On View | ‘Meleko Mokgosi: Bread, Butter, and Power’ at Fowler Museum at UCLA
IN RELATABLE IMAGES, Meleko Mokgosi explores weighty themes. He makes history paintings about the politics, culture, and history of Southern Africa. Post-colonial scenes of the quotidian are visions of democracy. For five years, Mokgosi has been pursuing “Democratic Intuition” (2014-present), a singular project, composed of eight chapters, each realized as an exhibition. The latest...
British Artist Anthea Hamilton Has Joined Thomas Dane Gallery in London
Anthea Hamilton lives and works in London. THOMAS DANE GALLERY recently announced its representation of Anthea Hamilton. The British multidisciplinary artist, whose practice is defined by wit and rigor, was nominated for the Turner Prize in 2016. More recently, she was selected to present the 2018 Tate Britain Commission, which is currently on display...
After Acquiring 80+ Images by Gordon Parks, Alicia Keys and Kasseem Dean Pose for Portrait Intended as Homage to the Pioneering Photographer
THE LATEST EDITION of Cultured Magazine features Alicia Keys-Dean and Kasseem “Swizz Beatz” Dean. The married couple posed for their first-ever cover together for the magazine’s July/August 2018 issue. In the accompanying article by Rebecca Bengal, the increasingly influential art collectors and music industry powerhouses discuss their relationship with each other, their connections with...
David Zwirner Announced its Worldwide Representation of the Roy DeCarava Estate
THE ESTATE OF AMERICAN ARTIST Roy DeCarava (1919–2009) is now represented worldwide by David Zwirner gallery. DeCarava trained as a painter and draftsman, before dedicating his career to photography in the mid-1940s. Through his lens, images of modern life in New York City were defined by light and shadow. The photographer’s best-known project is...
Latest News in African American Art: Nationwide Campaign Will Fund Political Billboards, Julie Mehretu Joins SFMOMA Board, Henry Taylor Wins De Niro Prize
For Freedoms launched a nationwide crowd-sourcing campaign to fund artist-designed billboards for display in advance of the 2018 midterm elections in the United States. 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 Brodsky Center, a collaborative...
All in the Family: Aaron Fowler’s Elaborate Assemblage Works are Highly Personal
“You Deserve It Mama!!” (2017) by Aaron Fowler. ABOUT 20 IRONING BOARDS, a broom, family photographs, LED rope lights, a stuffed donkey, a stuffed dog sans the stuffing, and a tall pane of glass are among the myriad objects Aaron Fowler incorporated into a massive assemblage work called “You Deserve It Mama!!” The artist...
Maren Hassinger is Now Represented by Susan Inglett Gallery
SUSAN INGLETT GALLERY announced its representation of Maren Hassinger today. The news comes the week after the artist’s exhibition, “Maren Hassinger: As One,” concluded at the gallery. The show featured recent works examining issues of equality. “Love” was made with hundreds of pink plastic bags, inflated with “breath” and containing love notes. Another work,...
British Artist Steve McQueen’s Latest Film is a Heist Thriller Starring Viola Davis
Viola Davis leads an ensemble cast in Steve McQueen’s latest film “Widows.” | Screenshot from Trailer A DIRECTOR, PRODUCER, screenwriter, and video artist, Steve McQueen has a dual career making movies for museums and movies for the cineplex. In the art world, recent video installations have included “End Credits,” an homage to Paul Robeson,...
Artistic Director Okwui Enwezor Steps Down From Haus der Kunst Museum Due to Health Reasons
Okwui Enwezor served as artistic director of the 56th Venice Biennale (2015). His global perspective and influence have played a significant role in transforming the contemporary art world INTERNATIONALLY RECOGNIZED curator and critic Okwui Enwezor announced on Monday that he is leaving the Haus der Kunst due to health reasons. He had been...
At Sotheby’s, New Painting by Lorna Simpson Sets Artist’s First Six-Figure Record
Lorna Simpson in her studio with “Day for Night” (2018) panels before they are painted. AN ARCHIVAL IMAGE of a woman standing precariously on the window ledge of a brick building inspired “Day for Night” (2018), a four-panel painting by Lorna Simpson. The new work sold for $375,000 including fees at Sotheby’s New York...
