Phillips Contemporary Evening Auction Opened With Works by Joy Labinjo, Lina Iris Viktor, and Toyin Ojih Odutola, Painting by Tunji Adeniyi-Jones Set New Record
PHILLIPS MOST RECENT 20th Century & Contemporary Art Evening Sale was front loaded with works by Black artists—six of the first seven lots. Five of the artists were Black women. An untitled painting by rising artist Joy Labinjo, a charming narrative self-portrait with her mother, was Lot 1, opening the auction. A figurative painting...
Latest News in Black Art: Collective Black Obsidian Sound System (BOSS) Makes Turner Prize Shortlist, New Representation for Artists Lonnie Holley and Nekisha Durrett
Latest News in Black Art features regular updates of news and developments in the world of art and related culture Atlanta-based artist and musician Lonnie Holley is now represented by Blum & Poe. | Photo lonnieholley.com Representation Artist and musician, Lonnie Holley has joined Blum & Poe gallery, which has locations in...
Maryland Park to be Renamed for Artist and Historian David C. Driskell Previously Restricted to ‘Caucasian Inhabitants Only’
Magruder Park sign is removed in anticipation of a new one honoring David C. Driskell. | Photo: City of Hyattsville WILLIAM PINKNEY MAGRUDER PARK in Hyattsville, Md., will be renamed for artist and curator David C. Driskell (1931-2020). The renowned historian of African American art was a longtime resident of Hyattsville. The park was...
Museums From Miami to Milwaukee are Recognizing Artist María Magdalena Campos-Pons and Her Deeply Personal, Poetic Work
NASHVILLE, TENN.-BASED, Cuban-born artist María Magdalena Campos-Pons makes deeply personal and poetic work. A key figure in post-revolutionary Cuban art, she has received international attention over the past three decades. Currently, her unique practice is being celebrated with a prestigious prize from the Pérez Art Museum Miami (PAMM); acquisitions at the Institute of Contemporary...
Latest News in Black Art: Sherrill Roland Repped by Tanya Bonakdar, New Hires at Toledo and Harvard Museums, Vision & Justice at Frieze NY, David Hammons Hudson River Installation Complete & More
A snapshot of the latest news in Black visual art and related culture News In South Africa, a major wild fire claimed invaluable archives at the University of Cape Town Libraries, including first-edition books, manuscripts, photographs, and primary sources documenting African history, and destroyed the institution’s film collection, one of the largest in the...
United Talent Agency Announced its Representation of Titus Kaphar, Painter is Adding Filmmaker Title to Expanding and Impressive Portfolio
TITUS KAPHAR IS GETTING INTO THE FILM BUSINESS. United Talent Agency (UTA) announced its representation of Titus Kaphar today. The agency will work with the artist on a variety of projects across film, television, publishing, podcasts, and other potential platforms. Kaphar is starting a new production company called Revolution Ready that already has films in...
Artist Michelangelo Lovelace Sr., Who Documented the Challenges of Life in Urban Cleveland, Has Died at Age 60
SHINING A LIGHT on his Cleveland community and its myriad social and economic challenges, artist Michelangelo Lovelace Sr. (1960-2021), addressed issues of racial injustice, crime, poverty, and unemployment in his work. Lovelace also documented people coming together—for parties, parades, or political rallies—and infused his pictures with wisdom and positive messages. The work reflected what...
National Gallery of Art Acquires Textile Work By Christopher Myers Memorializing Victims of Police Murder
A GATHERING OF NINE silhouetted figures in a medley of autumn tones against a backdrop of patterned fabrics forms a compelling composition. It’s a striking assembly with a sobering message. “What Does It Mean to Matter (Community Autopsy)” (2019) by Christopher Myers memorializes the lives of Black people killed by police (and in police...
Bisa Butler Quilt Illustrates May/June Cover of Essence Magazine Dedicated to ‘Year That Changed the World’
A ONE-OF-A-KIND QUILT by Bisa Butler graces the cover of the forthcoming Essence magazine. The specially commissioned quilt illustrates the magazine’s May/June 2021 edition. Dedicated to “The Year that Changed the World,” the issue looks back at the past year, which brought political unrest, police brutality, economic inequality, and a global pandemic. Butler is...
Culture Talk: Long-Serving Museum Trustee Denise Gardner on Her Historic Election as Next Board Chair of Art Institute of Chicago
THE ART INSTITUTE OF CHICAGO announced last week that Denise Gardner was elected chairperson of the Art Institute of Chicago Board of Trustees. She will be the first woman and first African American to chair the board, which serves as the governing body of both the School of the Art Institute of Chicago (SAIC)...
