Art Therapist Muna El Fituri Sold Her 1920s Castle-Style LA Residence to Artists Jonas Wood and Shio Kusaka for $10.3 Million
PERCHED HIGH ABOVE THE CITY, a grand Mediterranean villa in the Los Angeles neighborhood of Los Feliz has changed hands, selling artist to artist, for nearly $10.3 million. The buyers are married LA artists Jonas Wood and Shio Kusaka, and the seller is Muna El Fituri. The transaction was first reported by the real...
Birmingham Museum of Art Names Chantal Drake Deputy Director
THE BIRMINGHAM MUSEUM OF ART (BMA) announced Chantal Drake is joining the Alabama museum as James Milton and Sallie R. Johnson Deputy Director. The appointment is a homecoming of sorts. A native of Huntsville, Ala., Drake’s interest in museums was first sparked when she visited the Birmingham Museum of Art as a young girl and...
International Center of Photography Infinity Awards Go to Ming Smith for Lifetime Achievement and Rising Artist Zora J Murff
PAYING TRIBUTE TO outstanding achievements in photography and visual culture, the International Center of Photography (ICP) in New York announced its 2023 Infinity Awards. Ming Smith and Zora J Murff are among five recipients of the annual honors. For her career-spanning accomplishments, recognizing the arc of her practice and five decades of creativity, Smith...
Michelle Commander: New Deputy Director of National Museum of African American History and Culture Joining Smithsonian From Schomburg Center
THE SMITHSONIAN’S National Museum of African American History and Culture (NMAAHC) named a new deputy director on Jan. 10. Michelle Commander is joining the Washington, D.C., museum in the No. 2 role. She arrives from the New York Public Library’s Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, where she served most recently as deputy...
Founding Deputy Director Kinshasha Holman Conwill Has Retired From Smithsonian’s National Museum of African American History and Culture
A MUSEUM LEADER and institution builder, Kinshasha Holman Conwill dedicated her entire career to being a faithful steward of art, history, and culture, establishing the background and experience necessary to seize the opportunity of a lifetime. Few get the chance to help envision and develop a monument to the African American experience, from ideas...
Taylor Jasper is Joining Walker Art Center as Assistant Curator of Visual Arts
IN MINNEAPOLIS, MINN., the Walker Art Center named Taylor Jasper assistant curator of visual arts. The appointment was announced Jan. 10. A member of a growing team in the Visual Arts department, Jasper’s portfolio will span exhibitions, acquisitions, artist projects, and public programming. She is joining the Walker from The Momentary, a contemporary art...
On the Rise: 27 Museum Curators and Arts Leaders Who Took on New Appointments in Second Half of 2022
BLACK CURATORS AND ARTS LEADERS took on key roles at a variety of museums and arts institutions in the second half of 2022. Sean Decatur will be the next president of the American Museum of Natural History (AMNH), a world-renowned New York institution that welcomes about 5 million visitors a year. Announced early this...
Tsione Wolde-Michael Appointed Executive Director of President’s Committee on Arts and Humanities: After 5-Year Hiatus, PCAH is Getting Back to Work
IN WASHINGTON, D.C., the President’s Committee on the Arts and the Humanities (PCAH) is announcing a new leader today. Tsione Wolde-Michael has been appointed executive director of the committee. Engaging with artists, scholars, and cultural heritage leaders, PCAH strives to center the arts, humanities, and museum and library services in the civic and cultural...
Culture Type: The Month in Black Art, Here’s What Happened in November 2022
November highlights include Courtney Willis Blair heading White Cube gallery in New York, Alonzo Davis archives go to Driskell Center, first Black board chair at Florida’s Ringling Museum of Art, Mariane Ibrahim gallery opening in Mexico City < APPOINTMENTS | Nov. 4: John & Mable Ringling Museum of Art Foundation in Sarasota, Fla.,...
Apollo Awards 2022: Faith Ringgold Named ‘Artist of the Year’ by International Art Magazine
CELEBRATIONS AND HARD-WON RECOGNITION of Faith Ringgold and her singular practice continue apace. Over the past several years, Ringgold has been celebrated by major international institutions through awards, media profiles, publications, and exhibitions. The latest honor hails from London. Apollo, the international art magazine, announced its annual awards and Ringgold was named Artist of...
