Smithsonian American Art Museum Announces Newly Created Position, Appoints Dalila Scruggs Inaugural Augusta Savage Curator of African American Art
THE SMITHSONIAN AMERICAN ART MUSEUM (SAAM) announced the appointment of Dalila Scruggs to a newly created role on its curatorial team. Scruggs is joining the Washington, D.C., museum as the inaugural Augusta Savage Curator of African American Art. Currently, she is curator for photography and prints at the New York Public Library’s Schomburg Center for...
2024 Tate Britain Commission Goes to Artist Alvaro Barrington: ‘My Mind Has Been Spinning Since I First Got Invited to Do It’
TATE BRITAIN selected Alvaro Barrington (b.1983) for the next Tate Britain Commission. The annual commission is a site-specific work presented in the grand neo-classical Duveen Galleries of the London museum. Exploring themes of “place and belonging,” Barrington’s installation opens May 26. “We are thrilled that Alvaro Barrington is taking on this year’s Tate Britain Commission....
Latest News in Black Art: Kelly Sinnapah Mary Joins James Cohan, Gary Tyler Wins Frieze LA Impact Prize, Harlem Landscape Designer Working with Dia Beacon & More
Latest News in Black Art features updates and developments in the world of art and related culture KELLY SINNAPAH MARY, Installation view of “Notebook of No Return: Memories (Mama),” 2022 (triptych, acrylic on canvas, 99 x 77.5 inches each, three total), “everything slackens in a wreck.” Shown, Ford Foundation Gallery, New York, N.Y. (2022)....
2024 David C. Driskell Prize Goes to Naomi Beckwith, Deputy Director and Chief Curator of Guggenheim Museum: ‘I Am Equal Parts Elated and Humbled’
THE HIGH MUSEUM OF ART announced Naomi Beckwith is the recipient of the 2024 David C. Driskell Prize. The $50,000 prize is awarded annually to an artist, curator, or scholar in recognition of outstanding contributions to the field of African American art. Beckwith is the deputy director and Jennifer and David Stockman chief curator of...
Historic Appointment: Robert C. Davidson Jr., is New Chair of Smithsonian American Art Museum’s Board of Commissioners
THE SMITHSONIAN AMERICAN ART MUSEUM (SAAM) in Washington, D.C., has a new board chair. Robert “Bob” C. Davidson Jr., was appointed chair of SAAM’s Board of Commissioners, effective Jan. 1, 2024. The news was announced Feb. 15. He was appointed by his fellow commissioners to a four-year term. Davidson is the retired chairman, CEO, and...
Jack Shainman Gallery Adds Charisse Pearlina Weston to Roster of Artists Engaged in Social and Cultural Issues
Charisse Pearlina Weston. | Courtesy Jack Shainman Gallery CONCEPTUAL ARTIST Charisse Pearlina Weston is now represented by Jack Shainman. The New York gallery has an international roster of nearly 40 artists recognized for exploring social and cultural issues in their work, including Nina Chanel Abney, El Anatsui, Nick Cave, Kerry James Marshall, Meleko Mokgosi,...
Adrienne Edwards Appointed Senior Curator and Associate Director of Curatorial Programs at Whitney Museum, Expanding Her Leadership Role
THE WHITNEY MUSEUM OF AMERICAN ART in New York announced the promotion of Adrienne Edwards to the position of Engell Speyer Family Senior Curator and Associate Director of Curatorial Programs. Edwards joined the Whitney in 2018 as curator of performance and was named director of curatorial affairs in 2021. She is currently organizing “Edges of...
Latest News in Black Art: Essence Harden is Co-Curating Made in L.A. 2025, Oluremi C. Onabanjo is Photography Curator at MoMA, Shortlist for London’s Fourth Plinth & More
Latest News in Black Art features updates and developments in the world of art and related culture Fourth Plinth Shortlist 2026, 2028: Clockwise, from top left, “Ancient Feelings,” by Thomas J Price; “Sweet Potatoes and Yams are Not the Same” by Veronica Ryan, “Hornero” by Gabriel Chaile, and “Lady in Blue” by Tschabalala...
Latest News in Black Art: 2024 United States Artists Fellows Announced, James Claiborne Returns to Barnes Foundation, Jupiter Magazine Debuts & More
Latest News in Black Art features updates and developments in the world of art and related culture 2024 United States Artists Fellows: Clockwise, from top left, Karen Collins. | Photo by Chris Merchant; Tammie Rubin. | Photo by Essentials Creative; María Magdalena Campos-Pons. | Photo courtesy the artist; Garrett Bradley. | Photo by...
Gordon Parks Foundation Announced Its 2024 Fellows: Larry W. Cook, Tonika Lewis Johnson, and D. Watkins
Recipients of the 2024 Gordon Parks Foundation Fellowship in Art are Larry W. Cook and Tonika Lewis Johnson. | Images: From left, Courtesy of GPF and Photo by Ken Carl THE GORDON PARKS FOUNDATION announced its 2024 Fellows. The recipients of the Gordon Parks Foundation Fellowship in Art are conceptual artist and archivist Larry...
