James Little’s Black Paintings are a ‘Volley of Minimalist Ideals’ Exposing the Drama, Richness, and Contrasting Values of Black
WORKS BY TWO SINGULAR ARTISTS have been brought together for a tightly curated gallery exhibition titled “Louise Nevelson + James Little.” It’s an all black show. The practice of James Little is devoted to painting. He is known for his abstract works, geometric explorations driven by form and a spectrum of bright, exuberant color....
Stuart Clarke Rises to Board Chair at Maryland Institute College of Art in Baltimore
THE MARYLAND INSTITUTE COLLEGE OF ART (MICA) announced new board leadership. Stuart Clarke has served on MICA’s board of trustees since 2015, most recently as vice chair. On Oct. 16, he was unanimously elected chair and immediately assumed leadership of the Baltimore institution‘s governing body. “Our times and MICA’s specific context and opportunities call for...
Jammie Holmes Pours His Emotions Into His Paintings: ‘When People Look at My Work I Want Them to Feel Something’
“Four Brown Chairs” (2020) by Jammie Holmes FOUR YEARS AGO, Jammie Holmes started painting. He was working in a machine shop in Dallas, Texas, and thought the creative outlet would help calm his high blood pressure and anxiety. Between the unprecedented circumstances of the pandemic and quarantine and the urgency of the racial justice...
Andrea Pippins Illustrated a New Kwanzaa Stamp, Offering a Contemporary Take on Traditional African American Holiday
WITH THE HOLIDAY SEASON fast approaching, the U.S. Postal Service issued a new Kwanzaa stamp featuring artwork by Andrea Pippins. The Forever stamp was dedicated on Oct. 13. Pippins offers a contemporary take on the traditional African American holiday established in 1966 by Maulana Karenga, a professor of Africana studies. Working with a largely...
Vote 2020: With Election Season Underway, 30 Artists Present Thought-Provoking Art Reflecting on State of American Democracy
THIS CAMPAIGN SEASON is like none other. In anticipation of the 2020 Presidential election, Rice University is presenting an intergenerational group exhibition focused on the state of democracy and some of the most urgent and divisive issues in American politics, namely voter access, police brutality, gun control, and immigration. “States of Mind: Art and...
Viewing Rooms: 10 Frieze London Exhibitors Presenting Solo Shows by Black Artists
WORKS BY BLACK ARTISTS are showcased in many of the gallery presentations at the London edition of the Frieze art fair this year. Several galleries mounted solo shows focused on artists such as Theaster Gates, Faith Ringgold, Lauren Halsey, Nathaniel Mary Quinn, and Ben Enwonwu (1917-1994). Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, artworks were presented...
Viewing Room: Salon 94 is Showcasing Artworks by Derrick Adams, Lyle Ashton Harris, Richard Wyatt Jr., and Robert Pruitt
Installation view of works by Richard Wyatt Jr., and Lyle Ashton Harris NEW YORK-BASED SALON 94 gallery is showcasing works by seven artists, including Derrick Adams, Lyle Ashton Harris, Robert Pruitt, and Richard Wyatt Jr. The works are presented in the gallery’s Frieze Viewing Room. Frieze London 2020 was a hybrid event with limited...
On View: ADA / Contemporary Art Gallery in Accra, Ghana, Opens with Solo Exhibition of Collins Obijiaku
“Papa and Joshua” (2020) by Collins Obijiaku On View presents images from noteworthy exhibitions A NEW COMMERCIAL GALLERY is opening in Accra, Ghana, on Oct. 15. Established by art advisor Adora Mba, ADA / Contemporary Art Gallery‘s inaugural exhibition features 17 portraits by emerging Nigerian artist Collins Obijiaku (born 1995). “Gindin Mangoro: Under...
Sculptor Simone Leigh is Representing the United States at 2022 Venice Biennale
THE UNITED STATES will be represented by Simone Leigh at the 59th Venice Biennale. It’s a historic choice. Leigh is the first Black female artist ever selected to stage a solo exhibition in the American Pavilion at the prestigious international exhibition and she is the third African American artist in row chosen for the...
Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago Promotes Gwendolyn Perry Davis to Senior Director of Operations
THE MUSEUM OF CONTEMPORARY ART CHICAGO named a new senior director of operations. Gwendolyn Perry Davis has been elevated to the position, a critical leadership role overseeing both strategic and creative aspects of the museum’s operations. Perry Davis’s new responsibilities include the collections and exhibitions department and the human resources, information technology, facilities, and security...
