Successions: Prints
by African-American Artists from the Jean and Robert Steele
Collection November 14
- December 17, 2004 Opening Reception
The
exhibition, Successions: Prints by African-American Artists
Fromthe Jean and Robert Steele Collection will open at the North
Carolina Central University Art Museum November 14 and run through
December 17, 2004. The Steeles have one of the most important
collections of African American art in the United States and
it includes works by most of the Like
the New York collectors Vivian and John Hewitt, whose historic
collection of African American art is currently on view at the
Sonja Stone Haynes Center, the Steeles are people of modest
means. He retired as associate dean of the School of Behavioral
and Social Sciences at the University of Maryland, College Park,
and immediately became the director of UM's David C. Driskell
Center; she's a retired executive for Freddie Mac. Their passion
for collecting began with the purchase of a small pastel of
Malcolm X by a now forgotten artist. They soon realized that
even small paintings by artists like Romare Bearden and Elizabeth
Catlett were beyond their reach. In prints, however, they discovered
an affordable alternative that allowed them to build an aesthetically
satisfying collection without breaking the bank. Conscious
of the important role key workshops have played in the development
of printmaking by African American artists, Jean and Robert
Steele have targeted their collecting towards the operations
that have been established by, or cater to, African American
artists. The Steeles are endeavoring to create a systematic
structure to support African American art. Although there exist
a few significant public and private collections of this nature,
the Steeles recognized the need to support black printmakers
and the systems that sustain them in order to ensure the longevity
and vitality of this important medium. Toward that end, the
Steeles have made a particular effort to patronize Robert Blackburn's
Printmaking Workshop, Inc. in New York, NY, Allen Edmunds' Brandywine
Workshop in Philadelphia, PA, and Lou Stovall's Workshop, Inc.
in Washington, DC, all of which were established by African
American artists, but serve a diverse cadre of national and
international printmakers. While these institutions have made
a qualitative impact on the development of American printmaking
in general, they have been integral to opening up this medium
to a critical mass of African American artists, many of whom
are represented in this exhibition.
Sunday, November 14, 2004
2:00-4:00 pm
masters. Elizabeth Catlett, Allan Rohan Crite, Samella Lewis,
BennyAndrews, Hughie Lee-Smith, Lois Mailou Jones, Emma Amos,
Sam Gilliam, Betty Saar, David Driskell as well as Jacob Lawrence,
Romare Bearden andothers are among the forty-five artists featured
in this exhibition.
With a strategic plan, a focused eye and impeccable taste, Jean
and Robert Steele have amassed a remarkable collection of prints
and works on paper by African American artists. This growing
collection is the embodiment of thirty years of learning, collecting
and collaborating with friends, artists, dealers, and art historians
nationwide. More than a hobby, collecting and curating the works
they have assembled is a
way of life for the Steele family. The Steeles have come to
this impressive range of works through the development of and
adherence to a strategy of collecting works not only by African
American artists as individuals, but patronizing the workshops
and galleries that support them. Because of the care with which
the Steeles have followed their plan, the collection provides
a unique glimpse into the world of printmaking as well as the
processes, institutions, relationships and
structures that nourish and sustain it.
The North Carolina Central University Art Museum, located on
Lawson Street across from the Farrison-Newton Communications
Buildings, is open Tuesday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
and Sunday from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. Admission is free. For general
information, call 919-530-6211.