The Albright-Knox Art Gallery in Buffalo, New York has an established track record of presenting thoughtfully curated and thoroughly engaging exhibitions. Highlights include Amedeo Modigliani & the Artists of Montparnasse in 2002 and 2003—at the time, the first American exhibition featuring the intriguing Italian artist in over 40 years—as well as its ongoing series Spotlight on the Collection—Artists In Depth which has showcased such renowned artists as Pablo Picasso, Georges Braque, and Joan Miró since its inception in 2011.

In a new exhibition that began on Friday, March 30, the Albright-Knox turns its attention to homegrown art during a seminal period in the American arts scene. Wish You Were Here: The Buffalo Avant-garde in the 1970s spans multiple artistic mediums, including visual art, music, literature and film, with a keen focus on the artists, organizations, and venues that have made lasting impressions on the local arts scene that are tangibly felt today.

Among the influential artists represented in the exhibition: visual artists Cindy Sherman and Robert Longo, then students at Buffalo State College, helped found what is now Hallwalls Contemporary Arts Center; poet Robert Creeley, among others, led the University at Buffalo’s (UB) English Department, which was highly regarded as “Black Mountain II” (named for the short-lived but legendary liberal arts college and arts community of the same name); UB professor and composer Morton Feldman, along with Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra’s Music Directors Lukas Foss and Michael Tilson Thomas, had a profound effect on the musical landscape of the city, shaping its current profile as a fertile ground for classical music.

Curated by Heather Pesanti, Wish You Were Here: The Buffalo Avant-garde in the 1970s runs through Sunday, July 8. For more information, visit the Albright-Knox Art Gallery web site.