Gretchen Andrew's with her work, “Facetune Portraits,” each canvas revealing bold brushstrokes that lay bare beauty-filter edits. Photo: Gretchen Andrew

PARK CITY, Utah — The Whitney Museum of American Art has acquired two paintings from Gretchen Andrew’s “Facetune Portraits” series.

The museum purchased “Facetune Portrait — Universal Beauty, USA” and “Facetune Portrait — Universal Beauty, Puerto Rico.” According to Gretchen Andrew, the works were put forward by the Whitney’s curator of digital art, Christiane Paul, and the acquisition committee “enthusiastically and unanimously voted to acquire the two paintings.” The acquisition, made via Heft Gallery, marks a significant institutional milestone for Gretchen Andrew.

Facetune Portrait — Universal Beauty, USA, an AI-altered pageant image re-painted in oil, its swirling brushstrokes exposing the digital edits hidden beneath the gown’s flawless red sheen, has been acquired by The Whitney Museum of American Art. Photo/Art work: Gretchen Andrew

Gretchen Andrew, who has lived in Park City since May 2020, uses custom robotics to physically paint popular AI “beautifying” filters into oil on canvas, making algorithmic edits visible. “It creates these really messy marks instead of hiding what’s going on,” she said in an interview. “There’s how we actually look, and then there’s how AI is telling us we should look.”

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“A museum collection is forever and this acquisition represents one of the most important museums in the world’s commitment to the future of my work, both in terms of preservation and cultural impact,” she said. “Galleries, markets, and trends shift, but a museum acquisition establishes that ‘Facetune Portraits’ is not just relevant today, it’s a defining exploration of our time within the context of other artists in the museum collection such as Andy Warhol, Georgia O’Keeffe, Jean Michel Basquiat and Jasper Johns.”

The Whitney purchase follows growing institutional recognition. Gretchen Andrew’s work was acquired by 21C Museum after winning the 2024 Untitled Acquisition Prize, and she is a finalist for this year’s Lumen Prize for Digital Art.

Gretchen Andrew often shares previews of new pieces with friends and neighbors in Park City before the paintings travel. “It’s always special to let locals see the work before it flies off around the world,” she said.