For Mark Bradford, William Cordova and Robin Rhode, the streets of Los Angeles, Lima, Miami, New York, Cape Town, Johannesburg and Berlin act as sources of inspiration. They share a common interest in found materials and artistic gestures such as sneakers thrown over a telephone wire, stripping cars, spontaneous shrines and piles of discarded objects that help build a gritty foundation for their art.

Mark Bradford is best known for large-scale abstract collages made largely from accumulated signs taken from the streets of South Central Los Angeles that he tears, bleaches, sands and embellishes. His work responds to abandoned buildings and vacant lots and the adaptive nature of informal businesses and entrepreneurial cultures that rise to fill the void. Bradford was the 2006 recipient of the Bucksbaum Award, given every two years to a single outstanding artist in the Whitney Biennial exhibition.

William Cordova works largely with found paper and everyday objects to create drawings and mixed-media installations. The accumulation of materials and iconography such as discarded books, stereo speakers, automobile tires and record albums are recurring images that allude both to his Peruvian heritage and modern urban subcultures. William Cordova had his first gallery solo show with Arndt & Partner in Berlin in 2006.

Robin Rhode's performances involve the buildup and erasure of drawings on the walls of galleries and public spaces that playfully transform his renderings into illusory three-dimensional objects. He takes inspiration from graffiti, film, sports and hip-hop, as well as his personal experiences in the rough neighborhoods of Johannesburg, South Africa. Rhode documents and exhibits his performances through digital photography and computer animation. In December, Robin Rhode won the 2006 W South Beach Artist Commission at Art Basel Miami Beach's "Art Positions" exhibition.

Exhibition organized by the Nasher Museum of Art at Duke University, Durham, NC. Curated by Trevor Schoonmaker.