Curated by Erin Dziedzic, former Director of Curatorial Affairs at the Kemper Museum of Contemporary Art in Kansas City, Missouri, the exhibition traveled to the Museum of Contemporary Art, Chicago before coming to Charlotte. The Bechtler’s presentation is organized by Bechtler Curator Katia Zavistovski.  This groundbreaking exhibition aligns with the Bechtler’s mission to tell the complex story of global modernism and its legacies while highlighting artists who have been historically underrepresented within the modernist canon. The exhibition marks a significant moment in the recognition of Jaramillo's influential practice and her role in shaping the course of American abstraction. Born in El Paso, Texas in 1939, Jaramillo's artistic journey has taken her from Los Angeles to Paris and New York City, where she became part of the vibrant downtown art scene of the 1960s and '70s. Throughout her career, she has explored earthly and metaphysical realms through abstract paintings and handmade paper works, drawing inspiration from diverse sources including physics, mythology, ancient cultures and modernist design philosophies. "Virginia Jaramillo's work represents a vital yet underrecognized chapter in the story of American modernism," said Bechtler Executive Director Todd D. Smith. "Her groundbreaking practice not only challenges the Eurocentric narrative of abstraction but also demonstrates the profound impact of diverse cultural perspectives on postwar art. This exhibition perfectly aligns with our dedication to presenting dynamic exhibitions that shine new light on global modernism and its continuing influence." “This long-overdue retrospective foregrounds Jaramillo’s significant contributions to postwar abstraction,” said Bechtler Curator Katia Zavistovski. “Highlighting the breadth of her creative process, the works included in the exhibition express Jaramillo’s enduring engagement with both material and the metaphysical.” The exhibition is organized chronologically, presenting six distinct series that showcase the evolution of Jaramillo's practice: The Black Paintings (1963-65): Early works inspired by California desert earth, demonstrating innovative use of material to achieve rich textures The Paris Paintings (1965): Created during her transformative year in Paris, showing the evolution of her color palette and handling of paint The Curvilinear Paintings (late 1960s-early 1970s): Her breakthrough series featuring precisely rendered lines that spring across large, flat, opaque fields of color The Stained Paintings (1970s): Works that comprise aqueous surfaces of thin, multilayered veils of paint  Handmade Paper Works (1979-2000s): Pieces made of pulverized linen fiber and hand-ground pigments that evoke or reference archaeological sites, scientific theories and the cosmos Recent Paintings (2018-2023): Contemporary works that continue the artist’s exploration of geographical, metaphysical, and mythical realms  "Virginia Jaramillo: Principle of Equivalence" is accompanied by a fully-illustrated catalog distributed by Yale University Press. The publication features scholarly essays examining Jaramillo's contributions to American abstraction, her innovative artmaking techniques and her role in expanding the boundaries of modernist practice.