The Alma Thomas show at the Smart Museum of Art was like sunshine on a cloudy day, to quote the Temptations. Today is the first day of my staycation and I decided that it would be a good time to enjoy an indoor activity, so I decided to check out this show before it ends.
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| The Eclipse |
I appreciate the way that the wall text put her work in the context of her interest in space exploration as well as in nature.
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| White Roses Sing and Sing |
Her interest in music was also highlighted.
In fact, a few of her favorite albums were hung on the wall above an interactive mid-century modern vignette that invites viewers to make compositions of their own with Magna-Tiles.
And, of course, I really like her use of color.
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| Delightful Song by Red Dahlia |
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| Celestial Fantasy |
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| Elysian Fields |
As a Black abstract painter who also created colorful acrylic paintings, Alma Thomas's work is particulary inspiring to me. If you want to see her work in person, go to the Smart Museum by July 5th. It's free!
Here are a couple things I saw in the Smart Museum's other galleries that I also liked:
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| Rose B. Simpson, Heights I |
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| Theaster Gates, African Still Life #3: A Tribute to Patric McCoy and Marva Jolly |
Finally, I can't mention the Smart Museum without also mentioning that I used to work there as a museum guard when I was in college. It was really cool to see that in the Beyond Boundaries retrospective, an exhibition that I guarded back when I first started working there in 1999 was mentioned. I hadn't realized the significance of Transience then, but it was pivotal for exhibiting experimental, contemporary Chinese art in the United States. Going back is always nostalgic because it was one of my favorite places to work, and it was crucial for my development as an artist. It's a hidden gem that I think more people should know about, and as I mentioned before, it's free!
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