Culture Type: The Year in Black Art 2014
FROM THE DAK’ART BIENNIAL in Senegal, to the 1:54 art fair in London and Prospect.3 in New Orleans, 2014 was brimming with compelling exhibitions, innovative projects and well-deserved honors. Kara Walker’s sugar sphinx installation in Brooklyn was perhaps the most thought-provoking and buzzed about exhibition of the year; Chris Ofili’s “Night and Day” survey at...
Titus Kaphar Paints Ferguson Protesters for Time Magazine
LIKE SO MANY OTHER AMERICANS, artist Titus Kaphar has been struggling with how to respond to the shooting of Mike Brown in Ferguson, Mo., the choking death of Eric Garner in New York, and the countless other incidents involving police officers killing unarmed Black men and youth across the country. Ultimately, he expressed himself...
Njideka Akunyili Crosby Wins Smithsonian’s 2014 James Dicke Prize
THE SMITHSONIAN AMERICAN ART MUSEUM has awarded Njideka Akunyili Crosby the 2014 James Dicke Contemporary Artist Prize for her “bold yet intimate” mixed- media paintings, which it describes as “among the most visually, conceptually and technically exciting work being made today.” The museum made the announcement yesterday. The prize recognizes an artist younger than...
Kerry James Marshall’s ‘Vignette’ Sells at Christie’s for Record $1 Million
KERRY JAMES MARSHALL HAS JOINED the million dollar club. His 2003 painting “Vignette” sold for more than $1 million (including fees) at Christie’s on Nov. 13. It was a record for the artist, according to sales results and auction records kept by multiple sources including Blouin Art Sales Index and Iris Index. “Vignette” was Lot...
At Sotheby’s, $3.9M White Text Painting Sets Glenn Ligon Record
IT WAS THE FIRST LOT OF THE NIGHT, a white-on-white text painting by Glenn Ligon. Originally executed in 1990 and repainted in 2003, “Untitled (I Was Somebody)” opened Sotheby’s Contemporary Art Evening Auction and sold for more than $3.9 million, according to sales results. The price was well over twice the estimate of $1 million...
For Carrie Mae Weems, Guggenheim Honor Caps Banner Year
SINCE LAST FALL, month after month has been punctuated by encounters with photographer Carrie Mae Weems. Not literally, but at every turn it seems another accomplishment or engagement, another confirmation of the importance of her practice, has come to my attention, which is wonderful. Throughout her more than 30-year career, Weems has been critically...
Today is Election Day, Vote with Your Art
ACROSS THE COUNTRY TODAY, voters are casting ballots in the mid-term elections. Congressional seats, state offices and local initiatives, including arts funding, are up for consideration. Nationwide, President Obama’s handling of ISIS and Ebola is overshadowing fundamental economic issues, though politics remains mostly local. The most competitive states where outcomes will determine the balance of...
Links: St. Louis Exhibitions, Gary Simmons, Hew Locke, ArtReview Power List
LINKS TO THE LATEST NEWS AND ANNOUNCEMENTS IN THE WORLD OF BLACK ART The Times-Picayune visits Newcombe Art Gallery where, as a part of Prospect 3 New Orleans, British artist Hew Locke‘s black rope drawings (above), dangling with beads that conjure Mardi Gras are on view. Read Article St. Louis Public Radio...
Links: Franklin Sirmans Previews Prospect 3, Toni Morrison’s Papers, LaToya Ruby Frazier
LINKS TO THE LATEST NEWS AND ANNOUNCEMENTS IN THE WORLD OF BLACK ART Following a press conference previewing Prospect New Orleans, Hyperallergic talks with artistic director Franklin Sirmans about the biennial’s third edition and how it will reflect its theme “Notes for Now.” Read Interview For the BBC, Daily Telegraph art critic...
Links: Kerry James Marshall and David Hammons in London, USA Fellows and More
LINKS TO THE PAST WEEK’S TOP NEWS AND ANNOUNCEMENTS IN THE WORLD OF BLACK ART The Independent talks with Kerry James Marshall about his childhood introduction to art and the motivation behind the images in his paintings, which are on view at David Zwirner in London. Read Article ARTnews publishes an effusive...
