image right - Njideka Akunyili Crosby. "Home: As You See Me," 2017. Courtesy the Artist and Victoria Miro, London. Photo by Brian Forrest. © Njideka Akunyili Crosby. A brand new suite of paintings by the artist is now on view at the Baltimore Museum of Art.

 

Experience the aRTS this Winter Season While the weather outside is frightful - visit a museum! Exhibitions + events to warm your heart.....

 

DC + MD + VA

Pickett's Charge, Smithsonian Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden

This is BIG!!! Just in from his Venice Biennale show, Mark Bradford was in Washington, D.C., Nov. 7th to open Pickett's Charge at the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden. His first solo exhibition in D.C., and his largest indoor work, the artist unveiled eight powerful, abstract paintings, each more than forty-five feet long. The works are inspired by a nineteenth-century painting by Paul Philippoteaux, depicting the final charge of the Battle of Gettysburg. Working with a combination of colored paper and reproductions of the original work, Bradford collaged and transformed the historic Gettysburg imagery. Together, the paintings encircle the entire Third Level in a 360-degree panoramic experience. The resulting work weaves past and present, illusion and abstraction, inviting viewers to reconsider how narratives about American history are shaped and contested. Now on view through NOV 2018. Tour with Hirshhorn curator Evelyn Hankins and Gettysburg National Military Park curator, Greg Goodell, MAR 16, 12:30PM.

 

(left) Mark Bradford speaks during the media preview at the Hirshhorn on Nov. 7, 2017. Photo by Janel St. John.

(below) Mark Bradford, Pickett's Charge: (The Thunderous Cannonage) detail. 2016-2017. Mixed media. Courtesy of the artist and Hauser & Wirth. Photo by Joshua White

 

Mary Lovelace O’Neal, Racism is Like Rain, Either it’s Raining or it’s Gathering Somewhere, 1993; Acrylic and mixed media on canvas, 86 x 138 in.; Mott-Warsh Collection, Flint, Michigan; © Mary Lovelace O’Neal; Photo courtesy of the Mott-Warsh Collection, Flint, Michigan

Magnetic Fields: Expanding American Abstraction, 1960s to Today, National Museum of Women in the Arts

The Black Abstract is finally getting its’ due! Billed as the first U.S. exhibition dedicated exclusively to abstract works by black women artists, Magnetic Fields is a landmark show. The collection of abstract paintings, sculptures and works on paper, features 21 black women artists, and sets a standard for their inclusion and continued contribution to the history and iconography of abstraction in the United States.

From the brilliant colors and energetic brushwork of Alma Woodsey Thomas’s paintings to shredded tire sculptures by Chakaia Booker, the works featured testify to the enduring ability of abstraction to convey both personal and universal themes.

On view thru JAN 21, 2018.

JAN 7th - Admission is free the first Sunday of each month.

 

 

National Museum of African American History and Culture

January 2018 Events in the Oprah Winfrey Theater

Cinema + Conversation: An Affinity for Technique. Screening and talk with director Kevin Jerome Everson - JAN 11, 7PM. FREE. Get tickets.

 

"King: A Filmed Record... Montgomery to Memphis" a special documentary film screening in celebration of Martin Luther King, Jr. Day - JAN 15, 2018, 2PM. FREE. Get tickets.

Freedom: Emancipation Quilted & Stitched, Reginald F. Lewis Museum

An exhibition of documentary-style story quilts that celebrate the contributions, lives and legacies of people of color in Maryland. Created by fabric artist, Joan M.E. Gaither, Ph.D., several of the works are community collaborations. On view thru FEB 28, 2018

 

Catch Maryland Collects: Jacob Lawrence thru JAN 7, 2018.

 

Documentary Film Screening and Discussion, Reginald F. Lewis Museum

Award-winning filmmaker Tracy Heather Strain explores the life and work of passionate writer and civil-rights advocate, Lorraine Hansberry in her new documentary. On March 11, 1959, Hansberry’s “A Raisin in the Sun” opened on Broadway and changed the face of American theater forever. It was a first for African-American female playwright! Hansberry’s play remains a beloved theatrical jewel, but the fascinating story of her life is not widely known.

Narrated by award-winning actress LaTanya Richardson Jackson and featuring the voice of Tony Award-winning actress Anika Noni Rose as Hansberry, the film follows the writer’s life from growing up in the segregated Chicago in the 1930s, to her work as a radical journalist in Harlem in the 1950s - which brought her to the attention of J. Edgar Hoover’s FBI - to the moment when she directly confronted Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy.

Post-discussion with Strain. JAN 13, 2018, 3 PM. RSVP.

