retrospective

retrospective — noun

1. A public exhibition that brings together works an artist created throughout thei

1.nounB2
Definition

A public exhibition that brings together works an artist created throughout their working life, often covering several decades.

Example

The Taipei Fine Arts Museum hosted a retrospective of Kofi's ceramic sculptures last spring.

collocation: host a retrospective of [artist]

Padma visited the photographer's retrospective three times before the show finally closed.

collocation: visit a retrospective

Common collocations
  • host a retrospective
  • retrospective of [artist]
  • retrospective at [venue]
  • catalogue for a retrospective
Synonyms
  • exhibition

    a general showing of works; a retrospective specifically surveys an artist's entire body of work

  • show

    more informal, does not imply the comprehensive, career-spanning scope of a retrospective

Grammar Patterns

retrospective + of + [artist]

retrospective + at + [venue]

retrospective — adjective

Word family

  • retrospect
    nounB2
  • retrospection
    nounC1
  • retrospectively
    adverbB2

Synonym discussion

Sense: adjective/1

These four words all connect to thinking about the past, but they differ in tone. 'Retrospective' is neutral and factual — it describes an objective review of earlier events, common in analysis or commentary. 'Nostalgic' adds a warm, sentimental feeling of longing for a past time the speaker remembers fondly. 'Reflective' suggests quiet personal thought, often with a focus on learning from what happened. 'Backward-looking' carries a mildly negative connotation, implying resistance to progress. A company might publish a 'retrospective annual report' (neutral), feel 'nostalgic about its early office' (emotional), take a 'reflective pause' after a failure (contemplative), but be criticized as 'backward-looking' (negative) for ignoring new market trends.

retrospective ↗nostalgic ↗reflective ↗backward-looking

Common collocations

Phrases

  • in retrospect

Etymology

LatinEnglish

Comes from Latin 'retrospectare', formed from 'retro-' meaning 'back' and 'specere' meaning 'to look'. The noun 'retrospect' entered English around 1600, and the adjective 'retrospective' followed in the 1800s. The legal meaning of 'applying to a past date' developed later in the late 19th century as a specialised extension.