"So what's modern art all about?" is a question I am often asked. It's about as easy to answer as "What is the meaning of life?"

For a start, modern art can be categorized as a "historical" art movement, referring to the explosion of new techniques and ideals among artists in the 20th century.

It's interesting, then, that the Mori Art Museum extends the term up to the present with its new exhibition, "Modern Means: Continuity and Change in Art, 1880 to the Present," which opened April 28. It's an incisive look at what modern art is, and an examination of its continuing relevance.