Charles White Retrospective Opens Next Week at the Art Institute of Chicago, Where the Artist Regularly Wandered as a Child
Charles White: A Retrospective. | Video by Art Institute of Chicago NEXT WEEK, THE LONG-AWAITED Charles White (1918-1979) retrospective opens at the Art Institute of Chicago. An artist, activist, and educator, Chicago-born White was a master draftsmen known for his powerful, realist images of African Americans. Featuring more than 80 paintings, drawings, and prints,...
Fresh From Art School, Illustrator Loveis Wise Lands New Yorker Cover
The cover for the New Yorker’s new fiction issue is illustrated by Loveis Wise. THE LATEST EDITION of The New Yorker features a black mother and child on the cover. The image by Loveis Wise illustrates the magazine’s new Fiction Issue, a double issue dated June 4 and June 11. Wise, who graduated from...
Cuban-Born Artist Ricardo Brey is Now Represented by Alexander Gray Associates, First Solo Show in New York Slated for 2019
Born in Havana, Cuba, Ricardo Brey lives and works in Ghent, Belgium. | Courtesy Alexander Grey Associates MULTIDISCIPLINARY ARTIST Ricardo Brey has joined Alexander Gray Associates in New York. Brey’s research-oriented practice explores the roots of who we are—the origins of humanity, the intersection of nature and culture, and how we understand our place...
The Week in African American Art: 7 Board Resignations at Chicago’s DuSable Museum, Naima Keith is Co-Organizing Prospect.5 in New Orleans, VMFA Acquisitions & More
NEWS | Seven members have resigned from the DuSable Museum of African American History board of trustees in Chicago. The departures include the chair and two vice chairs. The following review of the past week or so presents a snapshot of the latest news in African American art and related culture: NEWS Seven...
Studio Museum in Harlem Sale Raises $20.2 Million at Sotheby’s, Yields 24 Artist Records
WATCH The sale of Mark Bradford’s “Speak, Birdman” (2018) to benefit the Studio Museum in Harlem’s new building fund. Bids started at $1.6 million and quickly climbed to $5.8 million, the hammer price, which amounted to $6,776,200 with fees. | Video by Sotheby’s FIFTY YEARS AFTER AFRICAN AMERICAN ARTISTS played a prominent role in...
Njideka Akunyili Crosby Sets New Auction Record with Non-Figurative Painting, Proceeds Benefit Studio Museum in Harlem
“Bush Babies” (2017) by Njideka Akunyili Crosby. THE AUCTION PRICE FOR A PAINTING by Njideka Akunyili Crosby climbed a bit higher last week. “Bush Babies” by the Nigerian-born, Los Angeles-based artist sold for nearly $3.4 million including fees at Sotheby’s New York, a new artist record. Her previous high was just north of $3...
Two 1970s-Era Portraits by Barkley L. Hendricks Top $2 Million at Sotheby’s, Shattering the Artist’s Previous Record
A STRIKING PORTRAIT of a statuesque woman named Brenda P set a new auction record for Barkley L. Hendricks (1945-2017) on Wednesday at Sotheby’s Contemporary Art Evening Auction in New York. The 1974 painting sold for $2.1 million including fees, which was twice the high estimate and shattered the artist’s previous high, which was...
Kerry James Marshall’s ‘Past Times’ Soars to Record-Setting $21.1 Million at Sotheby’s, Artist Assumes Mantle as Most Expensive Living African American Artist
A GRAND-SCALE PAINTING by Kerry James Marshall had bidders battling last night. Marshall’s “Past Times” (1997) soared beyond the high estimate and sold for $18.5 million ($21.1 million, including fees). The high bid came by phone, setting an artist record. The painting was featured in Sotheby’s May 16 Contemporary Art Evening Auction and carried...
Corcoran Collection Art Goes to Howard University, and Smithsonian African American and Anacostia Museums
Sam Gilliam’s 1969 painting, “Light Depth” will be added to the collection of the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden. | Courtesy Corcoran Collection THE REMAINING ART from the Corcoran Gallery of Art has been distributed. More than 10,750 works were given away. Nearly all of it went to 22 institutions in Washington, D.C. The...
Creating Space: Here’s the List of 42 Artists Whose Works Are For Sale at Sotheby’s to Benefit the Studio Museum in Harlem
Lot 3: LYNETTE YIADOM-BOAKYE, “An Assistance of Amber,” 2017 (oil on linen). | Estimate $100,000-$150,000. Sold for $555,000 including fees THE STUDIO MUSEUM IN HARLEM and Sotheby’s are collaborating on a major sale of works by some of the most prominent and critically recognized artists of African descent working today. Artists including Mark Bradford,...
