Bibliothecaphilia exhibit.

Photographer Karl Mattson and artist Marisa LaGuardia; Artist Jena Priebe, whose The Secret Lives of Books is part of the Bibliothecaphilia exhibit, with Winston Rylee and Hannah Pivo, a visual arts intern at the Museum.

Ashley Lyon and Anne Currier; Manuela Mozo, Olaf Breuning and Makiko Aoki.

Lauren Young, an art history graduate student at Williams College, and Allie Foradas, who curated Bibliothecaphilia.

Artist Jason Middlebrook, curator Denise Markonish, artist Mary Lum and the Museum's director, Joseph Thompson.

The artist (far right), with his cousin, Craig Shaw Gardner and his wife Barbara Gardner; Four of the above-mentioned wigs.