‘Soul of a Nation’ Opens in New York Where Many of the Exhibition Artists Were Active During the Civil Rights, Black Power Eras
“Pittsburgh Memory” (1964) by Romare Bearden HOW SHOULD AFRICAN AMERICAN ARTISTS respond to the Civil Rights Movement? The question was central to the organization of Spiral, the New York artist collective formed in 1963 in advance of the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom. The 15-member group including Romare Bearden, Norman Lewis, Reginald...
Pyer Moss Staged a Powerful, Art-Inspired Runway Show at Historic Black Heritage Site
WITH LIGHT RAIN FALLING, four dozen black models walked the grounds of Weeksville Heritage Center in Brooklyn on Saturday night. A 40-person gospel choir wearing flowing white robes and Reebok tennis shoes sang live during the 23-minute runway show. Outfitted in fabrics with painterly images of African Americans, the models paraded by with purpose...
Deana Lawson Photographed Rihanna For New Issue of Garage Magazine and Told Arthur Jafa Her Origin Story
FANS OF RIHANNA will be thrilled to see her on another magazine cover. This latest one is photographed by Deana Lawson, a black female artist with a distinct approach to capturing her subjects, usually ordinary people in their everyday surroundings. Admirers of Lawson will be doubly appreciative. Garage Issue 15 is manna for Lawson...
Latest News in African American Art: Howard University Loaning Two Charles White Works to MoMA, Aretha Franklin Honored on NYC Subway Signs & More
Jacob Lawrence-inspired shirts by Wales Bonner currently for sale at various retailers. The London-based menswear label was founded by Grace Wales Bonner. The following review of the past week or so presents a snapshot of the latest news in African American art and related culture: NEWS This blurb originally referenced and linked to...
Early Rashid Johnson Photograph Covers Swann’s Fall African American Art Catalog
“Jonathan with Hands” (1997) by Rashid Johnson A DRAMATICALLY LIT, close-cropped portrait by Rashid Johnson covers the catalog for the African-American Fine Art sale at Swann Auction Galleries on Oct. 4. Johnson’s subject obscures his face with his hands, which are the focus of the image. The gesture is emotional and his fingers—their knuckles...
Major Retrospectives of Adrian Piper, Charles White, and Howardena Pindell are Traveling to New Venues This Fall
“Everything #2.8” (2003) by Adrian Piper THE PRESENTATION of Adrian Piper’s retrospective at the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) was historic. “Adrian Piper: A Synthesis of Intuitions, 1965–2016” was the museum’s largest-ever exhibition devoted to a living artist. At once sprawling and intentionally organized, the show featured more than 290 works. A conceptual pioneer, Piper...
Latest News in African American Art: Okwui Enwezor Speaks Out, Artist Lauren Halsey Wins $100,000 Mohn Award & More
The former director of Haus der Kunst and artistic director of the 2015 Venice Biennale, Okwui Ewezor gave an extensive interview to Spiegel about his tenure at the Munich museum. He also spoke recently to the Art Newspaper. | Photo by Joerg Koch for Getty Images The following review of the past week or...
She’s a ‘Brick House’: Simone Leigh’s Monumental Vision of a Black Woman is Inaugural Commission for High Line Plinth
In Progress: Simone Leigh assesses her towering “Brick House” sculpture. A STUNNING CLAY SCULPTURE by Simone Leigh rises 16-feet high in a Philadelphia foundry. Leigh’s monumental vision of a black woman is titled “Brick House” after the 1977 song by the Commodores. Blending architectural forms from West Africa and the American South with the...
For Made in L.A. Biennial, Artist EJ Hill is Taking a Stand in the Name of ‘Excellence, Resilience, and Victory’
EJ Hill at the Hammer Museum in Los Angeles WHAT DID YOU DO THIS SUMMER? E.J. Hill spent his entire summer standing on a platform at the Hammer Museum in Los Angeles. The museum’s Made in L.A. biennial opened on June 3 and every since, six days a week for three months, Hill has...
Keishia Gu Named Head of Education at Getty Museum in Los Angeles
AFTER LIVING IN LOS ANGELES for 15 years, Keishia Gu said she is “delighted” to join the J. Paul Getty Museum as head of education. The museum announced her appointment today. Gu will lead programs for both educators and students at the Getty Trust and the Getty Villa. She begins her new position in...
