Orlando Museum of Art has acquired two fan-favorite artworks for its permanent collection

Works by David LaChapelle and Florida Prize artist Kandy G Lopez will join the museum’s permanent collection on this month’s Access for All day.

The Orlando Museum of Art (OMA) will debut two notable additions to its permanent collection in time for the museum’s next Access for All day on June 18. Renowned photographer David LaChapelle has gifted the museum his piece entitled Annunciation, Hawaii (2019), and OMA has purchased Kandy G Lopez’s Hispaniola II – Mia (2024). Lopez won the 2025 Florida Prize in Contemporary Art’s People’s Choice vote.

Both works will be unveiled in the Mr. & Mrs. Chesley Magruder II Gallery as part of the museum’s REPRESENT: Contemporary Figuration in the Orlando Museum of Art Collection exhibition.

“By unveiling these incredible works on our monthly free admission Access for All day, OMA is ensuring that everyone in our community has the opportunity to experience and be inspired by important works of contemporary art,” said OMA CEO Cathryn Mattson. “We are deeply grateful to David LaChapelle for his generous gift and proud to add Kandy G Lopez’s award-winning work to our permanent collection. Together, these pieces reflect OMA’s commitment to collecting, presenting and celebrating artists whose work sparks conversation and connection.”

Annunciation (2019) by David LaChapelle

LaChapelle’s As the World Turns exhibition, curated by OMA chief curator Coralie Claeysen-Gleyzon, ran from January to May 2026. This expansive retrospective spanned four decades of LaChapelle’s work, inviting museum-goers to speak a visual language steeped in excess, beauty, desire and spectacle. Though the exhibition has concluded, LaChapelle’s work will live on in OMA’s permanent collection through his gift of Annunciation. 

Annunciation reinterprets the Christian story of the divine message delivered to the Virgin Mary. Set in a small chapel LaChapelle constructed in Hawaii, the image offers a personal sanctuary for meditation and blurs the line between the sacred and the earthly. To signify Mary’s and the Archangel Gabriel’s sanctity, LaChapelle constructed glowing halos out of Christmas lights by photographing them while spinning, using long exposure. The detail lends an otherworldly feeling to the photograph without the need for added digital effects, a hallmark of LaChapelle’s style. The work exudes a divine beauty and simplicity comparable to works from the highest canon of art history.

Hispaniola II – Mia (2024) by Kandy G Lopez

In addition to LaChapelle’s gift, OMA has acquired Hispaniola II – Mia, a large-scale fiber portrait by Ft. Lauderdale-based artist Kandy G Lopez, for its permanent collection. The work was purchased by OMA’s collecting circle the Acquisition Trust, through the Charles E. Meiner Endowment Fund. Lopez exhibited the piece at OMA’s 2025 Florida Prize in Contemporary Art, where she won the People’s Choice public vote by a landslide, earning over one-third of all ballots cast throughout last summer.

Lopez creates full-length portraits of people of color, rendering each subject with a direct, almost confrontational gaze. Hispaniola II – Mia represents those with roots in La Hispaniola, which is present-day Haiti and the Dominican Republic. Lopez crafted the work on hook mesh, which she embroidered with yarn and acrylic paint until the seated figure emerged, dressed in a red, white and blue historical dress. The porous, layered nature of her materials invites viewers to look beyond the surface and recognize that there is far more to each person than a single, fixed narrative.

Discover the latest museum and gallery news from Central Florida, including Orlando Museum Of Art, Orlando Science Center, The Charles Hosmer Morse Museum of American Art, The Mennello Museum of American Art, and more.

The acquisition showcases OMA’s commitment to supporting Florida Prize in Contemporary Art artists, artists of color, and female artists. It also adds to a growing body of work made with non-traditional materials such as fiber. Set to unveil ahead of Juneteenth, the piece will join OMA’s gallery as a celebration of the strength, dignity and determination of people of color who fought for centuries to be seen.

“The members of the Acquisition Trust are thrilled to bring Kandy G Lopez’s Hispaniola II – Mia into OMA’s permanent collection,” said Acquisition Trust president Gayley Lauteria. “This remarkable work resonated deeply with our viewing public during the Florida Prize in Contemporary Art, and its acquisition reflects our commitment to helping OMA acquire significant contemporary works for the community to experience and study.”

For more information about the event and OMA's exhibitions and programs, please visit www.omart.org.

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