Shantell Martin is Drawing on Kelly Wearstler Products
SQUIGGLY LINES PUNCTUATED WITH BRIGHT EYES adorn the window of interior designer Kelly Wearstler’s flagship boutique on Melrose Avenue in Los Angeles. Executed with a thick, black marker, the drawing style looks familiar, Keith Haring-esque perhaps, but it is all Shantell Martin, bursting with whimsy, wonder and hipster cool. The British-born artist is collaborating...
Links: Sonya Clark Wins ArtPrize, Black Radical Brooklyn, Stan Douglas and More
LINKS TO THE PAST WEEK’S NEWS AND ANNOUNCEMENTS IN THE ART WORLD Winners of the sixth annual ArtPrize were announced last night with “Intersections” by Anila Quayyum Agha and “The Haircraft Project” (above) by Richmond, Va.-based Sonya Clark taking the top prizes. In Grand Rapids, Mich., Leonardo Drew served on the ArtPrize jury...
Ebay Live Auctions Debut with Swann African American Art
BROWSING EBAY, LOTS FEATURING Hale Woodruff, Alma Thomas, Jacob Lawrence and Kara Walker appear. Better known for selling collectibles, resale designer clothing and used books and magazines, eBay is launching a live bidding product with several New York auction galleries today. An offering of African American Fine Art at Swann Galleries is the debut...
The Week in Black Art | Sept. 13 – 19, 2014
A REVIEW OF THE WEEK’S NEWS AND ANNOUNCEMENTS IN THE ART WORLD Featuring new MacArthur fellow Rick Lowe, curator Okwui Enwezor, black comics, the Cosby art collection, the art world’s gender gap, the unveiling of Frederick Douglass portrait at governor’s mansion in Maryland, Shinique Smith, Toyin Odutola, and more Artful Genius: Rick...
The Week in Black Art | Sept. 6 – 12, 2014
A REVIEW OF THE WEEK’S NEWS AND ANNOUNCEMENTS IN THE ART WORLD Featuring performance art at MOCA LA, Swann’s forthcoming African American art auction, the passing of Detroit artist Gilda Snowden, and more MOCA LA is Embracing Lives Art Programming Again The Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles is gearing up for Step...
The Week in Black Art | Aug. 30 – Sept. 5, 2014
A REVIEW OF THE WEEK’S NEWS AND ANNOUNCEMENTS IN THE ART WORLD Featuring Shinique Smith, Mark Bradford, Nick Cave, a documentary about black photographers and more Detail of “Majesty” 2012 (ink and acrylic on canvas over panel) by Shinique Smith via MFA Boston Shinique Smith Responds to 21 Questions “Bright Matter” at...
The Week in Black Art | Aug. 23 – 29, 2014
A REVIEW OF THE WEEK’S NEWS AND ANNOUNCEMENTS IN THE ART WORLD Featuring Afropunk portraits, Kara Walker, Rashaad Newsome and more Vogue Publishes Afropunk Hair Portraits by Awol Erizku Vogue.com dispatched Awol Erizku to the 10th annual Afropunk Festival in Commodore Barry Park in Brooklyn to document the fabulous, natural and architectural hairstyles...
Studio Museum in Harlem Makes Two Major Announcements
EARLIER THIS WEEK, the Studio Museum in Harlem made two major announcements. The storied institution that describes itself as a nexus for artists of African descent has tapped Amanda Hunt (at right) to join its curatorial team. The Philadelphia native will serve as assistant curator, filling a coveted post left vacant when Thomas J. Lax...
Smithsonian Announces Nominees for James Dicke Prize
From left, artists Dave McKenzie, Mickalene Thomas, Julie Mehretu, and Theaster Gates. DAVE MCKENZIE, MICKALENE THOMAS, JULIE MEHRETU, Njideka Akunyili and Theaster Gates are in good company. The artists are among 13 nominated for the biennial James Dicke Contemporary Art Prize. The Smithsonian American Art Museum announced the nominees on Aug. 14. Established by...
The Week in Black Art | Aug. 9-15, 2014
A REVIEW OF THE WEEK’S NEWS AND ANNOUNCEMENTS IN THE ART WORLD Featuring David Hammons, Kara Walker and more New Aspen Art Museum Opens with David Hammons and Yves Klein Exhibition One of the most anticipated architectural projects of the year debuted this week. The Aspen Art Museum celebrated its new $45 million...