Author Talk with Michael W. Twitty, Reginald F. Lewis Museum

 

 Cooking Gene with Michael Twitty
Saturday, JAN 27, 2018, 1 PM


 Discover the cooking legacy and ancestral roots of African American cuisine with food historian Michael Twitty, author of "The Cooking Gene: A Journey Through African American Culinary History in the Old South." This illuminating memoir of Southern cuisine and food culture traces his ancestry through food, from Africa to America and slavery to freedom. A food sampling of African American cookery and book signing will follow.

Included with Museum Admission. RSVP.

 

Get Book

 

 

Njideka Akunyili Crosby. Dwell: Aso Ebi. 2017. © Njideka Akunyili Crosby. Courtesy the artist and Victoria Miro, London. Photo by Brian Forrest.

 

Front Room: Njideka Akunyili Crosby l Counterparts, Baltimore Museum of Art

In one of the most anticipated shows of the year, LA-based artist and 2017 MacArthur ‘Genius’ Award winner, Njideka Akunyili Crosby debuts a suite of new paintings inspired by her life. Now on view at The Baltimore Museum of Art, Front Room includes six visually stunning, almost life-sized, mixed-media works.

With layers of paint, fabric, and photographic transfers, the artist has created a monumental, story board drawn from her life experience of moving from Nigeria to the United States, maintaining ties to her family in Nigeria, and building relationships in America. The layers serve as a metaphor for the complex merging of relationships and cultural backgrounds.

“Akunyili Crosby’s technical virtuosity, as well as her deeply considered observations of art and life, make her paintings an extraordinary testament to the dynamic and generative outcomes of cultural confluence,” said BMA Senior Curator of Contemporary Art Kristen Hileman.

The works include three mirrored pairs of paintings. One juxtaposes a Nigerian interior with Akunyili Crosby’s LA home; another, a Nigerian table setting is matched against an American.

On view thru MARCH 18, 2018.

 

Also at the Baltimore Museum

Elizabeth Catlett. My right is a future of equality with other Americans. 1946–47. From the series The Negro Woman. The Baltimore Museum of Art: Purchased as the gift of Jeffrey A. Legum, Baltimore, BMA 2013.5. Art © Catlett Mora Family Trust/Licensed by VAGA, New York, NY

 

Tomás Saraceno. Many suns and worlds. 2016. Solo exhibition at The Vanhaerents Art Collection. Courtesy the artist; Tanya Bonakdar Gallery, NY; Andersen's Contemporary, Copenhagen; Pinksummer contemporary art, Genoa; Esther Schipper, Berlin. © Photo by The Vanhaerents Art Collection, 2017

Crossing Borders: Mexican Modernist Prints

BMA's first exhibition of works by Mexican modernist artists from the BMA collection.The show features 30 prints and drawings created in the 1930s and 1940s.

Tomás Saraceno: Entangled Orbits

Fascinating sculptural works by the internationally acclaimed Argentinian artist and architect, Tomás Saraceno.

Spiral Play: Loving in the ‘80s

Twelve exuberant collages by the late African American artist Al Loving

 

>> BMA current exhibitions

Works by Kara Walker & Hank Willis Thomas now on view in the Black Box Gallery.
 

VA

 

Terracotta Army: Legacy of the First Emperor of China, Virginia Museum of Fine Arts

Ten life-size terracotta figures, including warriors and a cavalry horse, that protected the tomb of China’s First Emperor are now on view at VMFA! The exhibition showcases more than 130 works of art - including more than 40 objects that have never been shown before in the US - drawn from the collections of 14 art museums and archaeological institutes across the Shaanxi province in China. The show tells the story of how the Qin state developed into an empire under Ying Zheng (259-210 BC), who unified China and declared himself Qin Shihuang, or the First Emperor of Qin.

The exhibition features arms and armor, horse and chariot fittings, ritual bronze vessels, works in gold and silver, jade ornaments, precious jewelry, ceramics, and architectural components that were excavated from the Emperor Qin Shihuang’s mausoleum, as well as aristocratic, commoner, and nomadic tombs. The terracotta figures are among the estimated 8,000 life-size sculptures of warriors, chariots, and horses that were discovered in 1974 by local farmers in China. On view thru March 11, 2018.

Also at VMFA: Like a Study in Black History: P. H. Polk, Chester Higgins and The Black Photographers Annual, Volume 2

In the second volume of The Black Photographers Annual, editor & publisher Joe Crawford included an interview with P. H. Polk (1898–1984), the official photographer at Tuskegee University for nearly 50 years. Accompanied by a portfolio of Polk’s photographs, the entry began with this quote: “A number of students at Tuskegee Institute in Alabama told The Black Photographers Annual that looking at the works of P. H. Polk was like a study in Black history.” Chester Higgins, a student at Tuskegee, introduced Polk’s work to the Annual.

