This post will be updated throughout the week
ELDZIER CORTER, “Southern Souvenir No. II,” circa 1948 (oil on board mounted on Masonite™ on wood strainer, 35 1/2 x 64 1/2 inches). | Art Bridges. © Estate of Eldzier Cortor / Artist Rights Society (ARS), New York
Feb. 5, 2021
Eldzier Cortor Painting Inspires Choreographer
Later this month, choreographer Dara Meredith, artistic director at Eleone Dance Theatre and adjunct professor at Temple University, begins a virtual dance residency at the Delaware Art Museum in Wilmington, inspired by “Southern Souvenir No. II” (circa 1948), a painting by Eldzier Cortor on loan from the Art Bridges Foundation through July.
Amanda Gorman Covers Time Magazine
Biden-Harris inaugural poet Amanda Gorman, 22, graces the cover of Time (with a reference to Maya Angelou’s “I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings”). Titled “The Renaissance is Black,” the special Feb. 15/Feb. 22 edition of the newsmagazine was created with Ibram X. Kendi, focusing primarily on literature, music, and film. The first National Youth Poet Laureate, Gorman was photographed by artist Awol Erizku and interviewed by First Lady Michelle Obama. Her next big gig is delivering a poem at the Super Bowl on Sunday.
MICA Names Education Chair
The Maryland Institute College of Art (MICA) in Baltimore announced the appointment of Pamela Harris Lawton as Florence Gaskins Harper Chair in Art Education. Lawton has been serving in the endowed position since the start of the 2020-21 academic year. | Art & Education
Fabric Workshop Announces 2021-22 Artists in Residence
Over the next two years, The Fabric Workshop and Museum in Philadelphia will welcome a dozen artists in residence, including Philadelphia-based multidisciplinary artist Jayson Musson; Oakland, Calif.-based sculptor Woody De Othello; and Los Angeles painter Henry Taylor. The 2021-22 cohort will work on projects with the museum’s studio and conclude their residencies with exhibitions.
Detroit Artist Charles McGee Has Died
Artist Charles McGee, 96, died on Feb. 4, in Detroit. Known for his large-scale indoor and outdoor, mixed-media commissions, McGee was “the prodigious dean of Detroit’s visual arts scene whose works can be seen everywhere from the Detroit Institute of Arts to the Broadway Station of the People Mover and who made invaluable contributions as an influential teacher, gallery owner and arts advocate dating back to the 1960s.” | Detroit Free Press
NICK CAVE, “Truth Be Told,” 2020 (vinyl, 25 x 160 feet), Jack Shainman Gallery, Kinderhook, N.Y. | Courtesy Nick Cave and Jack Shainman Gallery
Feb. 4, 2021
Nick Cave Wins Battle Over Public Artwork
After a months-long battle, artist Nick Cave and Jack Shainman Gallery won the right to maintain a temporary installation on the facade of the gallery’s upstate New York outpost. They contended that anti-Trump text stating “Truth Be Told” was a 25-foot-tall artwork and therefore protected under the First Amendment. After claiming the work was a sign that violated town codes, the Kinderhook zoning board voted unanimously on Feb. 2 that the installation was indeed an artwork, confirming the assertions of Cave and the gallery. | Hyperallergic
Glass Portrait of VP Kamala Harris Unveiled
Employing shattered glass, Swiss artist Simon Berger created a striking portrait of Vice President Kamala Harris. Symbolizing her historic rise, the installation is on view on the National Mall near the Lincoln Memorial, from Feb. 4-6, 2021. | Culture Type
Phillips Collection Endows Chief Diversity Position
A $2 million gift from philanthropists Lynne and Joe Horning will endow the chief diversity officer position at the Phillips Collection. In 2018, the Washington D.C., institution became one of the first U.S. art museums to create a senior leadership position dedicated to diversity, equity, and inclusion when it hired Makeba Clay, who is currently serving in the post.
Stanford University Names Visiting Artists
2021 Visiting Arts were announced by Stanford University’s Office of the Vice President for the Art. The six artists, including Rashaad Newsome and Pamela Z, will be hosted by departments and programs across the institution during winter and spring 2021. | Art & Education
From left, M. Florine Démosthène. | Courtesy M. Florine Démosthène; M. FLORINE DÉMOSTHÉNE, “Entangled By Your Thoughts,” 2020 (collage on canvas, 18 x 24 inches). | © M. Florine Démosthène, Courtesy the artist
Feb. 3, 2021
Virginia Center for the Creative Arts Awards Residency
M. Florine Démosthène won the 2021 Wachtmeister Award from the Virginia Center for the Creative Arts (VCCA). The fellowship includes a $1,000 honorarium and a month-long stay at Mt. San Angelo, VCCA’s artist residency program in the foothills of Virginia’s Blue Ridge Mountains. (Find more about Démosthène on her website.)
