Exhibitions

Amy Sherald is still on view at the Spelman College Museum of Fine Art in Atlanta, GA, United States until May 18, 2019

Amy Sherald immediately rose to international prominence when the National Portrait Gallery unveiled her portrait of First Lady Michelle Obama in February 2018 to critical acclaim. Her first major solo exhibition features a selection of portraits that exemplify her signature style: sitters with fantastical greyscale skin who are painted against a monochromatic background and gaze directly at the viewer. Through these brilliant paintings, Sherald engages in broader dialogues about the complexity and performance of identity and race and the history of art, which has largely omitted Black subjects. Sherald, an alumna of Clark Atlanta University, took her painting classes at Spelman College and later earned an MFA from the Maryland Institute College of Art. As the final stop of this nationally touring exhibition, Amy Sherald will be a homecoming of sorts for the Atlanta University Center.

Hank Willis Thomas: Donnez Votre Main is still on view at Maruani Mercier Gallery in Brussels, Belgium until June 4, 2019

Well-known for his interest in the framing and context of history and perspective, this new body of work marks a progression in Thomas’ critique of the construction of identity, power, and popular culture in the western imagination. As an expression of consciousness and the perception of reality, Surrealism and Abstraction become vehicles of liberation and possibility. Using these movements as a jumping off point both aesthetically and conceptually, this exhibition focuses on the relationships drawn between art history, the history of Belgium, colonialism and the history of the Congo. Through a variety of mediums, Thomas presents a visual timeline as a way to draw new connections between the history of art and conquest, and the subversion of colonialism. He also reveals how power relations, the struggle for independence, and the establishment of trade and popular culture have been constructed by and large in the western imagination.

Tyler Mitchell: I Can Make You Feel Good is still on view at Foam Fotografiemuseum in Amsterdam, Netherlands until June 5, 2019

Foam is premiering two of Tyler Mitchell’s video works: Idyllic Space and Chasing Pink, Found Red alongside a selection of images from the artist’s personal and commissioned work. Mitchell’s work visualises a black utopia. Making use of candy colour palettes and natural light, Mitchell captures young black people in gardens, parks or in front of idyllic studio backdrops where they appear as free, expressive, effortless, sensitive and proud. He produces holistic imagery of individuals from his community and brings their humanity to the forefront. In 2018, Mitchell wrote history with his photographs of Beyoncé gracing the cover of two different editions of American Vogue’s ‘September Issue’. Only 23 at the time, he became the first black photographer to make the cover in the 126-year existence of the prominent magazine.

Biennials

13th Havana Biennial will take place in Havana, Cuba from April 12 until May 12, 2019

Under the general theme of “Construction of the Possible”, this edition of the Havana Biennial represents a space for those types of contemporary art that understand creation as “living event or experience in progress”. The representatives of the National Council of Plastic Arts and the Contemporary Art Center Wifredo Lam – both institutions of the Ministry of Culture insisted on their goal that art “invade the city” during the event, which is held in the 500-year anniversary of Havana. With more than 200 creators from nearly 20 countries, the event aims to encourage interaction between artists, curators, experts, and institutions. The biennial is extended for the first time outside of Havana to reach other provinces such as Matanzas, Cienfuegos, Sancti Spíritus, and Camagüey.

Art Fairs

1-54 New York is opened at Industria in Manhattan, New York, United States from May 2-5, 2019

With editions in London, New York and Marrakech, 1-54 is an international art fair, initiated by Touria El Glaoui in 2013 is dedicated to contemporary art from Africa and its diaspora. Drawing reference to the 54 countries that constitute the African continent, 1-54 is a sustainable and dynamic platform that is engaged in contemporary dialogue and exchange. This year marks the fair’s fifth anniversary in New York, and celebrates the fair’s move to a new Manhattan venue. The 2019 New York edition of 1-54 will welcome 24 galleries from Belgium, Côte d’Ivoire, Egypt, Ethiopia, France, Ghana, Kenya, Martinique, Morocco, Nigeria, Portugal, Senegal, South Africa, Turkey, the United Kingdom and the United States, collectively exhibiting the work of more than 70 artists. For the fifth consecutive year, 1-54 New York will be accompanied by 1-54 FORUM, the fair’s acclaimed series of talks and events.