Figuring History: Robert Colescott, Kerry James Marshall, Mickalene Thomas
Seattle Art Museum
February 15 – May 13, 2018
SEATTLE ART MUSEUM - SAM
1300 First Avenue, Seattle, WA 98101
seattleartmuseum.org
Seattle Art Museum
February 15 – May 13, 2018
MICKALENE THOMAS
Tamika sur une chaise longue avec Monet, 2012
Rhinestones, acrylic, oil, and enamel on wood panel, 108 x 144 x 2 in.
Sydney & Walda Besthoff, Courtesy of the artist and Lehmann Maupin, New York and Hong Kong
© Mickalene Thomas
The Seattle Art Museum presents Figuring History: Robert Colescott, Kerry James Marshall, Mickalene Thomas, bringing together for the first time three leading American artists from three different generations whose work challenges a Western painting tradition that historically erases or misrepresents people of color. While each artist’s paintings are distinctive in style, subject matter, and the historic moments they reference, collectively they critique and redefine mainstream narratives of history and representation. At the heart of these artists’ portrayals are material and cultural histories centered on Black experiences and perspectives.
Organized by the Seattle Art Museum, the exhibition comprises 25 large-scale paintings on loan from institutions and collections across the country. It features a work from SAM’s collection—the recently acquired Les Demoiselles d'Alabama: Vestidas (1985) by Robert Colescott—as well as three paintings made by Mickalene Thomas specifically for the exhibition. She also presents a staged “living room” installation that visitors can interact with and sit in.
SEATTLE ART MUSEUM - SAM
1300 First Avenue, Seattle, WA 98101
seattleartmuseum.org