On View: ‘To Be Determined’ at Dallas Museum of Art in Texas
“Untitled (America)” (2018) by Glenn Ligon On View presents images from noteworthy exhibitions THE STATE OF THE NATION is influx. The pandemic. Isolation. Police killings. Racial justice protests. Election 2020. “To Be Determined” is a response to the moment. The collection exhibition draws on the expansive holdings of the Dallas Museum of Art,...
Lines: Shantell Martin’s First Monograph Documents Her Prolific Drawing Practice
ARMED WITH A BLACK PEN and a penchant for line drawing and storytelling, Shantell Martin has carved out a significant artistic space for herself. Her visual musings are driven by her personal language of key words and faces, intuitive energy, and a sense of true freedom and joy gleaned from sharing her ideas. “Who...
Trenton Doyle Hancock: What If Torpedo Boy, My Black Superhero, Met Up With Philip Guston’s Klan Character?
Installation view of “Trenton Doyle Hancock: Something American” at James Cohan Gallery NEW PAINTINGS by Trenton Doyle Hancock collapse two worlds, bringing together Torpedo Boy, the artist’s Black superhero character and alter ego, and one of the cartoonish, hooded Klansmen figures from the work of Philip Guston (1913-1980). The images reflect the personal...
Curatorial Vision of Black Women is Shaping Frieze and 1-54 African Contemporary Art Fairs in London This Week
Eva Langret, Artistic Director of Frieze London IN LONDON THIS WEEK, the vision of Black women is shaping the 1-54 London and Frieze London art fairs. Both are underway with hybrid online and in-person formats this season. Eva Langret is the new artistic director of Frieze London. She tapped Zoé Whitley to curate a...
Longtime Spelman Curator Andrea Barnwell Brownlee Named Director and CEO of Cummer Museum of Art in Jacksonville, Fla.
THE CUMMER MUSEUM OF ART & GARDENS announced the appointment of a new leader yesterday. Andrea Barnwell Brownlee is joining the Jacksonville, Fla., museum as George W. and Kathleen I. Gibbs Director and CEO. For two decades, Brownlee has been serving as director of the Spelman College Museum of Fine Art in Atlanta. She officially...
Contemporary Curated: Works by Kerry James Marshall and Barkley L. Hendricks Top Sotheby’s Sale, New Auction Records for Titus Kaphar, Romare Bearden, Simone Leigh
WORKS BY AN ECLECTIC MIX of artists were offered at Sotheby’s Contemporary Curated auction on Oct. 2 in New York. Important figures from the second half of the 20th century were featured alongside today’s most critically recognized contemporary artists. Five African American artists were ranked among the 10 top-10 highest-priced works by Kerry James...
Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York Appoints Heidi Holder Chair of Education
EFFECTIVE THIS MONTH, the Metropolitan Museum of Art has a new head of education. The New York City museum named Heidi Holder the Frederick P. and Sandra P. Rose Chair of Education. She previously served as director of education at the Queens Museum. News of Holder’s hiring was announced Sept. 18, alongside the appointment of...
New Now: Amoako Boafo and Titus Kaphar Top Phillips Emerging Artist Auction, Firelei Báez and Marcus Jahmal Among Record Setters
Lot 39: AMOAKO BOAFO Amoako Boafo, “Lighter,” 2018 (oil and collage on paper, 59 x 55 inches / 149.9 x 139.7 cm). Estimate $40,000-$60,000. Sold for $325,000 fees included. TOP LOT PHILLIPS AUCTION HOUSE held its New Now auction on Sept. 30 in New York and “Lighter” by Amoako Boafo was the top...
A Dilemma of Inheritance: Adebunmi Gbadebo Employs Abstraction and Non-Traditional Materials to Mine Memories and Histories of Enslavement
THERE’S A FAMILY GATHERING of sorts underway at Claire Oliver Gallery in New York. “Adebunmi Gbadebo: A Dilemma of Inheritance” features more than 45 works that consider the legacies of two South Carolina plantations, sites where Black people were once enslaved, production of rice and indigo thrived, and Adebunmi Gbadebo traces her own family...
The Struggle Continues: Kwame Brathwaite’s Iconic Images Reflect His Political Vision and ‘Black is Beautiful’ Directive
A DEEP LOVE OF BLACK PEOPLE and Black culture rings throughout the practice of Kwame Braithwaite, a self-described artist-activist who has said “Black is Beautiful was my directive.” His photography is on view at Philip Martin Gallery in Los Angeles. “Kwame Brathwaite: The Struggle Continues, Victory is Certain” showcases his iconic portraits, street shots,...