Daisy Desrosiers Appointed Director of Gund Gallery at Kenyon College in Ohio
GUND GALLERY at Kenyon College named Daisy Desrosiers director and chief curator. Located in Gambier, Ohio, the gallery serves Kenyon students and the broader public. Desrosiers will develop exhibitions and public programming and manage the institution’s contemporary art collection. Desrosiers is currently director of artist programs at the Lunder Institute for American Art at the...
Trailblazing New York Gallerist Paula Cooper Indicates Succession Plan, Including Two New African American Partners
A PIONEERING PRESENCE in the New York gallery scene, Paula Cooper founded her eponymous gallery in 1968. A half century later she’s formed a partnership “ensuring continuity for years to come.” Cooper named four new partners, led by her son Lucas Cooper. The team also includes Steve Henry, Anthony Allen, and Alexis Johnson. Cooper,...
On View: ‘Phumelele Tshabalala: Becoming Water From the Same Source’ at Pippy Houldsworth Gallery in London
On View presents images from noteworthy exhibitions THE FIRST SOLO EXHIBITION of Phumelele Tshabalala presents new mixed-media works on canvas, board, and paper at Pippy Houldsworth Gallery in London. “Becoming water from the same source” features 13 works by the South African artist. Electric colors cast his fascinating subjects in a theatrical light....
Kerry James Marshall Painted a Portrait of Harvard Scholar Henry Louis Gates Jr.
A NEW PORTRAIT of Henry Louis “Skip” Gates Jr., was painted by Kerry James Marshall, the critically acclaimed Chicago painter. A prolific author and Harvard University professor, Gates is a widely regarded authority on African American history and literature whose influence extends far beyond academia. Most recently, he served as executive producer of the...
Latest News in Black Art: New Weeksville CEO, Cranbrook Academy Investing $30 Million Gift in Student Diversity, Major Acquisitions at PAFA, Morgan Library, and High Museum
The following is a snapshot of the latest news in Black art: Raymond Codrington. | Courtesy Weeksville Heritage Center Appointments Brooklyn’s Weeksville Heritage Center Names New CEO Raymond Codrington is joining Weeksville Heritage Center in Brooklyn as CEO. The news was announced April 6. A cultural anthropologist, Codrington has served as...
Eunice Bélidor Joins Montreal Museum of Fine Arts, Curator of Contemporary Art is First Black Curator in Institution’s History
THE MONTREAL MUSEUM OF FINE ARTS (MMFA) has hired a new curator. Eunice Bélidor is joining the museum as the Gail and Stephen A. Jarislowsky Curator of Quebec and Canadian Contemporary Art (1945 to Today). The news was announced April 7. The appointment is historic. Bélidor is the first Black full-time curator at the...
New Auction Records For Joy Labinjo, Jammie Holmes and Aboudia at Christie’s London, Self Portrait by Amoako Boafo Also Exceeds Expectations
RECENT SALES AT CHRISTIE’S LONDON resulted in new auction records for British-Nigerian artist Joy Labinjo and Dallas, Texas-based Jammie Holmes, two up-and-coming artists garnering increasing attention after receiving institutional recognition. Aboudia, who splits his time between his native Abidjan, Ivory Coast, and Brooklyn, N.Y., also set a new high mark. Labinjo’s “No Wahala” (2019)...
Whitney Museum in New York Promotes Adrienne Edwards From Curator of Performance to Director of Curatorial Affairs
THE WHITNEY MUSEUM OF AMERICAN ART announced the promotion of Adrienne Edwards today, she has been named director of curatorial affairs. For the past three years, Edwards has served as the Engell Speyer Curator and Curator of Performance at the Whitney. In her new role as Engell Speyer Curator and Director of Curatorial Affairs, Edwards...
Rhea L. Combs Named Director of Curatorial Affairs at Smithsonian’s National Portrait Gallery in Washington, D.C.
THE NATIONAL PORTRAIT GALLERY (NPG) in Washington, D.C., announced a new appointment today. Rhea L. Combs is joining the Smithsonian museum as director of curatorial affairs. Leading the curatorial and conservation teams and working closely with the history and audience engagement departments, Combs will oversee NPG’s exhibitions, acquisitions, and collection. She will also be...
On View: ‘Evita Tezeno: Better Days’ at Luis De Jesus Gallery in Los Angeles
On View presents images from noteworthy exhibitions A REAL SENSE OF COMMUNITY and familiarity threads the portraits of Evita Tezeno. A selection of new works by the artist is currently on view at Luis De Jesus Gallery in Los Angeles. Her characters possess overwhelming pride in their surroundings, their loved ones, and...