2021 USA Fellows Announced
United States Artists named 60 new fellows, each receiving unrestricted awards of $50,000 . The 2021 Fellows include visual artists Njideka Akunyili Crosby (Los Angeles, Calif.), Lex Brown (Philadelphia, Pa.), Maria Gaspar (Chicago, Ill.), Carolyn Lazard (Philadelphia, Pa.), Daniel Lind-Ramos (Loiza, Puerto Rico); craft artists Diedrick Brackens (Los Angeles, Calif.), Bisa Butler (West Orange, N.J.), and Tiff Massey (Detroit, Mich.); architectural designers Walter Hood (Oakland, Calif.) and Olalekan Jeyifous (Brooklyn, N.Y); traditional art practitioners Basil Kincaid (St. Louis, Mo.) and Carolyn L. Mazloomi (West Chester, Ohio); and new media artist Stephanie Dinkins (Brooklyn, N.Y.).
Golden Globe Nominations
British artist and filmmaker Steve McQueen‘s “Small Axe,” an Amazon Original Series featuring five films, was nominated for two 2021 Golden Globe awards—Best Television Motion Picture and Best Supporting Actor – Television for John Boyega. The Golden Globes ceremony is Feb. 28. (Watch “Small Axe” trailer)
Brooklyn illustrator Sophia Yeti designed a limited-edition box for UPS. | Video by UPS
Feb. 2, 2021
UPS Partners with Brooklyn Illustrator
For Black History Month, UPS launched a new campaign called “Proudly Black Owned. Proudly Unstoppable,” to support and invest Black-owned small businesses. UPS also produced a limited-edition Express Box featuring illustrations by Brooklyn designer and small-business owner Sophia Yeshi. (Find more about Yeshi on her website.)
Black Rock 2021 Artists Announced
Black Rock Senegal, the artist-in-residence program established by Kehinde Wiley announced its second-year participants. The 15 artists selected for 2021 are Tyna Adebowale (Nigeria, Mixed Media); Abbesi Akhamie (Germany, Film); Delali Ayivor (Ghana, Writing); Hilary Balu (DR Congo, Painting); Mbali Dhlamini (South Africa, Mixed Media); Abdi Farah (USA, Painting); Moses Hamborg (USA, Painting); Arinze Ifeakandu (Nigeria, Writing); Cristiano Mangovo (Angola, Painting/ Sculpture/ Installation/ Performance); Esmaa Mohamoud (Canada, Sculpture/ Installation); Katherina Olschbaur (Austria, Painting); Irene Antonia Diane Reece (USA, Photography); Curtis Talwst Santiago (Canada, Mixed Media); Darryl DeAngelo Terrell (USA, Photography); and Stephanie J. Woods (USA, Mixed Media). Beginning this month, in staggered groups, each artist will spend several weeks in Dakar. | The New York Times
Artist Lauren Halsey. | Photo by Anne Symons
Feb. 1, 2021
Lauren Halsey Wins Jacob Lawrence Prize
Los Angeles artist Lauren Halsey won the 2021 Gwendolyn Knight and Jacob Lawrence Prize. The award includes $10,000 and a solo exhibition at the Seattle Art Museum opening winter 2021.
Derek Fordjour Joins David Kordansky
David Kordansky Gallery in Los Angeles announced its representation of New York artist Derek Fordjour. His first solo exhibition with the gallery will be presented in spring 2022. | Culture Type
Gee’s Bend Quilts Available on Etsy
Nine Gee’s Bend quilt artists are selling their one-of-a kind works on Etsy for the first time. The effort is the result of a partnership between the Souls Grown Deep Foundation and Community Partnership, Etsy, and the nonprofit Nest. Each of the artists, including Doris Pettway Mosley, Caster Pettway, Sharon Williams, Emma Pettway, and Doris Pettway Hacketts is listed as a “Verified Gee’s Bend Maker.” | ARTnews
Diana Ejaita Illustrates New Yorker Cover
“Interiors,” Diana Ejaita’s Feb. 1 cover for The New Yorker reflects the new normal for many in the age of COVID-19, staying close to home, keeping cozy in the cold of winter. The Berlin-based illustrator has been doing a succession of artist residencies in Africa and is currently in Burkina Faso. | The New Yorker
Jamal Cyrus to Deliver Driskell Prize Lecture
Artist Jamal Cyrus, recipient of the 2020 Driskell Prize from the High Museum of Art is delivering his Driskell Prize Lecture, “Phylacteries to Repel Ghosts,” via Zoom on Feb. 4.
Carnegie Museum Debuts New Podcast
The Carnegie Museum of Art launched its first-ever podcast, Mirror with a Memory hosted by artist Martine Syms. Exploring the intersection of artificial intelligence and photography, the six-part series features Stan Douglas, Sondra Perry, American Artist, Simone Browne, and Manthia Diawara, among others. (Preview podcast below.) CT
Trailer for Mirror with a Memory, the Carnegie Museum of Art’s new podcast hosted by artist Martine Syms, debuting Feb. 1. 2021. | Video by CMOA
