The Brooklyn Museum is presenting "Red Grooms, Mimi Gross, and The Ruckus Construction Co.: Excerpts from 'Ruckus Manhattan'," a focused exhibition drawn from the original 1976 installation "Ruckus Manhattan." The show, on view from June 13, 2025 to June 5, 2026, marks the first time in over 30 years that elements of this sprawling, 6,400-square-foot "sculptural comic book" are being publicly displayed. Created by artists Red Grooms and Mimi Gross with their collaborative team, the original work satirized 1970s New York City through a vibrant mix of painting, sculpture, performance, and puppetry. Key pieces on view include "Dame of the Narrows" (returning for the first time since 1994) and "42nd Street Porno Bookstore," both offering a playful yet critical look at urban life.
This exhibition matters because it resurrects a landmark but rarely seen work of public art that captured the chaotic spirit of New York at a transformative moment in its history. By presenting these excerpts on the city's 400th birthday, the Brooklyn Museum connects a generation of viewers to a seminal piece of 1970s pop-art satire that blends social commentary with exuberant spectacle. The show also highlights the collaborative practice of Grooms, Gross, and their Ruckus Construction Co., underscoring the importance of collective, interdisciplinary art-making in an era often focused on individual authorship.