I'll quit bitching about it eventually, but I still really miss the Sol LeWitt murals that until a few months ago smacked me in the face (in the best possible way) every time I stepped into the SFMOMA atrium. His rainbow curves and stripes had been added for the LeWitt retrospective the museum hosted back in 2000, and though they were never meant to be permanent (like much of LeWitt's work) they just seemed like such a natural fit with the striated marble of Mario Botta's building design. And they were just so darned cheerful. Nevertheless the decision was made to paint over them, and now in their stead Kerry James Marshall has put up a duo of new works called Visible Means of Support as part of what's meant to be a new ongoing Art in the Atrium series. It's been fun to watch his team of painters balance on scaffolding the last few weeks as they carefully filled in his designs, and now that they're finished the paintings themselves have been growing on me. One features George Washington and the other Thomas Jefferson, presiding over their lush estates, and only when you look closely do the murals reveal a bevy of the slaves that each of those freedom-loving presidents owned. It's a sly commentary on American history and perfect for this historical moment. I also like that you don't have to buy a ticket to the museum to see the murals since the atrium is open to all. I'm not a huge fan of audio tours so when I was there today I passed on the cell phone tour on offer, but Kerry James Marshall himself will be speaking at the museum at the end of April. I've been interested in his work since I first saw it at SFMOMA back in 1999, and he was also featured in the first season of PBS's awesome Art:21 series. The museum's Koret Center is screening the "Identity" episode daily, and all I'm saying is that besides Marshall it also has my faves Bruce Nauman and Louise Bourgeois in it. In other words, check it out.