John Zorn: Hermetic Cartography at The Drawing Center

Hermetic Cartography is a show at The Drawing Center showcasing seven decades of work by John Zorn. Known predominantly for his avant-garde music practice, the exhibition presents Zorn’s lesser-known visual art from across his expansive career. For those familiar with his audio work, the chaotic and expressive musicality is echoed in his striking colors, patterns, and hybridized visual language. Even to the uninitiated, the more recent abstract pieces present graphical landscapes that, through radiating dashed lines or smoky curves, evoke explosive or serene feelings.

The formality of the museum setting, accompanied by three concerts held as part of the show, marks a shift from Zorn’s typical place outside the mainstream. Yet a small room tucked behind a curtain recalls the underground atmosphere of his musical legacy. Devoted to his 1970s Theatre of Musical Optics project, the dark, intimate space gathers an array of manipulated objects used in silent performances. It acts as a core, binding the show’s energies to Zorn’s broader practice.

The overwhelming array of notebooks, scores, drawings, and objects defines a personal visual language of mark-making by an already groundbreaking artist. Stepping into the exhibition feels like stepping into one of Zorn’s scores - jumbled and frenetic, yet somehow intuitive and whole.