On view at Hauser & Wirth until 16 August 2026, Destiny Is a Rose marks fifty years since Eileen Harris Norton made her first acquisition – a print purchased in 1976 from Los Angeles artist and African American arts advocate Ruth Waddy. Bringing together more than 80 works from her holdings, the exhibition offers the first comprehensive presentation drawn from the collection, celebrating Harris Norton’s longstanding commitment to artists of colour, women artists and those connected to her native California.
Taking its title from a 1990 painting by Kerry James Marshall, the exhibition features works by Mark Bradford, David Hammons, Glenn Ligon, Amy Sherald, Kara Walker and Carrie Mae Weems, amongst others. Structured in chapters, the presentation traces the evolution of Harris Norton’s collecting from the 1980s onward, beginning with formative acquisitions from Los Angeles-based artists such as Alison Saar and Charles Ray, and expanding in the 1990s and 2000s to include international figures like Mona Hatoum, Isaac Julien and Yinka Shonibare.
A devoted gardener, Harris Norton approaches collecting as an act of cultivation, committed to nurturing artists and ideas. The exhibition spotlights her engagement with practices addressing race, gender and identity, including the persona of Mlle Bourgeoise Noire by Lorraine O’Grady, represented by the artist’s original debutante gown made of 180 white gloves. The final section underscores her enduring commitment to artists of African descent, with works by Frank Bowling, Jack Whitten, Noah Davis and Lynette Yiadom-Boakye, and culminating in a canvas by Alma Thomas.
The exhibition, open 24 February-16 August 2026, is on view at Hauser & Wirth Downtown Los Angeles, 901 East 3rd Street Los Angeles CA 90013.
