{"id":5750,"date":"2025-05-09T04:56:09","date_gmt":"2025-05-09T04:56:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/nationalgunowner.org\/index.php\/2025\/05\/09\/the-bunker-artspace-highlights-beth-dewoodys-unique-eye\/"},"modified":"2025-05-09T04:56:17","modified_gmt":"2025-05-09T04:56:17","slug":"the-bunker-artspace-highlights-beth-dewoodys-unique-eye","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/nationalgunowner.org\/index.php\/2025\/05\/09\/the-bunker-artspace-highlights-beth-dewoodys-unique-eye\/","title":{"rendered":"The Bunker Artspace Highlights Beth DeWoody\u2019s Unique Eye"},"content":{"rendered":"
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An installation view of \u201cA Wing and a Prayer\u201d at The Bunker Artspace in West Palm Beach. Photo: Charles Roussel<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Beth Rudin DeWoody<\/a> has, over the years, amassed what is arguably one of the most extensive and eclectic collections of contemporary art, both in scale and scope. Known for her discerning eye and steadfast support of emerging talent, DeWoody has long embraced new aesthetics, experimental media and the evolving ways art mirrors the world around us. Her trove spans contemporary art, iconic design and esoteric curios\u2014much of it made accessible to the public since 2017 through a private exhibition space available by appointment. That year, The Bunker Artspace opened in a renovated 1920s Art Deco building in West Palm Beach that had once served as both a toy factory and a munitions armory. Since then, it has helped transform the city into a cultural destination, particularly with the unveiling of its year-long exhibitions timed to coincide with New Wave Art Wknd<\/a>, just after Art Basel Miami Beach.<\/p>\n

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Observer spoke with DeWoody\u2014an assiduous and visionary collector\u2014about her collecting journey and how her boundless curiosity and unapologetic taste have shaped her holdings into a living, breathing portrait of contemporary creativity across geographies and media.<\/p>\n

DeWoody began collecting as a child, starting with Beatles memorabilia before moving to art. \u201cEven from childhood, collecting was a part of my creative outlet,\u201d she says. Her first serious acquisition came at age 17: a line drawing by artist and civil rights activist Benny Andrews<\/a> titled Genealogy \u2013 (I Am the Darker Brother)<\/i>, 1967, purchased while she was attending a summer drawing program at the New School, where Andrews taught. \u201cThelma Golden<\/a> and Anne Pasternak<\/a> included that work in one of our Bunker exhibitions,\u201d she adds. \u201cI\u2019ve since acquired three more Andrews pieces, including one just recently from Craig Starr Gallery\u2014it was nice to return to that place. Craig Starr always has incredible, historical material.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Beth DeWoody at home. Photo: Nick Mele<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Over time, DeWoody built a reputation for spotting talent early\u2014often acquiring artists at the start of their careers who later rose in both institutional stature and market value. When asked what constitutes the \u201cx factor\u201d she looks for before acquiring work by a new artist, DeWoody explains that her collecting is driven primarily by instinct and personal response. \u201cAn X-factor is not really something I ever think about. I just respond to the artwork, whether that be a painting or sculpture, a work on paper, or a video,\u201d she says. \u201cIn many cases, I\u2019ve never heard of the artist before. My mind is open. If I like it, I\u2019ll buy it.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Rather than treating her holdings as trophies, DeWoody sees her collection as a continuously circulating ecosystem: a lending collection in constant motion, positioned to respond to the different needs and opportunities that arise, rather than being left idle in storage far from the audiences it could engage. At any given time, several hundred works may be out on loan. \u201cMy focus from the beginning, and still to this day, is to get artworks out of storage so that they can be seen,\u201d she explains. \u201cMaynard Monrow<\/a>, one of my curators, likes to say, \u2018Art wilts in the crate and shines on the wall.\u2019 We truly believe that.\u201d<\/p>\n

For over two decades, DeWoody has invited one or more guest curators each year to organize rotating exhibitions, always offering new readings of the collection. \u201cWith these exhibitions, I can showcase a wide range of artists and combine the works of emerging, mid-career, and well-known artists, presenting them in tandem,\u201d she explains. For DeWoody, The Bunker became the natural next step. \u201cI think people love to see personal collections and how the artworks are displayed and relate to one another.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Beth DeWoody introducing guest curators Kyle DeWoody and Zoe Lukov and artists Lita Albuquerque, Brad Kahlhamer and Patrisse Cullors during NWAW. Courtesy New Wave. Photo: Charles Roussel<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Timed with the sixth edition of New Wave Art Wknd, The Bunker Artspace debuted \u201cA Wing and a Prayer\u201d\u2014an exhibition conceived by guest curators Zoe Lukov<\/a> and Kyle Dewoody<\/a>, showcasing more than 140 works drawn from both the BRD Collection and Kyle DeWoody\u2019s personal trove. At the heart of the show are two central questions: how can we maintain hope and faith in turbulent times, and how might art function as a tool for spiritual resistance and resilience? Featuring an expansive mix of established and emerging artists, the exhibition unfolds across The Bunker\u2019s two floors in a fluid sequence of ancestral symbolism, folk traditions and abstract compositions that evoke transcendence, meditation and otherworldly reflection.<\/p>\n

Since The Bunker\u2019s opening in 2017, DeWoody has entrusted resident curators Laura Dvorkin<\/a> and Maynard Monrow to help realize her vision and oversee the evolving collection. \u201cThey have each been working with me and the collection for over fifteen years, and they know it well. We all align with a non-hierarchical way of exhibiting art,\u201d she says, underscoring a curatorial ethos rooted not just in elevating emerging talent but in recognizing overlooked voices and helping expand the canon.<\/p>\n

One of this year\u2019s exhibitions spotlights a room of 1960s paintings, with a deliberate focus on under-recognized artists. \u201cThere is an expectation that artists like Stella, Kelly or Johns will be included in an exhibition like this,\u201d DeWoody says. \u201cWe still appreciate those artists. I own and have shown works by all of them. But in this case, we enjoyed flipping the script. It\u2019s also how we make progress and add to the canon.\u201d Meanwhile, another show currently on view tackles the urgent theme of surveillance, foregrounding works by two pioneering figures in the field, Gretchen Bender<\/a> and Julia Scher<\/a>.<\/p>\n

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With rotating pieces from the Beth Rudin DeWoody Collection, The Bunker showcases a vast range of contemporary art, iconic design and other curiosities. Courtesy New Wave. Photo: Charles Roussel<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

While DeWoody\u2019s extensive\u2014and at times almost omnivorous\u2014collection may defy a single thematic focus, she says she\u2019s often drawn to challenging works that many collectors might avoid, particularly when it comes to displaying them in a domestic setting. Still, there\u2019s plenty of room for humor here. Several pieces are playful, hyper-realistic representations of everyday objects, pushing the boundary between reality and art. \u201cLaura and I still laugh about the time, several years ago, when she almost threw away a Susan Collis<\/a>,\u201d DeWoody recalls. \u201cMy team also once recovered a Jonathan Seliger<\/a> matchbook out of a (very real) trash can.\u201d<\/p>\n

Although the art world has shifted significantly since DeWoody began collecting\u2014becoming larger, more global and increasingly financialized\u2014her commitment to supporting artists at critical early moments in their careers remains unchanged. \u201cThat has always interested me. I\u2019m sometimes later priced out of works by these same artists, but I\u2019m happy for them to find success in their careers. I cherish the works I do have,\u201d she adds. \u201cThese earlier pieces often offer a glimpse into what the work and the artist will become.\u201d<\/p>\n

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