Category: Art in Los Angeles
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Artist a Day: Evangeline J Montgomery
In 2017 I dedicated a series of Artist a Day posts to Ruth Waddy, whose influence guided and amplified the careers of Los Angeles artists in the Black Arts Movement of the 1960s and 1970s. Her impact and legacy in documenting Black art is immeasurable and “as a champion for African-American artists, Waddy’s advocacy created a powerful…
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Artist a Day: Fred Eversley
“The genesis of energy is central to the mystery of our existence as animate beings in an inanimate universe.” Fred Eversley Fred Eversley was an electronic engineer who turned curiosity and experimentation into sculptures that capture his fascination with light and energy. His work beautifully merges art and science in a practice that’s defined by…
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Artist a Day: Amoako Boafo
My Artist a Day posts at the beginning of the month centered on the Black Arts movement of the 1960s and 1970s where I focused on some of the artists that will be featured in the Broad’s upcoming Soul of a Nation exhibition. One of the most important themes to come out of that era…
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Artist a Day: Karon Davis
As a spectacle, Frieze didn’t disappoint. Fair organizers commissioned 12 artists to create site specific work on Paramount Studio’s New York backlot in a collaborative undertaking called Frieze Projects. The backlot was definitely the show stopper, and my favorite installation came from Karon Davis who transformed a building facade into a Junior High School in…
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Artist a Day: Frieze Edition
Art fairs are like glorified prom nights for collectors and as such, galleries are the poor chauffeurs, dress makers, and florists that have to cater to whims of giddy, hopeful, attendees– Frieze L.A. was no exception. For those of us who are outside both the blue chip collector class and the P&L engines that drive…
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Artist a Day: Charles White
I was recently in North Carolina and came across a painting by Charles White at the Nasher Museum of Art that had remained in a collector’s private possession since the work was originally sold in 1958. Seeing newly uncovered work is always a thrill, especially as Los Angeles is the latest host for White’s career…
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Artist a Day: Shawn Walker
“Any photographer that’s been out here in the world, you see 2 people in white, you follow them…” Shawn Walker, VMFA 2017. As one of the founding members of Kamoinge, Shawn Walker dedicated his life’s work to black and white photography. He counts Roy DeCarava as one of his strongest influences, and in his 2017…
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Artist a Day: Beuford Smith
Good storytelling, just like a good joke, lives and dies on timing. It comes as no surprise that photographer Beuford Smith knows a thing or two about timing. His black and white photography capturing the streets of New York all bear the same marker of sublime, serendipitous timing. Smith’s photographs are mementos of moments which…
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Artist a Day: Charles Alston
Charles Alston’s extensive artistic career revolved around painting, sculpture, and murals where he created work that beautifully went in unpredictable directions. That was deliberate, and it’s what makes his work and career so fascinating. In a 1968 interview, Alston critiques, quite presciently, the art world’s tendency to place artists in familiar, predictable boxes: “[O]ne of…
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Artist a Day: Emma Amos
In the summer of 1963 a group of Black artists in New York came together to form a collective to address the precarious state of creating art amidst societal upheaval caused by politics, racism, and social unrest. Led by Romare Bearden, Spiral was formed to tackle these philosophical issues, and its initial members included Hale Woodruff, Norman…
Colony Little, Culture Shock Art 