Ed Cross Fine Art Now Represents Nigerian Artist Abdulrazaq Awofeso Who Creates Sculpture From Discarded Wood Palettes
Artist Abdulrazaq Awofeso. | Photo by Tegen Kimbley AFTER ESTABLISHING a unique practice that reflects his own biography and also speaks to global issues, Abdulrazaq Awofeso is working with a new gallery. Ed Cross Fine Art in London recently announced its representation of the sculptor and installation artist. Working with discarded and dismantled wood...
Appointment: Courtney Willis Blair Will Lead White Cube Gallery in New York
IT’S NEARLY UNHEARD OF for a white-owned art gallery to offer a stake in the business to a Black dealer. Courtney Willis Blair was in rare company in January 2021 when she was named partner and senior director at Mitchell-Innes & Nash in New York. Willis Blair is continuing to break new ground in...
Culture Type: The Month in Black Art, October 2022
October highlights include chief curator appointment at San Francisco’s Museum of the African Diaspora, recipients of Studio Museum’s Wein Prize, new gallery representation for Lubaina Himid and Deana Lawson Key Jo Lee is joining Museum of the African Diaspora in San Francisco in newly created chief of curatorial affairs and public programs position...
Neon Museum Marks 10 Years at Current Site, Welcoming Visitors at Building Designed by Architect Paul R. Williams
Neon Museum Visitor Center designed by Paul R. Williams. | Courtesy Neon Museum IN DOWNTOWN LAS VEGAS, the Neon Museum is celebrating 10 years at its current location on Las Vegas Boulevard with a special proclamation from the city. The museum collects, restores, and exhibits iconic neon signs, preserving the legacy and symbols of...
Culture Type: The Month in Black Art, September 2022
September marked the start of the fall exhibition season, the death of artist Valerie Maynard, and announcements of several six-figure artist prizes LIVES | Valerie Maynard (1937-2022) was subject of focused survey at Baltimore Museum of Art (2020-21) and keynote speaker and honorary degree recipient at Maryland Institute College of Art’s 2021 commencement....
Michelle Jacques Appointed Board President of Association of Art Museum Curators, Three Black Women Will Hold Top Board Positions in 2023-24
Incoming Board President Michelle Jacques THE ASSOCIATION of Art Museum Curators (AAMC) & AAMC Foundation announced a new leadership team. Michelle Jacques has been appointed president of the board of trustees for a two-year term beginning Jan. 1. She brings more than two decades of experience in the field to her new role. Currently,...
Who Painted President Obama’s White House Portrait? Did He Make a Traditional Choice or Select a Critically Recognized Artist
INCREDIBLY INSPIRING, the Obama Portraits have garnered so much attention they are currently on a national tour, traveling to museums throughout the United States. The portraits of President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama painted by acclaimed artists Kehinde Wiley and Amy Sherald, respectively, were unveiled by the Smithsonian on Feb. 12, 2018....
Latest News in Black Art: Gaëtane Verna Will Lead Wexner Center, Chakaia Booker Now Repped by David Nolan Gallery, Salary Transparency, What is a Museum? & More
Latest News in Black Art features news updates and developments in the world of art and related culture Gaëtane Verna is joining the Wexner Center for the Arts at The Ohio State University as executive director, effective Nov. 15. | Photo by Tyrell Gough Appointments Art historian and administrator Gaëtane Verna (above)...
Latest News in Black Art: Alteronce Gumby Joins Nicola Vassell Gallery, Lubaina Himid Wins Major Artist Prize, Historic Board Appointment at VMFA & More
Latest News in Black Art features news updates and developments in the world of art and related culture Artist Alteronce Gumby. | Photo by Katharina Balgavy Representation Abstract artist Alteronce Gumby (above) is now represented by Nicola Vassell Gallery in New York. Gumby makes “vivid interstellar paintings that emerge from his profound...
On the Rise: 47 Museum Curators and Arts Leaders Who Took on New Appointments in First Half of 2022
DOZENS OF BLACK CURATORS and arts leaders took on new appointments in the first half of 2022. Jenenne Whitfield will helm the Visionary Art Museum in Baltimore, Md. Camille Ann Brewer recently assumed leadership of the San Jose Museum of Quilts and Textiles in California. In London, Gilane Tawadros has been selected as the...
