Across the country, and particularly in New York, a series of exhibitions is drawing further attention to immensely talented Black artists and designers this month. Admittedly, numerous other shows of the same caliber closed just before the start of February (as was the case with gallery exhibitions on Theaster Gates, Martin Puryear, Benny Andrews, and Frederick Weston). Others still are on the horizon. (Think spring shows at the Whitney on Dawoud Bey and Julie Mehretu, as well as the renewed access to Mehretu’s monumental painting Howl that will become available once SFMOMA reopens.) Below, we highlight six exhibitions that have caught our eye, all of which are focused on architecture or fine art. That said, other shows that merit a visit during Black History Month undoubtedly abound.
“Reconstructions: Architecture and Blackness in America” at the Museum of Modern Art
Currently on view at MoMA in Midtown Manhattan, “Reconstructions: Architecture and Blackness in America” is a sharply illuminating exhibition presented by the museum’s architecture and design department. The show, which pulls back the curtain on just profoundly race has affected our built environment, goes far beyond relatively well-known policies such as redlining. Instead, 10 new commissions by some of the brightest design minds are presented as inspiring alternatives. Each proposal, from the likes of Emanuel Admassu and J. Yolande Daniels, trains its focus on a different U.S. city.
On view February 20–May 31, 2021
“David Driskell: Icons of Nature and History” at the High Museum of Art
If David Driskell isn’t a name you know, it’s certainly one you ought to become familiar with. A leading art historian and scholar of Black artists who passed away last year, Driskell received 10 honorary doctorates and published seven books throughout his career. Add to that curriculum vitae the additional works he coauthored, the chapters he penned, and the whopping 40 museum catalogues he published and it’s clear that Driskell was nothing if not prolific. But a new show at the High Museum of Art in Atlanta, titled “David Driskell: Icons of Nature and History,” doesn’t even get into all that. Instead, it focuses on the works Driskell created as an artist—principally colorful and abstract figural paintings.
On view February 9—May 9, 2021
“Working Together” at the Whitney Museum of American Art
In 1963 a group of Black photographers founded the Kamoinge Workshop in New York City. Flash forward to today, and more that 140 photos produced by 14 of its members are on view at the Whitney Museum of American Art. Taken collectively, they’re an enduring testament to what it means to function as a community of artists. Fittingly, kamoinge means “a group of people acting together” in the language of the Kikuyu people of Kenya.
On view through March 28, 2021
“Reggie Burrows Hodges” at Karma Gallery
The people-oriented paintings of Reggie Burrows Hodges possess the ability to draw in even the casual bystander. Now, thanks to an exhibition at Karma, Manhattanites will have the opportunity to see this artist’s works up close. For his New York debut, Hodges presents a series of canvases that are as rich in color as they are in substance.
On view through February 28, 2021
“Gordon Parks: Half and the Whole” at Jack Shainman Gallery
Put together in part thanks to the Gordon Parks Foundation, “Gordon Parks: Half and the Whole” spans Jack Shainman’s two gallery locations. The exhibition, which is currently on view, unfurls many of the photographer’s greatest works, including ones from his Invisible Man and Segregation Story series. For those looking to visit with a more literary-minded viewer, an accompanying essay written by Jelani Cobb is a notable highlight. In the piece, the New Yorker writer observes, “There is nothing in Parks’s body of work that includes the phrase ‘Black Lives Matter,’ but it didn’t need to. He’d already shown that they do, minute after minute, across the void from his time to our own.”
On view through February 20, 2021
“This Longing Vessel” at MoMA PS1
While the Studio Museum Harlem may be closed as it prepares for the opening of its new building, the institution is still working to organize exhibitions. One chief example is “This Longing Vessel.” The show, which is part of an ongoing partnership with MoMA PS1, highlights the works of three artists who participated in the second year of an annual residency. Undoubtedly, E. Jane, Naudline Pierre, and Elliot Reed are names to know and stars on the rise.
On view through March 14, 2021
