Atlanta, GA — Hammonds House Museum’s Exhibiting Culture: Highlights from the Hammonds House Museum Collection features artwork from some of the world’s premiere African American artists and will be on view through January 30, 2022. Guests of all ages are learning about and exploring the art in the ambiance of this beautiful 1857 Victorian home. Not only are visitors interested to see so many diverse images and styles of artwork from abstract and traditional to contemporary, but they are delighted to see a lot of art created by women.
“When I was selecting works for this exhibition, I knew that I wanted to include some of the phenomenal artworks by women in our collection,” said Karen Comer Lowe, Hammonds House Museum’s Executive Director and Chief Curator. “For so long women have been underrepresented in museums, particularly women of color. As more women become curators and are moving into more leadership positions at museums, there is opportunity for us all to do better.”
Here are some of the women whose artwork is featured in Exhibiting Culture. Come see their work and art by other women artists when you come to the museum. To plan your visit, go to: hammondshouse.org.
Elizabeth Catlett produced an unparalleled body of politically charged and aesthetically compelling graphic art and sculptures. Also, her impact as an educator was considered transformative, not only because of her teaching methods, but for her determination to have students visit museums during a time when African Americans were not allowed. She lived in the US and Mexico and dedicated herself to making art primarily for African American and Mexican audiences, determined to give voice to the enduring dignity, strength, and achievements of black women and other oppressed peoples.
Lynn Marshall Linnemeier has been documenting the American South since 1989 and works both figuratively and abstractly. She researches and collages photography, painting, and writing, with primary source documents from diaries and letters, which she incorporates into image-based mixed-media quilts, 2-D and 3-D sculptures, and mixed media works. Her vibrant paintings are inspired by African American and indigenous cultural traditions as well as stories from people she meets during her travels.
Self-taught folk artist Nellie Mae Rowe spent her entire life in rural areas near Atlanta, GA. Though she enjoyed drawing from a young age, she came to art late in life, after the death of her second husband. During the last fifteen years of her life Rowe lived in Vinings, GA, and welcomed visitors to her “Playhouse,” which she decorated with found-object installations, handmade dolls, chewing-gum sculptures, and hundreds of drawings. She drew symbolic motifs from a personal mythology that reflected her rich imagination, Christian faith, and African American spiritual and narrative traditions. Rowe’s work often included animals, human figures, plants, and decorative patterns.
Originally trained as a painter, Renée Stout moved to Washington, D.C. in 1985 and began to explore the spiritual roots of her African American heritage through her work and eventually became the first American artist to exhibit in the Smithsonian’s National Museum of African Art. Inspired by the African Diaspora, as well as everyday life and current events, she employs a variety of media, including painting, drawing, mixed media sculpture, photography, and installation to create works that encourage self-examination, introspection, and the ability to laugh at the absurdities of life.
Mildred Thompson’s work spanned over four decades and multiple genres of fine arts. During her career she also made significant contributions to the fields of creative writing and journalism, filmmaking, music, digital media, and was a devoted educator. In the 1970s Thompson exclusively champion the language of abstraction. Her practice transcended trends and narratives about her generation, race, and gender. She defied norms and refused to be categorized. Thompson created a visual language inspired by systems of science and music.
She sought to visualize elements and experiences invisible to the naked eye, with an affinity for the subjects of time, space and sound.
Hammonds House Museum is generously supported by the Fulton County Board of Commissioners through Fulton County Arts and Culture, the City of Atlanta Mayor’s Office of Cultural Affairs, The Community Foundation for Greater Atlanta, The National Performance Network, AT&T and WarnerMedia.
Hammonds House Museum’s mission is to celebrate and share the cultural diversity and important legacy of artists of African descent. The museum is the former residence of the late Dr. Otis Thrash Hammonds, a prominent Atlanta physician and passionate arts patron. A 501(c)3 organization, the museum offers rotating exhibitions, artist talks, exhibition tours, arts education programs, family days, virtual programs, and other cultural events throughout the year. Located in a beautiful Victorian home in West End Atlanta, Hammonds House Museum is a cultural treasure and a unique venue. For more information, and to learn how you can support their mission and programming, or become a member, visit their website: hammondshouse.org.