This exhibition is the second of four rotations that explore each volume of The Annual, published 1973 - 1980. Polk’s photographs are paired with some early work of Higgins, who became staff photographer for the New York Times. Their images illustrate the Annual’s commitment to publish the works of contemporary photographers while preserving the work of previous generations. On view thru APR 15, 2018. P. H. Polk (Portfolio Title) 1932, printed 1981, P.H. Polk (1898 – 19854), gelatin silver printed on AGFA paper. Adolph D. and Wilkins C. Williams Fund

Curator Talk with Dr. Sarah Eckhardt, Associate Curator of Modern and Contemporary Art
TUE, FEB 6, 11-11:30AM & Thu, FEB 8, 6:30-7PM
Meet at Visitor Services Desk. Event.

 

Artist Talk: Chester Higgins
FRI FEB 16, 2018, 6:30PM
Leslie Cheek Theater Event.

 

 

.............NYC

Toyin Ojih Odutola: To Wander Determined, Whitney Museum

Another highly anticipated show, artist Toyin Ojih Odutola, in her first solo museum exhibition in New York, presents a series of fictional portraits, chronicling the lives of two aristocratic Nigerian families. Rendered life-size in charcoal, pastel, and pencil, Ojih Odutola presents a significant new body of work with characters set against the luxurious backdrops of home and leisure.

Ojih Odutola is known for her intimate drawings that explore the complexity of identity. The works are informed by the artist’s own array of inspirations, which range from art history to popular culture to experiences of migration and dislocation. Highly attentive to detail and the nuances of space, class, and color - whether of palette or skin - Ojih Odutola continues her examinations of narrative, authenticity, and representation.

On view at the Whitney Museum of American Art thru FEB 25, 2018.

 


 

Ai Weiwei: Good Fences Make Good Neighbors, NYC

World renowned artist and human rights activist, Ai Weiwei presents his largest and most ambitious public art exhibition.

Inspired by the international migration crisis and current global geopolitical landscape, the exhibition transforms the security fence into a powerful social and artistic symbol at more that 300 sites across New York City.

Thru FEB 11, 2018

Toyin Ojih Odutola, Years Later - Her Scarf, 2017. Charcoal, pastel and pencil on paper, 72 x 42 in. ©Toyin Ojih Odutola.

 

If you hurry, you can still catch Ai Weiwei's exhibition TRACE at the Hirshhorn Museum in Washington DC!

Thru JAN 1, 2018

Also at the Whitney

An Incomplete History of Protest: Selections from the Whitney’s Collection, 1940–2017 

An ongoing exhibition from the Whitney collection, this show explores how artists from the 1940s to the present have confronted the political and social issues of their day. Whether making art as a form of activism, criticism, instruction, or inspiration, the featured artists see their work as essential to challenging established thought and creating a more equitable culture.

 

Annette Lemieux (b. 1957), Black Mass, 1991. Latex, rhoplex, gesso, and oil on canvas, 95 13/16 × 105 × 1 13/16 in. Whitney Museum of American Art, New York; promised gift of Emily Fisher Landau P.2010.173. © Annette Lemieux

 


 

OHIO

Heritage: Wadsworth and Jae Jarrell, Cleveland Museum of Art

 

The Cleveland Museum of Art recently acquired Wadsworth Jarrell’s Heritage  - a 1973 painting of great significance - and they wanted to show it off!

Heritage: Wadsworth and Jae Jarrell examines the work and enduring legacy of multidisciplinary artists Wadsworth, and Jae Jarrell. Featuring 15 works from the mid-1960s to the present, the exhibition is a stunning array of colorful paintings, sculptures and textiles. The Jarrells’ work engages music, the family, and many cultures from the African continent as cornerstones of pride and communal identity. Taking the form of an intimate dialogue between husband and wife, the exhibition celebrates these two Cleveland-based artists and illustrates the couple’s keen ability to incite change by focusing on heritage.

As AfriCOBRA artists, Wadsworth and Jarrell were central to the Black Arts Movement in America. Beginning in the mid-1960s, the movement celebrated a culturally-specific expression of the African American community in literature, theater, dance and the visual arts. Formed in 1968, The African Commune of Bad Relevant Artists (AfriCOBRA) met regularly on the South Side of Chicago at the home and studio of Wadsworth and Jarrell. The visual aesthetic of works by members, focused on Black American social, political, and economical conditions. On view thru FEB 25, 2018.