Culture Talk: Curator Jonathan Walz on the Rich History Found in the Archives and Collections Dedicated to Artist Alma Thomas
Portrait of Alma Thomas painted by Laura Wheeler Waring (1947). | Smithsonian American Art Museum RESEARCH IS ONGOING for a forthcoming exhibition dedicated to the life and work of Alma Thomas (1891-1978), the accomplished and technically rigorous abstract painter who was the first African American woman to have a solo exhibition at the Whitney...
The New York Times Has Been Asking African American Art Collectors to ‘Show Us Your Wall’
From left, Collectors Merele Williams-Adkins and Patrick McCoy. PEOPLE ACCUMULATE ART in a variety of ways. The stories behind the art in their homes is often as fascinating as the works themselves. In 2016, the New York Times started asking art collectors to “Show Us Your Wall.” Readers get to see their art, how...
Carrie Mae Weems Photographed Spike Lee for Time Magazine
Spike Lee photographed by Carrie Mae Weems SPIKE LEE was on Martha’s Vineyard in July. He was there to film scenes for season two of his Netflix series “She’s Gotta Have It,” hang out with a reporter writing about him for Time magazine, and have a portrait made by artist Carrie Mae Weems. Lee...
Curator Larry Ossei-Mensah Talks About Joining the Museum of Contemporary Art Detroit and the Next Stage of His Career
Co-curated by Susan Cross and Larry Ossei-Mensah, “Allison Janae Hamilton: Pitch” is on view at Mass MOCA through February 2019. FROM NEW YORK CITY to Rome, Italy, curator Larry Ossei-Mensah has been working with some of the freshest names in contemporary art—Derrick Adams, Firelei Báez, and Abigail DeVille, among them. At Elizabeth Dee gallery...
Latest News in African American Art: SFMOMA Honoring Kara Walker, Titus Kaphar Nabs Rappaport Prize, Studio Museum Hires Legacy Russell, Akili Tommasino Joining MFA Boston
Cleveland Museum of Art The following review of the past week or so presents a snapshot of the latest news in African American art and related culture: NEWS The Cleveland Museum of Art announced its first Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion plan on Aug. 12. The result of a year-and-a-half collaboration among the institutions’s...
Inspired by Charles White, Kadir Nelson Delivers Last-Minute Aretha Franklin Cover for The New Yorker
A FEW HOURS after Aretha Franklin died yesterday morning, Kadir Nelson delivered an illustration of the Queen of Soul that will grace the cover of The New Yorker magazine’s Aug. 27 issue. The emotional illustration depicts Franklin in profile. Wearing a choir robe, her head is thrown back as she belts out a song....
Phenomenal Woman: Remembering Aretha Franklin, the Indisputable Queen of Soul
Aretha Franklin (1969) recording at Atlantic Records in New York. SHE WAS A NATIONAL TREASURE. A beacon for the world. The Queen of Soul. Aretha Louise Franklin (1942-2018), whose powerful voice provided a soundtrack for change in America, died yesterday at her home in Detroit. She was 76. The cause was advanced pancreatic cancer....
Los Angeles-based Conceptual Artist Charles Gaines Has Joined Hauser & Wirth Gallery
HAUSER & WIRTH has added pioneering conceptual artist Charles Gaines to its roster. With locations in New York, Los Angeles, Hong Kong, London, Zurich, Somerset, England,and Gstaad, Switzerland, the gallery will represent Gaines worldwide. The Los Angeles-based artist was previously represented by Susanne Vielmetter Los Angeles Projects and Paula Cooper Gallery. Gaines will continue...
Black Curators Have Been Making Significant Strides, Art Museums are Finally Getting on Board to Aid Their Progress
Legacy Russell, Larry Ossei-Mensah, and Naomi Beckwith, took on new curatorial roles this week. THE FOURTH ITERATION of Made in L.A. is currently on view at the Hammer Museum. The biennial features 33 emerging and under-recognized artists, some of the most interesting and thought-provoking figures working in the Los Angeles area. Spanning nearly four...
Barry Jenkins Shared Trailer for ‘If Beale Street Could Talk’ on Baldwin’s Birthday
TO CELEBRATE JAMES BALDWIN’S BIRTHDAY, Barry Jenkins shared the trailer for “If Beale Street Could Talk” on Twitter. He wrote, “For me, August 2nd has always been a day to pay tribute, so… a teaser of what’s to come. Happy Birthday, Jimmy 🙏🏿🙌🏿♥️” Baldwin was born Aug. 2, 1924, and he published “If Beale...