Filmmaker and Writer Dream Hampton is New Museum’s 2024 Stuart Regen Visionary
dream hampton. | Photo by Erik Howard THE NEW MUSEUM announced its 2024 Visionary is dream hampton. The annual Stuart Regen Visionaries Series recognizes “individuals who have made major contributions to art and culture and who are actively imagining a better future.” An award-winning filmmaker, producer, and writer from Detroit, hampton is being honored...
Latest News in Black Art: New Executive Director at Atlanta Contemporary, Kehinde Wiley Painting Makes Cameo in Heist Film, Derek Fordjour Covers Whitewall Magazine
Latest News in Black Art features updates and developments in the world of art and related culture Floyd Hall. | Photo by Wesley Cummings Appointments Floyd Hall is joining Atlanta Contemporary as executive director, effective Jan. 16. An Atlanta-based cultural producer and media strategist, Hall has collaborated with a variety of companies...
Building History: Kimberly Dowdell is AIA’s 100th President. First Black Woman to Lead Architecture Organization Plans to ‘Do More’
Kimberly Dowdell, AIA, gives remarks in her first moments as president. | Photo courtesy AIA THE AMERICAN INSTITUTE OF ARCHITECTS (AIA) elected its first Black female president. Kimberly Dowdell, AIA, is the 2024 President of AIA. Dowdell, 40, describes herself as “an architect determined to make the world a better place.” She is a...
Latest News in Black Art: Kwesi Botchway Now Represented by Vielmetter Los Angeles, Anonymous Was a Woman Awards, Jordan Casteel and Steve Stoute Elected to Met Museum Board & More
Latest News in Black Art features updates and developments in the world of art and related culture Representation VIELMETTER LOS ANGELES Kwesi Botchway (b. 1994) is now represented by Vielmetter Los Angeles. Botchway is known for his stylized portraits of contemporary African people, bold and colorful depictions grounded in community and culture. The...
Moving On Up: Amid Financial Setbacks at Museums, 31 Curators and Arts Leaders Took on New Appointments in Second Half of 2023
Culture Type reports on new appointments of Black curators and arts leaders to get a sense of representation in museums, with an emphasis on art museums. Museum leaders, curators, and educators shape the management and intellectual direction of institutions, determine the art visitors see and the programming they experience and, by extension, whether audiences of...
National Portrait Gallery Unveiled Oprah Winfrey Portrait, Media Mogul Marvels at Being ‘Alongside All the Greats’
Washington, D.C., Dec. 13, 2023: Artist Shawn Michael Warren and Oprah Winfrey pose with his portrait of her during the official unveiling ceremony at the Smithsonian National Portrait Gallery. | Photo by Paul Morigi/Getty Images for Smithsonian National Portrait Gallery WHEN OPRAH WINFREY is involved, amazing things tend to happen. Everybody gets a car,...
British Caribbean Artist to Watch Hettie Inniss Has Joined Grimm Gallery
Hettie Innis in her studio, 2023. | Courtesy Peter Mallett GRIMM, AN INTERNATIONAL GALLERY with locations in Amsterdam, London, and New York City, now represents Hettie Inniss (b. 1999). The British Caribbean artist lives and works in London. Paintings by Inniss are featured in “The Painted Room,” a group exhibition curated by Caroline Walker...
Goodman Gallery Now Represents Kenyan Artist Chemu Ng’ok, ‘I Feel Like the Body is a Fertile Ground for Contemplation, for Ideas’
GOODMAN GALLERY announced its representation of Chemu Ng’ok (b. 1989) last week. Ng’ok’s paintings and drawings feature abstracted figures and figurative forms entangled in a web of linework. The images explore the physical, psychological, and political aspects of the body and the complexities of human interaction, occupying space, and simply being. “I am thrilled to...
Latest News in Black Art: Alexander Harrison Now Repped by Kasmin, New Appointments at Baltimore Museum of Art, Renell Medrano Wins ICP Infinity Award & More
Latest News in Black Art features updates and developments in the world of art and related culture Alexander Harrison. | Photo by Diego Flores Representation Kasmin in New York announced its representation of painter Alexander Harrison (b. 1993) on Dec. 4. Born in Greenville, S.C., Harrison lives and works in Brooklyn, N.Y....
Akinsanya Kambon Receives $100,000 Mohn Award, Made in L.A. Biennial’s Top Prize Honors Artistic Excellence
AKINSANYA KAMBON, Installation view of Made in L.A. 2023: Acts of Living, Hammer Museum, Los Angeles, Oct. 1-Dec.31, 2023. | Photo by Charles White THE CERAMIC WORKS OF Akinsanya Kambon (b. 1946) have patinaed surfaces with a striking iridescent luster. Inspired by Black narratives and his pan-African beliefs, the figurative sculptures, vessels, and wall...
