The New York Times Asked African American Creatives About the Black Art That Inspires Them. Here is What They Said
Trailer: “Get Out” (2017), Written and Directed by Jordan Peele. | Video by Universal Pictures ‘GET OUT’ was “a phenomenal piece of work,” artist Kerry James Marshall said. Kenya Barris, the television writer and producer, is drawn to the neon work “Double America 2” (2014) by Glenn Ligon. “The simplicity of it is radical...
Time Magazine Recognizes 100 Years of Influential Women with Covers by Mickalene Thomas, Bisa Butler, and Toyin Ojih Odutola
TIME MAGAZINE is exploring the most influential women of the past century. 2020 marks 100 years since women gained the right to vote in the United States. To recognize the milestone that transformed women’s individual and collective agency, the magazine launched a project called 100 Women of the Year. Introducing the project, Nancy Gibbs,...
Faith Ringgold Painting Covers Artforum, Inside Kerry James Marshall Writes About ‘Black Artists in Unexpected Places’
PICASSO’S “GUERNICA” (1937) is admired and respected by many artists, including Kerry James Marshall and Faith Ringgold. In 1980, Marshall’s first trip to New York—and first flight on an airplane—was made expressly to see the grand work on loan from Spain at the Museum of Modern Art. Ringgold has described “Guernica” as her favorite...
Cover Subject: Countering Historic Narratives, Derrick Adams Makes the Images He Wants to See in the World
BLACK PEOPLE FLOATING leisurely in pools are among the most recognizable images Derrick Adams has made in recent years. The brightly colored scenes in his Floaters series usually feature an individual figure lounging on an inflatable floater. “Floater 49” (2017), a mixed-media collage work from his Floaters series appears on the fall 2019 cover...
In an Interview Coinciding with His First Exhibition at Gagosian, Nathaniel Mary Quinn Tells Anderson Cooper: ‘My Paintings Come to Me as Visions’
EXPLORING THE INTERSECTION of reality, memory, and perception, Nathaniel Mary Quinn paints composite portraits that read as collage. In actuality, they are produced with oil paint, gouache, charcoal, oil stick, and pastels in his own hand. He has said his fragmented and visually layered portraits are based on the faces of people he...
Summering with Mickalene Thomas: The Artist Turns to Nature and Good Friends for a Creative Charge
From the New York Times video: Pool Party | Mickalene Thomas and Racquel Chevremont FOR THE PAST SEVERAL YEARS, Brooklyn-based Mickalene Thomas has decamped to a property in Salisbury, Conn., during “kids-away-from-school” time with Racquel Chevremont, her partner in work and life, and their three children. Purchased in 2013, Thomas calls the 19th century...
A Portrait of Faith Ringgold Painted by Alice Neel is Jordan Casteel’s Favorite Artwork
WORKS BY MORE THAN 60 ARTISTS, including Faith Ringgold, are featured in the international traveling exhibition “Soul of a Nation: Art in the Age of Black Power.” Nearly all the artists are Black, except Virginia Jaramillo, Andy Warhol (1928-1987), and Alice Neel (1900-1984), who contributed a portrait of Ringgold to the landmark exhibition. Rinngold...
Ursula Magazine: Hauser & Wirth Introduced a New Art Quarterly Featuring Linda Goode Bryant, Lorna Simpson, Amy Sherald, Senga Nengudi, and Jack Whitten
THE INAUGURAL ISSUE of Ursula magazine begins and ends with depictions of African American women by black female artists. The cover features a collage image of Linda Goode Bryant by Lorna Simpson. A painting by Amy Sherald illustrates the back cover the magazine. Bryant is the pioneering founder of Just Above Midtown (JAM), the...
Ava DuVernay Guest Edits Time Magazine, Offering Art as an ‘Antidote for Our Times’
One of New York City’s “unusual characters.” | Photo by Clay Benskin for Time. Used with permission from the photographer TIME TAPPED Ava DuVernay to guest edit a special issue devoted to optimism and she delivered a magazine chock full of hope, promise and creativity. The award-winning writer/director/producer elected to explore optimism through the...
Shonda Rhimes Has Two Hughie Lee-Smith Paintings in Study of Her L.A. Home
In her home study, Shonda Rhimes talks about Hughie Lee-Smith’s 1988 painting “Counterpoise.” ARCHITECTURAL DIGEST publishes photos of spectacular, light-filled homes. The magazine’s latest feature focuses on the Los Angeles residence of Shonda Rhimes, an Italianate villa she recently renovated where paintings by Hughie Lee-Smith (1915-1999) hang in the study and living room. “His...
Literary Collective: Considering the James Baldwins and Langston Hugheses of Our Times
Oct. 15, 2018: Writers gather at the Brooklyn Historical Society WATCHING “MOONLIGHT” in theaters across the nation, American audiences were reminded of the power of black male storytelling. The screenplay for the 2016 film was written by Barry Jenkins and adapted from a semi-autobiographical stage play by Tarell Alvin McCraney. The story follows the...
Art + Practice Co-Founder Eileen Harris Norton Gives Her Art-Filled Home a Refresh
Eileen Harris Norton at home with works by Alma Thomas and Kara Walker. OVER THE FIREPLACE, an Alma Thomas (1891-1978) painting shares the mantel with a small sculpture by Kara Walker. Elsewhere in the home a Kerry James Marshall work hangs adjacent to a Glenn Ligon neon that reads “negro sunshine.” The November issue...
Power 100: Artist Kerry James Marshall Ranked No. 2 Most Influential Person in Contemporary Art World
THE SECOND MOST POWERFUL person in the contemporary art world is Chicago painter Kerry James Marshall, according to Art Review magazine. The London-based publication issues an annual Power 100 list ranking the most influential figures in the contemporary art world. The list includes artists, curators, critics, collectors, and dealers, among others. Marshall is the top...
The New York Times Recognizes the Greatness of Carrie Mae Weems
Carrie Mae Weems photographed by Mickalene Thomas for The New York Times WHAT DETERMINES GREATNESS? In her introductory note about how the six people featured in “T” magazine’s 2018 Greats issue were selected, Hanya Yanagihara, editor of the New York Times style publication, admits “there is no real metric for greatness.” The candidates could...
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...
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...
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....
Cover Stars: For its September Fall Fashion Issues, Vogue is all About Beyoncé, Rihanna, and Making Long-Overdue History
FOR THE FIRST TIME in its 126-year history, a black photographer is shooting the cover of American Vogue, and not just any issue, the all-important fall fashion issue. The long overdue milestone is happening at the behest of Beyoncé, who will grace the magazine’s September cover. She selected Tyler Mitchell, a young photographer, originally...
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...
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...
