Picturing Freedom: Exhibition and Pulitzer Prize-Winning Book Shed Light on Harriet Tubman’s Greatest Feat, Liberating More than 700 in Combahee River Raid
AARON DOUGLAS (American, 1899-1979, “Harriet Tubman,” 1931 (oil on canvas, 54 x 72 inches). | Bennett College, Greensboro, NC. © 2025 Heirs of Aaron Douglas / Licensed by VAGA at Artists Rights Society (ARS), NY On the occasion of Juneteenth, a look at a groundbreaking exhibition exploring what is now believed to be largest...
On View: ‘Jack Whitten: The Messenger’ at Museum of Modern Art in New York is First Full Retrospective of Pioneering Artist
Installation view of “Jack Whitten: The Messenger,” Museum of Modern Art, New York, N.Y. (March 23-Aug. 2, 2025). | Photo: Jonathan Dorado, Courtesy MoMA On View presents images from noteworthy exhibitions KNOWN FOR HIS INVENTIVE METHODS, Jack Whitten (1939-2018) constantly evolved his materials and techniques. Exploring the possibilities of paint, he made casts...
Brittany Webb is Joining Museum of Fine Arts, Houston as Curator of Modern and Contemporary Art: ‘There is A Lot That Attracted Me to the MFAH’
Brittany Webb. | Photo by Marco Hill, Courtesy MFAH THE MUSEUM OF FINE ARTS, HOUSTON (MFAH) announced the appointment of Brittany Webb to the role of curator in the Department of Modern and Contemporary Art. Webb is joining MFAH from the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts (PAFA) in Philadelphia, where she is the...
New York Museums are Showcasing African American Art, Exhibitions Feature Lorna Simpson, Rashid Johnson, Beauford Delaney, Amy Sherald, Black Dandyism & More
TOP NEW YORK MUSEUMS are presenting exhibitions of major African American artists this spring and summer with most on view through fall 2025. Solo exhibitions include the largest-ever surveys of Rashid Johnson at the Guggenheim Museum, Amy Sherald at the Whitney Museum of American Art, and Jack Whitten at the Museum of Modern Art. The...
Culture Type | The Month in Black Art: Here’s What Happened in May 2025
International curator Koyo Kouoh died, longstanding Librarian of Congress Carla Hayden fired, artist and curator Evangeline J. Montgomery died, David C. Driskell Prize went to artist Alison Saar Artist and Curator Evangeline J. Montgomery (1930-2025). | Courtesy the artist, Photo by Erwin Thamm LIVES | May 1: Artist, curator, and arts administrator Evangeline...
Henry Taylor, Tyler Mitchell, and Amy Sherald Among Artists Who Walked Met Gala ‘Blue’ Carpet Based on Cy Gavin Painting
ARTIST HENRY TAYLOR IN LOUIS VUITTON. | For Vogue’s special Met Gala issue, Henry Taylor painted a cover portrait of Met Gala Co-Chair Pharrell Williams, men’s creative director at Louis Vuitton. The exhibition “James Jarvaise & Henry Taylor: Sometimes a Straight Line Has to Be Crooked” opens at Hauser & Wirth in Downtown Los Angeles...
Barnes Foundation Appointed Judia S. Jackson Head of Human Resources and Culture at Philadelphia Museum
Judia S. Jackson. | Courtesy Barnes Foundation IN PHILADELPHIA, PA., the Barnes Foundation named Judia S. Jackson to the role of deputy director for human resources and chief culture officer. Jackson recently served as chief people and culture officer at Philadelphia Orchestra and Ensemble Arts. The Barnes appointment was announced May 28. Jackson officially...
Malcolm X at 100: Transformational Leader and Outspoken Orator Inspired Artworks by Jack Whitten and Barbara Chase-Riboud
Malcolm X reading an article about the Nation of Islam written and photographed by Gordon Parks that was published in the May 31, 1963, edition of Life magazine. The man behind Malcolm holds a newspaper reporting on the shooting of seven unarmed Black men by Los Angeles police. | Photo: Robert Flora/Corbis MALCOLM X...
Alma Thomas Way: Washington D.C., Street Where Famous African American Artist Lived is Now Named in Her Honor
Charles Thomas Lewis, grand nephew of Alma Thomas, with Susan Talley, who established the Friends of Alma Thomas group more than a decade ago. They are holding the commemorative street sign DC Councilmember Christina Henderson presented to Lewis. “I think this is a wonderful recognition for her,” he said. “I am truly thankful for this.”...
On View: ‘Vanessa German: Gumball’ Presented Monumental Heads and Fallen Figures at Kasmin Gallery in New York
Installation view of “vanessa german: GUMBALL—there is absolutely no space between body and soul,” Kasmin, 509 West 27th Street, New York, N.Y. (April 3-May 10, 2025). | Courtesy the artist and Kasmin, New York On View presents images from noteworthy exhibitions THE LATEST EXHIBITION of vanessa german (b. 1976) presented two new mixed-media...
