Lou Stovall working at his drawing table at Workshop Inc., Dupont Center, 1969. | Courtesy Lou Stovall Workshop LOU STOVALL’S WORKSHOP INC., was a thriving creative enterprise for half a century. Two years after he graduated from Howard University, Stovall established the silkscreen studio in Washington, D.C. The year was 1968. Initially, he...
Highlights of March news and announcements include Brooke A. Minto’s appointment to lead Columbus Museum of Art, passing of artist and master printer Lou Stovall, Derrick Adams joining Gagosian gallery, Colette Veasey-Cullors named dean of International Center of Photography School, plus awards for Carrie Mae Weems, Adrian Piper, Faith Ringgold, and Sharon Farmer ...
From San Marino to Downtown L.A., Leimert Park and Long Beach, Los Angeles-area museums are showcasing the work of emerging, mid-career, and historic Black artists. Among the expansive offerings are Afro-Atlantic Histories, a survey of five centuries of art; a Njideka Akunyili Crosby show organized by Hilton Als; the first U.S. exhibition of Turner...
On April 6, Varnette P. Honeywood’s iconic painting, ‘Birthday,’ will come to the auction block at BLACK ART AUCTION. ‘BIRTHDAY’ WAS PAINTED IN 1974, and the image was seen each week from 1984 to 1992 on the set of The Cosby Show, in the Huxtable family living room, hanging on the wall behind the sofa...
Highlights of February Black art news and announcements include next Venice Architecture Biennale emphasizing African diaspora, Huntington Library hires decorative arts curator, archives of Just Above Midtown gallery and Black Press newspapers being preserved & much more REPRESENTATION | From left, Self portrait by artist Jimmy Robert: JIMMY ROBERT, “Frammenti I,” 2022 (archival...
THIS FALL, Tate Modern’s Turbine Hall will be graced with a new site-specific installation by renowned artist El Anatsui. The London museum announced this morning that the Ghana-born, Nigeria-based sculptor known for his dazzling tapestry-style installations is the next Hyundai Commission artist. The annual presentation provides a unique opportunity for an artist to envision...
Plenty happened in opening weeks of 2023: King sculpture in Boston got unexpected reception, Black artists repping UK and Canada at next Venice Biennale, Winfred Rembert Estate joined mega-gallery Hauser & Wirth, plus Driskell Prize and Gordon Parks Fellows announced, and much more MAGAZINES > | January/February: New issue of Frieze (right) features...
Up to seven artists and two curators will be selected to participate in a paid 10-month, mentorship-driven program in New Haven, Conn. NXTHVN’S ANNUAL OPEN CALL for Studio and Curatorial Fellows is open now through Feb. 27, 2023. Founded by Titus Kaphar and Jason Price in 2018, NXTHVN was designed with a core...
FIVE NEWLY PUBLISHED illustrated art books celebrate an intergenerational slate of Black artists. The volumes include the first monograph of Kenyan-American artist Wangechi Mutu and books dedicated to the work of Ming Smith and Romare Bearden. A collection of found photographs and contemporary Caribbean art are also explored: “Wangechi Mutu (Phaidon Contemporary Artists...
A LONGSTANDING PATRON OF THE ARTS, Dr. Virginia Joy Simmons, has joined the State Board of Directors at the California African American Museum (CAAM) in Los Angeles. Chartered by the State of California in 1977, CAAM is a state-funded museum. Gov. Gavin Newsom appointed Simmons to the non-compensated position on Dec. 22, 2022. “Simmons...
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...
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...
ALONZO DAVIS, King’s Peace Cloth, 1985 (acrylic on woven canvas, 56 x 56 inches). | © Alonzo Davis, Courtesy Alonzo Davis and parrasch heijnen ‘Alonzo Davis: The Blanket Series’ is on view at Parrasch Heijnen gallery in Los Angeles. The artist spoke about the series during oral history interviews with UCLA REV....
FOR HIS FIRST COVER of The New Yorker, South African artist Pola Maneli made a portrait of Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. He remembers the civil rights leader as a family man, depicting him seated and surrounded by his four young children—Yolanda, Martin III, Dexter, and Bernice. Maneli delivers a lovely portrait of the...
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...
THE JANUARY/FEBRUARY issue of Frieze features a cover profile of Henry Taylor authored by Terence Trouillot, a senior editor of the contemporary art magazine. The writer first met Taylor, hung out with the artist, and was introduced to his work a decade ago when “Henry Taylor” (2012), his first institutional exhibition in New York,...
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...
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...
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...
The Best Black Art Books of 2022 explore the work of El Anatsui, Firelei Báez, Richard Hunt, Marilyn Nance, Henry Taylor, Black potters, Haitian artists, and more TWO NEW BOOKS harken back nearly 50 years exploring profound moments in Black art history. Published on the occasion of a major exhibition at the Museum of...
New York: 5 Gallery Exhibitions Explore Works by Lina Iris Viktor, Tyler Mitchell, Todd Gray, Saya Woolfalk, Glenn Ligon and Julius Eastman
Mar 15, 2025
On View: Striking Portraits by South African Photographer Zanele Muholi at SCAD Museum of Art in Savannah, Georgia
Mar 13, 2025
On View: ‘Witnessing Humanity: The Art of John Wilson’ at MFA Boston is Largest-Ever Exhibition of the Artist and Educator
Mar 11, 2025
Homeworthy Art: Collectors in Atlanta, New York, and London Recently Gave Tours of Their Homes, Showcasing Meaningful and Accessible Artworks Acquired Over Time
Mar 9, 2025
Mickalene Thomas Designed a Custom Race Car Wrap for DART Car, a Female-Led Pro Motorsports Team
Mar 2, 2025