 

Heritage, 1973. Wadsworth Jarrell (American, b. 1929). Acrylic, metal foil, cotton canvas; 120.7 x 76.2 cm. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Severance and Greta Millikin Purchase Fund, 2016.268. © Wadsworth Jarrell

 

 

..............>> Coming in 2018... Yayoi Kusama: Infinity Mirrors

 

The Kinsey African American Art & History Collection, National Underground Railroad Freedom Center, Cincinnati

Bernard and Shirley Kinsey’s award-winning African American art collection is now on view at the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center. Graduates of Florida A&M University, the Kinseys began collecting items of historical and cultural significance as a way to remember their travels. Their finds soon became a repository for African American intellectual, historical and artistic works.

Among the more than 100 items are bills of sale, advertisements, letters and legal papers documenting the slave trade, hand-colored tintypes from the Civil War era, correspondence between Malcolm X and Alex Haley and items spotlighting key moments in the civil rights movement, including the Woolworth store boycotts and the 1963 March on Washington. A history of African American art is charted through works by numerous celebrated artists, including Romare Bearden, Elizabeth Catlett, Aaron Douglas, Sam Gilliam, Palmer Hayden, Richard Hunt, Lois Mailou Jones, Artis Lane, Richard Mayhew, James Porter and Henry O. Tanner. Thru MARCH 3, 2018.

It’s been over 40-years of marriage and 40-years of collecting for The Kinseys. Their collection has been exhibited at the Smithsonian National Museum of American History, the California African American Museum, The DuSable Museum of African American History, The Norton Museum of Art and The Mary Brogan Museum of Art and Science.

 

The Cultivators, 2000, Samuel L. Dunson, Jr., Oil on canvas, 38 1⁄2 x 26 1⁄2 in.

 

 

 

...>GA + NC + SC

 

Jacob Lawrence: Lines of Influence, Savannah College of Art and Design Museum

Spanning three galleries, this group exhibition celebrates the centennial of Jacob Lawrence’s birth and presents the artist’s work in context with related artists. “Relations,” focuses on artists such as Josef Albers, Romare Bearden, Stuart Davis, Gwendolyn Knight Lawrence, Horace Pippin, Diego Rivera, and Augusta Savage, who inspired Lawrence’s practice. “Legacy” centers on contemporary artists including Derrick Adams, Meleko Mokgosi, Faith Ringgold, Njideka Akunyili Crosby, and Kara Walker, who are influenced by the legendary storyteller and painter.

Co-presented by the SCAD Museum of Art and the Jacob and Gwendolyn Knight Lawrence Foundation. Thru FEB 4, 2018.

 

Inspiring Beauty: 50 Years of Ebony Fashion Fair, NC Museum of Art

The remarkable story of an extraordinary fashion show is now on view at the North Carolina Museum of Art. The exhibition
explores the 50-year history of the Ebony Fashion Fair (1958–2009), an unparalleled charity fashion show event that
redefined the concepts of beauty, fashion, and empowerment for African Americans. It features 40 stunning ensembles by designers such as Stephen Burrows, Pierre Cardin, Christian Dior, Givenchy, Yves Saint Laurent, Alexander McQueen and b. Michael. Also includes archival photographs and memorabilia from Ebony magazine and Ebony Fashion Fair. Thru JAN 21, 2018

Renée Cox: Soul Culture, Columbia Museum of Art

The Columbia Museum of Art presents a new series of works from pioneering photographer Renée Cox. In this mesmerizing exhibition of video and mixed-media collage, Cox aims to inspire transcendence and provide a space where people of color know no limits. Cox continues to deconstruct issues of race and gender using the body as central image while promoting empowerment.. She transformed photographic portraits into hypnotic video and mandala-like reliefs that are influenced by Hindu and Buddhist religious art, the visual escapism of 1960s psychedelia, the use of fractals in African culture, and a sacred geometry grounded in spiritual wholeness. Thru APRIL 22, 2018.

 

(images l-r) Jacob Lawrence, "The Card Game," tempera on board, 19" x 23½", 1953. Gift of Dr. Walter O. and Mrs. Linda J. Evans. SCAD Museum of Art Permanent Collection. © 2017 Jacob and Gwendolyn Knight Lawrence Foundation, Seattle/Artists Rights Society, New York. Fabrice, Cocktail Dress and Men's Coordinating Dress Shirt. The Ajak Web Cycle by Renée Cox.

 

 

Chakaia Booker + Matrix inspired Fashion

 

 

Adam Pendleton + Shantell Martin - Designing in black & white

   
   

Esperanza Spalding Selects

 

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