May Issue 2001
Black Mountain Center for the Arts in Black Mountain, NC, to Present an Exhibition of Works by Gwendolyn Knight
An exhibition of
paintings and prints by Gwendolyn Knight will be shown at the
Black Mountain Center for the Arts in Black Mountain, NC, from
May 4 - 31, 2001.
Born in 1913 in Bridgetown, Barbados, in the West Indies, Knight
has lived most of her adult life in the US and now resides in
Seattle, WA. She first came to Western NC in 1946, when she accompanied
her husband, the late Jacob Lawrence (1917-2000), to a summer
session at Black Mountain College. A well-known painter, he had
been invited to teach by the renowned pioneer of abstract art,
Josef Albers. Lawrence's approach to art was vastly different
than that held by Albers, but he accepted and came to Black Mountain
because he was interested in the progressive approach of the school.
Knight was a figurative painter and did not formally study at Black Mountain, but she did work in sculpture during that summer. By that time, she had already begun studies in dance with the Martha Graham Company teachers in New York, and during the summer at Black Mountain, she contributed to the college by teaching classes in modern dance techniques. Though she no longer dances formally, her love of dance remains apparent through the movement and energy found throughout her paintings. Despite the importance of both dance and music to her life, visual arts have always been her primary interest. Still a committed painter, she continues to work with strong emphasis on the figure and portraiture; she refers to herself as a figurative humanist painter.
Following two years of fine arts study at Howard University in Washington, DC, from 1931-1933, Knight moved to New York City and became immersed in the vibrant and complex artistic life of the Harlem Renaissance. During this time she first made contact with sculptor Augusta Savage, who was to become an important mentor in her life. Savage, the first African-American artist to be inducted into the National Association of Women Painters and Sculptors, befriended Knight, encouraged her, and exhibited her paintings at the Salon of Contemporary Negro Art, the gallery Savage founded in Harlem.
Knight's works have been featured in numerous solo and group exhibitions throughout the United States since the early 1960s, and can be found in many public collections including the Museum of Modern Art, the St. Louis Art Museum, the Seattle Art Museum, and the Minneapolis Institute of Art.
Included in the Black Mountain exhibition will
be 24 paintings and prints, spanning the years 1941-1999, offering
to residents of this region a rare opportunity to view the works
of this vital and remarkable woman.
While visiting Western NC, Knight will be an artist in residence
at Western Carolina University. She will appear at the Y.M.I.
Cultural Center in Asheville, NC, at 12pm on May 1 as part of
their First Tuesday Gathering and will speak with students from
Buncombe Community School on May 3. The May 1 event at Y.M.I.
is open to the public.
To coincide with the Gwendolyn Knight exhibition, the Black Mountain
College Museum & Arts Center will publish the seventh in its
award-winning series of "Dossiers" on artists and writers
associated with the College. This publication includes an essay
written by Asheville poet Glenis Redmond and reproductions of
all works in the exhibition as well as historical photographs
from Black Mountain College.
For further information check our NC Institutional
Gallery listings or call the Black Mountain Center for the Arts
at 828/669-0930 or check out the Black Mountain College Museum
& Arts Center on the web at (http://www.main.nc.us/bmc/).
Mailing Address: Carolina Arts, P.O. Drawer
427, Bonneau, SC 29431
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E-Mail: carolinart@aol.com
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