This exhibition features a monumental installation by New York-based artist and long-distance runner Malcolm Peacock, who spent his formative years in Baltimore.

Inspired by the giant, ancient redwood trees Peacock encountered while training for marathons in the Pacific Northwest, the 8-foot tall and wide tree-like form is covered with thousands of strands of hand-braided synthetic hair—the creation of which was an act of endurance in itself.

Pinned to the sculpture are pages from The Autobiography of Malcolm X (1965) and A Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass (1845) that have inspired the artist. An atmospheric audio recording evokes the interconnectedness of all forms of life with sounds of the artist breathing while running, as well as conversations with his family, friends, and teammates.

The installation was created as part of the artist’s residency at the Studio Museum in Harlem and debuted as part of Pass Carry Hold: Studio Museum Artists in Residence 2023–24 at MoMA PS1 in New York from September 26, 2024, to February 10, 2025, before traveling to Baltimore where it is on view as the artist’s first solo museum exhibition.

This is the second time Peacock’s work has been shown at the BMA. A watercolor painting created while he was a student at Summit Park Elementary School in Baltimore was presented at the BMA in 2003 as part of Art is for Everyone, the annual Baltimore County Public School student exhibition.

The BMA is open until 9 p.m. Thursdays.