Artist Simone Leigh Wins Guggenheim’s 2018 Hugo Boss Prize
THE 2018 HUGO BOSS PRIZE has been awarded to Simone Leigh. Best known for her ceramic works, Leigh’s practice examines black female subjectivity, black feminist discourse, and the history of labor and resistance. Her selection was announced last night at the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum in New York. The Hugo Boss Prize recognizes the...
Diedrick Brackens Receives the Studio Museum in Harlem’s 2018 Wein Prize
THE STUDIO MUSEUM IN HARLEM’S 2018 Joyce Alexander Wein Artist Prize has been awarded to Diedrick Brackens. The Los Angeles-based textile artist is recognized for his tapestries and innovative weaving techniques. His selection was announced by Thelma Golden at the museum’s 50th anniversary gala this evening at the Park Avenue Armory. The annual prize...
Linda Harrison Has Been Appointed Director of the Newark Museum
LINDA HARRISON IS LEAVING the Museum of the African Diaspora (MoAD) in San Francisco to helm New Jersey’s largest museum. Last week, the Newark Museum named Harrison director and CEO. “I’m thrilled to join the Newark Museum family to implement a bold transformation/agenda that lock steps with the City of Newark’s revitalization of the...
Titus Kaphar, Whose Paintings Reconstruct Accepted Historic Narratives, is a 2018 MacArthur ‘Genius’ Fellow
Titus Kaphar in his New Haven, Conn., studio. YEARS BEFORE THE DEBATE about decolonizing America’s public squares where monuments pay homage to slaveholders and Confederate generals reached a fever pitch in 2017, Titus Kaphar was engaging with representation in Western art history and its overwhelming penchant for foregrounding white men while people of color...
Historic Bequest: Late Arts Patron Peggy Cooper Cafritz Gifted 650+ Works of Art to the Studio Museum in Harlem and Duke Ellington School of the Arts
THE COLLECTION OF THE STUDIO MUSEUM in Harlem has grown by 20 percent thanks to the generosity of the Peggy Cooper Cafritz (1947-2018), the late Washington, D.C. arts patron, activist and co-founder of the Duke Ellington School of the Arts. The Studio Museum and Duke Ellington announced yesterday that Cafritz bequeathed the majority of...
Broadway Bound: Musical About Legendary Artist Jean-Michel Basquiat in Development
JEAN-MICHEL BASQUIAT (1960-1988) is Broadway bound. A musical about the storied artist’s life is in the works, composed by Jon Batiste, the bandleader and musical director of The Late Show with Stephen Colbert on CBS. The project is produced by Alan D. Marks and Barbara Marks. Tony winner John Doyle (“The Color Purple”) has...
Latest News: Police Brutality Exhibition Remains on Pause, 1-54 African Art Fair Heads to Manhattan, Artist Warrington Colescott Has Died & More
Sept. 18: After putting her exhibition “America Monuments” on hold, artist lauren woods explains why the action is necessary. | Video by Daily 49er The following review of the past week or so presents a snapshot of the latest news in African American art and related culture: NEWS After four years in Brooklyn,...
$5.4 Million Grant to Spelman College Will Amplify Art History and Curatorial Studies at Atlanta University Center
Spelman College campus in Atlanta. A GRANT FROM THE WALTON FAMILY FOUNDATION positions Spelman College to become an incubator for African American curators. The five-year, $5.4 million grant will inaugurate the Atlanta University Center Collective for the Study of Art History and Curatorial Studies. An art history major and curatorial studies minor will be...
Whitney Museum Acquired 417 Works Recently, Faith Ringgold, Derrick Adams, Toyin Ojih Odutola, and Julie Mehretu are Among the Artists Represented
“Husband and Wife” (2017) is one of three works by Toyin Ojih Odutola acquired by the Whitney Museum. FOR A YEAR, THE WHITNEY MUSUEM of American Art displayed “Hate Is a Sin Flag” a 2007 work by Faith Ringgold. It is a relatively small print, about 19 inches square, that makes a profound statement....
Lauren Haynes to Curate Focus Section of 2019 Armory Show
Curator Lauren Haynes THE CURATORIAL TEAM for the 2019 Armory Show was announced this week. Lauren Haynes is curating the New York City art fair’s Focus section, which is “devoted to solo- and dual-artist presentations by relevant and compelling artists.” This year, Ryan Lee Gallery presented a solo show of works by Emma Amos...
Latest News: Trailblazing New York Times Photographer Has Died, Hamza Walker Will Curate Talks at Frieze Los Angeles & More
Thokaza township, Johannesburg (1991). Photo by Graeme Williams The following review of the past week or so presents a snapshot of the latest news in African American art and related culture: NEWS New York-based artist Hank Willis Thomas has been accused by South African photographer Graeme Williams of using an iconic image he...
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...
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...
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...
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...
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...
Yinka Shonibare Wrapped More than 200 Books in ‘African’ Textiles, His ‘American Library’ is Designed to Start a Conversation About Immigration
YINKA SHONIBARE, Detail of “The American Library (Activists),” 2018 (hardback books, Dutch wax printed cotton textile, gold foiled names). | Courtesy the artist and James Cohan, New York, Photo by Patrick Sampson THE MOST RECENT ADDITION to the collection at The Mead Art Museum at Amherst College is a series of books. The museum...