Los Angeles Artist Alison Saar is 2025 Recipient of David C. Driskell Prize, For 20 Years Award Has Recognized ‘Field-Defining’ Contributions to African American Art
Alison Saar at Arion Press, San Francisco, Calif., 2024. | Courtesy of L.A. Louver, Venice, Calif., Photograph by Nicholas Lea Bruno TWENTY YEARS AGO, the High Museum of Art in Atlanta, Ga., established a groundbreaking prize named for David C. Driskell (1931-2020), a pivotal figure in American art and leading authority on African American...
Vogue’s ‘Black Dandy’ Issue is Fashion Forward and Artist Centered, Featuring Photographs by Tyler Mitchell and Cover Painted by Henry Taylor
The making of Vogue’s Met issue is documented in a behind-the-scenes video. The cover shoots are highlighted and scenes from Tyler Mitchell photographing his 28-page dandy-style suiting portfolio are captured, along with commentary from the many participating models, artists, and cultural figures. | Video by Vogue BLACK DANDYISM is an idea and potent style...
New Obama Presidential Center Artist Commissions Include Lindsay Adams Painting Inspired by Langston Hughes Poem
THE AWE-INSPIRING poetry of Langston Hughes informed a floral abstract painting with a rich and varied blue background by Lindsay Adams (b. 1990). “Weary Blues” shares the title of the Harlem poet’s iconic 1925 work. The poem speaks of the transformative power of blues music. Employing his signature simple and accessible language, Hughes recalls hearing...
Turner Prize 2025 Shortlist of Four British Artists Includes Nnena Kalu and Rene Matić
RENE MATIĆ, Installation view of “Untitled (No Place for Violence),” 2024, “AS OPPOSED TO THE TRUTH,” CCA Berlin (2024).| Photo: Diana Pfammatter/CCA Berlin A LARGE-SCALE FLAG by British artist Rene Matić (b. 1997) features the words “No Place” on one side and “For Violence” on the reverse. The flag and its seemingly simplified message...
Diallo Simon-Ponte is Joining Speed Art Museum in Louisville, Kentucky, as Inaugural Sam Gilliam Assistant Curator of Artist Programs
IN LOUISVILLE, KY, the Speed Art Museum is welcoming Diallo Simon-Ponte as the inaugural Sam Gilliam Assistant Curator of Artist Programs. A writer and curator, Simon-Ponte will lead the Speed Museum’s new Sam Gilliam Visiting Artist Program. Bringing artist engagement and exhibition management experience to the role, he officially starts in May. “I am honored...
On View: ‘Alberta Whittle: Towards a Motherful Loving Praxis, We Cast Seeds Into the Darkness’ at Nicola Vassell Gallery in New York
Installation view of “Alberta Whittle: Towards a m̶o̶t̶h̶e̶r̶f̶u̶l̶ loving praxis, we cast seeds into the darkness,” Nicola Vassell Gallery, New York, N.Y. (March 6-April 19, 2025). | © Alberta Whittle. Courtesy the artist and Nicola Vassell Gallery. Photo: Lance Brewer On View presents images from noteworthy exhibitions THE LATEST EXHIBITION OF Alberta Whittle...
Jack Shainman Gallery Now Represents the Estate of Faith Ringgold, ‘Artist Played Significant Role in Shaping Culture of American Art’
IN NEW YORK CITY, Jack Shainman Gallery announced its exclusive representation of the Estate of Faith Ringgold and the Anyone Can Fly Foundation. Faith Ringgold (1930-2024) was a profound and pivotal figure in the New York art world. Her art offered sharp commentary on America’s ills and her activism led to historic change and opportunities...
On View: ‘Robert Carter and Charles White in Dialogue’ Presents Moving Figurative Compositions at ACA Galleries in New York
ROBERT CARTER, “Growth,” circa 1980 (acrylic, pencil, advertisements, and paper mounted on wood panel, 32 1/2 x 68 inches / 82.5 x 172.7 cm). | © Robert Carter, Courtesy ACA Galleries, NY On View presents images from noteworthy exhibitions BRINGING TOGETHER the works of two artists engaged with figure composition, “Robert Carter and...
Culture Type: The Month in Black Art, Here’s What Happened in April 2025
Director of Smithsonian’s African American Museum stepped down, antiquities dealer Leonardo Patterson died, Estate of Faith Ringgold and Brazilian artist Dalton Paula join new galleries **THIS POST WILL BE UPDATED THROUGH THE END OF THE MONTH** AWARDS & HONORS | April 2: Sheela Gowda received the 2025 Sam Gilliam Award. The Dia...
Nowness: Harper’s Bazaar Taps Into the Contemporary Moment With an Array of Cultural Figures, Including Cover Artists Lorna Simpson and Rashid Johnson
Rashid Johnson talks about his Soul Paintings and participation in the Now issue of Harper’s Bazaar. He begins by stating the following: “I’ve always been interested in the idea of now or nowness… the idea of timelessness, I think is also really essential. So when you get to marry the two spaces, when you marry...
